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Hey guys. I just installed the Alta CAI on my 03 r53 with 80k miles and am loving the supercharge whine. I also have a 15% pulley done with stage 2 spark plugs.
My question is what's next? What else can I do to my car besides an exhaust system? I'm looking for anything from making it sound cool, look cool, or go faster!
Last edited by SmurfNinja; May 1, 2016 at 02:54 PM.
On a 03, the exausts is likely on borrowed time...might look at one. Mostly for sound...but a tiny bit of HP to gain.
But drivers education...an auto-x day would IMO be the thing to do....seriously. It the right season too!!
Big plus is it will stay with you in all future cars....
Maybe the crank pulley, because the stock ones break apart and then your car won't go at all. The recommended replacement usually is ATI or a PRW gel pulley. Also, lighter wheels and suspension would be good. A lot of people recommend a bigger rear sway bar at the minimum.
On a 03, the exausts is likely on borrowed time...might look at one. Mostly for sound...but a tiny bit of HP to gain.
But drivers education...an auto-x day would IMO be the thing to do....seriously. It the right season too!!
Big plus is it will stay with you in all future cars....
Maybe the crank pulley, because the stock ones break apart and then your car won't go at all. The recommended replacement usually is ATI or a PRW gel pulley. Also, lighter wheels and suspension would be good. A lot of people recommend a bigger rear sway bar at the minimum.
Blessing and a curse that's the previous owner put brand new run flats on right before he gave it to me.
What are some symptoms of the crank pulley is starting to fail
Auto-x day is an auto cross day....low speed, typically in a mall parking lot, on a Sunday am, with a bunch of cones...and an instructor...they tech you car handling skills that can apply in daily driving, and higher speeds...
Most folks are amazed at how little of the cars ability they actually use till they try an auto-x day....
Auto cross us usually ALLOWED as driver education, as opposed to track days for insurance purposes.... And the fact if you mess up, there is usually only a traffic cone to kill....
If you're lucky you'll see some symptoms like wobbling, hearing some odd noise, or experience some slipping. Usually they just break, the dash lights up like Christmas, the car starts to overheat, and the car goes into limp mode stranding you somewhere. If you have a lot of miles I would at least inspect it, or just replace it before the inevitable happens. Maybe gently prying on it to see if the rubber is still intact, or just a visual inspection?
ZippyNH probably knows a lot more about early warning signs and inspection. He's one of the more knowledgeable members on NAM.
If you're lucky you'll see some symptoms like wobbling, hearing some odd noise, or experience some slipping. Usually they just break, the dash lights up like Christmas, the car starts to overheat, and the car goes into limp mode stranding you somewhere. If you have a lot of miles I would at least inspect it, or just replace it before the inevitable happens. Maybe gently prying on it to see if the rubber is still intact, or just a visual inspection?
ZippyNH probably knows a lot more about early warning signs and inspection. He's one of the more knowledgeable members on NAM.
Lol...maybe I have just endured the longest, or had the most time to waste!!
The stock crank damper is two Metal parts, separated with a rubber middle... Issue is the rubber drys out, fatigues, and will start to slip and tear...if the wheel liner is off you can look at it for cracks in the rubber, or if on a lift, try to wiggle it with a pry bar...they get a bit less stiff before they fail according to my mechanic... He can spot them.
To just replace them without looking...I might say use "watchfull waiting", monitor it, but once the rubber starts to crack or it gets soft, swap it out...
Folks sometimes get ocd about fixing stuff that " commonly fail" on boards...heck...once any car gets old enough, everything can fail, lol..some things are just good till they are not, and getting a good MINI experienced mechanic look over your car yearly, even if you diy most stuff IMO is a good move. Some thing like bushings, ball joints, tierods are things a good mechanic will catch before they fail, but a home mechanic is likly too miss them till they fail, and that can be dangerous at the worst, or inconvenient at best.
Auto cross, AutoX or Solo, whatever name you call it, is the perfect platform for learning how to 'DRIVE'. Anybody can go as fast as they can straight whether in a county dump truck or Yugo. Driving skillfully where the road bends is an art and MINIs are made for bent roads. See the '64, '65 and '67 Monte Carlo rallies. MINI won the '66 also but was disqualified because of improper headlight bulbs.
Auto cross, AutoX or Solo, whatever name you call it, is the perfect platform for learning how to 'DRIVE'. Anybody can go as fast as they can straight whether in a county dump truck or Yugo. Driving skillfully where the road bends is an art and MINIs are made for bent roads. See the '64, '65 and '67 Monte Carlo rallies. MINI won the '66 also but was disqualified because of improper headlight bulbs.
Sounds cool I'll have to look up some classes near me this summer
Lol...maybe I have just endured the longest, or had the most time to waste!!
The stock crank damper is two Metal parts, separated with a rubber middle... Issue is the rubber drys out, fatigues, and will start to slip and tear...if the wheel liner is off you can look at it for cracks in the rubber, or if on a lift, try to wiggle it with a pry bar...they get a bit less stiff before they fail according to my mechanic... He can spot them.
