i was looking around on websites for stuff to buy and came across this item called the sprint booster says it improves throttle response. has anyone installed this and what is your feedback? thanks

 

it just make the throttle more sensitive, it doesnt add any performance, i cant justify the price tag for no performance gain IMO

 

pressing ur sport button=sprint booster

 

Besides, the throttle is pretty darn sensitive as it is.

 

'Most' that have never tried it don't believe it works, or believe it's not worth the cost.

'Most' that have tried it, love it.

I recommend you take advantage of our 30-day money back guarantee and give it a try.

Our sales vs. return ratio is about 100:1.

Ken

 

I'm interested in this but how does it connect. I am NOT very mechanically inclined. What kind accelration gains do you see. I have a JCW kit on my 08. Is it simply a plug n play device? does it connect to the diagnostic port or under the bonnet. any detaisl on this would be helpful in making my decison to order one.

 

Here is the installation instructions for Gen 2 MINIs - it's really quite simple - plug-n-play.

The SB makes the throttle more responsive, making your MINI much more fun to drive. You can read more about it here. You really have to 'try it' to appreciate it.

Ken

 

Ken,
We would like some more explanation than " more responsive". I do not notice any delay in my throttle response. Some delays in the auto transmission yes, some delay as the turbo spools up, yes. But not the gas. ( I would love to get a mod to the trans to shift quicker but NOT increase the shift point like sport mode does. ) It is already a bit over touchy on the light end. I could imagine a non-linear or petal speed derived gain modification to make the off-idle less touchy but bring it on quicker when you mash it.

The 30 day return is the best test. If you provide an explanation that makes sense, I will give one a try. Note that some of the advertising implies it will make more power. Your above comment is honest and clear that is not what it does, but it changes how the throttle behaves.

BTW, Sam took the pickup out for it's first public show last week.

 

If you feel your throttle is already 'a bit over touchy on the light end', then perhaps the SB may not be for you. The SB does require some adjustments to your driving style since it makes the throttle more sensitive - but that usually only takes a day or so. It will not change how quickly the gears change, and will affect the shift point like the sport mode.

You mentioned you notice 'Some delays in the auto transmission yes, some delay as the turbo spools up, yes' - these are the perceived delays that the SB will greatly reduce - hence the 'more responsive' description. I believe you will find an 'overall' improvement in your driving experience with the SB installed.

If you would like to try this device, I will offer to cover your return shipping if you decide to return it. I would ask that you post your findings, good or bad, on this thread. You seem to be very 'aware' of what your MINI is doing, and you would make a great evaluator.

Let me know.

Ken
kens (at) minimania.com

 

I will take you up on a most fair offer. Let me balance my books this week first. ( this IS a toy after all) Not really sure I want to always increase the shift points for normal driving. I stay in normal mode most of the time but would like them to be snappier. (almost bought a GTI for that reason, but the worst of all cars in the world repair record caused me pause; wanted a C30 Volvo but the trans acted like my 68 Catalina) Day in and day out, I do enjoy the 31 MPG I get. If I get used to the manual mode, then it becomes moot. I had to go automatic as my knees are just too worn out for a stick. If I were to design it, the sport mode and the shift to manual mode would be on the steering wheel in thumbs reach!

I did notice a condition where I can confuse the transmission. If backing off light throttle at about 40 and then need to nail it, it will rev to red-line, then drop 3 gears, and eventually go. This takes a very long time. I can do it almost every time, but of course, the dealer can't. To me, this is a big safety issue and maybe a good reason to go to the manual mode anyway. One would normally never do this, but in an emergency, you don't want several seconds ( it feels like) delay.

 

Installed sprint booster on my 03 MCS about 3 days ago. It is the version 2 and it has made my car so much better. I always felt like it was a slug off the line cause of the huge throttle delay. It is alot more sensitive making it feel alot like drive by cable instead of our crappy drive by wire. With the mods i have after i hit 3k RPMs my mini is pulling like a bat out of hell. Way worth the 330$ i spent. I suggest it to any car enthusiast with the electronic throttle. It has a 30 day money back guarantee. Try it out you wont be sorry

 

I am about to. I had several other projects to get out of the way first. I just don't see the "big delay" that people are talking about. If anything, the stiffness of the spring needs to be increased.

The delay that I don't like is the transmission. Even in manual sport mode, it does not react to the shifter for several hundred milliseconds, when it does, it takes a couple hundred more to shift. This means you have to anticipate shifts by 500 RPM at least. It almost does not know what to do when you tell it to down shift. The result is it is really not much benefit to drive in manual mode most of the time. My experience is the paddles are almost useless, as when I want to shift I am so often turning the wheel where my fingers can't reach them, so it is much more natural to use the shifter ****.

 

I have the sprint booster since 3 years now in my previous R56s and my current R56s.
I can tell you that I am totally happy with this.
The difference is huge, the car is much more responsive and I really cannot drive any MCS now without this.
I suggest it 100%.
Yes, it needs to change the driving style (especially in the 1st gear where you need less gas), but this is also an excitement of this.
i totally recommend it!

