OK lol just figured I would have some fun and see what you guys would do. If you had $5,000 to put into your car to make it a STI eating machine what would you do? The car will already have an ALTA CAI, 15%pulley, and Milltek exhaust. I was thinking maybe of doing a twin charge on it, get 300hp . I want the car to be able to move when I want it to but not get 15mpg. I would like to stay around 25-30 driving normally and hopefully get around 20 when driving like an a$$, on a closed track of course! Also reliability is a top concern. I dont want to have to rebuild my engine or anything after spending all that money making it a beast. This car will be a daily driver and I highly doubt I will race it. Also how much does doing all these mods increase insurance? I am going to be 21 when thinking about putting the 5k into the car, so.........Let the mad scientisting begin!

 

$5k well heck I can drop an easy 3K on the car's suspension and another $2k on wheels and tires.

Coilovers w/ camber plates
Rear sway bar (maybe front too)
Endlinks
Upper and lower control arms

SSR or BBS wheels with some super sticky tires.

If the car already has a CAI, pulley and exhaust you have the most time tested and reliable mods out. If you want more power then I'd get a 2% lightened crank pulley and a ECU tune.

Another young guy like myself. 21 here and loving life with my MINI
Mods don't affect insurance. The only time my insurance agent told me about mods is if I tell them I have TVs and a stereo and want to add it to my policy. For engine mods and the like if I have a receipt for them I can have them replaced if they are damaged in an accident.

 

Well I will be putting wheels on right away and suspension is important but since I will not be racing it isn't #1, I am mostly looking for power mods but some upgrades to the suspension would be nice

 

I'd say twincharge, and, if you can spare it, 16" Ultraleggeras and some sticky rubber. aren't you mr. Lucky having 5k laying around... lol

 

Gotta love this wonderful string of contradictions...

Reliability and highly modified (e.g. 300hp) are mutually exclusive choices.....In other word you cant have both So, I would say go and decide whether you intend this car for track use or street use.

Besides, No one has said it yet but the chorus will come in soon. Go spend the first $500 on getting some track training by the pros, like a phil wicks. You can make all the horsepower in the world but if you dont know how to put it to the track then it doesn't really matter.....

 

Well this car will def. be for street use as it will be my daily driver! I understand that a highly modified car wont be 100% reliable but how unreliable will it be? Is there work going to have to be done on it every month? And I am most definitely taking some driving lessons, without a question!

 

So you want your cake and eat it too!

1) for $5m - I'd turbo the car.

2) gas mileage - so you'll get shitty gas mileage when your playing with STIs and when your not the numbers will be decent ennough that you should not give this another thought.

3) reliability - you roll the dice with any mod.

 

Twincharge.....$5K in a lump can be hard to find... the rest you can do in pieces.... get the power first

 

save 3k more and take ur car to Arizona for Dr. Fuh's treatment..
then you will play with the STIs, EVOs.. pretty well..

 

The twincharged guys are the ones to talk to, but from what I have seen on these forums any mechanical mod beyond what you already have will dramatically affect reliability. I doubt that you make 30k past a twincharge install without MAJOR mechanical failure.

 

I believe a few TC minis are well proven to be realiable BEYOND 30k miles of driving.........

 

What is the "treatment" ? I have a potentially willing patient....

 

Going to Arizona would be a little extreme since I am in New Jersey

 

My Mini is still on the way, but after building more hot rods and throwing more money at them then I care to remember,,, I will give my two bits of wisdom.

You can go over the top on suspension and engine work, but you have to ask yourself if that will serve you well still being a daily driver. Its all about balance and pulling alot of power (300 hp) out of a 1.6L and still getting 25-30 mpg might be a conflict.

Since you already have the 15% pulley and a CAI, it seems like the most logical items to add would be a lightened crank and alternator pulley. If your exhaust is only a cat back, consider going with the header and a free flow cat to complete the system. I would look at some porting work on the head and then get an ECU upgrade done to pull it all together keeping in mind the real world parameters you will operate under (ie,,, dont build it for 100 octane gas if you want to run regular).

Suspension wise, it appears there are alot of things you can do to these in stages before leaping into a full coilover. Of course, dont forget the brakes and other safety items.

I am in the same boat of wanting to take my mini to the limit, but I will not be relying on my mini as sole transport, it is a toy to satisfy my hot rodding bug that struggles to escape again. I am keeping my Element which after 3.5 years is so practical it is sickening, but is rather a bore. However, on the Mini, I am laying out a plan to avoid going over the top right out of the gate and building a bolt on monster. Its not about the money, its about making a refined toy that will be fun week after week.

This forum is an outstanding resource of information by the way,, it is refreshing to see the dialogue in a very civil manner.

