Hello my fellow, former, or future MINI driving brethren. I don't mean to start yet another "no get THIS exhaust!" thread so I'm going to say up front that the parts I'm asking about would be the only two parts I'm considering. Very soon I'm planning to throw some money at my car but can't decide on what. I know a tune will net me the most actual power but I plan for a tune to be my final mod. My question is more what would you do given these options? I currently have an Alta intake on my 08 S.

Next I'm debating between the Alta Stealth Front Mount Intercooler (http://amzn.to/JuoDgD) or Invidia Q300 DP back exhaust (http://amzn.to/K08Rtt).

I realize there are other places than Amazon to make this purchase, but since they just gave me $300 for all my CDs that I haven't even seen in 5 years I'm looking at this as about 50% off. So my question to you, is which would you pick? I'm leaning towards the exhaust as I don't think the intercooler will offer any advantages without a tune (no noises, which is all I expect from the exhaust.)

Also, there's all the additional plumbing for the intercooler, I got it for the intake and probably would for the intercooler too just to match but would you recommend it?

Sorry for the long post, I just wanted to try to address everything in the first post rather than raise may questions needing answers. Thanks for any input!

 

Why are you changing the intercooler piping?
The intercooler is a direct replacement to the OEM unit; simply remove and install.
And yes, even without a tune, you'll see some the significant reduction of heat soak as the OEM unit is smaller.
Also, consider Helix (or look at) as they provide a very nice unit as well.

A cat-back exhaust will do nothing for power, as that's not the restrictive part of the exhaust system.
The cat-back will only change exhaust note and loudness.
If you're wanting a power increase, shift your attention to a performance downpipe with a high-flow catalytic convertor, the OEM DP is the choke point.

- Erik

 

I'd be changing the intercooler piping because it's available. That's why I asked opinions on those parts, I truly have no idea any advantage of doing that so I wanted some opinions beyond my naivety. As for Helix vs Alta, as I stated I'm working with an amazon gift card so it needs to be sold on amazon for me to purchase it.

I'm aware a down pipe will provide actual results, but I can not afford a down pipe and tune to remove the CEL that would result at this time, and emissions-OK is priority right now.
Thanks for your response, though.

 

Is that the sole reason? Would you be removing the 'muffler' section, or the 'noise maker' component?

So then if you're looking for power, ditch the idea of exhaust and go straight to the tune first.
That yields that best bang-for-buck (even with OEM exhaust) and can be reloaded with different tuning maps as you add / remove hardware components to the engine.

- Erik

 

Please see the "search" function for your inquiry.

 

I know the best bang for the buck is a tune, but as I stated I will be deciding between the two things I listed.

I know there are all sorts of discussions about which product to get, or the pros and cons of certain parts but as I said, I'm just looking for opinions as to which between the two options are presented.

 

My 2 cents is I install anything that will help prolong my engine life such as keeping it or the turbo cooler. Oil catch can is great. Any suspension upgrades are also a plus as well as upgraded rotors and brake pads.
Just my opinions.
Not into creating more whp's.

 

Thanks for the input, guys. I guess it's just going to come down to what I can afford at the end of the month.

 

That's a tough call. Intercooler would be more beneficial for your car as far as performance goes...but exhaust would make it more fun for you to drive with the new noise. I had an OBX exhaust on my r50 when I had it and although it was loud I LOVED it. Made it much more fun to drive.

 

That's almost exactly where my head's at right now... I'll probably go exhaust > AP > FMIC. Man, cars are expensive.

 

If performance is your thing, head straight to the intercooler.
If you're wanting to reward your ears during your driving, grab the exhaust.

You've only touched the tip of the iceberg...

- Erik

 

to answer your question i say exhaust. it will sound and look nice and you will enjoy driving it more. i had a RMW tune and i added an Alta FMIC and noticed no peformance gain. i also lost throttle response and it seemed a bit laggy. i have never tracked it and just drive fast on the street and only every go for wot runs through the hills for about 5min at a time.
with and without the FMIC i noticed now power gain or loss through out the runs or between one to the other.
i don't live in America and have only been to Hawaii but here in Australia where i live it can get pretty hot.
all the people saying FMIC, have you ever added one to a stock car? i know he wants to get a tune last, which you will need one for safety only. on a stock car with a different intake i don't think its a good idea. that is from my experence and how i drive as stated above. if you track it a lot ,then im sure thats another story.
im not trying to start a big fight but just saying from my experience a FMIC will do nothing for power at this point, if any to him.

 

Thanks for your response, I'm pretty sure I'll be going with the exhaust right now. I live near Chicago so we get a few days that get rather hot, but not too many to necessitate an intercooler for engine safety. What part of Australia do you live in? I've been trying to get to Cairns for ages but things just haven't worked out just yet.

 

Yep, and it does keep intake air temperatures extremely close to ambient.
It won't add power, it allows to retain the full amount; it'll keep the ECU from pulling timing when intake air temperatures rise during the hot summer months.

- Erik

 

Like you said, you are in a different situation by buying through amazon. If you like the sound of a MINI with the exhaust, then get it. You can get a rear sway bar through amazon, if you want to change the handling a bit.

I did see that you can get an accessport through amazon, but I assume that $825 is out of your price range? They are about 600-650 used on the market here. This would give you the best seat-of-the pants improvement, but won't give you the exhaust sound if you like that.

Mike

 

I'll have to do some math, but I think the AP might not be in the cards for quite a while and I'll end up going with the exhaust first.

Everybody, sincerely, thank you for your input. It was all helpful.