hey guys,

im fairly new to the forum, ive been lurking and gathering info.

im looking to do some fairly basic mods to my newly acquired 05 mcs and was looking at ebay for some pricing. for the most part, these parts resemble the actual mini tuner parts but without the markup.

my question is, how many of us have and use these parts on our cars?

from what ive gathered...

most all the mcs intakes are roughly the same, the filter is installed in the same general area, the only differences being trendy items like rubber hoses, vacuum flaps, and heat shields being the major components that set them apart. at the output levels of these cars, i personally believe that they are all going to be within rock throwing range of each other. so, with that said, who paid $30 for the ebay intake vs the tuner intakes and how well has it performed?

the exhaust have a bit more differences in the models. i personally see the alta as the best design as it only has one muffler compared to two. why these other companys(albeit with lower prices) have 2x the mufflers, piping, and r&d into their products baffles me. but, price being the major factor, how far apart are the sound files from these companies? obviously, with smaller resonators and can style mufflers, these exhausts are going to be louder than the traditional mufflers but what can i expect hp wise?

there seems to be some generalized confusion with the shifters. ive seen some posts from 02-03 guys trying to install 05-06 shifters and vice versa but other than that, how many have the ebay shifter? i mean, at $50 compared to some of the tuner companies 3 times that, i dont know what to expect but a shifter is a shifter.

i dont want this post to come off as bashing our tuners. i realize that without them, this wouldnt be what it is today. but the pricing of some of the ebay parts is enticing. in some cases, i could get all three parts for what i pay for one "tuner" part.

 

If your wanting to do things right look at the products by Revolution Mini Works, Alta, DDMworks, Webbmotorsports

 

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I agree. Ebay can be GREAT and also a NIGHTMARE at the same time. We constantly work with clients getting the wrong part, or missing hardware etc. when bought on ebay. If you would like a quote on ALTA from ALTA, just let me know what you need or want in a PM. I can get a complete quote with a competitive discount to you. So you save some money, get the parts you need from a company you can trust. Best of both worlds.

Let me know how I can help further!

 

+1 that ebay stuff is junk for the most part. Not to mention the bad customer support from the ebay guys.

Ebay is cheap for a reason, so is the stuff at the pawn shop.

 

One common factor here at NAM is the fun and enjoyment of "MODing" our cars. Some are real serious about it and others are not BUT BOTH are having fun.

This is accomplished in so many ways and in different degrees. Some buy goodies from the dealers, others from vendors like those found here, and yet others visit the used offerings (newspapers, boards, and EBAY).

Its about having fun and enjoying our cars while living in the real world = what does the budget permit. AND for these reasons all of the above venues are available to each of us.

I would encourage you to set a goal/objective, do your research, weigh what you "get" for the money (= informed decision), buy within yr budget AND HAVE FUN.

 

People here have complained about some vendor stuff not delivering (junk) and people here have complained or had issues w/ some vendor support.

Your statement is not just applicable to EBAY.

I have purchased the following items on EBAY

1) used PIAA lights w/ Mini brackets for 107 bucks. The lights had been installed yet never hooked. Condition Mint.

2) Sparco rims w/ Falken Avenis tires, balanced mounted and hub centric rims for 480.00 - auto crossed 1 time. Condition Mint.

Of course you gotta work a little harder but EBAY is viable.

 

Could be wrong, but I think the original question was regarding parts that "resemble the actual mini tuner parts but without the markup." So the PIAA and Sparco stuff doesn't really apply. Personally, if it's not a brand that I'm familiar and confident with, I wouldn't buy it on ebay.

 

That being the case, I wouldn't buy it anywhere. Regardless where you buy, you need to research before reaching into your wallet.

 

I buy a LOT on ebay (including my Mini itself)
Always look at the sellers feedback. Not just if its a high number or not.

Persnoally I agree with jaynicholson above, I'd avoid any "unbranded" parts and I tend to shy away from used car parts as well. Without being able to see or handle the actual part, you don't know what you are getting until you get it.
And as said, most people selling on ebay dont offer much support. This is especially true if they are selling fake parts.

 

I agree on ebay, I am very suspect of "vendors" on ebay. I stay away from them. But I have found some PIAA lights for $100. Also an Borla Race Exhaust for $400. Both private.

The only vendor piece I bought was an oil catch can. After doing some research on NAM. A OCC is basically a can. Even a coke can would work. I found one that works great for $15 and 5 bucks of hose and I was good to go. Only drawback is the mounting bracket wasnt built for a mini.

 

i started off with one of the low cost - no name - CAI on eBay. - essentially, I paid $30 bucks for a cpl of clamps and a no name K&N style conical filter with a small piece of piping to run between the OEM hose and the air intake. It did the job for a few weeks. then i scored an alta filter and a guy selling a CF heat shield box on eBay and upgraded for super results.

the stuff on ebay that is probably a waste of money (say probably cuz I haven't bought it) are the low cost no name short shifters and strut bars.

you could score a good deal on a KMT pulley from ebay though!

 

A lot of the ebay knock off parts (copies of properly engineered parts) aren't always built to the same level of quality in the materials used and construction (such as crappy welds or low quality filters) and most importantly fitment. I've bought a bunch of stuff for other cars that just didn't fit and didn't meet their stated claims.

 

I have a cheap shortsshifter from ebay and works great, also the OBX header from there works great. No problem with pulley too etc...

If the part is cheap doesn't it mean is bad. In most cases the price is product from big spread of the vendors.
You don't wanna know the product price of pulley for example.

 

That's a lie. Like I said. You don't wanna know the production prices of those products.
If there is no vendors just directly sale the product can be much much cheaper. It's really hard to understand that?

 

I personally buy a lot of stuff on Ebay. I'm also on a budget and as much as I want to spend $900.00 on a Borla exhaust, I simply can't. I decided to purchase a "generic" exhaust sold by a BMW tuner on Ebay and so far I can't complaint. I took it to a muffler shop and had it installed in less than an hour. The only thing I changed were the tips, because they ones that came with the system were too plain looking for me. Total investment? Less than $300.00 including installation and tips. Personally I love the way it sounds, not too loud, not to quiet, just right. Power gain? I know I got some, because I can feel it. Better than the Borla? you bet!!! IMO is worth it to save $600.00 sacrificing a couple of horses along the way. Intake? I got a drop in filter from Alta, replaced the hose with a silicone hose and drilled the plastic firewall divider. Total investment? less than $100.00, also from Ebay. S/C pulley? Used Mini Madness for $45.00, also from Ebay.
It all depends on what kind of person you are. If you want to have all the expensive stuff so you can have a kick *** list in your signature here in NAM, it comes with a really steep price tag. but if you are a simple guy that just wants his Mini to have a little more power and have some money left to take the wife/girlfriend on a cruise vacation, Ebay is definitely a good option. Just do some research and pay close attention to feedback.
Good Luck!!!

 

The point here is not were you buy or what you pay for a part but the research you do before buying. You can find good stuff on Ebay as well as Crap but this is also true elsewhere. In my case, my Ebay experiences have been very good BUT THAT IS BECAUSE, I did my research first!

PRIMARILY HERE AT NAM.

A key value of NAM is the sharing of experiences on the different products available. The pros & the cons.