Greetings 2 all. My mini & me would greatly appreciate any comments and suggestions regarding the installation of aftermarket parts and the warranty issues concerning said installs. I guess the main point of this is; do I have to wait until my warranty expires until I can install these parts? I have the ALTA air cleaner and I am going to use the group buy on the Borla exhaust. I want the 15 or 19% pully and I want the cooler plugs and I want to get the ECU reprogrammed and I want , and I want, AND I WANT. . . . [img]http://[/img]

 

Welcome! Minihune will be by shortly with the welcome wagon basket.

 

Welcome, too! In answer to your questions use this guide. The types of mods you can get away with is directly proportional to what kind of dealer you have. Most dealers overlook "soft" mods, like intakes and exhausts. "Hard" mods, like pulleys and ECU remaps seem to be more frowned on.

Talk to the guys in your service department to find out their stance to be on the safe side. Remember if you're in the US, there's protection in the Moss-Magnumsom (sp?) Act. Only areas directly affect by the mods can be considered warranty risks. In other words, if you put an exhaust on and your electrical system fries, your warranty would still be in effect. If you do an ECU remap and lunch your motor, you may have problems.

Good luck with your MINI and, once again, welcome to the family.

 

>>Welcome! Minihune will be by shortly with the welcome wagon basket.

LOL, ROF, just like the rest of us capes_cowl you will fit in just fine!

 

Welcome, this is a great comunity. You'll find good and bad information here. I strugled with the warranty question like many here and you. The pulley probably represents you biggest potential for out of pocket repairs and warranty decline. I found out geico offers mechanical coverage for $30 a year with a $500 deductible. The car must be under 7000 miles new and you must have them as your nain insurance company, full glass replacement no deductible was included. You may find many of their services very useful as a mini owner. Good luck, minihue we'll welcome you soon.

 

ok the classic mods to do on your way home from the dealer:
Lightweight 16" rims with real performance tires (s03, toyo, goodyear kd something or others)
Some exhaust system
Rear swaybar 3 position 22m h-sport with the greece fittings
Alta intake

optional (for the corner and cone freaks like me)
springs (I think h-sports are the current favorite)
shocks (koni adjustables for STX and coil overs for SM)
warranty has not been touched yet

Next step (warranty implications)
15% pulley, leave a little margin for your supercharger to survive
colder plugs (also you are no longer "legal" for STX and are in SM now)
Randy's ECU mod, or the maybe the "coming soon" helix ecu mod
Throttle body, not sure which is best
Intercooler (stx is way out the window now, can't hide this mod)
Header (but there still isnt a an equal length one on the market with a compatible cat)
No one seems to have a great cam yet (with only the one on the market I would wait)
Head (see cam comments)

There you go. Biggest bang for the bucks, rims and tires, sway bar, alta, exhaust and the pulley, but I would definately get some colder plugs

 

To all of you gents that responded to my query. Thanks a bunch. The questions that I had, that were flying around inside addled mind, have been pretty much taken care of by you fine folks. This is the place to be You'll be hearin from me.

 

Welcome,

It took me a while to find this site also.

I'm looking on here more than my wife likes not that i found it

Earl