My completely stock '02 MC Premium/Sport Package/Navigation has 26K miles and I am considering trading/selling for an '05 MCS. BIG BUCKS. I really like the MC but would like a little more oomph. Most of the perormance mods I read about here are for an MCS.

What can I do to a stock MC to avoid buying a whole new car? I am not looking to duplicate the power of an MCS, just a modest increase to enhance the motoring experience.

Any suggestions for suspension upgrades would also be welcome.

Jim

 

I've driven some modded MC's and although the performance doesn't come close to even a stock MCS (it is good that you have realistic goals in this department), the MC can be quite entertaining. Simple mods like a cat-back exhaust, intake, and performance chip can deliver measurable gains, without breaking the bank. Of course, the lighter MC can outhandle its heavier MCS brother in the tightest twisties, especially so with lighter/stickier wheels and tires.

 

You can get M7 turbo for your MC! May be same amount of money comming out of your pocket to up grade to an MCS.

 

We have shelved that project for the time being in order to concentrate on some other projects. We do have some items in mind for the MC other than the turbo but for now Andy's suggestions are a good way to go .

Randy
M7 Tuning

 

You can also do a few more things, such as having your head ported and polished (and add larger valves if you want, but not necessary), install a hotter camshaft (i.e., Schrick makes one), and add an exhaust header to go with the cat back exhaust. All that with the cold air intake and chip, should get you to 150 hp (crank or brake hp and not at the wheels) I would think. Definitely go with light weight wheels and tires too, as that is rotating mass -- and 1 lb at the wheel/tire equates to 4 lbs on the body. It is well known that the bottleneck on the MC engine is the head, which is restrictive, so the head work will open things up so that you will realize gains from the other mods, otherwise the performance gains without the headwork will be much much smaller. And if you open the engine up to do the head, you may as well do the cam, and possibly valves while you are there. You'd have one bad MC (that would probably keep up with a stock MCS as it would be much much lighter)! :smile: However, if you've got the money, I'd just get an S model.