To just replace them without looking...I might say use "watchfull waiting", monitor it, but once the rubber starts to crack or it gets soft, swap it out...
Folks sometimes get ocd about fixing stuff that " commonly fail" on boards...heck...once any car gets old enough, everything can fail, lol..some things are just good till they are not, and getting a good MINI experienced mechanic look over your car yearly, even if you diy most stuff IMO is a good move. Some thing like bushings, ball joints, tierods are things a good mechanic will catch before they fail, but a home mechanic is likly too miss them till they fail, and that can be dangerous at the worst, or inconvenient at best.
Hi SmurfNinja! There are some really good articles and application guides here to plan on upgrading your R53 in various stages, starting with Sprint Booster, exhausts, coilovers, etc. Please let us know if we can answer any questions or help in any way. Happy MINI Motoring!
Darn straight. For best handling (which is mostly what solo is) a stiffer RSB is called for and one of the best mods you can make all around. KONI FSD struts make a huge difference as well.
Have to admit though that my solo days were back in the '60s driving a TR.
I would say a new rear sway bar, a front strut brace (and strut tower protection) would be good, dedicated summer tires (and maybe even lighter wheels) and a dyno tune if you can get one.
My r53 has a 17% pulley, alta CAI, alta intercooler diverter, m7 strut tower brace, Oil Catch can, 19mm Alta Rear sway bar, BF goodrich g-force tires on 17 inch oem wheels, and I'm in the process of putting Koni FSD's on it (the fronts were defective from the factory so I'm waiting for replacements)
Once I'm done with the suspension work, I think it'll be about perfect, it looks bone stock with the hood down but I think it's making 25 more HP than stock (would be better with a tune) and handles even better than it did the day it drove off the lot.
I have the sprint booster and I'm not too impressed with it. It doesn't add any speed to the car, it just increases the throttle responsiveness so It's nice on track days for down shifting and that sort of thing but I think your money would be better spent elsewhere.
I would say a new rear sway bar, a front strut brace (and strut tower protection) would be good, dedicated summer tires (and maybe even lighter wheels) and a dyno tune if you can get one.
My r53 has a 17% pulley, alta CAI, alta intercooler diverter, m7 strut tower brace, Oil Catch can, 19mm Alta Rear sway bar, BF goodrich g-force tires on 17 inch oem wheels, and I'm in the process of putting Koni FSD's on it (the fronts were defective from the factory so I'm waiting for replacements)
Once I'm done with the suspension work, I think it'll be about perfect, it looks bone stock with the hood down but I think it's making 25 more HP than stock (would be better with a tune) and handles even better than it did the day it drove off the lot.
I have the sprint booster and I'm not too impressed with it. It doesn't add any speed to the car, it just increases the throttle responsiveness so It's nice on track days for down shifting and that sort of thing but I think your money would be better spent elsewhere.
Usually when a car is tuned, the tuner can adjust the throttle sensitively to make it similar to the Sprint booster....the equivalent of about the middle setting is what most tuners will give you...more than that and it can make smooth driving in bumper to bumper a bit too hard...
The koni fsd's are great for the street on a non-lowered car....but since they are sorta like a progressive spring (more based on the size of the bump/impact) many prefer koni yellow struts, or the yellow "sport" ones if lowered....a bit firmer, but on stock springs, the car will be better than most on coilovers unless they are $$$$ midrange+ units.
I didn't know there was a yellows option for stock springs. That's good to know. I went with fsd's because I want to stay at stock height (I've had a lowered R53 before and the handling is amazing but the ride quality isn't amazing) I do one or two high performance driving events (track/auto cross) but mostly my car is a thoroughly enjoyed daily driver.
I think these cars have fantastic race/track car potential. If you put a performance head, cam, exhaust, coil overs, strip the interior, put in a cage and a racing seat it could be seriously fun.
+1
Phil Wicks or a local SCCA chapter are just two resources.
Good point. Try an SCCA Track Night in American and/or a local autocross, solo, or even road rally event. Closest Track Night to you is in Willow, which is a bit of a drive to Thunderhill Raceway, but there are five scheduled so if you're up that way . . .
Maybe the crank pulley, because the stock ones break apart and then your car won't go at all. The recommended replacement usually is ATI or a PRW gel pulley. Also, lighter wheels and suspension would be good. A lot of people recommend a bigger rear sway bar at the minimum.
The most recommended rear swaybar I've seen is the Hotchkis 25.5mm hollow competition bar. It's supposed to be similar to a 22mm solid bar, but lighter. As far as setting, some say the middle, others say full stiffness... there are 3 settings. You might need to get new endlinks for the swaybar depending on if your car is lowered, and how much.
I went with this bar, but haven't installed it yet. I'll probably start with full soft or medium and drive it for a while to get used to it and see if I need to make any adjustments.
