any ideas?

[jonnie]

Hello all, not been on for awhile but the coopers gone replaced with a black 54 plate S. Any ideas on decent mods or upgrades would be appreciated greatly. One more, how do i change the pic that appears next to this post?

[jonnie]

sorted the pic thing, thats the new car.

[Craig]

Yup - what Ali said ;)

Give us a bit more detail and we'll help you out ....

[Mon the fish]

Tell us your budget, then we'll tell you what to spend it on! I'd sort brakes, bushes and suspension first

[jonnie]

thinking performance first, dont really have a budget, just as and when i can.

[Mon the fish]

On a car the age of an R53 now, get a health check done first, and I would upgrade the bushes (will be done by now), and the brakes (an R53 weak point) before chasing power

[jonnie]

got to admit im not that impressed with the brakes, they dont feel as good as the cooper.

[Mon the fish]

The brakes can't cope with 170bhp, so foolish IMO to expect stock brakes to cope with more. You should be able to pick up a set of R53 JCW/R56S calipers and discs cheap, just keep an eye on the forums

[ELFMAN]

Like Mon says, I'd sort Brakes and Suspension first, before putting more power in it. No point in having more grunt if the rest of the car can't keep up!

The standard R53 brakes are rubbish. I actually sold my standard R56 brakes (identical to the R53 'Works' kit) for a knock-down price a few months ago, as I'd had them lying around in my hut for ages, so there are bound to be a few sets of these floating around now.

After that, look into getting some decent SEATS - sounds daft, but you'd be amazed the difference that can make to your driving enjoyment, and then fit a nice Exhaust and Manifold.

IMHO, with those things sorted, the car would be much better than if you just went for BHP alone.

[jonnie]

Thanks for the ideas, i like the seats as they are though i take your point but def going to look into the brakes thing.

[Mon the fish]

Agree with Elfman on the seats - I've put Corbeau buckets in mine, and it's made such a difference. Can really chuck the car about without having to brace myself against the steering wheel or door.

And funnily enough, there's a seat the same as mine for sale in the classifieds just now, at a steal of a price...