Yea, Mitsu is horrible about it... at least I got a set of new Brembo's though, but it wasn't easy. I have yet to hear of any wide spread issues involving Mini Warranty Claims where it would reflect corporate making the calls rather than the individual dealers.

 

That item and whatever that item directly effects/controls.

For example: get some aftermarket lowering springs then mushroom a strut tower or blow a shock seal and see if MINI will warranty those parts. I think not .

Same with engine mods: An Intake and exhaust are probably pretty safe ... maybe even the intercooler and tubing (I want, I want, I want!) ... but start fiddling with the ECU or any other major engine hardware (cams, head, the turbo itself for instance) and I wouldn't expect much out of MINI's warranty after that .

The Prince turbo is still a very new design. It's a little over one full year out of the box (if you consider it's in the Peugeut, too) and there are still some issues out there without solutions. I've had great luck with mine during the first 9000 miles, but I would hate to give the dealer any kind of "out" should somthing pop (or blow) up in the near future.

 

Interesting, but at the same time Peugeot is NOT new to small displacement turbo motors (hello rally, as well as all the kool euro model street cars they have been producing for YEARS) I think concerns over long term reliability are blown out of proportion. MINI isn't a nightmare to deal with anyway, hard for them to be with the JCW items available to then poo poo aftermarket products. The best thing to do is establish a relationship with the service and sales department of your local dealer. Get your routine maintainence done there, buy your car there, etc. and you will be amazed at how friendly they can be. They make the initial determination on warranty. The mfr. only gets involved if they are called to or if the car gets the same/odd service multiple times. Enjoy your car, mod responsibly, or mod to your comfort level. But no matter what Happy Motoring! adam@altaminiperformance.com

 

I am new to mod world and enjoy all the upgrade after market parts Alta is offering. Quick question:

Do the Inter cooler, cold air, complete turbo back exhaust fit R56 S auto tran and benefit the numbers HP and torgue gain???

Would the auto tran be able to take those increase power punishment and remain free long term ill effect?

Would ECU flash work with auto tran?

 

We haven't done a performance test on an auto, but we have clients that have installed the parts and not given any negative feedback regarding the installation. Performance gains should be similar if not identical.

ECU will be different for the AT versions.

Thanks for asking.

adam@altaminiperformance.com

 

No, they didn't use the same system of measurement, that's what I was saying .

The MINI Cooper S is rated from the factory at 172 SAE HP (American Measurement System, all cars that come to the US use SAE Measurement), rated from the output shaft at the back of the engine. That's directly from the Specifications --> Performance --> Performance Specs section of the MINI USA website.

The JCW kit is rated at 192 BHP (Brake HP, measured directly at the flywheel) and ALWAYS reads 1-2% higher than SAE HP (Especially after they changed the specification to be more strict). The engine dynos used for BHP are also less accurate, and have been known to be up to 10% off from the dynos used to measure SAE HP.

All of that being said, the JCW kit probably puts out somewhere in the range of 183-188 HP.

Even if it actually did add up to give me 17 HP, why on earth would you pay $2000+ to get 1/3 the performance the same money could get you in the aftermarket.

The only reason it costs that much is because there's a warranty attached to it. MINI needs to build in a financial buffer to deal with increased rates of failure.

If you don't care about the warranty, go aftermarket!

 

Except for the part where they have to prove that the modification that you put on your car DIRECTLY attributed to the failure.

Putting aftermarket lowering springs on your car doesn't make the strut towers more likely to mushroom, a horrible strut design and lack of reinforcement do. Given the number of owners with STOCK cars that have had failures, a court case wouldn't last very long.

Same thing with engine modifications. Putting a head on your car isn't going to blow the engine. All a head does is flow more air. All an intake/exhaust does is flow more air. The whole point of modding your car is to flow more air!

Engine tuning could potentially be an issue, but only if they can prove that it caused the engine to run lean, or advanced the timing to a point where it damaged the engine. The burden is on them, not us .

 

I have a quick question. Is there any kind of mod for the bonnet scoop, i.e actually making it usable??
I'll start with that nifty lloking air filter, and work up to the replacement air intake

 

Simply take a dremel to the hood scoop screen and carefully hollow out the holes in the honeycomb.

Pretty easy to do.

Adam@altaminiperformance.com

 

I don't have a dremel, will an electric drill work?

 

Sure! But it won't look as nice as it could. Dremel's are only $45? might be worth it as well. Let us know and photo the results!

adam@altaminiperformance.com

 

Sorry, I'm confused. From your original post:

I can't find this system anywhere on your site. But on your down pipe page, it says, "The ALTA R56 Downpipes utilize 2 catalytic converters, just like the OEM parts. This makes for a 49 state legal exhaust system...The ALTA Performance™ header can be a legal replacement in most statesno requiring CARB approval. (Check local emission laws for restrictionsin your area.)"

So is the down pipe + the CAT back exhaust CARB compliant or not? Also, which exhaust is the louder one?

Thanks,
-C

 

Thanks for asking for the clarification!

The Turbo-Back is comprised of two parts:

1) AMP-EXT-140 Downpipe with two Catalysts
2) AMP-EXT-13X, Cat-backs

Here is the tricky part. The Catalysts we use in our DP ARE CARB approved, which means they meet the EPA stringent testing for use in all states of the union as a catalyst replacement. BUT (ok BIG BUTT) the state of California does NOT consider this a CARB approved replacement DP as the system (Downpipe only) must be tested in a CARB facility prior to approval. In addition they don't look at replacements until the bulk of vehicles are out of the federal emissions warranty which on the MINI I think is 7 years 70K (feel free to correct me).

SO, the cat-back is LEGAL in all states. The DP is legal in all states that do not require CARB approval (I believe just California, NJ, and VT are the exceptions, but mostly just CA).

The louder version of the the exhaust is any of them that are combined with a DP.

PLEASE ring me, PM me or e-mail with ANY further questions or concerns. Always happy to help!

 

Thanks for the clarification. Seems a little dangerous to say CARB (California Air Resources Board) legal if it has not been approved by them yet.

So am I correct to say that the DP and Cat Back would pass a California emissions test (no CEL, gasses within limits, etc.), but might fail the inspection if the technician was especially ****? Seems a bit risky, but the gains might be worth it.

Thanks,
-C

 

No we do NOT say we have a CARB approved DP. The catalyst IS CARB approved. Member the CARB approved catalyst means it meets or exceeds the EPA requirements, that is why we mention it, NOT to insinuate it is a legal replacement in California as it is NOT!

We do NOT encourage anyone to attempt to break the law, or emissions rules in any state of the union. I would be happy to discuss with you in greater detail anytime you like.

Thanks again! Chat soon!

 

Boy I just love California bureaucrats. OK, but the way you worded it in your original post can easily be misunderstood... as I embarassingly demonstrated. But thanks for clearing it up.

Of course. I'm not trying to get Alta in trouble.Can anybody else tell me if they have passed a California emissions test with the Alta Down Pipe and Cat Back installed?

-C

 

No problem! Thank YOU for allowing me to clarify as that is exactly what we want to avoid is someone thinking they are getting something that they aren't! Chat soon!

 

Sorry to keep bringing up old stuff, but did this test ever get posted? I haven't been able to find it.

Thanks,
-Chris

 

No problem! I looked for a little while and didn't find exactly that. But when we did our turboback testing on our first R56 we did throw on the intake system, and as expected it DIDN'T gain the same HP as it did on the stock car. It was around 5WHP not 10-ish. So you can use this below graph to give you an idea what kinds of gains you might see on a 2007 R56. The below graph is turboback exhaust only.

 

Thanks Jeff!