According to MINI-Maddness.com they claim that their "Stage 1" kit of just a high flow air filter and polyurethane engine bushings till take my MINI to 200hp.

Has to be a complete lie, no?

http://www.mini-madness.com/2007r56m...e1package.aspx

Edit: Apparently the site is screwed up, I was gonna crap my pants in a sec after reading that.

 

That stage 1 kit includes their Evotech tune, otherwise I'd crap my pants at the $1039 price tag.

Also, the panel filters (or just about any of the aftermarket intakes) don't make any power, at best you get some extra noise, worst, an oil fouled MAF sensor and degraded performance.

 

To quote a buddy's dad from many moons ago, when he walked into the garage and saw the "high flow" air filter he'd just installed on his Mopar:

"A smart fly could find his way in through that thing."

The "benefit" of a filter like K&N may indeed more air flow, but more air = potentially more crap coming in as far as I'm concerned, and I've never seen any real proof that this isn't the case. Unless you're running quarter miles for pinks, I can't see the logic of an aftermarket intake or filter on a car like ours.

 

....Not true with the foam filters

 

Largely true with foam filters.
The only way a filter 'makes' more power is by letting more through it.
Of course, I have bought and tested a foam panel (Alta's) in my MCS, back to back to back dyno runs, I actually picked up 2hp when I removed it. If you still want to try it for yourself, make sure you blot & blow out the ton of extra oil they come pre-soaked in, it will mess up your MAF.
The air filter is not the restrictive point in the Prince engine, it's the software, so you can throw all the parts you want at it and you're not going to see any real gains. Once you do decide to upgrade the software, the stock intercooler will prove to be your biggest limiting factor, that's straight from real world tuning events and the engineers at Mini.

also

just a tip, but if you go with RMW's ecu tune, he's re-enabled the burble, something no other tuner's even considered at this point.

 

Is the problem with foam filters durability? I've heard they can fall apart and get sucked into the intake tract when they get old.

 

N1TRO,
Thanks for the info, I thought that was a very informative post and I appreciate the fact that you were able to attribute your comments to a good source.

With respect to the various mods, all I know is that my non-calibrated butt dyno tells me that the CAI and turbo back exhaust have made a difference in my performance and, yes, in the sound I get out of the car.

Thanks,
Craig

I really like the idea of RMW's tune returning the sound and I'm looking forward to seeing the difference Jan's tune makes.

 

They can rot out, I haven't seen anyone keep one on their car long enough to do so, but I have on old dirt bikes. If you want to throw on a cone filter, I'd recommend grabbing something like an AEM dryflow or an Amsoil dry filter, they can cost a little more, but they're MAF safe and a finer material.

 

Funny stuff........been running foam filters on my car for 6 yrs with no problems and even longer on my bikes. Never had one go bad and get sucked into the engine....LOL

As long as you maintain the filter with reg washings and keeping it oiled it should last as long as you own your car.

Much easier to clean, no problem with oiling up the sensor if maintained properly, and more than 10X the filtering area of a pleated filter.

The pleated filters will flow a bit better when new, but will quickly loose that advantage as it gets dirty. Foam filters will out perform them over time every time. This is why you see foam filters being used on race vehicles that race in dirty conditions, like the off roaders, dirt tracks and such.