likewise!

 

+1

 

I love the R53 and its S/C, but we are already seeing some great hp gains on the R56.
Alta have already broken 220whp with the GT2560R Turbo Kit
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...d.php?t=121411
It took alot longer to break 200whp with the R53...
But you gotta love the whine of that S/C!

 

It took a long time to break 200 whp with the stock M45 only setup. Didn't take that long to break it with Twincharge, the timelines aren't that far off.

Like I said, I'm not sure why MINI felt they needed to rebuild the drivetrain to add 25-30 HP. Leads me to believe that they saw longevity issues with the stock setup with more than 200 whp.

220 whp is great, but the car doesn't start making that power until 3500 RPM's or so. I'd also like to know the longevity issues involved with running in excess of 20 PSI of boost long term. Very surprising that the car still starts running out of steam at 5800 RPM's or so.

 

I see we heard from most of the R53 owners trying to preserve the resale numbers. The R56 is WAY better car in every way. I always say MODS decrease the value of a vehicle in the resale market and stock R56s are better in every way, more refined in design and not as primitive as the GEN 1's were. I tried 3 of them, see signatiure.

 

Oops, wrong thread....

 

That is so true. People come up to me and say, "i love that car in Italian Job." I love how it screams. You don't get that wonderful sound from the 56.

 

Maybe now we know what it takes to get rid of the start up noises!

That explains why several owners went back to the R53. Funny how we all confuse subjective opinion with objective fact.

To the OP, drive them both and get the one that ressonates with you!

Matt

 

Opinions are like @$$holes, everyone has one and everyone thinks their's don't stink Dr. O, thanks again for your help.

 

says her fahrts smell like roses!

Matt

 

 

It's amazing what you can teach a three year old!

Matt

 

my farts smell like... very bad

 

so we agree that they smell like dead roses!

Matt

 

 

That's your own opinion. There's a reason that the R56's are selling, and it's not because it's a better enthusiast car, it's because they appeal to the masses (Aka give up a lot of stuff to make the car better for "The rest of them". I don't see how offering our opinions of which car we like better can be misconstrued as "Attempting to preserve the resale value". I have no intentions of selling my car within the next 7-8 years, at which point another MINI will have been released.

The R53 has the unique advantage of being an instant classic. The R56 in my opinion is just an attempt at sterilization. An attempt to make a car that works better for EVERYONE, rather than appealing towards the core group of people that fell in love with the first one. The suspension is softer, the car is uglier, the engine has more problems and it's lost the whine that we all fell in love with that gives it so much character.

In my opinion the new stereo sucks, I listened to it at the dealership, it's NOT EVEN CLOSE to the old Harmon Kardon system. I can't stand the new plastic looking interior. The buttons look like a children's toy, huge, knobby, and plasticy.

The exterior is bulbous, the back end looks horrible with the giant can exhaust hanging down, and the front looks even worse with it's disproportionately sized bonnet and doors that take up 3/4 of the car.

Oh, and it's FUNNY how all of the supporters of the R56 are owners themselves. Perhaps THEY'RE the ones trying to preserve the resale value. Preserve the value of a car that is a complete failure at "Bettering" the brand.

Or maybe it's just that people bought R53's because they like them better? When I bought my car I was faced with the decision of buying an R53 or waiting 3 months for an R56... I HATED the R56, so I went with the older model. Drive them both, look at them both, sit in them both, and make your OWN decision. I see too many people on this forum starting posts out with "Should I XXXXX" Or "What should I XXXXX"

You have to make your own decisions about stuff! However many opinions you listen to, they're just that, opinions. Everyone's got one, and they rarely coincide with your own!

So... Personal Choices! Lets start making some on our own.

I thought Gabe Motoring File traced that to a faulty Cam Chain Tensioner? Seems like MINI just has their head in the sand with that whole issue. It's only going to get worse as more and more start failing. Can we say recall?

 

i like my wife's farts. they smell like... very bad also, but i'm in love so...

 

i think rustyboy hit the nail on the head, the r53 is without a doubt an instant classic and somewhere in sheet metal, engine, suspension is something special that was lost in the r56. The r53 is more visceral, less fluff. The r56 however, is all around a softer less involving experience, the interior horrible.

