New England Off Topic and Banter as Most Brilliantly Proposed by Cape Cod MINI

[snid]

Quote: Originally Posted by GBMINI

Jason,
On my weblog someone asked which Borla it was - can you either post a comment there, or let me know so I can follow-up ... thanks, and glad you are enjoying it. I think we need a sound recording of it (like that ad of the ugly Porsche(?) on TV)

There's only one Borla available for the Cooper, as far as I know. For the S, there's the Race (what Jayson Walker has) and the other one (Sport?). But, only one choice for the Cooper. You could just provide a link to the peabody mini sports page...
http://www.peabodyminisports.com/Mer...ategory_Code=E
At least I think that URL might work for everyone.

Believe it or not, I just got done trying to make a little vid of the new exhaust. But, nothing came out all that usable. All the in-car stuff suffered from wind noise - next time I'll remember to close the windows and sunroof before taping. I propped the camera on a concrete slab with some electrical thingamabob on it and did some drive-bys. But, there's a lot of background noise and I didn't give myself enough room to actually make a useful recording (all my "runs" were really short). I'll maybe give it another shot later.

[Windshadow]

Batten down the hatchs friends for a bit of a blow as Charlis comes through (or his remains we hope) looks like we will get what we call a Summer Smoky Sou-Easter out here on the island unless he jogs east and strengthens...

and yes sad that Juila Child did not make it to her 92ed but what Leagacy she left... I learned so much from her shows and books... one thing above all in the forward to one of them she said
Moderation in all things.... Most Especially of all in Moderation!

Words to live by

[GadgetGav]

John,
Our thoughts are with you... Glad you got some flying in today, keep focussing on the 'good things' list. Hope you get Maureen and the car back safely soon.

[jcsinnh]

I didn't mean to get all maudlin there and lay a downer on you.

My Uncle John is the sick guy, married my Mom's sister who awaits him in Arlington National Cemetary. Interestingly, Arlington is tough to get buried in these days if you are not a celeb of some sort. Seems they go by rank, medals, years of service, stuff like that. A couple of years ago when my aunt died, the process of having her buried there seemed awfully easy. I found out why, at that late date, when I went to her burial.

Uncle John retired from the USAF a long time ago. I had known that he was a pilot and a navigator in WWII and Korea and that he had been wounded a number of times. But at Arlington, I talked with a chaplain who had done some research. He told me that the Purple Hearts were my uncle's minor awards. That he had seen some horrible times in war and done some terrific things, including surviving in a tiny raft for 2 weeks in the middle of the Pacific. And the chaplain went on and on.

Most of his family never knew all this stuff, he never told us. A quiet veteran.

Another point of interest is that, when he dies, if he isn't buried at Arlington, they will exhume my aunt and move her. She's there on his merits.

Uncle John has always been my favorite male relative outside my immediate family. And not because he has had 4 season tickets to BC football for 20+ years. He will do well in these last months with his usual quiet strength and I envy his full life though not many of its components save his family and his devotion to them. He's well into his 80s, stopped smoking 2 packs of Camels a day last year, cold turkey, and has the world's greatest assortment of epoxies and glues. The right tool for every job - EpoxyMan is what we call him.

While I was sad to hear the news, nothing about the guy makes me sad and I smile thinking of him.

[Windshadow]

... STORM INFORMATION... AT 5 AM... THE POORLY DEFINED CENTER OF TROPICAL STORM CHARLEY WAS LOCATED OVER CENTRAL LONG ISLAND. IT WAS TRACKING TO THE NORTH-NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH. THE LATEST TRACK FORECAST HAS CHANGED SIGNIFICANTLY. IT IS EXPECTED TO MOVE ACROSS LONG ISLAND SOUND AND INTO SOUTHEAST CONNECTICUT SHORTLY AFTER DAYBREAK... THEN ACROSS SOUTHEAST WORCESTER COUNTY AND EXITING NORTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS NEAR THE NEW HAMPSHIRE BORDER SHORTLY BEFORE NOON.

I hope all of you have no problems from the storm.... It has passed so war west of us we have not had any rain or or wind yet... but judging by the new trac many of you are in for a good storm today... be careful out there

~R~

[jcsinnh]

right?

OK, rather than wade through the performance threads, today's question is:

Where do I get the BEST rear sway bar for my S? Best = combo of $$, must be 22mm or more, must have 2-3 of those little holey things, delivery, comes with bushings, good instructions, good results.

