Articles from Ryephile

  1. ALTA Performance "Stealth" Cat-back Exhaust System for R56 Cooper S

    I have yet to drive a car that was absolutely brilliant and completely perfect in every sense. No, of course I haven’t. Perfection is just an ideal, not a possibility. There are, however, a select few cars that come pleasantly close to driving perfection. Moving down the ladder, there is a good selection that has fantastic potential, and a whole crop of pure crap. The 2007+ MINI Cooper S hatchback is scratching on the door to that first category of automotive pin-up models. There are a few...
  2. Craven Speed “Return of the CAI” Cold-Air Intake system for R53 MINI Cooper S

    “Return of the CAI” is a confident and remarkable name for a relative newcomer to a densely packed segment in R53 engine performance modifications. The first Cold-Air Intakes [or CAI for short] splashed into the MINI aftermarket soon after the cars launch back in 2002. Some early models ranged from quite crude to reasonably effective; however as time went by the lackluster products fell to the wayside as consumers become complacent with the long-crowned kings of the category. Craven Speed’s...
  3. Lighten up! R56 cast aluminum rear trailing arm conversion for the R50/53 MINI

    One of the best places to reduce weight to improve handling and ride is where there is unsprung mass. This includes wheels, brakes, and suspension pieces. The rear trailing arms from the R56 are close to a bolt-on conversion, however the parts list is exhaustive and the conversion is shrouded with cross-generation mystery. The benefits however, are a 12 pound overall weight reduction, improved rear suspension articulation resolution, and for early R50/53 chassis a much improved rear trailing...
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