1st Gen R50 Cooper Most liked posts in thread: ANYONE build a r50 engine yet??

Jan built one that I think did 208whp.
A lot of racing rules are written not liking turbo or supercharged cars. I think the market is waiting on the price of coopers to drop down around the price of 10+ yr old miata's and the race scene will begin to climb. Just no one wants to drop 8k into a street car just to start the build. if I could find an 05 cooper no sunroof with the getrag 5spd in it for like $1500-$2000 I'd be all over it.

 

I'd love to build my engine up to a nice even 150 whp. Combine that with a late model R53 Getrag and I'd be one happy guy. Now if only money grew on trees......

 

At some point in the near future I will be building a NA Cooper engine for my rally Mini. Normal stuff, HC pistons, Cam, tweeked ECU, etc. I let you know when i start.

 

Just like MrSideways said, the price of the cooper hasnt dropped like the 10+ year old miatas so not alot of people are jumping in. When looking for my mini I found that the R53 were hardly any more money then the R50's. I eneded up with the R50 because of my former driving record and the insurnace to go with it. However, I would love to see options for a HC R50 motor just to give mine a little more umph!

 

Jan at RMW does a set of HC pistons to any CR you need. I'm going to start there. Regarding price my Cooper cost $4900 for an 04.

 

I am interested in such things

 

it's NOT about whether it can be done........it has been done, it's just a matter of money. I developed something capable of making 200hp and only sold 2 of them......People wonder why people don't build parts for our cars.......

 

If I had the car, I would build it...

HC, a good ported (medium sized valve) head, cam for 5000-7000 RPM, custom intake manifold, big (72mm VW) throttle body, long tube header, and a stand alone would do wonders for a cooper. Then swap in the 6 speed with the lowered gear set from across the pond (Helix useto sell them), and it would be perfect.:drool

I still need to rebuild my R53 first though.

 

An R50 with narrow tires, stock camber, and standard swaybars is a joy to drive; nicely responsive to steering inputs, and well balanced in a hot corner. At 100lb lighter up front than the R53, weight loss here makes a big difference. Why mess things up adding a 75lb heavier 6 speed gearbox? The 5 speed Getrag is the hot set-up. Try taking a few steps while carrying a 6 speed for a dose of reality.

 

I am not to worried about the 6speed swap. I would like a lighter flywheel like from act but cant find any for the coopers. I would like to avoid anything aluminum. I remember there use to be options but I just cant find them now. I figured when the bad throwout bearing gets replaced I would do that too.

I would be happy with a way to get a little more fuel, and a good head that suits the cooper. I will probably not mess with compression lol. Has anyone figured out how to run the S injectors on the coopers yet?

 

May be a silly question, but what about using the beefy longblock from an R53?

 

Now you see why thumper hasn't built this combo

 

when I got my car tuned it had fuel issues above 6800 rpm. I want to adress that issue and build the motor to make some top end power. reving barely to 7k is teh lame on a NA cooper I would like to adress the lameness as well.

 

Bumping this old thread for interest. Thinking of going balls to the wall and getting a head and camshaft on my '06 R50. I'd really like to know how dramatic the difference is going to be before I shell out that much money for the parts, install, and tune... A sleeper R50 would be a blast, but if I can't get in touch with anyone who's done it, maybe I should just spend $3k on a rat bagged Camaro to drag on the weekends :/

 

Probably be lucky to end up with 130 HP after a tune with it.. and that of course depends on which head/cam combo etc. etc... may not end up with that much....
I say buy the drag car unless you can completly rebuild your motor. I've heard of 200 HP R50 motors but they have been completly gone thru...

 

Thanks for the input guys! I know the r53 is a better performance platform, but I'm not looking to race anyone. I'd just like some more power on the highway. I've considered getting an r53, but I have so much into my car, I'd have to spend all that money on suspension, wheels, tires, audio, exhaust, etc all over again! Looking at the cost of everything, plus install and tune... It's pretty steep.

Is there any appreciable improvement from just a camshaft?