I have an 06' r50 and want more HP. When people
Talk on the subject of making minis faster it's usually a lot about reduction pulleys...since my car is non charged.. What should i do!

I'm not looking to spend a whole lot. But I could save into the 1k-1500 range eventually.

Are intakes, headers, and cat backs mostly for sound? Or do they make a big increase?

Please help with parts, prices, and the benefits of adding that part.

Thanks!

 

The most common answer you will find to this question is, "Buy an R53!"

There is really no cost effective way to get reliable horsepower out of our R50's. It's a little, naturally aspirated engine and that really limits it's power output. There are a few things you can do for MINOR gains, like a Cold Air Intake, header, and exhaust. This stuff will get you a little power (some will say none, I personally feel a difference with catback/CAI.) but it isn't a BIG gain. It's mostly sound.

You can start screwing around with a JCW head and cams, but that's not cheap and not necessarily reliable either.

There are not a lot of tuned R50's out there, but it has been done. Rjtrout2000 recently had Way at WayMotorWorks tune his and he's really happy with the results. Here is his thread:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...this-week.html

If I were in your position (and I am, really!)`I would recommend getting a tune if you can swing it, and working on the suspension. If you get good tires and light weight wheels, you'll improve acceleration (not HP, but it'll feel faster.) as well as handling.

I'm also really happy with what I've done (sprintbooster, CAI, exhaust.) and I feel the car is much more responsive and "peppy" than it was when I bought it stock. It's not as fast an an R53/R56S by any stretch, but to ME it's more fun to drive. In a few weeks I'll be lowering it on ST coilovers and getting even lighter wheels, I anticipate it will feel even quicker.

There are some threads here on this topic, but I think I've covered some of the basics. Hope it helps a little

 

Besides the standard external bolt on's and a tune, there is a TPR head & Cam for an R50, you would have to get ahold of "You Know Who" for info though.

 

Reduce weight, especially rotating weight. Light wheels and tires!

 

Different valve springs and a tune to limit fuel cut so that you can raise the red line higher thus more peak HP. The engine is pretty stout. I am not 100% sure on the MINI but the main limit to higher rpm is probably valve float.

Somewhere on NAM, long ago I saw a video of a race R50 with a supposed red line of 8,000rpm. It sure sang a beautiful tune.

 

In my opinion, the rationale posted by Dannyhavok was bang on.
Sell the MC and buy an "S" or "JCW" model. The difference is cost will not be that much and you will have a car factory designed and beefed up to serve its purpose.
Otherwise, you will risk spending a lot more money chasing the "S" features with less reliability than just switching cars in the first place.
At the end of the day it will be your decision but once you get that performance "bug", you will contnue to seek out performance upgrades at additional cost.
Hence, the best bang for the buck is to go directly into the S or JCW models where the potential is much greater.
In my area, used MCS models sell for anywhere from $0.00 to as much as $5,000 more than same year MC models depending on mileage, options and condition. On this basis, it would not appear to be cost effective to invest in expensive performance parts and labour to upgrade an MC.

 

If you are not after significant HP gains, the MC can actually be a very fun car to lug around with the "basic" bolt ons.But if you are looking for increased torque/HP, speed, etc then I would heed the advise of others in this thread and replace the car with a R53 S. The R53 S is a car that already has a much better foundation for those seeking increased performance gains.

 

I wouldn't jump on the "I need to sell my R50 and get a R53 bandwagon" just yet. I've been involved with MINI since 2002 as a motoring advisor. I've owned 2 R53s (a modded 2002 and a stock 2005) and they're faster than a R50 - but I wouldn't necessarily say more fun. The R50 is an awesome car that gets overlooked, because big brother has a blower. I currently drive a 2006 R50 with a John Cooper Works exhaust and a aFe cold air intake. It sounds AWESOME. (at least that what every car guy tells me) The JCW sound kit was pricey when I bought it, but I would do it again in a heartbeat. I've driven a lot of MINI's (by a lot I mean a few hundred) and my favorites have always been a R50 with the right exhaust. I'd start there. I know the JCW exhaust can be tough to find, and a little pricey, but there are a lot of good aftermarket ones out there. I'm not a fan of the fart cannon type of exhausts. I like one that has a nice tone to it. The butt dyno is the one that you will have to live with everyday, and it's connected to your ears. I've done pleanty of looking around for an intake - your best bet in my opinion is the aFe or a 'Way motorsports' one. This will make a huge difference in the sound of the car too. 4k RMS's will be your new best friend. I haven't tried going for headers and ported/polished heads and all that stuff because you'll get into serious money. Keep it cheap - it will still be a ton of fun.

 

I agree the r50 is not the car for increasing hp, the equation dollars spent = increase hp is not good. I like my 06 r50, I knew what I was buying and understood the performnce of the car, in short save your money and enjoy your car, it is a great fun reliable car.