[bakerjc]

Quote: Originally Posted by jcsinnh

right?

OK, rather than wade through the performance threads, today's question is:

Where do I get the BEST rear sway bar for my S? Best = combo of $$, must be 22mm or more, must have 2-3 of those little holey things, delivery, comes with bushings, good instructions, good results.

John, you bonehead. This of course belongs in the Performance Modifications thread area. Now, with my SuperModerater power I will banish this forever more! Shazaaaam!

John, please be more careful in the future. Do not upset the miniGods.

[Actual Size]

The Alta 22 mm bar is $196.95 from Out Motoring....$4.00 cheaper than directly from Alta and shipping is cheaper since it comes from Ohio rather than Oregon.

[jcsinnh]

Quote: Originally Posted by bakerjc

John, you bonehead. This of course belongs in the Performance Modifications thread area. Now, with my SuperModerater power I will banish this forever more! Shazaaaam!

or maybe not

[snek]

I believe my strut brace made more of a difference than the sway bar. By who knows - we all judge it by the seat of the pants...

[GadgetGav]

I think you'll feel a strut brace (assuming it's a front one) more than the sway bar (assuming it's a rear one) just because these are fairly heavy, front drive cars so they understeer a lot.
The only mod I've done to mine is a 19mm rear UUC swaybar that I got on ebay and while I like to think I can feel the difference, I know that when I did the driving skills school with the BMWCCA, the instructor who'd never been in my car before could tell straight away that I had it and Ian's JCW didn't. My point being not to bash Ian's car but to say that if the nut behind the wheel is sufficiently tight, it does make a noticeable difference.
The only thing I don't like about my bar is the bushings it came with. One side squeaks and it's a PITA to get back in there to put more grease in. I'm thinking of changing them either to one's with a grease port or more likely performance ones that don't need grease. While I'm there, I'll probably stiffen it up to the second (of 2) positions now that I've got the good tires.

[snid]

Here's some exhaust related stuff from NAM and the Dragon run related exhaust shootout

The whole thread:
http://www.northamericanmotoring.com...ad.php?t=22968

The post with numbers (decibels):
http://www.northamericanmotoring.com...9&postcount=65

The post with audio clips:
http://www.northamericanmotoring.com...3&postcount=70

The Cooper Borla is represented in the bunch, along with almost a dozen Cooper S exhausts.

[rfinprc]

Hi all,

It's always a surprise how many posts there are to catch up on here after a few days away. Sorry I missed the MoP lunch Friday. Lynn and I were on the road home after delivering the boy to Pinkham Notch in the White Mountains. He's off for 12 days of backpacking and white water kayaking with the AMC .

We've had a month of motoring around transporting kids, and it's not over yet (a good thing). First, we took Adam to and from Franklin & Marshall University in Lancaster PA for a 3 week Astronomy class. Nice detours through northern PA and especially Rt. 97 in NY along the Delaware. Then the trip to the White Mtns.

Next, we're off on a school visit with our daughter -- we head out Thursday for McGill in Montreal, then down to St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. The week after that we're off to Bates, Bowdoin, & Colby in Maine, but that trip, unfortunately, will be done in the Accord so we have room to pick the son (and all his gear) up on the way home. Well, three out of four ain't bad.

But first -- Ice Cream!

p.s. - love the new spell checker

[MGB Boy]

Quote: Originally Posted by snid

And waiting, and waiting....

At least I can honestly say "it's not my fault". It's probably the fault of someone else in this building, though

Ricardo, did you forget to order something and now Jeff can't have his Mac?

Yield - it's not just a road sign

Sorry, I pressed the wrong key filling out a PO and accidentally ran us out of N2, so Jeff's Mac will be slightly delayed. I'm working on it...

-Ricardo

[MGB Boy]

Quote: Originally Posted by jwardell

So what's the plan? What time are you all heading to lunch? Probably won't attend but there's always a chance.

Who's dealt with Moss before? After UPS arrived with my box which I excidedly ripped open to find out they shipped me a speedo cover instead of the tach cover. So I'm up to 3 chrome parts I'm waiting for, altho the other two should be at MOP today.

Between my MCS and the MGB, I've probably dropped several grand with Moss (much more on the 'B than the MINI), and I've never had a problem with exchanges/returns with them (on the very few occasions when it has been necessary)...

-Ricardo