hi. so i just joined because i am a female and absolutely do not know anything about modifications and would like to modify my car. I love that sexy sound (i don't know what it's called) of my exhaust when i go on a high rpm and let go... ugh, its like an orgasm for my car. but anyways, i would like to have my car drive faster than it already is, and also have louder sounds. any suggestions!? i have a 2006 mini cooper S!! thanks. just did some research and found out that my car is supercharged instead of a turbo.. but i never knew the difference between the two anyways :( lol

 

Exhaust spins the turbo, the motor spins the supercharger. They both force more air into a motor than it can pull in on its own. Which makes more power.

I'm guessing the sound you are talking about is the pops an exhaust makes when you let off the throttle suddenly. We call that a burble.

There are a few cheap ways to get a bit more power out of the car. The top suggestions will be a smaller pulley on the supercharger which will make it spin faster and pump more air into the motor, and intake will let the supercharger suck more air in at a time, and an exhaust system that is more free will let the motor push more out faster, this will also give that burble I think you are looking for.

 

Tires, really sticky tires. UTQG rating of 240 or less. They will not last long - 20000 miles or less and are useless in the winter. Having said that, it s the best first mod you can make. There is a YouTube channel called Engineering Explained that goes into why using laymen's terms. You get more performance out of a good set of tires then you do by doubling your horsepower. And take driving classes at your local race track. Upgrading the nut behind the steering wheel is also a great mod - it's also a craptonne of fun.

 

While I generally agree with your recommendation, based on how she's talking about the car I'm pretty sure she's not gonna be happy with tires. This would be great for someone attempting better lap times and better track performance but I'm guessing she's just driving around town and wants it to be a little more zippy and sound different. That's what I based my ideas on.

 

The first post covers most of it, for what I think you're looking for, first things should be 15% reduction pulley for the Super Charger and a different Cold Air Intake than stock.

My suggestion would be to either go to a mechanic you trust or speak with other local owners about who they use. "DON'T GO TO THE DEALER FOR THESE KINDS OF THINGS".
First step will be to verify if any of these or other modifications have been already made to the car.
If not, then proceed with those things, after they're done, if you still want more or want to learn more, come back and see us.

Good Luck and Enjoy.

 

for a lot of burble. a catback exhaust labeled as "race" or ones that look similar. the magnaflow and flowmaster will have about the same sound, then the single sided exhausts will make more noise. I love mine, the intake will also give you a whine sounds form a supercharger, the burble and the whine make the car so enjoyable to drive around

 

I don't know about 15%, I went 16% and wish I had gone with more than that now. I know I said in another thread in was gonna stay with a factory diameter replacement crank pulley but I am now considering a 2% overdrive now that I think about it.

 

and how do i know where to get them? know any good site suggestions? thanks for the input!!

 

Ecstuning
Waymotorworks
Amazon
Ebay

The classified section on this site, I'm sure there are plenty more but those are what pop up in my mind real quick.

 

yeah, im not trying to race.. i just use it as a daily. whats the difference between 15-19% pulleys?

my car has over 85k miles btw..

 

The bigger the percentage number for a reduction pulley, the smaller the pulley is. The smaller the pulley is the faster it will spin.

The pulley spinning faster makes the super charger spin faster and pump more air at once into the motor, which makes more power.

So a 19 will spin faster than 15, but the smaller the pulley the more stress is put on the supercharger if regularly driven harder.

 

ohhh, okay. cool! thank you so much

 

No prob!

 

Waymotorworks is awesome. Fast to reply and very helpful.

 

Your looking for that popcorn sound when you lift off the gas, it's called a 1 ball mod. Your basically removing the resonator which removes dead weight and also doesn't affect your smog. STUPID CA.
I had it done at a muffler shop for $40.

05 & 06 Mini's take to this mod nicely, more pop.

Short shifter another easy and cheap mod. Still need to do mine, I have the part just need the time.

I just did the whole pulley, plugs, tensioner, belt, gaskets, supercharger service and map sensor tube !
Not a job for a beginner.

Good Luck

Jeff

 

As do I with yours. However, a good set of tires will not only make the car feel faster but actually faster. They will make it ever so slightly harder for the front wheels to loose traction when starting off and will make the car stop and turn faster. If the car is powered up and she goes too hot into a corner she'll end up in the ditch and not the street where she intended. Never underestimate the power of good rubber.


The intake and exhaust will give modest HP gains and moderate noise gains. They will set you back about a $1000 for the both.


The pulley is the best bang for the buck but won't necessarily make the car burble more. It will make the car a little faster. Around $200 plus install. Most don't go more then 15% due to other issues like the water pump and such.


Don't forget about the brakes. If the car goes like stink it better stop on a dime and give you change. It can't do that without good tires.


If noise is what you are looking for, the intake and the exhaust is where you want to spend your money. If overall speed is what you want do the intake, exhaust, pulley, intercooler, injectors, fuel pump... the list just goes on. It's a slippery slope but a fun one that can get expensive.


