Hi everyone, I just got myself a 04 mcs. And i'm looking for some performance parts for the car. I hoping that you guys could help me find the best stuff for the car an the best prices. so far i'm just looking to get a intercooler, intake, chip, pulleys, an what else should i do after that w/o changing anything major like injectors an such. your advice is appeciated so let me thank you in advance

 

intercooler: stock or GP is the best in testing
intake: meh, they all do about the same and have minimal change in HP. mostly differences in sound
chip: don't do it. get it dyno tuned specifically for your vehicle. there are a few tuners out there, some are not on this forum.
pulley: 15% reduction is the safest according to the masses, they all just about have the same quality

exhaust and header: bump up the sound from cute and chirpy to deep and throaty, minimal change in HP again here. best to go to a meet to find the best sound you like.
injectors: up to you. a couple of tuners i have spoken with say it's optimal to run upgraded injectors to make use of the reprogramming of your ECU but not entirely necessary.

be sure to visit and snoop around other MINI forums. Although there are many, many threads with great info on this board, it is not the end all be all of MINI forums.
motoringalliance.com is a good one to lurk around for lots of performance info.

 

edit: I took too long in typing...

Don't bother with any after market intercoolers or chips. The stock intercooler is pretty damn good for it's location. Most aftermarket ones have poor flow characteristics or pressure drops. There was a good thread on this, and the conclusion was stick with stock or find a GP intercooler, (the 2006 limited edition MINI. You can't get parts without a GP VIN) better yet, get an "intercooler diverter." This replaces the plastic piece on top of the intercooler and helps direct air into the vains better

Any kind of 'chips' are not very good. We call them "canned tunes." You want to get in contact with a tuning shop and get a custom dyno tune after all your mods are on.

For intakes & pulleys and other stuff, there are near countless makers and vendors. Some notable ones include, Alta, M7, Detroit Tuned, DDM, Helix, Texas Speed Works, RMW, Mini Corsa, and Craven Speed. Take some time and look through the Vendor Directory.

 

Where are you located? Do you plan on doing the work yourself? I agree with the other posters on the intercooler and the chip. I am no expert, but the two mechanics, and tuner that worked on my car said at 15% pulley you will not need to change out the intercooler, and again, both mechanics highly recommend the tune as opposed to the chip. If you are in or close to Southern California I can highly recommend Danny at MinoCorsa, I found him to be the most reasonably priced, then after having him do the work, VERY HAPPY with all his work. I went to RMW to have Jan tune the car. I also recommend his cam.

 

thanks guys for the info def what i needed to know. i love to mod but i just needed to know whats best for the buck