1st Gen R50 Cooper R50 Performance Upgrade Suggestions

Discussion in '1st Generation: 2002–06 R50, R53 & 2004–08 R52' started by dannyhavok, Jun 13, 2011.

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  1. dannyhavok

    dannyhavok New Member

    Oct 25, 2010
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    #1 dannyhavok, Jun 13, 2011
    Hello everyone! I have been a bit of a lurker on this forum lately but I am looking for advice from everyone out there with modded R50s.

    I have a 2006 5spd. Current mods are:

    aFe Cold Air Intake
    19MM ALTA Rear Sway Bar
    Konig Rush wheels
    Yoko S.Drives 205/50/16
    SprintBooster

    I'd love to hear what others have and what they think of their upgrades. I'm considering TSW springs, Megan Cat-Back, and possibly a header at some point. Overall I'm pleased with the car, but some small HP/TQ gains would be welcome, of course. Not looking into spending a ton of money (coilovers, etc.) or any really invasive mods (header, cam, etc) at this point.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  2. N2MINI

    N2MINI MINI of the Month

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    #2 N2MINI, Jun 13, 2011
    bout the only thing left to do is get an ECU TUNE power wise.. head, cam, header would help but your not wanting to do them..
    Though you won't gain lots of total power/torque you will make some nice gains within the power band..

    I only gained a total 7 HP and 7 ft pds of TQ but had areas within that I gained 12 or so ft pds of TQ and or HP with my RMW tune.. Got a whopping 113 HP and TQ at the Hubs...
    Of course all that is realitive to what day your engine was built, Humidity on day of tune and altitude etc etc...
    My tune cost alittle under $500 so some would say it's not worth it...
     
  3. dannyhavok

    dannyhavok New Member

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    #3 dannyhavok, Jun 13, 2011
    N2MINI, I'm glad you chimed in, I have been looking for someone with a RMW tune on an R50. Have you had it for awhile? No long term issues or problems? Do you have an exhaust, header, etc as well or just the tune? Was this a remote tune? Thank you! I should correct an above typo as well, I'm open to installing a header, it's the JCW head that will have to wait until I'm out of extended warranty (tune as well, I imagine.)
     
  4. N2MINI

    N2MINI MINI of the Month

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    #4 N2MINI, Jun 13, 2011
    My mods are DDM CAI, Megan Racing Cat-back, and RMW tune as far as power mods go..
    Tune was done over 3 years ago and no problems at all..
    I was lucky and RMW has had 2 tuning days in the last few years just 15 minutes from my house. Got my tune before warranty ran out.. Not sure if they "MINI Dealer" would know it's on there.. Now if you start having problems and take it to the dealer they could reflash the computer which would take away your tune..
     
  5. dannyhavok

    dannyhavok New Member

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    #5 dannyhavok, Jun 13, 2011
    Interesting, thanks for your input! I think the Megan cat-back will be my next move. Are you happy with it?
     
  6. N2MINI

    N2MINI MINI of the Month

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    #6 N2MINI, Jun 14, 2011
    Yeah, I've had it on with in a few months of buying the car..
    It can be alittle loud inside with the top up 65 MPH but with a hard top it will keep more of that out..
     
  7. lotsie

    lotsie Club Coordinator

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    #7 lotsie, Jun 14, 2011
    I have had a Megan on my 03 for about 3 years now. The only issue with it is I can't hear the Way/DDM intake any more...LOL

    Mark
     
  8. rigidjunkie

    rigidjunkie New Member

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    #8 rigidjunkie, Jun 14, 2011
    This might sound odd, but have you thought about removing the rear seats?

    No matter what you do power wise you are still going to have a momentum car and losing some weight will make a big difference. Lots of people never use those seats, if you are one of them just pull them out.

    My MINI was very similar to yours mod wise, enjoy it. I do not know that I would do springs without going to a coil over but that is just me. If you are going to do suspension upgrades I would just save some money and do coil overs and camber plates at the same time.
     
  9. dannyhavok

    dannyhavok New Member

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    #9 dannyhavok, Jun 14, 2011
    I did have the rear seats out for awhile, and the difference was negligible. The downside for me was I didn't have anywhere out of sight to leave stuff in my car, so I ended up putting them back in.

    Coilovers would be great, but I just can't justify the expense. I can get some TSW springs for a few hundred bucks, and if I love them, great, if not, I'm not out much. I imagine there will be increased wear on the stock shocks, but I only put about 8000km/year on the car, and it's only at 42000km on the odometer, so I figure I won't reduce the life of the shocks by that much.
     
  10. Batrugger

    Batrugger New Member

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    #10 Batrugger, Jun 14, 2011
    Here you go:

    [ame=http://www.motoringunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?t=21358]FS R50 JCW Tuning Kit NonS #522 LAST ONE - motoring|underground[/ame]
     
  11. dannyhavok

    dannyhavok New Member

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    #11 dannyhavok, Jun 14, 2011
  12. goaljnky

    goaljnky New Member

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    #12 goaljnky, Jun 14, 2011
    Last edited: Jun 14, 2011
    I have a Miltek exhaust, K&N air filter and a RMW tune. First two have been on my car for about 6 years, the last one for about 3-4, can't recall exactly. Frankly, the gains are minimal but with a Justa every little bit helps.
     
  13. dannyhavok

    dannyhavok New Member

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    #13 dannyhavok, Jun 14, 2011
    I agree, every little bit does help. I don't expect drastic gains on this platform.. I was thrilled with the difference in feel just after installing the SprintBooster and aFe CAI. I just want my R50 to be the best it can be, while I squirrel away some money to trade it in for a JCW Coupe!

    What's a JCW tune? Is this a MINI approved ECU tune?
     
  14. ColinGreene

    ColinGreene Well-Known Member
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    #14 ColinGreene, Jun 14, 2011
    Cant really help you have performance if you dont want to pay for it.
    "you have to pay to play"
     
  15. dannyhavok

    dannyhavok New Member

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    #15 dannyhavok, Jun 14, 2011
    I'm familiar with the adage and I don't disagree with it. My expectations are minimal, and I'm looking to do the best I can with exhaust, header, tune, etc. If I wanted to spend $3k+ I would probably just trade it in for an S. Just looking for information on what other Justa owners have done and how their upgrades are working out for them.
     
  16. goaljnky

    goaljnky New Member

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    #16 goaljnky, Jun 14, 2011
    My bad. I meant RMW tune.:mad2:
     
  17. dannyhavok

    dannyhavok New Member

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    #17 dannyhavok, Jun 14, 2011
    Ahh, gotcha. How did the tune effect the car for you? Any improvement in the low end? Was it a remote tune?
     
  18. goaljnky

    goaljnky New Member

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    #18 goaljnky, Jun 14, 2011
    The tune is good. Stock I had a little stumble at around 4500 rpm and this smoothed it out. The car is a lot more responsive, too. Not sure of the gains as I never dynoed it. But I do recommend it. Someone else will have to explain the remote tune, as I got my tunes from the man himself.
     
  19. dannyhavok

    dannyhavok New Member

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    #19 dannyhavok, Jun 14, 2011
    Interesting, thanks for the info. Maybe I should just take a roadtrip!:lol:
     
  20. ColinGreene

    ColinGreene Well-Known Member
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    #20 ColinGreene, Jun 15, 2011
    With a remote tune its required to buy a box to load files to your ecu and pay a tuner then usually organize a dyno pull or on road pulls to log the data.
    Its considered to be easier and better results from being in person
    but if you cant get to them its a good second choice.
     
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