I just got an 05 mini cooper s. its fully loaded..
Im not looking to modify the hell out of this thing, I already learned my lesson with my 1300+hp stang, hence the screenname.

But what simple mods are there? This was my grandfathers, who recently passed away and handed this mini down to me.. I love it..

Is there anyone that sells a smaller pulley/chip combo or is there something else more worthwhile? Maybe the supercharger would be overspun with a smaller pulley..

 

Condolences re your loss of grandfather and congrats on the Cooper S.. He must've been one hip, cool grandpa!!

 

thank you very much. he was.. he bought this mini when he was 85 and died at 87 so ya he was really, really cool.

 

Congrats and condolances.
Look at my list of mods.....are you after hp or comfort and convience?
Do you want cool sounds, or driveabilty? Do you want to track it, or just drive around town/highway?
All of these answers will lead you to what you should do.
IMO, if it is steet only, get a 17% reduction pulley, new belt, a cold air intake (some are for whine, most make about the same hp), then it quickly gets into diminshing returns. A rear swaybar, and exaust is great.....then it get pricey to get more hp.
As for chipping, many like the Product that connect between the gas pedal and the computer to amplify and accelate what the computer sees, called the spint booster. It will make you car feel faster, but will not add hp, but many love it..if you want driveabilty, and matainabilty in a daily driver, that is the best bang for the buck total....custom tunes... Big debate, some love them, but issues, and support issues crop up, and it is a slippery slope.

 

Doing the pulley is about 200$ at a good mini place, 400 if they haven't done lots....best thing you can do for the car!! It will transform it.

 

Grandpas are the best in this world.
Plant a small tree for your popsie.

I think that's the best modification you can do to your mini.
oh, by the way---he said, be very careful driving.

 

I just read in the latest issue of MC2 Magazine: get a custom tune/Dyno... for about $450.00 they gained 19hp and about three mpg on their '05 MCS!

 

Welcome to the addiction.

Your question has been asked 10x+ on here and 100X+ answered.
Although a little time consuming, you can find good info using the search tool. (you will probably even learn more than what you were originally looking for).

I will share my personal experience to your question.
HP does come with a price, as you already know, and how far you want to go is up to you.
Reduction Pulley, probablly best gain for the money. 15,17%.
Intakes by themselves are pricey for the gains, they all do just about the same, some better designed than others. Most do let in more air and do make the supercharger whine louder to the ears.
Exhaust..generally the same as intakes,air just going out instead of in and different sound ranges.

Now with that said, the three mods above with a custom tune, can really make quite a difference in the performance of the car. (stay away from chips).
Next steps are usually header, cam, injectors,plugs, larger intercooler, again, custom tune.

Best bang for buck in suspension I've found is stiffer sway bar,19-22mm.
And ditch the run flats.
Lots of other options for suspension, just depends on how much you really want to dial in the perfect set up and how much you want to spend.
At the very least, invest in some strut tower reinforcement plates (m7) to reduce the chance of mushrooming the tower mount. (again, other options also available with some more adjustability).

I could go on but you mentioned you didnt want to go too crazy on the mods, so this was just the "popular bigginer list".

Good Luck!!

 

We have a great pulley package that has everything a person like you needs. It will give you a nice gain, actually the biggest bang for the buck mod you can do. And keep your car reliable.
http://www.waymotorworks.com/product...cat=325&page=1

That would be the best place to start. Feel free to call our Shop and we can discuss options for you that will work for what you are going to do.

WAY
317.201.8670

 

welcome

 

It is a nice package, nice price too.........If you do the pulley, do the plugs and belt, and you should get the tensioner stop too....great item to have...it can save you big $$$ if the belt fails!!! Great folks to get parts and advise from too!!

 

Waymotor - what do you think of the ROTREX supercharger to MINI?
I heard good things about Rotrex.
http://www.rotrex.com/index1.htm
I heard you can harness more power than the stock Mini cooper supe.

 

Welcome to MINI land, as you can see there are all sorts of ways to spend money on your beast. Have fun with them all.

 

Did your grandfather have plans for any mods? I'd be inclined to leave it how he left it to you.

 

ya he obviously didnt modify it, or have plans to modify it..
im not diving too deep with this mini, as i have already done that with the stang..

I think for right now Im just going to get exhaust, mainly for sound..

later down the road i might do the pulley setup and a cold air intake.

what do yall suggest for exhaust? the magnaflow is like $900.. anything that sounds good and is less expensive?
I was thinking about having a muffler shop just do a replacement weldin magnaflow.. opinions?

 

Best Mod? Join a Mini club! I can see that he got it from the woodlands. check out the Houston Mini Motoring Society and the Mini Club of the Woodlands, both have forums on NAM.

www.hmms.org

ALSO, (shameless plug) the Aggieland Mini Club.


On Jan 2nd the Houston, Dallas, and Aggieland Clubs are meeting in Waco for lunch if you would like to join!

 

thanks man. ya he got it from woodlands.. but I live in new orleans. do you know of any n.o. mini clubs?

 

I just came back from NOLA! I dont know of any in New Orleans but there is a Gulf Coast Mini Club. They have a forum, dont know where they are headed out of. I feel bad for you mini that it has to go from Texas roads to Louisiana roads. lol.

Why dont you start the New Orleans Mini Club! Big Easy Minis. I started the Aggieland Club with just a facebook group! As a graphic designer i can think of some awesome club logos for yall. Im getting too ahead of myself. anyway, geaux saints!

 

My plans are simple modifications on my R52: One-Ball Mod Exhaust (Sound), 15% Pulley (HP), Drop-In Air Filter, Craven Speed Strut Plates (Mushrooming)...for now...

 

Congrats and enjoy!!

 

Right now it's still not a pratical option. We can get pretty good power with the M45 that's it's just not cost effective, or reliable enough to change.

 

http://gulfsouthmotoring.org/SMF/

Typically, things are a little quiet in December, but soon it will start up again. We'd be delighted to have you join us.

 

and I can highly recommend this! I love mine.

 

This may be the best deal around right now.
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-shipping.html

Ive had mine for a little more than a year.
Bolts up perfect, looks good, good quality and has a nice deep tone.

If you go too cheap, you get what you pay for.

There is an exhaust thread on here somewhere will pics and some sound clips.

 

I put a 17% pulley, colder spark plugs, and a CAI and there is a huge difference. Worth the money.