I'm just wondering what is considered safe rpms on the interstate . My r50 in fifth gear turns
4,000 @ 80 mph . Is it ok to run that high of rpms down the highway ? I commute 60 miles one way to work 4 days a week . I don't want to kill my cooper . I drive 70mph most of the time and I always fill like it's geared too low. I'm used to other cars like the honda civic or ford focus that only turn around 2,000 rpm's at 80+mph .
Also it seems like if I want to keep a smooth power band I have to shift gears around 3,000 rpms .

Is all of this normal . Please let me hear your thoughts . Btw . It's a 05 r50 5 speed
Thanks

 

I have an r55 but I'm usually around 3500rpm on the highway and I put 40K on the car this year. My thought is, if they honor warranty claims as long as the rpm limiter is not defeated, should be safe for the car. =D

 

Doesn't sound right to me. My 2013 JCW R56 turns around 3,300 RPM at 80 MPH. I don't know what the gear ratios of an 05 R50 5 speed are, as well as the diff ratio. That along with the tire radius and it can be calculated easily. Is 5th gear an overdrive gear? I suspect it is.

 

I don't really know my diff size or gear ratio but I'm running 16 inch wheels . I plan on throwing on a set of jcw 17s . When I'm running 70mph and turning 3,500 rpm ,the engine doesn't sound like its killing it but when I run the car up to 90mph the engine turns 5,000, then it's screaming . It may be just the nature of the beast .

 

Sounds pretty close, my '05 6 speed has a sweet spot @ 3300 which is about 72mph.

 

I wonder if I could change my diff ratio and make the gearing a lil taller . I'm hoping the 17 jcw wheels will help also.

 

Sounds about right to me as well. I'd try the 17" wheels, but I don't think you're going to destroy it running it at 4k.

 

I usually drive at 65 unless I'm in a hurry, and then i'll bump it up to 75mph in my R53. At 75 mph i'm at about 3300rpm.

I drove home from Rochester, NY to CT (7 hours) and did 85 the whole way and the car was fine.

 

The r50 I had was a high RPM runner, it is the gearbox in the early first gens. No problems just a little high, they addressed that in later models by going to six speed as well in the Coopers.

 

The six speed was mainly the reason why we upgraded from an R50 to an R56. After we got the first Cooper-S (with a six speed) I remember the wife commenting the R50 seemed to be missing a gear.

Also 17" wheels aren't going to change anything, its the tire size that matters. The normal 17" tire size has the same diameter as the 16" tire. With 16" wheels you can use 205/55-16 to get a larger diameter, or for 17" you can use 215/45-17.

 

Everything else being equal, you're always going to be a bit more compromised on gearing with a five- vs. a six-speed. If you make the low and high gears the same, then the jumps between gears become bigger with fewer gears. Gearing is always a compromise - that's one reason we're seeing such a rise in popularity of CVT's.

And doing 80-mph with a 114-hp engine does require some RPM - you're not going to be able to loaf long at 2K RPM like you might with a V8-powered Crown Vic. You could gear it somewhat higher, but the engine would start to become absolutely gutless, requiring a downshift to accelerate at all or to climb even small grades. The RPM it turns is what Mini feels is necessary to make the car feel at least a little bit responsive at high speeds. It's necessary RPM.

I doubt very many Civics turn 2K RPM at 80 mph. Most small cars are going to be in the 3K-3.5K range at these speeds - that's the RPM required to make sufficient power so that the car can maintain a high speed without constant downshifting. The R50 may be a little higher, but I doubt it is a tremendously higher, especially when compared to other five-speed cars.

A cruise RPM of near 4K is certainly not going to hurt anything, at least in the short term. Assuming properly-functioning cooling systems and lubrication systems, a modern engine like the R50 has can be run indefinitely at any power level desired, even peak power near redline. Engine life may be decreased somewhat by running at high power and RPM levels, but 80 mph isn't a very big deal - I doubt you could measure increased engine wear at 80 mph vs. 70 mph, even after driving 100K miles or more.

I don't think it is economically practical to change gearing in a R50 Midlands five-speed. It might be possible to fit the later Getrag six-speed, but it won't be cheap. Our FWD cars do not have the ability to alter overall gearing by fitting a different "rear end" like older RWD cars.

I'd just drive it.

- Mark

 

Thanks for the feed back guys . I hate that the engine turns that high of rpm but I have to admit that it seems to be most happy at 3,000-4,000 rpm range . I can shift from 1st-2nd at 2-3k no problem but from 3rd-4th it seems to like it up around 3-4k unless I'm just luging around town . Fortunately I have the getrag 5 speed and not the midlands which are junk. Maybe one day if I run across a cheap 6speed ill do a swap or then again ill probably just buy a cooper S . Till then I guess ill just have to live with it . After do some calculating , I guess the 17s won't change the over all diameter as long as I stay with the stock 205/40/15 and I really don't wont to throw a big bulky tire on my cooper.

 

Keep the oil topped up and clean, and 4K won't bother it at all.

 

Absolutely spot on with my 05 Justa, cruising the interstate at 80-ish mph right around 4,000 RPM. When I got this MINI about 15 months ago, the first thing I thought was... damn, this thing just begs for a sixth gear.

Yep, keep up with your oil changes and make sure to check the level frequently and you're very unlikely to have any problems.

And yes, my 13 JCW is geared very differently. Even in 5th gear at that speed, it's only pushing 3,600 RPMs. In the 6th gear, it drops down to about 3,100. Totally different animal so don't compare yours to those with a second generation power train and a sixth gear.

 

As most have said, really not an issue, but if a good portion of your mileage is going to be like this you may want to consider going to a 0w-40 on your next oil change. (5w-40 would be ok too, but they're usually harder to find or more expensive.)
just a thought.

 

Thanks . I always keep the oil topped off and I only use castrol edge synthetic 5w30 and genuine mini oil filters . Also my coolant gets changed regularly .
I take a look at the 0w40 oils next time I'm in the auto parts store.
Thanks again

 

Check Walmart for Mobil 1 0W40. $25 for 5 quart jug.