Living With The Turbo

[Gismo]

Well, still not got to grips with it yet, but, that's more to do with working away from home and not having had real time to drive the car.
But, i can advise that i'm struggling to get the power down smoothly and effectively, which isn't a complaint, i just need to work on it a bit.
I can spin the wheels easily in 4th gear, which, is hard to control :rolleyes:

The way the car is set up once traction is lost the TC actually remains in the off position until an engine restart, which, when you think about it is far more safer than having it cutting in all the time and continually cutting the engine power.
The emissions light (Not the EML) is always on due to the boost being more than the 17psi warning level, so, if this annoys you then you are gonna have to live with this.
I did have it reset once, but, as soon as you hit the peak boost in either 18 or 21 psi then the light appears again.
Roland at GTT explains it really well and why it can be a good thing to have it visible.

I have a 2 stage switchable boost setting, 18 and 21 psi, both settings give excellent driveability around town and i now leave it on the 21psi setting, i never need it in town anyway so it's not an issue for me.
Roland may have other opinions about that, but, i'm happy enough.

It is obvious that there is plenty of power there, not measured on a dyno, but the "feel" is different, i won't be going anywhere near a dyno so please don't ask me to quantify my "power" figures.

Motorway driving is also ok, it'll sit comfortably at the national limits and to the "allowed" motoway speeds, the only annoying thing here (and on A class roads) is that on slight uphill gradients the boost engages, obviously to give it more fuel, but, the induction noise can be irritating, but, this is easily overcome by a quick increase in speed to gain momentum and lifting off to maintain the speed sorts it out.
Initially the sound was welcomed for the obvious reasons and it still brings a wee smile, but, latterly i find it too intrusive, but, it's easily dealt with and doesn't bother me.

The exhaust note has diminished to the extent that even at my advanced years i will be seeking an alternative to increase the tone, this may actually help eliminate the boost noise
I've been advise that Milltek is the way to go, so, we'll see sometime in the future.
However, under spirited driving there is a significant back fire and i've had confirmed sparks flying out the back :D

Mileage was 21mpg but has increased to approx 25mpg and i'm hoping that i can educate the ecu a wee bit higher the more i drive it.
I don't hang about out of town (sticking to limits of course)

I'm still a bit reluctant to give it max in the current weather conditions, the roads have generally been slippy and i'd rather wait until the wintry stuff disappears before i do, however, i'm curious to know what other high performance owners have tyre wise on their cars?
I have Toyo Proxies and i must admit that the lack of straight line grip under hard accelration may be down to the wrong tyre choice.

Of course, with this engine conversion i thought it prudent to upgrade the braking and suspension, this was achieved with the Porsche brake kit, Bilstein suspesnion and all the strut braces ( i already had the front upper brace)

Again i've not really had a chance to examine the new levels of ride quality, but, you can definitely feel a difference and the stopping ability is far superior over the standard JCW brakes.

All the comments above are aimed at a genuine write up of MY opinions and others may have other ideas, my opinions are not meant to be negative, more how i feel the car is.
I'm not looking for any criticism or questioning my reasons for having the mods done :rolleyes: but i will happily answer genuine queries to assist others in their quest for a more powerful MINI.
I already know that for the money you can buy a blah blah car but, i want a MINI

If you were to consider this turbo conversion i would advise that you start with a more basic model than a JCW, mainly due to the fact that it makes no difference to the outcome, however, you will have spent more up front.
I honestly believe that you would be better adding the brakes at the same time and if you can stretch to it add in the suspension.

[stoney]

:cool:ok tyers i have falcon but are no use i had goodyear f1 and where brill


i just want a shot in your beast !!!!!! it sound brill but know what you mean about the nosie:shut up::shut up: so no coments from me you ozone killing little person ;):clap:

[The Dogfather]

Alan, I would imagine you'll be needing wet grip more than anything else. My recommendation would be Uniroyal Rainsport 2, they've curbed the turbo induced torque steer on my car quite a bit. Goodyear F1s and Vred Ultrac Sessanta are the best all rounders.

Sounds like the new car is more than a bit of a handful, but nothing ventured nothing gain eh? You need to get the car up to the roads North of Ullapool, plenty of space to fine tune your throttle control ;)

Alan, would you mind posting this on my site as well, I think a few would be interested in your thoughts on the conversion.

[Gismo]

:cool:ok tyers i have falcon but are no use i had goodyear f1 and where brillToyo R888's have been suggested to me

[ianking]

It sounds like a beast.
I can get the JCW spinning in 3rd but thats mental that you can still have it spinning in 4th.
I really want to change the front tyres on mine as well. Ditch the runflats and get proper tyres. I want something grippy that lets me boot it from the off but also something that will not be so soft as to wear out in 7k.

[Big Gordy]

I want something grippy that lets me boot it from the off but also something that will not be so soft as to wear out in 7k.

