As the title says, but I'm a bit worried about going into it with the 124k miles it has on it and the longevity of it, I own a 09 mini s manual with jcw strut bar and intake.

So, as my only vehicle and daily driver, what could I attempt on this vehicle? or better yet, since this vehicle was highway driven so much (between texas and oklahoma) is this motor fresher then lets say a 2001 something or other? and if so should I start to do bolt ons chip and such? or keep what i got and avoid even bothering with performance modifications?

 

Highway miles are the best miles to put on your engine. The temperatures are steady and the engine is under lower stress compared with stop and go traffic. The engine probably has a lot of life left in it till it starts to get tired. Keep taking care of it and it will reward you. 124K is kind of late in the mod game but I wouldn't let it stop you from putting a little extra enjoyment in your MINI. Above all, you need to make the decision of how longer you intend to keep your MINI.

For me, I can see myself rebuilding the motor in mine when things get tired and keeping the car for a really long time instead of buying a new one. I've put so much time and customization in mine it would make little sense to start from scratch. If you don't fit into this niche you might want to stop at basic bolt-on modifications and such. It would be a pity if you invested a lot of money (+$2500) in mods only to sell the car. Mods add NOTHING to the value of a MINI in the open market.

 

my thoughts exactly, i've never had so many compliments on a vehicle even when i owned my 03 cobra. oddly enough these mini's go over well in my part of town, i guess i should price out a newer motor and keep it on the back burner if i end up doing to much to this one, but aside from chip exhaust and other basic bolt ons i doubt i would do entirely too much, i'd be content with 210ish hp in such a light platform.

 

It probably cost a lot more than you're thinking to get to 210whp with an S.

 

Not really...

he'll be right there with tune and turboback.

To answer the OP though, I would be weary of running higher boost with that many miles. But, maybe do a compression check + leakdown test to get a good idea of the motor's health.

 

Mmmmm i don't think so.

If you want ~210whp just go with a bigger intercooler, free flowing exhaust from the turbo all the way back, an ECU tune, and maybe a CAI. CAI has the least benefit of all them. You can probably swing this for a reasonable price. The car will be FAST and you will be happy. If you want any more power that's when you need to start paying the big bucks

 

And, more importantly to the OP, these are proven mods that shouldn't have much impact on reliability / longevity of the motor.

 

Bigger IC - $600+
Exhaust - $1000+
Tune - $650+
CAI - $200+

So you're looking at minimum $2500 for that stuff and that's assuming you get a great deal on a few things. I don't know about everybody else, but to me $2500 isn't a small amount of cash. If that's nothing for you to spend on your car then congrats and go for it. Wish my wife would let me dump that into my Clubbie...

 

Yes, in the general context of budgets it is a lot, but it's an average investment for modifying a car's powertrain. It's an expensive hobby no doubt!

 

i own a welder and i have a friend here in norman with a pipe bender, i can make my own turbo back with relatively ease, i made my own on my old volvo 850 t5. i would just need to either make my own flange or modify the stock one or make my own (least likely). and cold air intakes to be honest don't benifit enough but i could also make my own for alot cheaper than 200. but for now cone filter with the stock bottum half of the air box is fine with me (turbo spool is a godsend). only real task would be chip, that's something i couldn't do on my own (computers...me...not happening) and i dont trust ebay intercoolers on this high a profile car, although my 850 loved the ebay one i bought for it so it's up in the air if i go ebay or not (most likely not). but compression test is definately an option for me to see where i stand with this thing.

 

most likely now that i'm thinking about it, i'm probably going to keep this thing stockish for now and when i get back from deployment i'll either tear it down and build it up, or build a fox body( not drag just for road racing) again. i'm really wanting to make this car a streetable road race weekend warrior type vehicle but not so extreme that i can't drive down the street with the neighbors shuttering. i'm a bit disapointed if these motors are so fragile but i also understand that no motor is bullet proof and if you guys are as concerned as i am it's probably best that i dont go for a chip for higher boost or anything past 210ish hp due to the miles already put on this motor.

 

you could always just buy my catless DP and cut out your 2nd cat for free with your welding skills and have a very, very nice flowing exhaust all for the price of my downpipe! :D lol

 

Bigger IC - $449: www.ironhorsecoopersports.com group buy forming up now.
Exhaust - $1000+
Tune - $650+
CAI - $200+

 

is the accessport $650 now?

 

Used they are $650-$750 on the marketplace.