Forgive me if this has been discussed, but with some of the new exhausts (Quicksilver, for example) the muffler on the driver's side is eliminated. If you were using this type of "one-sided" setup, could you fit an "S" with the spare tire setup of the standard Cooper? Looking at the spare under the Cooper, it seems like it could work, thus allowing you to use nice grippy tires with a little more confidence than fix-a-flat can offer. Is it that simple? JR

 

I don't have an -S, but I believe that the battery is in the rear left-side where the
spare is on a Cooper.

 

The battery box is in the center. If you got rid of it, you could fit a spare under the car on the left side.

BTW, a can of fix-a-flat fits nicely in the left-side compartment.

 

Is the battery compartment on the S any deeper than the "tool box" compartment on the Cooper?

 

>>Is the battery compartment on the S any deeper than the "tool box" compartment on the Cooper?

I'm guessing it has to be.

Here is a photo of the spare-tire area on a Cooper.
The tire is actually underneath the car. (As you know)
Cooper spate-tire area.

 

>>The battery box is in the center. If you got rid of it,

I'm guessing that you are joking about this. Otherwise, where would you put
the battery?

 

A small SLA battery could fit inside the hatch area:

http://www.mini2.com/forum/showthrea...threadid=24970

 

thanks for the info, guys. I guess it's not a simple replacement, but the SLA battery idea seems cool either way. JR

 

Around town, I don't worry about a spare. That's what the run-flats are for. On the road, however, a full sized spare rides behind me on the downfolded back seats. I cut a rubber mat to cover the seat backs and rear boot area. The tire is strapped down, and I'm good to go. The idea of not using the back seats on long distance drives doesn't bother me. Anyone I disliked enough to cram back there for a long period of time would generally not be welcome in my car to begin with!


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03 B/W S model; Madness intake; Cibie 45 lamps; Magnaflow exhaust

 

Hey, Jayar. Unfortunately, the answer is no. I've just installed a one-sided exhaust (see SuperTrapp WaveTech Installed) on my MCS. Using the 14" compact spare from my Miata as a gauge, there is no way to fit a spare underneath with the stock battery box.

 

I installed the Quicksilver,a one sided exhaust.There isn't enough room.