I think the new r56 is the faster of the two but at a huge expense, it's lost that oneness which is immediatley found when you get behind the wheel of the r53

still in the end it does come down to personal preference. i like the r53

 

It FEEL's faster. The 0-60 times aren't that far off (Except for the random 5.9 second 0-60 anomaly). Having a lot more torque (Along with a feature that significantly boosts said torque rather abruptly and temporarily) gives the driver more of that push into the seat feel. I've driven 270+ whp R53's that don't really FEEL any faster than 230 whp cars. The difference is that while it doesn't FEEL any faster, you're getting up to speed a LOT faster.

HP determines how fast you hit the wall, Torque determines how far you push it out of the way once you hit it.

A lot of the initial "My car is SOOO much faster than my last one" comments have no basis at all. On a drag strip, or around a track, a pulleyed R53 with a few bolt on's is winning. The handling differences stock for stock are a joke. Like I said, to "Mainstream" the car they made the suspension fluffy and made the chassis much more pliant.

It's personal choice. I prefer the visceral, gut wrenching experience much more than the fluffy lincoln town car one I get in the R56. It's like the old Bimmerforums debates "Which is a better car? A '98-99 E36 M3 or a 330ci with the ZZP Performance package? (Added 10 or so HP to bring the car up to the same output as the S52 engine in the E36)."

It comes down to preference, I'd MUCH rather have the M3. It handles better, weighs less, doesn't have all kinds of fancy crap it in, and it's purpose was to be fast as crap around a track, that's IT. There's no fluff, there's no crazy sound deadening, the exhaust is loud, the engine is loud, and it's a lot harder to drive.

So?
Do you want the M3 experience or the more "Refined" 330 experience?

 

yes that is true, it feels faster because of the tq at low rpms and all over the entire rpm range. and yes, maybe a R53 with a pulley intake and some other things can be or can feel as fast as the R56 but...:
in general the R56 is better for the normal buyer who don't think about mods. the r56 has a good engine with more torque and final hp, more confort, better interior, it's more refined.

 

I'll agree that it's more refined and has a lot more torque, but HP is nearly identical (168 vs 172) and the OFFICIAL MINI 0-60 times between the two models are only .1 seconds apart (6.8 on the R53 vs 6.7 on the R56).

I also happen to think that the interior on the R53 is much nicer. I hate the huge speedo on the R56, and the radio inside of the speedo looks really bad.

I also don't agree that the R53 with a pulley feels as fast as an R56. You'd be hard pressed to get anywhere close to an R56 with torque on a pulleyed R53.

Again... personal preference!

 

My preference is the R53, I think it has more MINI essence from the body to the SC whine. For me this was the primary reason the car's rebirth was so successful - there's some original Mini in every R53. The R56 is more refined, an understandable next generation step but at a cost of some Mini essence.
A buddy has a R56, its a great car and I enjoy driving it but at all times it feels more mature and well mannered.

 

Don't really have a dog in this fight (R50). I have driven both, and prefer the first generation car, seems to have more character.

 

S/C for sure. If you want blow-off valves, go buy an ebay mod.

;P

Only thing I wish I had from a turbo.

 

The R53 motor was an afterthought and thrown in there after a quick deal BMW made with Daimler Chrysler to get the GEN 1 to market. R56, the looks are nearly identical, yes the stereo isn't as good, but the seats are much better, took the headlights out of the hood and left them attached to the car as they should be, and increased the mpg with a broader torque curve and more overall HP. That is my "*******", I mean my opinion. I like the electronic key slot and the glove compartments too. And the steering wheel actually adjusts.

Appeal to the masses? That will be the day when any MINI does that. It never will break into that market, they'd better keep holding the line on production numbers. Keep telling yourselves "instant classic" and MODDING the hell out of the vehicle and you'll find in about 3 to 4 years the resale price will be south of 5K. Try keeping it BONE stock if you want to hold onto any semblence of the resale value they used to hold.

Out with OLD, in with the NEW, motorcycles are the same except they change models every other year! Check the price on a 2 year old Honda 1000RR that sold for 11K, lucky to get 5K out of it. The Gen 1 MINI will do the same in the next couple of years, you will see early and later model resales hit 10K soon!