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Thepenl's R56...

392K views 1K replies 138 participants last post by  Alski 
#1 · (Edited)
Ok...in this project thread I will try to share with you as much info as possible about my car and the tuning development undertaken from 2007 till today...

Please remember that this particular Mini Cooper S is daily driven and it is NOT a show-car...that means you will see very few aesthetical modifications, it has been setup to participate occasionally in some rally events as a safety car, which means that it is not so shiny as some would expect...
This car is all about having fun and finishing a rally in one piece and at the same time work flawlessly the next day on the way to work.
It is being taken care off (babied in fact) from day one with very short intervals between services and always top quality parts are being used.

I will start with some current photos and a mod list when using the car on road:


Automotive design Vehicle Car Bumper Automotive exterior
Land vehicle Vehicle Car Mini Floor
Car Vehicle Parking Mini Electric blue
Land vehicle Vehicle Car City car Mini
Land vehicle Vehicle Motor vehicle Steering wheel Steering part



ROAD MODE:

External appearance:
Aero kit Version 2 with deep lower splitter and brake vents
Colour coded light rings front and back
white mirror caps

Future plans:
Not much really...



Internal mods:
JCW Recaro seats in alcantara/leather
JCW carbon gear knob
JCW alcantara/leather steering wheel with black inserts and carbon ring
APEXi boost meter, pyrometer, ecu
APEXi AVC-R boost controller
Auterra DynoDash logging tool

Future plans:
Oil temp gauge
Oil pressure gauge



Wheels and tires:
Crown spokes 7x17 et48 with Michelin Pilot Sport 3 205/45/17 (winter) (using 5mm spacers front and rear for brake clearance)
Compomotive MO1771 7x17 et43 Yokohama Advan Neova AD048 215/40/17 (summer)

Future plans:
Another set of wheels with 215/45 tyres



Suspension:
Ohlins coilovers BMS MI20
Powerflex Polyurethane bushes
JCW front-rear sway bars
JCW strut brace

Future plans:
Camber plates



Brakes:
JCW brake kit with modified Brembo calipers
Nitrac 2-piece 316x26mm cryo-treated discs with aluminium bells
Carbotech XP8 front pads Carbotech XP8 rear pads
Goodridge stainless steel hoses front and rear
Motul Racing 660 brake fluid

Future plans:
Already have the following...and waiting for the first event to fit them
Carbotech XP10 front



Engine mods:
Motul Racing 300V 5-40
JCW engine kit
ITG cylindrical foam filter
Samco boost hose kit
Samco intake hose kit
Forge diverter valve kit
Noise generator delete (custom pipe)
JCW turbo (modified)
JCW exhaust manifold (modified)
Evolve version2 FMIC
Akrapovic downpipe with 100cpi cat
2,5'' (63,5cm) cat back with 2,5'' resonator
JCW kit back box (road mode)
Custom 2,5' back box with 4' single tip (race mode)
NGK-R iridium spark plugs with stock air gap.
New-design valve cover with pressure valve relief.
EGT probes in the heart of the exhaust manifold (for both cylinder sets)
Evolve remap
Plastic scoop's grill removed
Okada plasma direct ignition coils
Quaife LSD
Schrick camshafts
Head ported and polished
Ferrea intake and exhaust valves
Mahle motorsport 77,50mm pistons
Carrillo H-beam conrods
Saiku Michi twin OCC
Mahle Motorsport bearings (rods and main)
HKS SSQV dump valve
Modified crankshaft
Competition clutch kit 2100 series with single mass flywheel
Motorsport Oil/water exchanger

LINKS TO USEFUL INFO: (on this thread)

FMIC Evolve V2 vs Forge

TURBO COMPONENTS

EXHAUST INFO

VIDEOS: SECTION 1 , SECTION 2

NOISE GENERATOR DELETE

WHEELS AND BRAKES , NITRAC DISCS/CARBOTECH PADS

PHOTOS: SECTION 1 , SECTION 2 , SECTION 3

RACE EXHAUST SINGLE TIP

OKADA PLASMA DIRECT IGNITION COILS

QUAIFE LSD - LOHEN BEARINGS

HKS SQV IV

A'PEXi AVC-R BOOST CONTROLLER

TWIN OIL/AIR SEPARATOR SAIKUMICHI

MAHLE MOTORSPORT PISTONS

VANDERVELL RACING BEARINGS




BESPOKE FORGED ENGINE: (links to other threads)

MAHLE MOTORSPORTS PISTONS

CARRILLO TAPERED CON-RODS

FERREA COMPETITION PLUS VALVES

SCHRICK BILLET CAMSHAFTS

VANDERVELL RACING BEARINGS





tbc...
 
