MC turbo or a MCS

[chosta]

Since im still 18, (good age to be ) i cant get my hands on a MCS yet, (not so good after all). with the cost of a nice and fast cooper wtih mods, it'll reach at least 50k...money i dont think i will be finding soon.

I read in Go Mini (any1 else read it?) that turbo packages are now available in US or UK. i was wondering if anyone knows if there are already any turbo MC in Oz or coming soon? Im considering to get a turbo package and a second hand MC which def wont cost more! If i do decide to do this later on, is there anything i need to know before considering tubrocharged? i.e. any laws prohibiting me or problems it will cause to the car or imcompatability with Oz MC....anything...cheers

[n00b]

Welcome to Mini2.

I've considered turboing my own MC but the problem is the gearbox - who knows how long it will hold together once you spit more than 145hp at the fly. Another problem is, mounting the turbo and all the associated piping is a bit of a . M7 Tuning in the US have released a kit and that looks pretty promising at $3.5k USD which is around $5k here. Turbo sizing is another issue..nothing seems to fit nicely for a Mini in terms of space around the back of the engine as well as response from the turbo.

Once it spits more power at the wheels, it needs a better lot of other stuff to make the car a pleasure to drive or it will become a bit of a beast like suspension, wheels/tyres and brakes. Possibly clutch too. I've count my beans and got all the quotes I need, it works out cheaper if I just get a used MCS. If you shop around, you'll definitely see some sharply priced MCS.

Say you pick up a '02 MC, they're around $25-30k, spend another $10k on the turbo and other upgrades it's almost the same as a new MCS. Classic Mini Garage have got a CR/B MCS with next to no option for $38k plus ORC. Works out to about $41k on the road....

Another thing, a modded car usually depreciates faster ie all the money you've spent in the mods will disappear plus the natural depreciation of the car. Insurance is another issue...no one likes to insure people under 25 let alone something that's modded.

Good luck.

[FLiPSiDE]

take this as rumour or heresay as i dont know the facts personally..but i heard a story of someone in australia with a similiar idea.. imported a turbo kit from the US and because a mini engine bay is pretty cramped all the piping was made for a left hand drive car it was useless in a right hand drive car because of a change to where the steering column is etc which made these kits pretty much useless and the piping work had to be done again.. it hasnt been and the kit sits around unused

of course if u want a custom turbo set up on any car the list of mechanics and "tuners" you could deal with just in sydney alone would b endless.. it isnt about who can do it, its just about the cost of being the first/only person to do it.. and as already said an MCS would work out much cheaper in all aspects.. also as an 18 year old, trying to insure a modified /turbo car... u can really forget about it.. i bought my MCS at 24, fairly good record and all and i could only find 2 decent quotes for insurance.. and most insurance companies wouldnt even insure me

i know its the mating call of the ricer and the person with a slow car "yeah im thinking about getting a turbo" open a copy of "fast" fours and mags like that.. every 2nd article on a civic with a fart can exhaust has that quote... but day to day, the cooper isnt THAT much slower.. the gearbox im not as keen on having driven one.. the CVT is a bit of fun tho haha.. but u will still enjoy a cooper, no doubt just wont win as many traffic light grand prix's and i know how important that is to an 18yo.. it was important to me too

But really if u havent got the money for an MCS.. dont borther turboing a cooper.. and the story i heard above was of someone who couldnt drive a manual for whatever reason, could afford a cooper S.. but just couldnt drive it hence tried to turbo a cooper and didnt get very far

what i really wanna see done is someone getting rid of the charger and turbo'ing the of an MCS haha it'd b a very different beast to drive thats for sure

[CanberraCooperS]

In reality the engine turbo charged produces more power! But its Peaky Power.. you dont get the Low down torque that the Supercharger provides.
Secondly, the gearbox would have to be replaced with a MCS 6speed to handle the power. they are retailing for about 6k USD. Second hand from a wreck maybe cheaper but no doubt fairly rare.
Third.. your going to need to mount an intercooler so you may want to get a MCS bonnet or mount one up the front which would mean some custom intercooler.. 1 to 3k, plus other bits and peices.. in reality its alot of work to get what you get in a supercharged MCS. Plus the MCS has warranty and can be upgraded to 250hp or so.

I guess there are pro's and cons to each car, but the MCS is designed to be the way it is and the MC is designed to be a Naturally aspirated basic cute fun car.. Insurance wise i cant see anyone touching you at 18 unless you check out Young&Cool insurance. They will require you to have a Sat tracking system fitted to your car.
But in reality its your choice.. i dont know of any turbo charged Mini's in AUS yet, but suggest you contact either www.m7tuning.com or www.promini.com and i beleive that Nick at Peak Performance might know a bit about these kits.

