1st Gen "How To" Gen1 Justacooper Exhaust System Reference

Steve, great article!!!

I have a 03 Cooper, and with over 100k miles, the OEM exhaust was toast, the hangers had rusted off the muffler, so I had it wired up for a couple of months with clothes hangers

I ended up getting a Megan, mostly because I was impressed with the fact they asked us, Cooper owners, what we wanted in an exhaust system, and the price, way less than any other

The install of the new system was very easy, the un-install of the stock system, not so easy. rusty bolts being the issue:mad2: and I even had most of the system off a few years ago to install a short shifter.

I would recommend to anyone going install any new exhaust to spray all the bolts the day before, with rust remover, WD40, and keep spraying it on every few hours.

I ended up snapping 2 of the 6 bolts off on the mid-hanger, but rather than trying to extract them, and re-tap the holes, I just put 2 self-taping machine screws in right next to them.

I've had the Megan on now for a couple of months, it looks great, I "feel" a bit better performance, it's a good match with the Way/DDM intake, and the sound puts a smile on my face every time I fire Poco up It does increase cabin noise, but I don't mind that, and I love the burble when backing off the throttle









Mark

 

Yes, move on very soon:lol:

The Megan has slotted bolt holes, for both connection points, so you can put it all together, than go back and tighten everything. So the install is very easy. It is well made, and I figure I can clean that tip for many years, and never wear it thin:arf:

Mark

 

I have a magnaflow (the one piece version)
i like the fit and finish, very simple to install
i do get some highway drone but it doesn't bug me too much as most of my miles are off-highway (worst is ~70mph at coast with the throttle closed) if i am at 10% throttle it is much less
i don't have an exact number but it weighed a hell of a lot less than stock
tip is kinda big at 4"
but sounds cool and gives a great crackle bang if you snap the throttle closed at 3k rpm in 1st LOL
no idea on power as i haven't dyno mine but a similar car got some more hp and torque (mostly up high but still a couple down low)

videos:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11mD9vTgZts"]YouTube - Cooper non-S Magnaflow[/ame]
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLVmFllQozI"]YouTube - Cooper non-S Magnaflow[/ame]

pics:



lemme me know if you have questions or want more pics or more detail i am kinda tired tonight :-/
those pics are very old i know have newer ones somewhere around
and magnaflow parts can be found for well under msrp <- helped throw me in the direction

hope that helps your guide some!

 

I have a Miltek on my '05 MCc. Installed Probably around March of 05. So four years old. 46,000 miles on the car right now. The resonator was rattling about 4-5 months into the ownership, but was replaced under warranty. No problems since.

 

I can say with all honesty that I was the very first MCc with an aftermarket exhaust. Ryan, who was at Detroit tuned at the time and who I got the Miltek from, compared the part numbers for the OEM exhausts on R50 and R52 and they were the same. So we went ahead with the order. Of course when the installation took place the exaust was rattling on the convertibles rear bracing. That was taken care of with a couple of washers on each bolt and some longer bolts and have been trouble free ever since.

(Side story. I found the rear bracing bolts in my bag in the trunk couple of weeks ago. It took me about a week to remember what they were for. I spend that time trying to figure out what it was that I have taken apart and did not put together properly. :mad2

I had some pics of the install on NAM somewhere, but that was before GOALJNKY got banned. Not sure if the gallery is still there. Maybe on of the admins who is still there can check.

 

I can't even remember where the videos were linked to. Could have been my server at home, which would mean the videos are long gone to the binary heaven in the sky.

 

looks like killboy was a fan of the magnaflow too
*also have DDM intake

killboy.com photos - The Original Photographer from Hwy US129 Tail of the Dragon at Deals Gap

 

I too have the Milteck and it was great until the resonator took a dump. The place I got it from is no longer in business, so I guess I'm SOL.

I've been looking for a replacement, but am waiting until MiniMania "finds" some more of there R50 exhausts like they do every year.

 

Paul, have you tried calling Stratmosphere? I think they are the distributor for Miltek and might be able to help you out.

 

Yeah I did, and I would have to ship the ENTIRE exhaust back to them at my own expense. They are also not sure if my part could be fixed due to the fact that the system is no longer produced. So I said screw it and have a plan to hack the resonator out and see what happens from there.

 

I can tell you now. If you hack it out you will be about 18 inches short.

 

So lets expand this a little. What about a header for a Justa? How about a cheapy OBX? Would that be asking for trouble? I am sure this has been beaten to death on NAM.

 

I would +1 the Remus. A guy in our local club had one a few years ago and it was the best sounding Mini I ever heard.