forst off hello NAM.


my name is cameron and im 18.
i live in california about a 1 1/2 hours from Los Angels.

i just wanted to join and get some insight before i make a decision.
so here it goes. im looking at getting a mini cooper S
and me personaly think the S should stay as supercharged
(no R56 here)
i wanna get a R53. my problems deciding is what i need help with.
theres a few cooper s's out here one for just under 9K...in electric blue...


what i wanna know is should i buy a earlier year (02-04) with a few problems and fix em myself?
or get a (05-06)? and build from there?
i know to get the 6 spd manual getrag trans.

what i plan on doing so far is:

Alta exhaust system (stealth black)
Alta 15% reduction pulley
Alta V2 CAI
Alta rear control arms (x2)
Alta 19mm rear sway bar
Forge air-to-air intercooler
Craven strut tower defeners
Bosch 550cc injectors
Koni coilovers or Megan Racing coilovers w/ camber plates
Mini Madness lower stress bar
R56 front brake conversion


also plan on pulling the SC and getting it rebuild and maybe PnP...
has anyone heard of the RMW TVS supercharger?
how good and is it worth the cash?

im basicly looking for something i can flog around alot and still have fun with decent gas mileage.
this post is all over the place....bare with me ...


since im in california im looking for RMW to reply here hopefully.
if anyone can get them to check it out.
also looking to get a water/meth kit and maybe clutch and flywheel
let me know what you guys think plz.


i wanna car that i can daily drive and flog here and there....and also track it.
and probably some mountain runs...

 

I would go for a 05-06 as they have better gearing in the tranny. Double think on the Forge IC, there are better options out there. You are correct, RMW is in SoCal as is Mynes Performance. Don't think the TVS is out for the Mini yet? I would also lose the R56 brakes, check out TCE, a vendor here and call Todd, you won't be disappointed. Keep in mind, if you do the 550's you will need a tune at the same time. Have fun

 

Definitely 05-06. Better gear ratios, nicer looking dash, possibly less power steering issues, better crankshaft pulley..etc. Let me know when you're ready for some POWER!!

 

the TVS is out theres a video on youtube with it on a mini. and i was reading a post on here from 08 i believe lol.

and alright lol
05-06 it is.
and ya i know about tuning and such i had a gsr with a b18c (type r) motor in it. and it was stolen


THIS WILL BE MY FIRST SUPERCHARGED MOTOR THOUGH....
what other intercoolers are there guys?
im trying to get 250 ft.lbs. at the wheels! i dont want some super mini lol.
horse power can be at whatever (im assuming like 270ish?) my goal is 250 ftlbs though lol

 

jarid. i was looking at some alta stuff and only complaints ive seen from you guys is some of your stuff isnt direct bolt on lol.

as you can see ive got quite a few of your parts listed...

 

Well I'm pretty certain that the correct TVS is not avaliable for the 1.6 yet. People have stuck the larger ones on but........ people will bolt on anything. I went with the GP IC, it is a good match for our cars. 250lbs. of torque is tough to get on a 1.6 SC engine. Longboard I beleive got 260 on his, but he had to stroke it and installed a Rotrex SC and many other things that cost $$$$! Have fun on your build

 

lol ya $$$$ is always a issue?

anyway wanna rob a bank....
we could get our own little italian job going here
and you are right the video i saw was for a 2.0L (stroked)

and is 250 to high of a number...
i deffinitely want something reliable and fast.
maybe like 225-230 ftlbs.? more reasonable...

id perfer mainly bolt ons and tune lol. dont want to really change cams or heades ect.

simpler stuff like the IC or pulleys intake exhaust
water/meth kits lol
i wanna keep it more along those lines then actually getting into the engine itself!

 

We had a discussion about supercharger options in this thread: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...?highlight=tvs. Here's my personal post reply: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...84-post69.html. I don't foresee an Eaton TVS M45 coming out anytime soon.

As for years, yes, '05-'06 MCS is better for the teflon-coated rotors in the supercharger. I'm still not convinced on the different gear ratios in the transmission, though.

Unless you plan on doing more mods than what is on your list, you really don't need an intercooler upgrade. Go here for some tests: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ing-tests.html. Best bet is to keep the stock one and get an Alta air diverter. If you decide to get one, go with a GP intercooler (which seems to still be hard to do).

With those mods, the most you will need is the JCW 380cc setup. I'm still using stock injectors on my setup. Consult with Jan at RMW for more information.

Yes, go for the Megan coilovers. My favorite rear control arms are the Hotchkis ones. I still have to get my set off my old '02 MCS I totalled back in November.

