Hey, I've been thinking of doing the One Ball mod to my 2005 Cooper S. Anyone else here have it and have any problems/stories to tell?

I found this pipe on the minspeed site: http://minspeed.net/MRE.htm and it is supposed to be what one should use for the one ball mod. It's $125.00 though....

~MM

 

Its an easy bolt-on detail
Mod may be cheaper if any local muffler shop or garage create mod by hands... But I think easy bolt-on is a good way to come back if something goes wrong

 

it's not an easy bolt on, you'll have to do some cutting to put that minspeed piece on. and to go back to stock you'd have to weld the pieces back together...

the only advantage that piece has is that it's mandrel bent so the pipe doesnt change shape or size at the bends. a muffler shop might be able to do that for you but either way it's not very noticeable since you're still toying with the stock muffler which is pretty restrictive as is. you WILL notice a difference in sound between a single muffler and the muffler with resonator (aka MINI OEM dual exhaust)

 

Cutting is easy and recoverable
But what about the sound - it may be more loud but must be pretty good

 

i just meant that it's not a unbolt/bolt on mod. and yes, cutting is easy for those with the right tools...

the sound is noticeable. makes for a louder note but not obnoxious. i prefer louder

 

i've got a one-ball... for the money it sounds pretty good. the back fires are alittle tin sounding but i wouldn't say the one-ball sounds rice. It does a decent job of preserving the stock engine note but just amplifying it a bit.

 

The pipe works great and comes w/ SS clamps. Mark, cut & bolt up. It can always be sold in the marketplace. Your exhaust system will get just a tad louder - not much.

 

minimum tool is a metal saw blade with handle from isolation tape time to cutting around half of hour or less
be care about your hands - use sawblade only teeth-to-hand direction

any russian man can do it

 

I had a local muffler shop (one specializing in mods...not your MIDAS kind of place) and they did it for 40 bucks. Couldn't beat that deal with a stick...

Doubt I get any measurable performance gains, but I love the sound. More aggressive without being overpowering.

 

Thanks to all who tell about

It'l be my first but not last mod

 

muffler shop did mine, and used mandrel bends, for $80. they can just reuse mandrel bent sections off the muffler youre removing.

 

I did the one-ball as my first exhaust mod when I got my car. It sounded way too tinny for me. I prefer a deeper baritone note. 3 exhausts later, here I am!

For what it's worth, my second exhaust didn't sound BAD (Invidia with OBX & Stock Cat), it just became a restriction later on down the line.

One-Ball:







RMW Exhaust:





Here's an old clip I made of my Invidia w/OBX:



I'll have some track/driving vid's up in a week or so probably for a comparison to what I have now

 

Thanks for all of the replies guys. If I was to go to a muffler shop to get this done rather than spend 125+ on just the pipe from minspeed, what do I tell them I want done? Will they know what a "one ball" mod is? Or is there a more commonly known name for what I want done.

That, and I've heard from some people that the tailpipes move around a lot and are very loose once the one ball mod is done. Can anyone attest to that?

~MM

 

tell them you have a resonator on the left side and you'd like to reroute it so that the resonator is eliminated. when it goes up on the lift it'll be obvious

the tailpipes will move more since now your exhaust system will be slightly off balance (one sided) instead of it's more robust 2 sided assembly

 

One-ball is a MINI term. Just tell them you want the resonator removed...its the muffler looking part near the right rear wheel.

 

is it the right side? i thought it was the left side...
either way, when you look under the car, you can see the routing of the exhaust... the first "muffler" is what you want removed.

 

Recent recipient of a one-ball here as well. The local muffler shop charged me $81 with tax which I think is pretty fair. The noise level inside the car hasn't changed much but with the windows down it is pretty noticeably louder and a touch deeper. I think it's worth the time/money. I could do without the raspberries, but thats a tuning issue and from what I hear, was added (and therefore can be removed) with an ECU flash at the dealer.

 

Mine, fully welded with two straight through mufflers before the baffled can, and no pre-cat on the header, has the nicest tone both in the cabin and outside the vehicle; no bees in a can, no popping, and no burbling. These photos are of an early version.


Post hacksaw.


Eliminator pipe in place.

 

Heres the thing a midas type place may or maybe not do a good job. You can take pics like the ones in this thread and show it to exhaust guy. This is not that high tech of a piece but it does have two bends.

Someone referenced getting a shop to make him one mandrel bent for 80.00 bucks. The Minspeed pipe is not much more considering that it includes two Stainless Steel Clamps.

I had the Minspeed pipe and I did not find that my tips moved excessively.

 

I have minspeed re-route pipe and the aligment is now off. Tips are leaning on driver side.
I like the sound. It is still a Mini original, just a little louder and angrier.

 

One Ball: Video clip of me driving away from the camera and returning:
http://www.fquick.com/videos/viewvideo.php?id=2946

 

For the shop, just have them put your MINI on the lift and you will be able to show they when you are under the car.
I went to a Maxi shop and they had no idea about this mod, but when I showed them what I wanted they did it in 20 mins and charged me $50.

I have not had a problem with the with the pipe or tips moving around.

 

Yeah that was me. it may not be much more, but it doesnt come installed, either.

I took pictures in and spent a few moments under the car with the guy to make sure we were all on the same page.

One thing the pictures dont show very well is there is a height difference between the center exhaust "outlet" and the new muffler "inlet" so make sure they know ahead of time that it is more than just one bend.

 

I had a one-ball and was always a fan of it. You cant beat how cheap it costs to do. Sounds great from the outside after I added an OBX header.

BUT...about 25k miles later, it began rattling really bad. The hanger was actually broken and the rubber mounts that hold the muffler up were shot. It is too much weight to have hanging from one side. Also, after I lowered my car, I noticed that it slanted slightly toward the drivers side (the side with the one-ball muffler). It baffled me as to why, thought the springs were installed incorrectly, but after many re-checks by various people...they were fine. When I installed my Invidia though...the slant was gone! It was caused by the weight of the one-ball all being on one side. Just something to keep in mind!

 

You stole my exhaust!

I had the same lean. The only way to get around it is to do the one-ball and leave the dead muffler hanging there (Which sort of eliminates any potential gains by removing 25 lbs of weight, lol)