After a couple years of Miata ownership (great car) I decided, as I do every few years, to try out something else fun and happened upon a Mini Cooper S which seemed like a perfect next weekend street/autocross car. I paid $5800 USD for it which given the details below I think is a good deal.

2007 Mini Cooper S 6-speed manual with 68,000 miles

Work done in last year:
Timing chain and guides
Walnut blasted intake valves
Water pump and pulley
Spark plugs and coils
Battery
CV axle
Tail lights
Crank hub
Serpentine belt
Diverter valve
Mass air flow sensor
Oil filter housing
Turbo oil feed line
Oil change and coolant flush
Motor mount

Modifications:
JCW body kit
Enkei PF01 wheels
K&N Typhoon intake
Alta 3" exhaust
Koni shocks and Swift lowering spings
Fixed camber plates
NM Engineering rear sway bar and end links
Short shift kit
Upgraded coolant hoses
Upgraded charge air pipes
Upgraded intercooler
Noise generator delete

The previous owner was prepping it for autocross use but decided to move on to a different project. It's been a total hoot so far, so different in character from my Miata. It feels muscular, very planted, and very eager to turn. And it's so nice having some interior space - it's practically a minivan in comparison to a Miata!

Is there anything essential I should consider doing soon to the car for reliability or a little extra performance? I love driving hard on back roads and the occasional autocross, and want the car to give as much feedback as possible. The list of recent work and mods seems pretty comprehensive but if there's any must-have mods or maintenance items that you can recommend, please let me know!

Also, sound is huge for me, and while the K&N intake and Alta exhaust sound good, the car is quite quiet. I get some turbo wooshes and a little bit of exhaust sound but by 40 mph wind and tire noise pretty much drowns them out. What's the best way to get some more induction and exhaust noise without being too obnoxious? I love the way JCW Cooper S sounds in videos, and that's the sound I'm going for. I really thought the 3" exhaust would be more raucous than it is. I love burbles and subtle pops and don't really have any right now.

It's currently on mismatched tires and I'm getting a new set of Nitto Neo Gen's installed tomorrow. Can't wait to really drive it hard after that!

 

@WeekendCooper ,

Woah……. That’s a lot of new parts being replaced. You might as well call it a new car……LOL.

There is one item you didn’t mention and that is the “Sway bar bushings”. Overtime and soon, you’ll start hearing some clunking noise whenever you go over potholes. This would require dropping the sub frame down after you drop the exhaust system. Those will need to be replaced soon. Other than that, YOU’RE GOOD

 

Hi - I did not see anything about your downpipe ? Did you go catless or change to a 200 cell cat ?

 

I have a very obvious clunk from the rear end over any small bump that I haven't diagnosed yet. The car has an aftermarket NM engineering rear sway bar and I hope it's just end links need tightening or something. Don't feel much like dropping the sub frame down!

 

Stock downpipe as far as I know. All the aftermarket parts were put on the car years ago, and I'm just discovering things as I got after owning the car for less than a week.

I don't think I'd want to go catless, but a higher flow cat and some more noise would be welcome. Any recommendations on best non-obnoxious downpipe? How much work are they to put in?

 

@WeekendCooper ,

Rear swaybar bushings are easy to do. It’s the front ones are real pain in the butt :(

 

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