[bkwalker]

i can tell people will hate me for saying this....

if you want MCS performance, have you considered another car?
Clio Sport... or Pug 206GTi 180...

you can't really do much to the engine because they are naturally aspirated. but they are killer little cars.. but, as im sure you;re aware they lack the styling..

get a new set of wheels on a Pug and it would look good though..
just a thought
good luck

[swamos]

Quote: Originally Posted by bkwalker

i can tell people will hate me for saying this....

if you want MCS performance, have you considered another car?
Clio Sport... or Pug 206GTi 180...

you can't really do much to the engine because they are naturally aspirated. but they are killer little cars.. but, as im sure you;re aware they lack the styling..

get a new set of wheels on a Pug and it would look good though..
just a thought
good luck

I reckoin that's probably a good idea.... I was aware of a 1yo 206GTI being offered for $24k recently... pretty hard to beat that value

[FLiPSiDE]

nah i agree.. i rekon they're both ugly.. and french.. so not that keen on either but their performance and value for money cant be denied.. but with any fast hatchback insurance will be the killer.. especially for an 18 year old unless its the old.. oh its really my mums car and i drive it occasionally thing haha

just to go off topic a little I also noticed at the motorshow STI's are only 56 grand + ORC now.. mmmmm hahaha forgive me if the price has been this way for a while.. but i had no idea they were so cheap.. last i heard they were mid 60's.. and the evo 8 aint much more either.. if speeds all you're worried about man theres some relatively cheap road rockets about these days .. i remember when exactly the same cars locally in the subaru's case and imported (evo) were like 80-90 grand or something ridiculous haha u'd feel a little screwed if u owned an evo 6 i rekon haha

[IML337]

if you can't afford a Cooper S, turboing a Cooper will most definately send you broke...

bkwalker is right - if it's the performance you're after, there are cheaper and more reliable options out there

[n00b]

Someone forgot the ultimate - the person is only 18 that means they probably don't have much road experience. Add a fast car to the equation, sorry for quoting stats, it's not the smartest thing to do. Be realistic..the last thing anyone M2er wanted to see is some P-plater writing a fine MC or MCS off.

[IML337]

Quote: Originally Posted by FLiPSiDE

but day to day, the cooper isnt THAT much slower.. the gearbox im not as keen on having driven one.. the CVT is a bit of fun tho haha.. but u will still enjoy a cooper, no doubt just wont win as many traffic light grand prix's and i know how important that is to an 18yo.. it was important to me too

that's actually quite true - I've spent a lot of time on Cooper loan cars and done a few "tests" and they aren't that much slower, and you can get the same suspension and seats in a Cooper that comes with an S.

It just lacks the torque and the gearbox isn't as nice, though the new ones are much better than the old crappy ones the dealer keeps lending me... After a bit of practice you can figure out how to get a Cooper moving

[new skool]

mate all i can say to you is do what makes you happy!..having just come from selling australias fastest pulsar gti-r my advice is do what you wana do!!!....i would like to see nothing more than a cooper turbo with a big front mount cooler looking hot, yeah it will cost you cash yeah things will break but welcome to the world of performance cars my friend!...if you wana have a stock car thats not too bad go for the mcs, but if you wana be truly different get a 2nd hand cooper with a load of kays rebuild the engine and stick a gt25 turbo on it and eat all the cooperS you can find!..im a huge fan of turbos from the kick in the back when it kicks in to the spooling up sound..

i know for a fact that dj from doncaster mini garage is about to trade a cooper with heaps of kays on it and it will go really cheap so maybe it a option?..then call up someone like AVO turbo world and find out how much your looking at for the fabrication?..

dont get me wrong i love my cooper s and by the photos of my burn outs i have fun in it but you are the only one to make this decision.. good luck with it bro

[n00b]

This is what I was thinking about turboing my MC..

Garrett GT15 or GT17, these are smaller and much more suitable for 1.3-1.8L engines. If I am being a tight butt on a budget, I'd get the VNT17 from the Audi/VW turbo cars or their KKK even. Forget about the intercooler, run low boost say 3-4psi and run the Aquamist setup for cooling purposes. Haven't really thought about the fuel system but I am GUESSING the fuel pump should suffice then get those bigger M7 injectors or simply get the existing injectors highflowed.

Run a straight 3" exhaust with no cat and only a N1-style rear muffler....that would be one awesome turbo MC

I've called a few places in Sydney, they wanted between $900-2k for knocking the manifold up with stem pipes, another $5-1000 for the piping from turbo to the throttle body (what a rip off) and the GT15/17 worth about $1700 from GCG or Ray Hall Turbo. Ohhh the all important BOV..HKS SSQV, $400. Looks like it's quite a few dollars involved..plus you don't know how reliable this gonna be.

new skool: got some specs on your old GTi-R? I had one before and I can tell you they walk all over MCS *ducks behind the keyboard just in case getting flamed*

[new skool]

yeah my old gti-r was in speed magazine issue 9, but i ended up spending another 15k on it after the shoot..the mcs is the most comfortable best handaling car but my gti-r eats the crap out of it! it did 0 to 100km in 4.4 seconds...here are some specs on it

94 pulsar gti-r, sr20det (quadthrottle bodys ) , gt30 500hp ball bearing turbo, microtech comp, hks front mount, 700cc injectors, forged internals, 3inc exhaust, scorcher coils, blitz intake, turbosmart bov, greddy electronic boost, ceramic clutch, new gear box, 2 bosch motorsport fuel pumps with surge tanks and heaps more i cant be bothered listing, it was a rocket but i got 150 kays to a 40 litre tank of fuel!..

go on turbo a mc but get a gt25 turbo and cooler to run atleast 10psi boost

[n00b]

That white one hey? It looks nice...very nice.

10psi for a stocko MC engine I doubt it things will be left in one piece for more than a spin around the block! It runs fairly high compression from factory plus the injectors probably runs at 95% duty cycle or probably worse than that. Argh.

I know what 150km out of 40L...my GTR does 200km out of 60L if it's in a good mood, I've seen it all swallowed in 160km..........the joy of owning Nissan's

[new skool]

yep its the white one, what gtr do u own?...are you on msn mate?