Hello NAM,

First off, my apologies if this question is a bit common. But since the purchase of my '08 R56S I been looking at exhaust systems. I ended up with more questions than I did answers so I am hoping to enlist your help as a lot of you have done this same process.

I have tuned many a car (WRX's, Volvos, etc) but Mini's are a new animal to me. I have learned many a lesson from not doing research...here are a few questions I have.

-Do I buy a turbo back or cat back? Will the turbo back throw a CEL?
-Are power gains from TB's really that great? Or am I throwing money away? Are power gains from CB's? No one lists them.
-I have shopped Milltek, Borla (sport system) and like these two. Who else is worth a look?

I know every car is different. Some turbos respond differently to upgrades than others. I just want to hear your personal struggles and victories when it comes to the R56S. Thank you all in advance for your time and advice.

 

No bolt on will give you power unless you tune for it.

With a tune a turboback will have no CEL.

Without a tune any turboback will throw a CEL, OEM o2 is very sensitive/tightly monitored.

Depends what you're going for. Sound, catback, power, turboback and tune, or catback and tune with less torque gains.

Go JCW for no drone with an upgraded DP, or, go brand name or custom, all just sound different without much variation in power imo. Some say 2.5 some say 3" but im not going into that argument. If you have tuned scoobies then its the same idea.

biggest gain will come from a catless DP (with tune), for substantial increase in torque and quicker spool time.

many threads on what options there are for exhausts. please dont turn this into another invidia and magnaflow exhaust thread. theres hundreds on here.

 

Thank you for that SooperCuperErik, very much appreciated. One stop shop for my questions being answered.

LOL(!), I promise this will not turn out to be a Invidia/Magnaflow thread. Dealt with enough of that being a Scooby owner...

 

If power cannot be gained w/o a tune how come Milltek claims 27HP gains w/ their TB (supposedly no tune on the car either).

To be honest, I would love to gain some power, w/ a great sound (I've heard the Borla and Milltek), and not spend too much. It the O2 is that sensitive to a TB then a CB should suffice as I do not wont be able to afford the tune for a bit...

 

Because so people who believe it will buy it. But honestly anyone who believes you'll gain 30 hp from an exhaust without a tune is probably being fooled a lot in other areas too. I've seen it over and over where people dyno before and after mods and see no deltas. Then you compare someone stock with a tune vs someone with mods and a time and there's deltas there.

If you're looking for best bang for buck go for a tune. 30+ whp and wtq from a $500 tune.

 

I think many people are biting there tongues here, but the search function is EXTREMELY useful especially for exhaust discussions. Every page on the drivetrain discussion is littered with discussions about this. I'm not trying to be a d1ck just trying to show a new user that we have an extensive database of knowledge that's been countlessly brought up since 2007.