I picked up a used 07 MCS about a month and a half ago, and as I educate myself on the car and all the mods that are available for it I am discovering mods already done on my car.

So, I'm not actually asking for you to look at my car in attempt to identify what's on it, rather, what are some mods that I should look for that are common?

I purchased the car with the JCW aero kit, some exterior light tinting, wheels, painted calipers and dimpled/slotted rotors.

I have recently noticed I have the PCV hose delete, and the intercooler muffler delete. I have been seeing a lot of recommendations for a rear sway bar upgrade. This has baffled me as my MINI already has a bit of oversteer when going into a corner hot. I took a peak under the car, and the sway bar looks to be OEM (black, non adjustable).

What are some other mods I can check for before I buy parts I don't need?

Thanks!

 

Pictures would be awesome. Every possible place that could be upgraded.

 

Oversteer from stock suspension. Must have been a good dose of Trailing Throttle Oversteer or TTO and a pretty hot corner.

Echo Pothos here, some pics would be nice.

 

I experience a bit of under steer in a fwd car, you can make the countryman oversteer

 

I would not expect a 2007 MCS to oversteer unless-

Rear tires were nearly bald
A stiffer than OEM adjustable rear swaybar is used.

When going into a corner too fast you should get understeer which means the front end "pushes". Oversteer means the rear end swings out wide like in drifting.

FWD cars understeer easily
RWD cars oversteer

 

Dude, I LOVE you!!! Welcome to NAM!!! I grow seriously angered at those who come on here and say, "I just got a MINI, how can I make it go fast/what should I buy..."

Really, oversteer? Wow. Haven't seen it yet even with my mods. Speaking of which, here is my list of performance mods that should give you a good idea of possible mods and vendors:

Akrapovic:
Down Pipe
Delete R
Alta Blow Off Valve Spring Upgrade
DoS CAI
Forge FMIC
Helix Short Shift Kit
H-Sport Rear Camber Links
Mini Fini Intake Scoop Grill
NGK Cold Heat Range Spark Plugs
NM:
ECU Tune
Aluminum Billet Tie-Bar
Discharge Pipe
Titanium Heat Shield
Torque Arm Insert
Shifter Assembly Box Cover
Quaife Limited Slip Differential
Koni Yellow Adjustable Sport Shocks
TSW:
Performance Springs
19mm Sway Bar
X-Brace
VIP Custom: Down Pipe Back Exhaust (last 1/4 powder coated black)
Whalen Shift **** (powder coated chili red)
WMW:
Stainless Steel Brake Lines
Turbo Exhaust Manifold
12mm front/15mm rear spacers

Shout out if you need anything else and again, welcome.

Motor On!

Jerry from Savannah

 

A shot of the engine bay would probably help us resolve any mysteries there pretty quickly. Otherwise we'd just be guessing.

 

Thanks for the feed back so far. @Mellangel, I've been around forums long enough that I have a similar pet peeve, so I do my best :D

I will snap some pictures this afternoon for you guys this afternoon after work. Besides I need some good shots, just put in my new tail lights, and TL/HL trim rings.

I was looking at many pictures of rear sway bars, and found one on a factory '09 JCW (or what claimed to be), which looked to be exactly like mine. However, there was only the single picture on all the interwebs, so I'm suspicious on the claims.

Perhaps my oversteer is because of my driving style/habits? I drive it very similar to the go-karts at K1 here in Austin, which you can get away with a very hard turn in, and keeping entry speed up.

Like I said, pics this afternoon/early evening!

 

I noticed your pending install items: Craven SS and Helix FMIC. If you're planning on installing the FMIC in order to achieve cooler temperature and/or more horsepower I would actually suggest using that money to purchase a Meth Injection kit (Snow Performance or Aquamist). The Meth Injection will acheive lower temps, plus give you additional (and very safe) horspower, plus Gen II turbo Minis are notorious for carbon build up on their valves which can lead to misfires and other big issues over the long term. The Meth Injection keeps everything nice and clean and considering you have an '07 it might be a good idea.

I'm going the Snow Performance route because I live in Colorado so they are local. Also, the Snow Performance is a stand-alone system that doesn't wire into the MINI's ECU so I can shut it off if I want to. Also, the kit will give better gas mileage and the power output is tuneable.

Obviously I don't know what your goals are for your car, but a Meth Kit might be worth a look to keep that engine nice and reliable over the long term (instead of the FMIC). Just a thought...

 

The FMIC was purchased during the group buy that just took place. I'm well aware that the FMIC by itself isn't going to to much, which I'm okay with right now. As the beep beep is my daily driver, I am trying very hard to limit my mods so that I'm not putting any extra stress on the engine. Increasing the efficiency of what I already have is my number one goal at this time. But i'm sure I'll eventually convince myself otherwise in the future. haha.

I don't have much experience in the water/meth field of things, so I may look into that a bit. thanks for the advice

 

Ok fair enough. I was actually going to do that Helix group buy as well until a buddy convinced me to save for a Meth Kit. I am modding my car a bit but I'm looking to acheive reliable/safe power. I have an 08 MCS that I replaced with a JCW engine (long story), but the original engine had a lot of carbon build up. I learned over this past year and a half that getting a power figure and putting a power figure down on the tarmac are two different things. In about a month I'm getting the Meth Kit I've been saving for. I do know that Meth does increase the efficiency and longevity of the engine (you can set it up to just get better mpg). Again, I just wanted to bring it to your attention as an option.

I have heard good things about the Craven SS so if you have that I hope you're enjoying it as well as your MINI!

 

If you look under the rear bumper, the shocks and springs should be black. Rear suspension arms are stamped metal (aftermarket are round). Like you already said, aftermarket sway bars have more than one hole for adjustment.
The PCV delete makes sense if there is a catch can installed. The catch can would be generally mounted on the firewall outboard of the intake plumbing.
Check the shock towers. The car from the factory has a white plug in one of the holes around the hole where you can see the top of the strut. This white plug is for a factory adjustment on camber. This generally limits camber adjustment, and a 'free camber mod' is removing these plugs and resetting the alignment.
It would be really awesome if there was a little silver box in the glovebox (4"x3"x1/2") with Alta written on it. This is the accessport, which is allows installation of updated engine tunes. If you ecu is tuned by other methods it may not be obvious. If you have a pile of receipts, see if any of them are from RMW, they are the other common tuner.
It is also a good idea to take the car to the dealer. There are a couple of recalls that have been done over the life of the vehicle, and they can also give you maintenance history of the car (the history is kept on the key fob).

Have fun,
Mike