 

ya i like to whip around town... lol
and i deffinitley wanna get up in the mountains and run wild up there.

so rear upper and lower control arms (shed unsprung weight)
i deffinitley want a good all around car for back and forth and then something i can push!

and ill look into that Alta air diverter.

 

Call ME specifically. Our Intake bolts on with no problem, our 15% pulley same story. The 19mm bar and rear control arms also bolt on without modification to anything.
503-693-1702

 

The previous post are all good suggestions.
Try to find a MCS with a Limited Slip Differental because it is expensive to install later.
I do not think you will reach your HP goal without a different head and cam. However, I do not think you will need them to have a very fun car. I think the Mini is more about handling than horsepower. Your plans are the correct direction for improved handling.

 

anyone know about the RMW header
do they still make it...how much is it???
will it bolt up to the alta exhaust system?

after researching for a few hours ive basicly got what i wanted to know lol!
decides a few minors here and there....

heres what i got:
(if i should change something LMK....cheaper parts, better parts ect..)
also these are esstimates...i found parts and added around $5-10 bucks to each...to make sure i dont under caculate lol!

Alta exhuast system ($900)
Alta 15% reduction pulley ($135)
Alta V2 CAI ($250)
Alta air diverter ($180)
Alta rear control arms (x2 for upper and lower) ($450) for 2 sets!
Alta 22mm rear sway bar ($150)
Alta PSRS ($240)
Craven strut tower defenders ($150)
Mini Madness lower stress brace ($200)
Megan Racing coilovers w/ camber plates ($900)

RMW header ( if i can get one lol??) ($ ????)

RMW street cam w/ PnP ($380)
Denso Ik22 plugs ($50)
MSD coil ($100)
MSD super conductor wires ($100)
Bosch 380cc's ($250)
BSH lower motor mount ($150) street version & race bushing
Fidanza 13lb aluminum flywheel ($375)
Clutch Masters FX200 or FX300 clutch ($425-500)


and im planning on having it tuned by RMW

 

Please, from one so caler to another, keep the shenanigans OFF our mountain roads. I'm sick of being stereotyped and watched by the police because kids think that Mulholland Dr. or Angeles Crest are their own personal race track. They aren't-- they are public roads with other motorists and they should be treated as such.

Now that is out of the way. Get your car and just ENJOY it for a while before you modify it. And if you want some proper instruction at the track check out www.bmwcca.org or www.drivingconcepts.com I go with driving concepts (and instruct for their teen driving school) they are great. You get amazing quality track time with very few other cars and you have an instructor with you at all times, there are very few schools that can pull that off and it is well worth the extra cost to make your track days as rewarding as possible.

 

Cav. i understand what you mean. and i have track expierence but theres always room for improvement!

i auto-xed my gsr with a type r swap (tuned at do it dyno by bubba himself lol.) made 228whp with bolts ons and skunk2 stage 2 tuner cams.
but ya ive been to the mountains a few times and actually heard that the CHP would start closing the roads on saturday nights for such things.
and i understand your concern im not some punk kid trying to race around lol.!
i will say out of the times i went up there. there was scouts who watched for traffic and always called ahead. it was fairly organized and it happned late saturdays! but i honestly do understand your concern.
and i dont like to be sterotyped either. owning a acura i was quite often lol.


this thread is basicly to figure out whats parts i should go for and not go for!
like the parts i listed is there like a better intake or such????

im set on that exhaust system i love how it looks lol!

 

If adding camber plates, I would suggest a 19 or 20mm rear bar instead of 22mm. But if you do a lot of Auto-X the 22 does provide plenty of oversteer.
If doing a clutch/flywheel you might want to checkout the OSGiken setup. It is more expensive but has received very good reviews.
Also if doing the clutch/flywheel, I would suggest a Limited Slip Diff, such as the OSGiken if your car does not already have a LSD.
To afford the better clutch, here are some cost saving ideas:
- If installing coil-overs with camber plates you probably do not need the strut tower defenders because most camber plates have a thick plate at the top.
- The MSD Coil and wires will not gain you anything if you need to save a few $.
- A good alignment shop should be able to adjust rear camber and toe to your spec with you only adding lower adj control arms. The adj top arms are nice but not necessary if trying to save money.
- You could go with poly lower control arm bushings instead of the PSRS to save a few bucks.

 

Actually the MSD stuff has much better electrical characteristics than the OEM or most any other coil and wires out there.

 

and about the bushing. im getting polyurethane for alot of stuff to get the handling feel back.
and i wanna get the upper and lower control arms for the rear
1. for the adjustment and
2. for the weight it will shed

even if its only like 2 or 3 pounds... 2 or 3 pounds of unsprung weight is great in my eyes lol

and the 22mm sway bar is deffinitley what i want
because i can set it to the weakest setting and be just a tini tiny bit stiffer than the 19mm on the hardest setting!

so i think going bigger now would be better lol....
and ya i will track it sometimes....also some mountains runs (safely) and i run about town and perfer it to be a little more stiff!
i want the full go kart feel lol

 

So, it sounds like you're planning to buy a $15K car and do $10k worth of parts/work on it, right?