 

intake + exhaust + header = only a few hp
ported head + cam (you can do better than the JCW head, BTW) = several hp
tune for the ecu with the above = several more hp
we're talking about probably going from 115 to about 130 or 140 with all of the above, and with most of the power gain in the 4500 - 7000 range.
I'd guess about $4000 - $5000 to do that.
Wouldn't try it with an earlier R50 with the Midlands transmission, but ok with a Getrag.

There's always adding nitro or turbo, but I don't see those as good options at all.

 

I had a 2006 S and I tweaked it like most, pulley, mild exhaust change. Nice and had some decent get up and go but because it was an S it had more stuff on it as well. Nice bright (heavy) dual pane sunroof as example. Other things too - now I have a 05 justacooper which is not as fast but actually handles better. Both I tweaked with fixed camber plates but that's it on the non-S

My S came as-is on the lot so knowing what I know now, if I were looking for the most toss-able quick car it would be an S with no extras. As it turns out though, keeping the weight down on the justacooper and it's natural lighter weight (5 speed lighter than 6) makes it almost as good for what I can do in the areas I drive. Nice handling on curves I can take advantage of more than straight away grunt.

So if it's all straight line, or even if it's not, and obvious as this might seem, weight makes a real difference in how much fun the car is and how fast it can feel. So I guess I'm saying figure out if there's any weight you can dump (as was suggested lighter rims) etc.

 

Thanks for chiming in! I should maybe clarify that in my reply I didn't think that the OP should actually trade in for an R53, but that it was the most common reply to "How can I make my Justa faster?" threads. I considered trading up but after test driving an R53 and a few R56's I decided I liked my R50 the best. It really is an underrated model IMO. Glad to hear someone with extensive MINI experience agrees with me

I wish it hadn't been optioned with a sunroof (I am the second owner. I would have spent that money on Sport Seats.) but otherwise I'm very happy with it. I have the aFe intake as well (from VAC Motorsports) and I picked up a cheap Borla cat-back here in the marketplace. It's a GREAT combination and the butt dyno reports major gains.

I've spent about $4k on mods now. That would have gotten me into an "S," but since only about $700 of that is on HP mods (intake/exhaust.) it's kind of a moot point. That includes two sets of wheels, swaybar, coilovers, good tires, and so forth. Money well spent!

 

another weight saving in the unsprung weight department is the R56 rear trailing arms (aluminum vs. steel)
6lbs per side of unsprung weight.
starting at post #1114
http://www.motoringunderground.com/f...=13357&page=75

 

Hmm, that looks like a good idea. I may have to look into that.

For me the 2 biggest improvements on my R50's performance was the BSH lower engine mount and picking up a set of "holies".

The BSH improved accelleration, throttle response, and shifting. Shifting no longer feels like rowing a spoon in a bowl of oatmeal.

And the holie wheels are only 12lbs each. I received improvements everywhere including mpg. Now I just need to find some 15x7 or 15x8 wheels that are 12lbs or less without costing an arm and a leg haha.

 

another one you might like is the baffled oil pan from waymotorworks. doesn't add horsepower but it is great for keeping the oil where it needs to be.

 

When I was wheel shopping I looked at Konig Heliums, which are (apparently.) 11lbs for 16x7, but I was worried about how easy they would bend. I went with the 15lb feathers in 16x7 instead.

 

Konig Helium in 16x7 is 15.5lbs, not 11lbs. The 15x6.5 is n the 11lb range.

949 wheels at 11.3 lbs for a 15x7 is starting to look good to me. Just need to figure something out for the 14mm bolts that apparently don't fit in 12mm holes.

 

Interesting, thanks for the correction. I was just going by what DTD told me, maybe they thought I was asking about the 15s.

I'm thinking about going to 15s specifically for weight savings. Most of my driving is city and backroads, so quick acceleration is a primary goal. I'm going to have to burn through my current tires first though, no sense in wasting them.

 

Yeah, same here. Then move up to a 215 or 225 tire, hence the need for a 7 or 8" width of wheel.

My car had OEM 16" wheels when I bought it, and putting on 15's was the first thing I did. Improved performance as I mentioned earlier, plus improved look and stance. The car looks lower and wider.

Smaller than oem diameter tires help too. It's like regearing for free! haha

 

There is still a ton of tread left on my s.drives. I see by your sig you're running them too, glad to see they come in 15" sizes.. I'll probably stick with them, they've been a great tire for me so far. Quick look at TireRack shows they only get as wide as 205/50/15 though.

I went from stock 16" bridgespokes, to heavy-as-sh** mille miglia actions (24lbs i think.) to 19lb Konig Rush. Huge difference, the car really came to life with the Konigs. I'm putting on the Feathers in a week or so, looking forward to further improvement.

 

Moral of the story is, if you want more horsepower, you bought the wrong car. Just mod the car to increase the driving enjoyment.