My take....if you have a 15%, and need/want a bit more power and you crank pulley needs replacing, then getting the +2 is one less part to buy...but if you already have the 17%, then the crank fails, then go for the stock....functionaly the differances between the two quanitativly would be pretty minior...doubt a butt dyno would tell the diff. Comes down to dou you need/want a crank pulley, and do you have want a sc pulley/little bit extra zip....17% seems to have become the most common eeduction in our area....was once the 15%....so the ati +2 provides a second upgrade path....
In my case i have a tuned car with a 17%...my stock damper is on its last legs...so a stock size aftermarket replacement will be used soon. Cause waymotorworks is such a great place with sales/service /support, getting it from them is a no brainer imo.

 

Thanks, Zip! The question in my case is if starting from scratch/stock, is one approach better than the other. I'm getting the sense it's pretty much even, but I'm really hoping Way will weigh in with his expert advice in case I'm missing something (esp. any idiosyncrasies with the auto tranny).

+1 -- either which way it will be WMW and ATI, it's just a question of size and timing.

 

We have sold so many of these, heck last week in the shop we installed 3 due to the stock ones failing. I'd love for people that have actually gotten one of our ATI Dampers to post their feedback. Please let everyone know about the quality of the product, and how your car ran after installing.

 

I bought one from Way and had him install it when I was at the Dragon. At the time my 2004 MCS had about 118K on it, and three local friends had their dampers fail at lower mileages than mine. Decision to install the ATI was purely out of fear of sudden failure of the OE when on a trip away from home. Inspection of the one he took off did not suggest that failure was imminent, but I have piece of mind. Yes, high quality piece of equipment.

 

Heres the deal..

OEM = POS

ATI = FTW

end of story...

 

Is everyone good with using a chicken foot puller against the threads of the bolt & crankshaft internals? A long bolt sent to the bottom and then backed off is using the threads to push against.

Is the $70 pin puller a wise choice, or does this longer bolt trick work 100%..?
Thanks, -Steve

 

Won't installing the 2%ATI affect the alternator & A/C? Do we need to change both alt & A/C pulleys too?

 

I did not see any different in voltage after changing to the 2% crank pulley. I figure it is all the same belt driving everything so adding a 12% JCW SC pulley probably has as much larger affect then changing to a 2% crank pulley. Since the crank pulley is larger than the other pulleys, I would guess a 2% crank change equates to about a 4% change for the accessories so not much speed change.

 

As I stated in Post #12 of this thread I used a cheap pulley puller with no problems. I did purchase hardened bolts instead of using the cheap bolts in the kit.

 

Changing the pulley on the item supplying the spin will change the speeds of everything getting driven off that belt...changing the pulley on an item getting supplied with power ONLY changes the rotational speed of THAT item...
It seems like on a mini there have been 0 reports of issues from getting a larger crank damper as far as running the alternator+ ac compressor faster....so while these changes are often done on other makes, it appears the 2% or so change is close enough not to cause a descernible issue.
I think the important thing to note is the improved longevity of the part, and continued longevity of the motor is important, and keeping a damped pulley ensures the engine internals do no wear out prematurely.
Heck waymotorworks has never been afraid to call a part junk if it is junk...they are pretty darn honest in saying someting is good, junk, or in somecases a part which is a bit of a compermise to improve some type of performance. The ati seems to be a win/win...cheaper and more relilable than oem, and offering a slight gsin in performance, or stock performance. Hard to beat.

 

2% damper, therefore, might just shorten further the service life of the already not-so-reliable R53 alternator & a/c compressor. if only we have data on this.....

 

What is the difference between the ATI and the PRW?
http://www.waymotorworks.com/fluid-c...ulley-r53.html

 

PRW Fluid Dampers are made with an internal steel intertia ring that is surrounded by a high viscosity silicone gel. The internal intertia ring "floats" in the silicone gel to combat the engine harmonics at all RPM ranges. The ATI does not use a gel.