 

Do you guys all drive auto transmissions - is seems to be the turbo lag and the auto-trans lag that it is fixing.

Now if you had something that would make my throttle map linear and reduce the intrusion of the power steering that would be great!

 

Mine is a six speed and I think it makes a world of deference. I love it.

Jim

 

Unfortunately, I wore out my knees as a distance runner and after years of squeaking by with the light modern Japanese clutches, was forced into an automatic. The Mini had the second best automatic. (GTI won there hands down, but it had the very worst reliability record of any car in the word. I loved the C30 but the transmission shifted like a 68 Catalina)

Turbo spool is what it is. Very good actually. If you but on bigger pipes and CAI, it gets worse. Yes, the transmission programming is by far my biggest beef. Besides it being slow, you can confuse it by nailing it when at low torque at about 40. Instead of downshifting, it misses the gear, goes into neutral, almost red-lines, then drops two and takes off. Really scary. Takes almost a second. Dealer can't reproduce. (can't drive?) I could in a loner, so I suspect it is not a defect, but a design issue. In manual mode, it still thinks it takes care of down-shifting, so that too is unpredictable. It frequently refuses to do as told to downshift while breaking at approach. This is well outside "normal" driving, so I can't complain that much.

 

S Automatics almost never use first gear. They start in second by default. First gear is useful for about 5 feet. It is quicker to start in second. I forgot to test how the justa behaves when I had my last loner.

 

Mine is not an automatic, but frrst gear is VERY SHORT.

Jim

 

The Sprint Booster is very effective for both manual and automatic transmissions. It's one of those products where you need to try it to appreciate the improvement. It may not be impressive on paper, but it DOES make your MINI more fun to drive...

Take advantage of our 30-day money back guarantee and give it a try!

Ken

 

http://www.peony888.com/VS/SprintBooster.pdf

Good reading for anyone who want's to understand what it does. Ken, I don't mean to be an *** about it but if I need more throttle response I'll press the pedal harder or use the sport button. For those people that want a pedal that gives full throttle before you press it to the floor then it may be worth while.

 

Guitarfrk75, thanks for the input - and this is a VERY typical response.

There is NO WAY that you can replicate what the Sprint Booster does by simply pressing the accelerator harder / faster. Or the Sport Button for that matter. Again, its something you need to try to appreciate what it does.

It's the skeptics that have never tried the product that usually dismiss this product.

 

According to the graphs in the link I posted the sprint booster makes the throttle open further for a given input from the gas pedal. That will make the pedal feel like it is more responsive because you use less effort for the same amount of power. My issue comes that you are only using (in the case of the study quoted - I'm sure it is different in every vehicle) 2/3rds of the pedal travel to get to full throttle, leaving you a nice big dead zone during the last 1/3rd of pedal travel.

If you want a responsive-feeling pedal and aren't to worried about the fact that a smaller movement makes a much bigger difference then it is a great product and there are a number of people who swear it really does great things.

Personally, I much prefer a more linear response without the dead zone at the end of the pedal. If I want full throttle then I'll push to full throttle. With the sport button on the gas pedal is plenty responsive enough for me (I could even do with a little less gas pedal response but the extra weight in the steering is very reassuring for fast driving).

I'm also going to put the sub-text in here that I drive a stick and obsessivly change gear to keep the revs where I want them to be, which means that unless I screwed up, I'm in the right gear to get a good leap forwards. I also have the torque of the JCW to help pull me forward as well. If I has less power and an automatic I can see it helping me get less lag from the transmission and fooling the ECU into kicking down earlier and pushing higher before changing up which would be good.

Great product if thats what you're looking for but it doesn't make the car go faster or increase HP or unlock power being robbed by the ECU, it just changes the throttle map.

 

Yes, no product will please everyone. We've had about a 1% return rate.

And yes: "it just changes the throttle map." - but it sure makes the MINI more fun to drive.

Again, it is a product that you need to experience in order to appreciate the improvement.

Cheers,
Ken

 

Adding to what Kenatminimania just said. Sprintbooster public opinion is split into two camps. First are the people who have never tried it before and/or attempt to be an arm chair engineer when talking about our product. The second group are people who try sprintbooster and love it. We have encountered countless Mini owners who right away fall in love with the product. And what I find now and then with the Mini crowd is some of these people return days or a weeks later to express their satisifaction.

I invite anyone out there who has there doubt to try it. If you dont like it. Return it and you get your money back. its that simple, you have 30 days, but I am pretty sure you will be sold after only 1.

Sprintbooster USA

 

I don't are what anyone says, I love this thing. It may not make my Cooper "faster", but it does make it "quicker". Coupled with the torque arm bushing it makes down shifting much smoother. Folks need to test it, before they condem ikt.

Jim