Cooper engine swap for an S? Is it possible & is it even worth it??

[G17RDY]

Ok so, some of you may know i have a super little cooper - Which i would find really hard letting go of.

However, as i owe no money on the car, and don't want to go through the whole rigmarole of selling my coop just to get an 's' (Can't really afford to anyway!) - And although yes i would love to own a JCW - again can't afford it!

There is one thing that has been on my mind....

Is it possible to swap the cooper engine out for an MCS engine?
&
Is it even worth doing, cost wise, if i could do the swap myself? (father in law is a mechanic!!)

[The Dogfather]

Are we talking R50?

Anything is possible if you chuck enough money at it but for the cost of an engine, gearbox and whatever it takes to move the battery to the boot it would be more cost effective to trade it in for an S

[minibob]

hi yeah it can be and has been done but its not just take one out drop the other in but on the upside reading between the lines its all plug and play if you no what i mean. Im the same as you love my cooper but would like more out of it if and when i can get the money i will be seriously thinking about it myself :thumbs up: This might help http://www.totalmini.com/forum/35-2001-2006-1st-generation/5611-supercharged-conversion.html

bob

[Alex from NM]

For the R50 its been done a couple of times. Incidentally your tax doesn't got up as it still counts as a Cooper :D

Mullenmini has done it, you can read about it here (http://www.totalmini.com/forum/35-2001-2006-1st-generation/5611-supercharged-conversion.html)

[Mon the fish]

The people I've heard doing it, it costs them about £1k (engine from breakers)

[Mon the fish]

Various people have looked at blowing the R50 engine, and no-one has done it because:

- The gearbox won't take the power
- The conrods probably won't (upgraded items on the S)
- The S has oil squirters under the pistons to keep everything cool
- The S has a lower compression ratio to prevent detonation

For everything you would need to do to the R50 engine, it would cost you more than getting hold of a complete R53 engine, which was designed to take the power

[G17RDY]

Well thanks for the responses, that's cleared up a few of the questions that i had.

Seems like a task and a half - But weighing it up, seems more cost effective to do than to trade my Cooper in just for an 'S'

I did see that there was a company offering a supercharger conversion kit for almost 2K - doesn't seem at all worth it, considering the potential damage you could do to your engine / gearbox!

I think though i'll just stick to my original plan, and look into some smaller upgrades, and eventually look to get either an original mini or a MINI JCW in a few years when all my debt is paid off!

[Alex from NM]

I might be wrong, but I think the 2k charge actually includes a sourced S engine. I can't find the company though to find out for definite, but I've seen it mentioned on other sites

[Gismo]

What is it you're seeking from having an S? if it's acceleration or straight line speed then fair enough, or even if you don't want to downshift etc

I've said it before, a well driven Cooper will easily keep up with an S, just depends on the skills.

I remember one Cullen Run recce where John's "lowly" Cooper kept up with a, hmm, can't remember what it was, perhaps a Skyline??? John will confirm.

I was also taking notes for the recce, i gave up cause i physically could not write :lol:

Not trying to suggest anything, but, perhaps driving lessons at Knockhill to improve race type driving and was something i was gonna do after upgrading my Mini before i left for the USA

[silver spirit]

Well put Allan ! A car with a bigger engine or turbocharged etc etc will probably be faster on a strait line run but not necessarily on a winding coarse at the end of the day it will all come down to how the car is set up and as Allan said the skill of the driver

[G17RDY]

A good point, the reason though for wanting an 'S' is not because i drive fast or want to race / keep up with anyone.
However after the wife having a clubbie 'S' a while back, i miss that 'pin you back in your seat' acceleration when you gun it every so often!!

[silver spirit]

I have to agree i miss the acceleration and the ability to go from 0/60 in less than 6 seconds But I am getting older and slower in my reactions and I felt I was taking chances with a big powerful car that might have hurt me or worst someone else and I might add that's after racing cars for a team in my youth Like everything in life it's a balance and knowing you limitations