Hope you have the budget for it....and realize that once you're all done, you probably still have a $15K car.....maybe less.

Doing all this stuff can be a lot of fun, but it can also be frustrating if stuff doesn't work the way you want or you start throwing codes and such. Find some folks in your area that can give you some help if you need it, and good luck!

 

lol kinda sorta-ish dave....

i plan on buy a cheaper mini maybe with a few problems lol. like supercharger noise and such!

and so far all the parts i got with added costs and shipping ect. is just under 8k lol
7965$ exactly!

but thats without labor install and tuning so ya around maybe 9 or 10k at the days end....
i can and will do alot of things myself but going to RMW for the rest....
also gnna see if i can get a deal at Alta because 75% of my parts are from them lol....maybe get some kind of discount like 2 or 3 percent maybe something anything helps!
and when i buy my parts im buying all at once not here and there.

hopefully find me a car for like 8-10k which theres quite a few around here around that price!
and do the 10k in parts and have a fast fun go kart lol....which i cant beat up a little and still not have issues

 

ill post a list of prices and parts that i wanna do!

one major thing is supercharger rebuild w/ port and polish

 

mod list:

Alta exhaust system (stealth black) ($900)
Alta air diverter ($180)
Alta rear control arms (2 sets) ($450)
Alta sway bar end links (front & rear) ($250)
Alta PSRS ($240)
Alta V2 Cai w/ inlet house ($250)
Alta oil catch can ($95)
ALta pulley performance package 15% ($400)
Alta 22mm rear sway bar ($180)
Alta PWI-2 water/meth injection ($800)

Mini Madness lower stress brace ($200)
Mini Madness polyurethane front control arm bushings ($125)
Mini Madness oil cooler ($450)

RMW header ($ unkown)
RMW street cam w/ PnP ($380)

Bosch 440cc injectors ($275)
Craven strut tower defenders ($150)
Megan Racing coilovers w/ camber plates ($900)
BSH lower motor mount ($150)
Fidanza aluminum 13lb. flywheel ($360)
Clutch Masters Fx200 or Fx300 clutch ($425)
R56 front brake conversion ($unknown)
Eaton M45 superchargher rebuild w/ PnP ($900-$1100)



grand total ($8200 +-) w/o labor and w/o the 2 unkown parts!
all these prices are a little over priced by 5-10 dollars so i dont under calculate lol!

so 7985$ for parts ill do alot of work myself
then tuning im probably looking at like $500-$750
and some labor depending where i go
all in all like 9-10k and then like 8-12k car lol gonna be a fun project

my GSR type r build was just as costly lol even a little more
13k+ in parts and 6300 for the car then body work and such! it was a money pit as i intent this to be!
the things ill do to have a fun fast reliable car



anyone know how much the RMW street header is and where to find it its not on the RMW sight!
and R56 brake conversion varys on seller lol....

ill probably end up doing R56 calipers from the deal (unless i find em used somewhere)
and some bigger rotors.... maybe DBA 4000 series rotors!

 

lol i know its long and sorry for that... just wanna see how this goes over with you guys!

all the engine mods with be first including the clutch and flywheel and RMW tune!
and BSH lower motor mount
then R56 brakes
and then suspension work!


what do you guys think?
any parts i should remove from the list, add to the list or change ?

or anything i should get before others?


i drive my cars REALLY HARD and want them to keep up.
yes i do maintnance them very regularly my friends works at Pep Boys and i get what i need done for free if i bring parts.

 

just talked to Adam at Alta performance.
he was very helpful in what i needed to know and gave me a great price!

to bad some parts are discontinuted:/
seems im alittle behind the ball game with the mini lol!

hopefully they got the exhaust i want...if not thats ok
these are some great guys with great costumer service..

Thank you Alta

 

Alta is very friendly, I'll give them that. Don't have a ton of time to post right now, but I will let you know that for the Alta exhaust you will have to rig something from the driver's side of the car to get the exhaust to hang straight, because it will not on it's own. There's too much weight imbalance for it to hang centered as it comes.

I'm glad it doesn't worry you that you are buying a discontinued part. Also, if you are going for torque, Milltek is probably your best bet.

I have the Alta Sportone exhaust, so don't think I'm hating on them, I'm just giving you info that they probably aren't.

 

LOL we gave him the info....but he sold his R56 and now he has an R56