Book Review :: The New MINI Performance Handbook

Discussion in 'Feedback, Reviews & Comments' started by Nathan, Jul 26, 2010.

  1. Nathan

    Nathan Founder

    Mar 30, 2009
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    The New MINI Performance Handbook
    by Jeffrey Zurschmeide

    [IMGR]http://lh5.ggpht.com/_L0BOHsTS8Ng/TCpy6-YLf1I/AAAAAAAAG0w/K-fV7NAEIPk/s400/SA182.jpg[/IMGR]Someone had posted that there was a new MINI book and provided a link to the Amazon page. I took a look, found the publisher and contacted them with the wild dream of obtaining a review copy with the intent on sharing my thoughts with all of you. Lo and behold the publisher said "Sure, where would you like it shipped?" About 10 days later there it was in the mailbox, since that time I've been flipping through and reading chapters here and there between other projects.

    Pulling the book the from the well padded shipping envelope I first noticed the cover has a small crease near the binding. Impressive, a jacket that is designed to lay flat when the book is placed flat, useful when referring to procedures while working on the car. A quick flip through the pages revealed lots of pictures, always helpful to get a point across. Scanning the Table of Contents I noted the book was broken into logical sections for each of the subsystems.

    It is pretty obvious this was written with a fair amount of help from some of the MINI vendors out there, not that there is anything wrong with that. What I find very odd is that in the engine chapter there is no discussion on heads or cams. Not even glossed over. It surprised me so much that I reread the engine chapter a few times thinking I had skimmed over it. Nope.

    The book is full of How To's for various projects. These include installing a CAI, Exhaust, Suspension components and other popular mods. While these How To's are for specific products the concepts should be enough to perform the same mods with other brands than those used.

    There are what I feel are some areas that could have been left out to make room for some more useful projects. I think the "interview" with Peter of M7 could have covered different ground. Highlighting the paddle shifter system that may end up in maybe a handful of cars was in my eyes a poor choice. There are other areas M7 offers product that would be of more interest to a larger number of readers.

    Tuning I think was also glossed over. There is talk of canned tunes, custom tunes and piggyback devices. When you consider that MINI Madness and RMW were obviously consulted for the book there is no excuse to skim by this very important area.

    Frankly, this book is a lot of advertising cleverly wrapped around How To's. For the well versed car guy or gal there is not much new here, however since there are so many people that get their first taste of modding a car with a MINI this is a valuable addition to the library. There are some very important automotive modding lessons that can be gleaned from this handbook that could save you a fair bit of money in trial and error.

    Now would I buy this book if I found it on the shelf while perusing my local bookstore after flipping through it. Probably yes. Even though I've been at the car modding stuff since well....when dirt was clean...there is always something to be learned. I have learned more about the MINI subsystems and how they interact with each other. When compared to the New Mini Performance Manual from the UK I think The New MINI Performance Handbook offers a lot more usable information.

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  2. minimark

    minimark Well-Known Member

    Jun 24, 2009
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    Thanks for the review!

    I'll cross it off my "get it now" list and maybe wait till it's $4.95 or free with another purchase....
     
  3. Dr Obnxs

    Dr Obnxs New Member

    Jun 11, 2009
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    I talked to Jeff about it

    at the last Media Days event I went to (March I think). Mostly it's a write up of the DIY stuff he's done on his own car, so it's limited to what he's done so far.

    Matt
     
  4. k-huevo

    k-huevo Club Coordinator

    May 6, 2009
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    I have yet to read it through, it's hard for me to take serious as it is predominately ad copy. There are statements I find disturbing since supposedly it was reviewed for technical accuracy, in chapter five the author states "...the standard torque spec for a T-40 Torx bolt is 40 ft-lbs..." there are many specifications that determine torque spec, such as size, grade, materials, etc, the fastener type is far down the list. For background reading Carroll Smith's Nuts, Bolts, Fasteners and Plumbing Handbook. The torque spec for the grade and size of the transmission bolt is 30 ft-lb. Applying 40 ft-lb to the soft heads of the gear box bolts with a Torx bit will surely wallow at least one.

    The author states the torque spec for the differential ring gear bolt is 66 ft-lb because the bolts on the flywheel to crankshaft are similar. He lucked out on that one, the ring gear bolts can handle higher torque than that.

    There are also omissions that could hinder or help, but I don't want to pick apart every detail.
     
  5. Johngo

    Johngo New Member
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    May 18, 2010
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    Nice writeup.

    Thanks, Nathan.
     

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