You've hit the nail on the head there Ian:yes nod: I ran Yokohamas A008A's on my XR2 and they were absolutely outstanding grip wise but only lasted 8500 miles:frown: I have a set of 18's with Yokohama Paradas on them so I'll let you know how it goes...if summer ever arrives for me to fit them:rolleyes: If its outright grip your after then I'd stick with any of the big names:thumbs up: Pirelli,Yokohama,Bridgestone,Michelin who all make tyres for the high end supercar manufacturers with 500+bhp so they should do for a pifling 300+bhp mini:moonie::Whistle:

[Crombers]

I'm not looking for any criticism or questioning my reasons for having the mods done :rolleyes: but i will happily answer genuine queries to assist others in their quest for a more powerful MINI.


Yeah boss, but is it gonna be better than a Coop on the twisties? :Whistle: :rolleyes: ;)

[Gismo]

Yeah boss, but is it gonna be better than a Coop on the twisties? :Whistle: :rolleyes: ;)I've got a sneeky feeling that it just may do, in the right hands of course :Whistle: :moonie:

[Crombers]

I've got a sneeky feeling that it just may do, in the right hands of course :Whistle: :moonie:

Ah, really :rolleyes:

I was obviously thinking of the twistiest road in Twistieville , nae straights at all :Whistle:

[zimbo]

This thing is a beast... :thumbs up: :D :D

[ianking]

Ah, really :rolleyes:

I was obviously thinking of the twistiest road in Twistieville , nae straights at all :Whistle:

For the twistiest of twisties in the County of Twist at UK Twsities H.Q then I would rather have a standard Cooper on 16s than my factory JCW. I recon the Coop would be quicker. However if there were any straight sections then give me back the JCW.

[Ivano]

Interesting.. Good to hear some feedback :yes nod:

[Livi]

Alan,

I know mine is not a mini, but i do have problems with the Yokohama tyres in which i do not understand why the japs praise the damn things, but they are a nightmare in the wet! :thud: and getting traction in a 160bhp 1.3 turbo that weighs 860kg is alot of fun :p

I find changing the turbo boost does absolutly nothing to the MPG but meerly helps traction for the main factor at 0.6bar from 0.8bar standard Toyota settings and a slight increase of a .1bar (0.9bar) through my secondary boost controller (HPI) which is also a good product for anti-lag and popping!! :thumbs up:

Sound like your car is alot of fun and punching out some amount of power! :D

pink slips? :p:p

[Crombers]

For the twistiest of twisties in the County of Twist at UK Twsities H.Q then I would rather have a standard Cooper on 16s than my factory JCW. I recon the Coop would be quicker. .

Yeay :hand: , c'mon the Coops (until the straights)

Would agree re the 16's as I've tried to hang onto the rear of Elfmans MINI on the twists on many a run & I know his grip on 16's is far superior to mine on 17's or 18's

Big boots just look better, .............. oh the vanity of it all.

[Big Gordy]

i do have problems with the Yokohama tyres in which i do not understand why the japs praise the damn things, but they are a nightmare in the wet! :thud: and getting traction in a 160bhp 1.3 turbo that weighs 860kg is alot of fun :p

I think you kinda answered your own question there with regards to the Yoko's:Whistle: I think its a weight think:thumbs up: Ross ran them on his V6 MG and they were fantastic in the wet and dry but it was quite a heavy car compared to your Toyota or a mini:rolleyes: I think MarkyC ran Paradas on his yellow 'S' and he too thought they were terrible in the wet:eek:

[Craig]

To summarise what Alan has said.......


"I bought a REALLY nice JCW S with full leather recaros and broke it just like I did with dougie"



:thud:


:moonie:


:Whistle:



:hand:



PS - only joking Alan - hope you find a way to get the power down some day... :clap:

[MrMischief]

I have a 2 stage switchable boost setting, 18 and 21 psi, both settings give excellent driveability around town and i now leave it on the 21psi setting, i never need it in town anyway so it's not an issue for me.

Motorway driving is also ok, it'll sit comfortably at the national limits and to the "allowed" motoway speeds, the only annoying thing here (and on A class roads) is that on slight uphill gradients the boost engages, obviously to give it more fuel, but, the induction noise can be irritating, but, this is easily overcome by a quick increase in speed to gain momentum and lifting off to maintain the speed sorts it out.
Initially the sound was welcomed for the obvious reasons and it still brings a wee smile, but, latterly i find it too intrusive, but, it's easily dealt with and doesn't bother me.

I'm still a bit reluctant to give it max in the current weather conditions, the roads have generally been slippy and i'd rather wait until the wintry stuff disappears before i do, however, i'm curious to know what other high performance owners have tyre wise on their cars?
I have Toyo Proxies and i must admit that the lack of straight line grip under hard accelration may be down to the wrong tyre choice.

