We've had our '07 Cooper S for a couple of weeks now, and it has maybe 400 miles on it. I thought I'd lay out my plans for modifications for the car, and update the thread periodically as it progresses.

We spec'ed the car out pretty lightly. The only options are the steering wheel with all the buttons on it , HID lamps, LSD, and the sport suspension. No sunroof, no leather, no nav, no auto climate control, no wheel ugpgrade.

Fresh out of the showroom, it looked like this:



(Sharp spotters will notice that we applied a little billet antenna...)

Last week we completed the application of various films, namely ClearBra paint protectant film on the front end and mirrors. Then we tinted the windows, 35% on all surfaces except the front. (Er, check your local laws for legality...)

Sorry, I didn't get any new pictures of the car with the tint before it headed off to one of our vendors for some exhaust prototype and testing work. I'll have some dyno numbers sometime soon. Edit: Pics with tint a few posts down.

Next on the agenda:
- Paint. I'm thinking I'd really like all that black plastic to be the same color as the body.
- Wheels. We're going to go with a Rota wheel. Not the most glamorous wheels, but they're good-looking, affordable, and we sell a lot of them. (Done.)
- Springs. Sure, I'm concerned about the lack of suspension travel, but I'm more concerned about how incredibly tippy-toed the car looks, especially in the rear. Plus I'd like to get it to lean a little less around corners. (Done.)
- Sway Bar(s). Too much understeer! We'll try a mild bar first (Done!), then maybe go to a more aggressive one and see if we can do that without killing ourselves.
- Exhaust. We'll see what we can come up with here. The factory system is one piece from the cat to the back of the car, so we'll either have to get out the pipe cutter, or we'll replace the entire thing.
- Vinyl. It's the shop car, so it should have some kind of vinyl on it, both for looks and to help thank our suppliers who are helping out with the build. I'm going for something semi-low key. Maybe silver on the dark silver paint.

Further down the line would be some sort of intake, a turbo upgrade, ECU tuning, and perhaps some coil-overs at some point.

So that's the mod plan. As we think of new things to build and/or sell, I'll update this post, and I'll try to post pics as the car changes. I'd love to hear your comments, too.

--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

I love threads like this... will be watching closely

 

Another mod suggestion: Trim down that huge black plastic lip under the front bumper.

Nice list you got there. We will be keeping an eye on ya.

 

can't wait to see pics!

 

Is the lip refered to functional or merely a decorative bit? I will look closely at my car in the AM.

 

Does the black plastic have a texture? Would you bondo that out, or something? I'll be interested to see what it looks like.

I've ordered a Pure Silver MCS. One thing I'm considering is a Dark Silver 14" wide center stripe with two small stripes and black outlining. So, I'll be interested in how your PS on DS looks.

 

The lip does 2 good things. Keeps air from under the car and makes more go through the intercooler and radiator. It's held on with small plastic rivets and is easy to remove. The only reason to remove it would be if it scrapes too much for you or you don't like the look.

 

Apparently it serves a function of directing air under the car, but in the R56 they have made it too big and to my eyes detracts from the look of the car. Probably you don't want to remove it completely, but I would look into trimming it down some more.

Oh yeah and that lip will be scraped in no time.

 

As mentioned, it's functional, so I'll leave it there. Plus, it'll be less visible once the car is lowered. And it'll grind away on the pavement.

--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

Yeah, it's gonna make those speed bumps and steep driveways interesting...

 

Update: The Mini has been on the dyno, and is having a dump tube fabricated as we speak for re-dynoing, to see how much power is locked up in the stock exhaust. Charts as soon as I have them.

--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

i m interesting in ECU upgrade... i wanna know which company can be more reliable

 

I also love threads like this i cant wait 2 put mods on my New R56

 

Dyno charts are over at THIS THREAD.

--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

Some pics with the tint. They're night shots, and I forgot my tripod. Sorry about the noise.









--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

Looks nice. The tint does alot for the Dark silver. Mine is on the way.

What % tint is that?

and approximitly how much should it cost to get tints.

 

35%.

That varies a lot, but I advise that you get a recommendation from someone you trust. It's hard to find a good tinter, and a poor tint job can be a real headache. Get someone who has been in business for a while, and see some results of cars they have done.

--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

Im getting 18% done for $185 in DE from a great local mom and pop joint, with several recomendations from friends with experience there.

 

The first wheels are here! They're 17x7.5" Rota D2, which have the look of a fancy Japanese forged-center multi-piece wheel. Of course, we don't have that kind of budget, so what they ACTUALLY are is a Phillipine-made, cast, single-piece wheel. And they're (relatively speaking) boat anchors -- kind of heavy. But I think they look great, they're affordable, and based on our test-fit today, they fit over the large R56 brakes. (I was rather concerned about that. These wheels don't fit over some larger cars' brakes...)

Here's what they look like:



Ours have gunmetal-color (dark metallic gray) centers instead of black.

I say "first wheels," because I plan on some other wheels for the car longer-term. But they're not released yet, so these are going to be on there for now.

Pics in a few days, once we get the tires mounted up and everything on the car.

--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

Looking forward to seeing pics with the wheels on

 

And here they are...









--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

Dan,
What kind of tires did you guys go with?

 

Those are really interesting wheels. The rim has a thickness to it that reminds me of a 60's muscle car for some reason. I thought I was not going to like them but I think the proportion of the rim - thicker look - sits better with the proportions of the R56. Several other people have posted images with 18" or 17" wheels with very thin rims and they have not looked right to me, out of proportion. That style wheel looked great on the R53 but not nearly as successful on the R56. I don't love the 2-piece bolt heads, but I think the proportion I see here will be a good indicator when looking at other rim designs.

 

Car now lowered with H&R Sport Springs.





--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

Your MINI is looking VERY good, Dan. Thanks for keeping us up to date on your progress. The lowered stance is very nice!