 

I'm new to the site, found this thread while researching possible causes of lose of power combined with limp home mode, and cooling issues with my wife's '06 Cooper S.

When the problem occurred, she mentioned a pop, then the instrument cluster lite up, huge lose of power, and the engine getting hot. Fortunately she pulled over and shut it down, waited until it cooled down some and added coolant. She was about 1/2 mile from the house and was able to limp home. From the symptoms she descibed, I'm suspecting the crank pulley separated from the damper. I've been reading up and noted most of the failures have been with earlier R53s. However I see that "Cole9953" owns an '06 MCS.

I won't get a chance to take a look until this upcoming weekend. Hopefully I find a bad damper, I'm not looking forward to the other possibility, a blown supercharger PTO.

 

Rich: If yours failed, and you're looking to save some $, I have a used OE damper for sale that hadn't failed; I simply had it taken off so as to install an ATI.

 

Thanks for the offer, but if I find a failed damper I'm going to install the ATI. I'm also going to check the oil levels in the supercharger gearboxes. I took the week following Turkey Day off specifically for this maintenance issue. My Bride's MCS has just over 87K miles, and this was the first problem we've had with it since we took delivery in 2006.

 

I tore into my wife's Cooper S today and found small silver shavings around the damper end of the engine. Closer examination reveals evidence of the pulley on the crank damper walking and lightly scoring the front of the timing case cover. I'll be completing the tear down tomorrow, which will include inspection of the PTO for the water pump.

 

I completed the tear down and inspection. After removing the drive belt, I found that the crank pulley spins freely on the damper. I pulled the SC and looked at the PTO, appears to have about 2 oz of oil in it, gears are in great shape, and no external signs of leakage.

I placed an order today with Way Motor Works, for an ATI damper, new tensioner, the 15% Pulley package, water pump, DT BPV, and the requisite while your in there stuff.

 

I'd like to thank Way Motor Works for great customer service.

I received all my parts in a single shipment last Thursday. During reassembly I had a couple of questions so I placed a call to WMW and was provided immediate telephone support. My wife's Cooper S is back together and running great !!!

 

In case everyone didn't see we now have the Titanium Bolt kits for these ATI Dampers.

You can order the ATI Damper with them preinstalled option or just order the Titanium Bolt kit if you already have an ATI Damper.

 

Hey guys, sorry if I'm asking a silly question.

I'm currently on way 17% supercharger pulley kit package with shortened belt as provided in the package.

If I were to upgrade to ati super damper 2%, do I need to change belt? Or I could still run the same belt size?

 

I would say it depends on how tight your current size belt is on the pulleys. If it is already a tight fit to get your belt on/off the pulleys then you will probably want a longer belt. The 2% ATI pulley is larger than OEM pulley so it makes a tighter fit. I had the JCW pulley with JCW length belt and when I added the 2% ATI pulley, I can bearly get the belt on/off but I can.
I do not have any experience with 17% pulley and 2% pulley so I cannot suggest a specific size belt.

 

What size belt goes best with the 2% overdrive ATI and a 15% SC reduction pulley?

 

I see this is an old thread but it's a new issue for me with my oem damper doing the split thing a few days ago, breaking the belt, losing steering boost, battery, EML, SES, DSC - looked like Xmas, and in a downpour. I ordered the 2% OD damper, stopped mech replacing with oem & waiting 4 delivery. Can someone explain why & whether I've made the right choice, what SC is in this discussion, whether the S-charger will spin faster and is there a reliability/wear price with this install or a warranty on the ATI unit?

 

The ATI 2% will make the supercharger spin slightly faster and generate about 1/2 psi extra boost. That is all good and will not impact reliability as long as your current supercharger pulley is not too small.
What supercharger pulley do you have on the car; stock S, JCW, or some aftermarket size (such as 15 or 17%). Do you do Track Days with your car?
If you have stock or JCW pulley there is no concern with the 2% crank pulley.
If you have a 15% pulley, I would be a little concerned if you track your car but would be fine for street driving.
I wouldn't use the 2% with a 17% pulley.