I had the Remus on my R55s and was really happy with it.The tips are goood looking., Not overly loud but NO drone. They have one for the R57 but it is a special order at around $600. Good quality stuff but going to try resontator delete first.

 

Way - I have done the first two mods and I must say that you are dead on - the DDM intake provides the extra quickness and awesome growl, and the inserts make shifting as smooth as silk. Now I have to work up the courage to tackle the sway bar, as i am not much of a mechanic. The first two mods were incredibly easy. Thanks for this awesome advice.

 

euells, check this out. The rear sway bar is nothing to be intimidated about. One tip is to only remove one of the subframe bolts, loosen the other one about 1/2" and you should be able to get the sway bar out. I would expect that the job will take you no more than 2 hours. If there is some rust on the sway bar end link bolt (around the nut), remove that before loosening the nut, and use some penetrating oil (or WD 40)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-MSDouu4ak

Have fun.

 

Thanks for the link - I think I could pull this off. Now to select the bar.....

 

Not that I am trying to sway (no pun intended) your opinion, but the H-Sport 19mm from Way Motor Works is what I put on mine, and I love it.
http://www.waymotorworks.com/h-sport...-bar-19mm.html
That is the one that I installed, and it is a very nice RSB. But my MINI is mainly street with the occasional AutoX or track use. If you are planning heavy track use you might want to look at something bigger.

Just my thoughts.
Matt

 

Matt, That is my situation as well - with even less track use. I just want to drive the curvy backroads of the Virginias and Carolinas. I have sent Way a note asking his opinion - since he has not steered me wrong so far. Thanks for the input - I like to research and talk to real users before purchasing mods so it helps a lot.

 

I have seen most guys reccomend the 19mm for street and larger for competition. The nice thing about all of the aftermarket bars is that they are adjustable. There are multiple holes at the suspension attachment points that affect the leverage, and therefore the effective thickness of the bar. Also pay attention to the bushings, some guys have had squeaking problems, but it doesn't seem to be real common on a MINI.

I bought an H&R bar on sale at Outmotoring. It measured 18 mm (advertised as 19 mm). Initially (no other suspension changes), it felt like I wanted a stiffer bar. Now that I changed the springs and put aftermarket rear control arms on, the bar is just about right (maybe slightly too stiff). Again, it is nice to have adjustment.

I would follow Way's advice without hesitating. I bet he will reccomend a 19mm, and you will be very happy.

Enjoy.

Mike

 

Thanks Mike !

 

Well I chickened out and had Way install it at MOTD. Man does my mini hang a turn now. Huge difference. Thanks Way!

 

Does a ddm cai void my warranty?

 

Ordered the Ddm cai, and will be getting the torque mount bushing in the next few weeks. Then sway bar and looking into exhaust. Can't find much for the standard cooper exhaust wise. Any recommendations?

Then spring time I will be on the hunt for wheels. Love being able to mod a ride again!

 

jpkramer - not sure if a CAI voids a warranty. I had mine in a dealership twice under warranty (once for an oil change and the other time to replace the head unit) and no one mentioned it. I think it may also depend on how 'mod friendly' the dealership is.

Derek - exhausts for our cars are hard to come by. Milltek, Remus and VIP all produce one. VIP comes in the cheapest at around $500 and Milltek can run over a grand. Remus is right in the middle. I'm still weighing my mod budget.

 

thanks Albie... I just ordered the torque mount, and will be doing the sway bar next week as well.

Gotta start to budget for wheels and tires too!

 

You're gonna like that sway bar. My torque arm inserts are sitting in my boot now. A MINI tech is coming on Sunday to replace my water pump - while it's up on the lift, I'm gonna try the torque arm myself. It looks kinda straight forward so we'll see...

 

A Mini mechanic is coming to you? Do you have a full shop setup in your garage or something and you get to have an expert stand by you while you tinker around? Wow, what warranty program did you get?

 

Well, I'm out of warranty so I don't get much done at the dealership any more. But it does pay to have friends there.

My dad has the lift and all the tools I could ever want - I'm pretty psyched to get under there myself to do the torque arm inserts on Sat.

 

Wow. That sounds great. I see you're in NY like me. But I'm in Westchester. If we were close, I would offer to pay you to have access to those resources.

 

Got my DDM installed today.

Wow. Seems to have quite a bit more oomph off the bottom, and the sound is incredible. Actually sounds mean!

Totally worth the 20 minute install, and the cost of the kit! This weekend we are doing the Torque mount bushing!

 

After having and loving my aFe intake and Borla exhaust as far as power mods go, I'm getting a dyno tune on Saturday. I will update this thread with my impressions.

 

Which tune are you getting?

 

I am getting a Jan/RMW tune. Some of the Puget Sound MINI Club guys organized an event and I was fortunate enough to get a heads up about it. It's about three hours drive from here, I couldn't pass it up

 

You should look into his shorty header and different cams....really changes the car!

I only opted for the header...all the budget is currently in the R58 for now.

Sucker kicks at 3,500 till redline!

 

I definitely thought about the header/cam... it's a lot to invest though, and I've been toying with the idea of trading in the Cooper for a RWD more GT-friendly car, so I didn't want to mess around under the hood too much in case I do want to sell it.

I figure a tune is a good way to "test the waters" and if I fall in love with the car over again with the tune I'll consider going down to SoCal and having the whole works done.

I just noticed I'm in the wrong section, didn't realize this was a 2nd gen thread! The dangers of just using the "New Posts" feature!

 

Thanks for coming back to post the results. Granted you have an R50, but options/results from a tune for any Straight Cooper seem hard to come by. Looking forward to it!

 

Those of us crazy enough to chase power on the NA Coopers are certainly a rare breed.