 

Well being in NJ, its seems you wouldn't be too far from helix's garage. Maybe take a weekend to go visit them and ask them about twincharging. In all honesty, if you wanted to stay the supercharger route, from what you have done it just gets more expensive for minimal gains.

Best bets though, would be ecu tuning and a crank pulley. Could also look into head work, throttle body or an intercooler.

I still think the twincharge is the best power for money option, except for the fact that it has to be done as a lump sum purchase. And as far as reliability goes, as long as you do it right, it should be reliable. Its when you start upping boost on your own and doing other little tinkers with it that you really mess the reliability up.

 

Hey guys, just to clear it up, the CAI, pulley, and exhaust is a hypothetical situation since thats what I am thinking about putting on, so by all means tell me what to do to a completely stock MCS! Hope that makes things a little bit easier!

 

Eric @ Helix can install a twin charge for $5.
He is the best local shop by far. Call him if you are serious.
IMO there is no other way to become an STI fighter.
Any suspension work wont help in a straight line.

 

Check the M7 online catalogue and let your fingers do the walking. Cosworth, baby, Cosworth! Twin charge is an exciting option, but I wouldn't do it on a daily driver. It's a lot of performance to deal with in all weather, etc.

Be sure to find an excellent local shop to install all the goodies - that'll eat up any of the spare $$$!

 

From stock, 17% UDP + 2% light weight crank pulley, JCW injectors, GIAC, Miltek headers and CAT back, Helix/RDR intake, Light weight wheels with MAX performance tires. If 16's, my 1st choice for you, 16x7 SSR's, 11 lbs. and 205/50/16 tires or possibly a 225/45/16. If 17's, get one of the several 12.5- 13 lb. forged wheels on the market and 215/40/17's or 215/45/17's. Consider an intercooler upgrade.

The car should have a limited slip, if you didn't get the OEM one, get a Quaife and maybe a light weight flywheel and an upgraded clutch.

You will always eat STI dust on a launch and see nothing but tail lights for a long time but from a rolling start, against a stock STI, you may have something for it with these mods but remember they can spend money on mods too.

 

Ditto. I love my Cosworth Stage 2+ car . And, no reliability issues! Ye-yeah!

 

If your MINI is bone stock now, then you really have to think about where you want to end up. If you want to be an STI/EVO fighter, you really have to go twincharge, the SC alone just isn't going to do it.

As far as reliability goes, I would just say talk to the installers who have done it, and PM anyone here who you know have had it done, should get better results then just posting in a thread, where new threads seem to crop up everyday.

From what I have read in other threads, the main reliability problems with a twincharge is simply driver error. If you are getting it installed at a good shop, helix or hubie or someone who as done one before, they will know the limits of the car and the engine, and it is up to you to not tinker with it where as it will go into the danger zone.

I know of one club member who did blow an engine with his twincharge setup, so it is a very real possibility, but anyways I am just rambling now.

Advantages to the SC setup is you can pace yourself. Do a pulley, then an intake, then exhaust, etc as you get the money in.

Advantages to Twincharge is you have a higher theoretical power limit that you can attain. Also get a much better torque line from what I have seen.

It really comes down to your choices and what you want to use the car for. Another good place to check out twincharge setups is the ftr forums.

http://www.fireballed.com/forum/

 

Not to hijack, but what kind of power are you getting out of yours? Was unable to see any details on the M7 site. Any information would be appreciated, such as dyno sheets, 0-60 times, etc.

 

stock pulley, 2 map ecu, turbo. map 1 8lb boost. map 2 11lb boost. map 1 will take care of any conventional modded car and map2, WOO,WOO. this can be done for less than 5k.

cheers

 

x2! Maybe 17"s if your worried about look over performance, but the 16"s WILL perform better. Ever think of autocrossing?

And of course, watch this:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=66165

-Cody

 

getrag AWD tranny then fabricate parts from there to build an AWD MINI

or

Global Motorwerks Head/Cam/Intake manifold - $1100
get a 19% instead of 15
obx header no cat - $90-160
JCW injectors - dunno price..
unichip - $1000
m7 DFIC - $900+
m7 Venom Nitrous kit - $799
gut your interior - free
Thats comes to $3550 leaving money for install unless you plan on doing it your self
recaro pole positions - $600 each
This comes to $4750 and possible if you install everything yourself

With these mods you should still get gas mileage and with the nitrous shot you can be around 300hp when you want.

here are some other options too
Bilsteain pss9 - $2000 or something around their..
brembo gt 320mm - $2000
Ireland Engineering camber plates - $275
H-Sport Comp rear control arms - $255x2 - $510