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#784 ·
Oil usage report:
The last 1,5k miles (5k since first start up) the oil usage has dropped from 80ml/1k miles to 0! Probably my piston rings are sitting nicely in place now...

Turbo report:
I also wanted to push the turbo further and I did. With the new wastegate spring and the appropriate adjustments at the boost controller I gradually altered the boost at the redline while data logging loads of sensors. In short, the JCW turbo is out of puff with this engine at 1,20bar@6500rpm. Anything more than that is overstressing it and induces more heat.
At 0,9bar it produced 213whp@6500, 1,2bar will net me more (dyno will tell) but at the road it feels a lot stronger than running 0,9bar...you can ask the unsuspecting driver of a M5 V10 (running only 400bhp) how well the Mini stands beside it...:tongue_smilie:
Verdict: the turbo is flowing less than the engine is willing to tolerate (I knew that from the start) and this Autumn I am building a hybrid of my own using the cores I already have in hand, the correct wheels and the appropriate machining.
 
#786 · (Edited)
The turbo choice is troubling me a little...I am really in font of a "clean solution" staying with the JCW core and going a little bit bigger in terms of wheels, but it has crossed my mind of going with another bigger core and a custom manifold. I haven't decided yet...both solutions have their pros and cons. one thing is for sure, everyday use will be the main factor...

MITP is way far, I couldn't justify that kind of journey, especially with my kind of family obligations...sadly...

The little one is doing great, draining all of his mother's milk as he doubled his body weight the past 2,5 months of his infancy...easygoing and particularly smiley, he brightened our world! Me and my wife feel blessed for our beautiful family. Oh and today I took them all together for a drive with the Mini! The girls were moaning about the lack of space at the back (they were sharing one of the back seats) but my boy seemed to enjoy the exhaust note as well as the sucking noice of the intake and fell asleep almost immediately...:lol:
Of course daddy was running low boost setting...:lol:
 
#790 ·
Yes you are right, I intend taking them for Karting for a start. My first daughter seems to be doing fine with a steering wheel in hand, the second one not so much but they'll get used to it, I think. It will also be a great opportunity for me to spend some more time at the track.
 
#797 ·
1/4 mile testing, using the Vbox sport with an external antenna at 20Hz and iPhone app Vbox PT:
Ambient 30oC.

0-60mph 5,50sec
Text Technology Electronics Font Electronic device


0-100mph 12,30sec
Text Technology Electronics Screenshot Font


1/4mile: 13,67sec@105,75mph
Text Font Technology Portable communications device Electronic device


All these results are with an ascending boost curve starting from 0,7bar@2000rpm (0,70bar = 10,20psi) and peaking at 1,05bar@6500rpm (1,05bar = 15,50psi).

Road surface was not that gripy but ok with a lot of wheel spin at first gear and little in second, thanks to the Dunlops.

Very satisfied with the results...also tried with more boost but didn't manage anything better than that, due to excessive wheel spin. All runs were below 13,75sec and consistent beside the fact that they were continuous without giving the car a break...
 
#811 ·
Serviced the car yesterday and look what I found...

Dirty fuel filter


I drained the dirty fuel into a bottle


Emptied the liquid and found this


Not good...


Replaced with a new filter


Changed an airbag sensor on the drivers column




Now I need to go to the stealers for airbag coding. At the same time I'll get the new recalled thermal protection on the oil line of the turbo.
 
#876 ·
I did mine at 80k miles. Filter was dirty and most filters get and apparently some work better when dirty. Fuel however was clean when passed through proving that it was still working. As I had already bought filter I changed it but it does mean that either additives in UK fuel or cleaning products like Forte and BG44k do something to help.
 
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