I will still cannot stress enough, the faster your car gets the better driver you need to be. Take your car to an autocross or a track day. You will learn a lot and if you do either before all the mods, you may find out that the car is fast enough as is... for now...

 

I agree with everything you say, but some people will feel no benefit from most of that, those are major car enthusiasts mods, casual car lovers won't notice the benefits. They will never drive the car to the limit of the tires and brakes they already have. No disrespect to the OP but she doesn't seem like that type of person.

I'm sensing she just wants a louder exhaust and to feel a little more torque when accelerating.

I based my recommendations not just on easy upgrades but also tried to take the car owner into account.

The truth is the majority of people wont notice any difference from the cheapest tires and I guarantee she's not getting anywhere near the limits of the brakes.

She's not going to feel the benefits and as such will feel she's wasted money. I get what you are trying to do. And I really agree with you, good tires and brakes are the first thing I look for. But I push my cars hard.

 

I agree with what has been said about the casual driver.

If you have the means, put an exhaust on it and let the butt dyno convince you it's faster.


If you are really interested in the hobby, start reading. The internet is an endless resource.

 

@danniellajoy - if you are just looking for more sound from your car, the intake and exhaust will do the trick. The right exhaust will give you more crackle and more pop when you lift off the throttle. The intake will give you more of that supercharge whine when you put your foot down. The R53's intake box rests directly in front of you under the hood (bonnet). These are things that nearly anyone can install themselves.


The "one ball" is the cheapest exhaust mod you can do on your car and as stated before will give more noise and that sound you like so much. If you go with an exhaust that it more for the race track than the street, you will get a LOT more noise and a lot more crackle and pop but may not actually be street legal.


I have not heard a lot of good things about the ebay exhausts, many don't seem to fit all that well.


To add to the list above, check out Megan Racing and Alta Performance.


@X757XVertias - Yes, she may not think that this is a good start. The reason that I suggest it is that my first mod to my car were my Panasports and Goodyear F1 DSG3 tires. They set me back a chunk of change and until I got out on the back roads I also thought that I wasted my money. Then I started to get into the twisties. It was the start of that slippery slope and now I'm waist deep into the mods and doing a good job of holding off on more though I am very tempted to talk to Sneed4Speed about a 1.7 liter "one off" for my R50 - there is no replacement for displacement... or so the infamous "They" say. And yes I know - it would be a HUGE waste of money but I love the naturally aspirated sound better than the supercharge or turbo sound and it would still be way cheaper than buying an old Alfa Romeo GTV though not as cool.

 

You are assuming she will buy expensive tires and start getting into sanctioned and amateur racing after pushing her car on backroads.

But I'm almost positive she's just city driving and MAYBE car gatherings. Tires will give her no benefit for what she asked for.

These things will make her able to drive the car faster but not necessarily make the car feel faster. Which I'm sure is what she's looking for.

I've got a 94 mustang GT, first things I did were subframe braces, tires, brakes, shocks and springs, bushings, and bigger sway bars. These did nothing to make the car give me a seat of the pants feeling but made the car more fun to drive harder. But it sounds the same, and it doesn't pull any harder so the car does not feel any faster.

My parents, wife, and friends that don't do any aggressive driving all say it feels exactly the same to them and I spent a ton of money for no gain. Which is not true but it's not a gain for the way they drive.

That's all I'm trying to do, is make suggestions that will be most noticeable for the way I'm sure she drives.

For this type of enthusiasts after making mods to feel faster if they find these other areas lacking then they will notice it.

 

(sarcasm font on) You assume a lot Veritas. As we all know V-rated street tires means that your next job is taking on Hamilton in F1. (sarcasm font off)


My only issue here is you are suggesting modifications that will make her car faster but no more safer. Even with your own first mods to your own Mustang were mods that made your car more agile, which to some extent, made your car a little more safe - like the brake mod you did. Any fast car needs to have the ability to come to a stop. Safely. Like Jeremy Clarkson is famous for saying: Speed never killed anyone. Suddenly becoming stationary, that's what gets you.


All I am saying if you are going to make your car faster you need to make safer as well.


I offered options, intake and exhaust, which will make the car a little faster and make it sound a lot faster. It's also not too expensive.

I will attest, though I have no first hand knowledge so I cannot affirm, that suddenly becoming stationary because you skidded off the road and hit a tree and became dead is less fun than making the turn and not becoming dead. This statement can be modified (see what I did there?) to read intersection instead of corner and massive SUV instead of tree.

 

A small pulley exhaust and intake is not going to give that much extra power. It's a front wheel drive 1.6 with less than 200 hp from the factory. I'd be surprised if these mods even hit that.

So good luck with all this. Re read her original post, she says popping is like an orgasm for her car and she wants louder sounds. I didn't suggest anything that's gonna make her car anymore unmanageable than it already is.

 

thanks jeff! what's a CA?

 

what do you mean by pushing the cars brakes and tires limits? im such a noob, im sorry

 

i honestly just want my car to sound nice and go a little faster.. that is all. lol, i would like to know more about modifications but i just dont understand any of these terms :/