We at would like to announce new product : o2 simulator for Mini Cooper S.

Detailed information and installation instructions can be found here:
http://www.o2sim.com/28301/minicooper_install.html


Simulator was installed and tested on our own 2006 Cooper S.

www.o2sim.com

 

Can I assume the point of doing this is so you can run without a cat? Would there be a performance benefit in doing so?

 

Performance benefits are much less restriction exhaust flow.
Removing the cat should help much more than just installing after market catback exhaust.

 

Aren't there smog and environmental issues with doing this in the US?

 

Yes, removing the cat will allow more pollutants into the atmosphere.

But whether that is legal or not depends on which state you reside in.

 

I tried this product a while back, when it was called the universal simulator.

Total catastrophe.

They suggested different values and such, but even after doing so, we could never get it to go long with throwing SES lights.

 

VENDOR how about a reply to this question !
this could be the answer many are looking for

I get a CODE P0420 (cat below threshold)

I have a MINI MANIA header (with cat) and often get a SES light.
So now have purchased a reset tool as per MMs only answer.
(nice add on sale guys)
They say it is "OK" just reset the SES ... well I could do that WEEKLY.
If I dont reset it ... who knows what other signal I will miss ???
MM is working on something and I am on the list.

If this fixes the issue maybe MINI MANIA could do a GROUP BUY.
And send to the growing list of customers.

PROBLEM !!!
If you have this and a cat you would NEVER know when it was REALLY bad.

 

Not a good idea in any way...

 

With so many MINI performance upgrade options available that don't give your car the pollution profile of a Hummer H1, why would anyone want this?

 

As of 1990, it is a violation of Federal law for any person to remove a properly-functioning catalytic converter, punishable by a fine of up to $25,000. See the attached PDF from the EPA.

OBDII mandates that all states establish a regular testing program.

If you believe that the MINI cat is restrictive - try one of these instead: http://www.randomtechnology.com/index.html You might get as much as 1-2 ft-lbs, and it won't throw codes...

 

We always work with the customer trying to rectify the situation. If the universal o2sim did not work you should've asked for a full refund. In the matter of fact we'll be more than happy to provide refund right now. Just send an email to the support.
Unfortunetly not all the cars-years the same and universal o2sim does not work everytime. That is why as soon as we got 06 mini we tried it on and found that it requires slightly altered o2sim ,which we are now selling.

 

Completely agree with you.
The purpose of o2simulator is not to remove or gut the cat and drive around polluting the air, but to enable racing enthusiast to get all available power from the mini motor during racing events.

[FONT='Times New Roman']As many after market part manufactures we rely on the consumer to comply with all federal and local laws.[/FONT]

 

I got one fom you not too long ago for my 05 S, run with Megan Header with NO CAT and no SES light. thanks o2sim

 

You guys were hard to reach.

You made several suggestions via e-mail.

Nothing worked and you never followed up.

FWIW, mine is an 03.

Frankly the money it cost me for my shop to keep fiddling with it was way more than any refund I'd get from you.

Plus I had to pay them to re-install the sensor.

But thanks for the offer.

 

FWIW, I built my own with $3.82 worth of parts from Radio Shack.

And I drove my car on the street without a cat!!! Guess its still better than running without a cat and leaded fuel

 

Might you be willing to release the schematic and parts list?

 

Now you're starting to sound like a "Mustang guy."

 

You're one of those guys that run around these boards with this copied and ready to paste, aren't you?

Hand up for ANYONE that isn't aware that desmogging isn't a crime nearly as heinous as murder....

Next, you'll be reminding us that modifying and driving our cars without the benefit of extensive driving school training, under a closed-course controlled situation, will lead to possible negative consequences......

The guy is providing a product that MANY people have been demanding, and appears willing to be helpful in solving any problems that crop up... yet, people who aren't even capable of mailing it back to him- LET ALONE do the mod themselves- are chopping the guy up here- geez.....

BTW- I've had my cats off my Vettes for 10+ yrs- biggest benefit? That I am rid of those GIANT heat sinks, consequently extending the life of numerous rubber parts which would have been otherwised dumped into a landfill.... In the meantime, the trees my neighbor is burning in his field this morning are releasing more carbon monoxide than the sum total of ALL the mini coopers ever built, even without their precious cats attached.......

Catalytic converters are primarily a political and economic issue, not an environmental issue; Bashing a guy who is trying to sell a product that is in demand- and who is breaking NO laws- is silly.

 

Best First post ever!!!! We need more people like you around here!

 

Let me see if I can dig it up again. Got it off the mustang boards. Anything you ever need to know abour rigging your car you can learn from a real mustang guy.

 

Hehehe, "this guy". That cracks me up. Considering this is your very first post here and you're defending the vendor, it's a safe assumption you and "this guy" are the same person. Or else business partners.

Anyway, I've *never* seen anyone demanding such a product. Not for the Mini, or for any other car, on any board I've read.

Hence my original question, which has still gone unanswered: what's the value of doing this mod when there are so many legal performance mods that don't mess with your emissions? I wasn't out to harass the vendor, but I'm genuinely curious about the reason this mod exists.

Does the product provide *any* performance benefit if the cat is not removed? If not, if it's only beneficial as a complement to a cat removal, then the cost/benefit ratio includes more than just the price of the mod, it includes the labor involved in removing the cat, and the risk of fines for violating the law. So...where are the performance statistics for this mod? How would I know how much of a boost I can expect from installing it, and how would I justify it versus other mods I could spend my time and money on?

You have some statistics to back that claim up?

Let's just assume that you do...there's still more to automobile emissions than CO, and a catalytic converter reduces the emission of a lot of toxic gasses that would never be released by burning wood.

Also, if we follow your flawed logic to its conclusion, no one should bother controlling pollution because there's always someone or something out there whose pollution is "worse".

Let's just go back to leaded gasoline while we're at it. Maybe the birth defects from lead exposure will speed up the evolution of the species.

 

Now that's funny!

 

You need to get out more. O2 sims have been around and in demand for years by just about every other automobile performance group. Perhaps the reason they may not be as popular here, yet is because the MCS is still a relatively new car and modding them is still in the infantile stages.

Just think, by removing a cat, emmissions may go up, but with less heat being produced by a car there may be less global warming. See? It's a wash.

 

Hahaha, that's bad science, but it made for a good laugh.

If O2 simulators are a well-known product, I guess I've missed out on that scene, but I do think that if the vendor wants to sell the product, he needs to effectively communicate the value it adds to the vehicle.

Both the website and his posts on the forum thus far have been far from effective at explaining to an O2 simulator noob like me why it's something worth having. Are dyno test results too much to ask?

 

o2 sims do not add any power. There is no need to dyno them. Not every modification needs a dyno to back up its' effectivness.

o2 sims are basically just a passive equalizer that gets installed inline between the after-cat oxygen sensor on a car and the ECU. It keeps the computer from throwing a check engine light when the cat is removed. It tricks the computer into thinking that the electrical values that the o2 sensor are giving are within an acceptable range.

Usually, removal of a cat will give some power and a lot more sound. That's is their main appeal.

02 sims have been a common product for Mustang guys for the last decade. On the '96 and up Mustangs, they were issued with 4 (!) cats from the factory. When converting to an "off road" exhaust with no cats, the sims were utalized on the rear o2 sensors.