Alan, good to hear how you're finding life with your beastie :thumbs up:
I'm curious about your two boost settings though, 18 -21psi aren't very far apart at all, although I'm sure you'll notice the difference with the higher boost pressure as you move up into the higher gears. I would have thought if you were to have a "runaround" setting (for better mpg), it'd be around 14-15psi - this would also be a good wet weather setting and help with your traction issues.

Speaking of which, I used to run Yoko's on my GTiR and found they gripped really well in the dry and were very progressive in the wet - it stayed controllably sideways right through Duffus dip :D I ran Toyo Proxies on my GT4 and found them to be extremely grippy whether wet or dry, have you got the T1-S or the T1-R's on? My Passat's got Pirelli PZero Rosso's and they're crap in the wet, can't put any power down without the TC cutting in, although to be fair it's got a lot of weight to drag around too :Whistle: Being a JCW I presume it has an LSD, but have you thought about changing the diff?

If you're running a cone filter just now, think about making up a remote cold air induction kit with a panel filter in there somewhere. That'll definitely reduce a lot of the induction noise if you don't like it, plus probably give you more ponies (not that it'll need them :hand:)with the cool air :eek:

Anyway...that's my 2 cents :popcorn:
Cheers
Steve

[john]

Alan, good to hear how you're finding life with your beastie :thumbs up:
I'm curious about your two boost settings though, 18 -21psi aren't very far apart at all, although I'm sure you'll notice the difference with the higher boost pressure as you move up into the higher gears. I would have thought if you were to have a "runaround" setting (for better mpg), it'd be around 14-15psi - this would also be a good wet weather setting and help with your traction issues.

Speaking of which, I used to run Yoko's on my GTiR and found they gripped really well in the dry and were very progressive in the wet - it stayed controllably sideways right through Duffus dip :D I ran Toyo Proxies on my GT4 and found them to be extremely grippy whether wet or dry, have you got the T1-S or the T1-R's on? My Passat's got Pirelli PZero Rosso's and they're crap in the wet, can't put any power down without the TC cutting in, although to be fair it's got a lot of weight to drag around too :Whistle: Being a JCW I presume it has an LSD, but have you thought about changing the diff?

If you're running a cone filter just now, think about making up a remote cold air induction kit with a panel filter in there somewhere. That'll definitely reduce a lot of the induction noise if you don't like it, plus probably give you more ponies (not that it'll need them :hand:)with the cool air :eek:

Anyway...that's my 2 cents :popcorn:
Cheers
Steve

:off topic: You had a GTI-R? I have had 3:thumbs up: Fantastic cars then I got into MINI'S so I could have the same fun at lower speeds:D

[MrMischief]

:off topic: You had a GTI-R? I have had 3:thumbs up: Fantastic cars then I got into MINI'S so I could have the same fun at lower speeds:D


Yeah, really regret selling it now. I serviced it every 4k miles, and changed oil after events, trackdays etc and it never gave me a single problem. Only ran a bar of boost but was great fun, and still did mid 12s 1/4 miles :D

MINI's would be great 4WD and with Alan's kit :clap:

Back on topic....:Whistle:

[Gismo]

Alan, good to hear how you're finding life with your beastie :thumbs up:
I'm curious about your two boost settings though, 18 -21psi aren't very far apart at all, although I'm sure you'll notice the difference with the higher boost pressure as you move up into the higher gears. I would have thought if you were to have a "runaround" setting (for better mpg), it'd be around 14-15psi - this would also be a good wet weather setting and help with your traction issuesThis is what GTT advised and to be fair it's not the cars fault for losing the grip, i just need to learn to drive it better, still going through the fun zone i guess.
The car is very capable of pottering around town on either setting.


have you got the T1-S or the T1-R's on? My Passat's got Pirelli PZero Rosso's and they're crap in the wet, can't put any power down without the TC cutting in, although to be fair it's got a lot of weight to drag around too :Whistle: Being a JCW I presume it has an LSD, but have you thought about changing the diff?It has the T1-S's on, never thought about changing the diff, again, not sure it's the "problem"


If you're running a cone filter just now, think about making up a remote cold air induction kit with a panel filter in there somewhere. That'll definitely reduce a lot of the induction noise if you don't like it, plus probably give you more ponies (not that it'll need them :hand:)with the cool air :eek:

Anyway...that's my 2 cents :popcorn:
Cheers
SteveThanks for your points, the intake is GTT, cone type, the induction noise is ok, i'm far too fussy and initially the bulkhead grommet was missing rsulting in a very loud roar :eek: to which John will testify :rolleyes:
But that's sorted now and the noise is far quieter, it's more that the exhaust is too quiet that i can hear the intake noise clearly.
But, the sound of the dump valve is very good as a BT engineer will agree to when i passed him at the side of the road with Zimbo and Burple :D

[zimbo]

...the sound of the dump valve is very good as a BT engineer will agree to when i passed him at the side of the road with Zimbo and Burple :D

Oh yesssss.... :cool: It was funny as f*$% seieng those guys both looking around to see what car was making that sound. :lol: