Hi,
I read on reddit (so it must be true that according to a MINI tech the sport button:

"It has to do partly with the Valvetronic positioning and partly engine timing. Basically the engine becomes geared more towards performance and less toward economy.
Throttle response is increased by opening the valves more through the Valvetronic system and increasing valve overlap and using more aggressive (and slightly wasteful) timing per the VANOS system."


So my question is, has anyone done a back to back N18 dyno with and without the sport button activated? Any differences?


Thanks!!

 

I put my car on a dyno this winter and after one run I realized the tech didn't have sport mode on. I told him to turn it on and it actually made like 1-2 hp less. This may also be due to my intercooler heat soaking. Overall I'd say any power difference between sport and non sport is a wash.

Sport mode does play with the fuel mixture and spark timing somewhat, but only to give you pops and burbles. I don't really think it has anything to do with power, because I monitor timing, AFR, and fuel rail pressure while I drive and notice basically nothing when I switch modes when it comes to WOT pulls. Other than that the steering gets a little heavier.

It should be noted I'm stage 2 and I've heard on the stock map sport mode allows you to go into overboost or something though I cannot confirm.

 

My theory is that the power level is the same between sport and non-sport mode, but the power delivery is much different. In sport mode, my car has a much increased sense of urgency compared to non-sport mode. But, I highly doubt the actual power level is any different.

 

Do you have a manual or automatic? I also imagine in sport mode it will try to stay in a lower gear with an auto.

 

I have a stick.

Thanks for the great information so far!


Speaking of overboost, only partly related, but the N14 at roughly 172 ftlb torque and N18 at roughly 181 ftlb both max at 192ftlb in overboost. Kind of surprised N18 does not get more at overboost. Wonder why.

 

Yes, on the dyno the N14 JCW made the same on sport vs non sport. All it did is increase the throttle response and then make the exhaust tone have more burple feedback.

 

I have a manual.

Another point to add to the fire... I coded my car to show gear indicators on the tach, and when in sport mode the car does not tell you what gear to be in. When in non-sport mode, the car will tell you when to upshift for best economy. (Supposedly)

 

Thanks ECSTuning for the dyno information!

 

N18 Sport mode does 3 things, from what I know. It makes the steering feel "heavier", which is nice. It adds "pops and burbles", also nice, especially with an exhaust resonator delete, and a cat-back system. The "pops and burbles" seem to come and go, not really randomly, but more of a timed-out type of situation. I hate it when they go away! UGH. The third thing it does is to make throttle response "sharper", meaning that less throttle input equals more "go". It also makes the little green light on the button come on, and puts "sport" on your display in your tachometer, at least temporarily. I constantly run in Sport mode. It would be interesting to know the MPG difference between Sport and non-Sport, as Sport adds a tiny bit of fuel after throttle let-off to get the pops and burbles, when they happen, at least. Oh, then there is THIS: Sport mode MAY make your exhaust tips get sootier sooner. Not sure on that last one, but with a bit more fuel being injected, how could it not?

Almost forgot...with an auto trans, Sport mode will hold gears longer, and downshift sooner on decel. In the auto loaner that I drove for a while, that little part was almost annoying.

Motor On!
Chris

 

My AT stays in lower gear in Sport. There won't be any more HP in Sport though. It just makes the throttle more responsive to the same pressure and increases the steering resistance. It doesn't change the fuel mixture or timing. You need a tune for that.