December 20, 2006
A very happy MINI Pimp
Posted by Jess in
Mini Cooper S
I've had Eloise for a little over a year now. Since then, she's undergone some - changes.
In terms of suspension, she has lower/wider tires, and front/rear strut bars installed. She has brand new shocks and has Eibach 1" lowering springs for improved cornering.
For performance, she has a JCW short shifter, weighted shift knob, 15% reduction supercharger pulley, Ram air intake, one-balled muffler, and to bring it all together - a custom-mapped Unichip.
In terms of "bling", Eloise has gone through some plastic sugery herself. She has an all-new chrome interior/exterior, including alloy pedals and a chrome exterior grille.
Finally, in the functionality department, she has an RCA adapter wired through my car to the CD changer for my MP3 player. The last thing she is waiting for is a CB Radio to be installed in her glove compartment (our MINI rallies have gotten so large that a two-way radio won't cover the distance from start to finish, and now that I'm helping keep cars under control on the drives, I need to be in full communication with the other organizers!).
Some parts I've been able to put in myself, but most things I let my MINI mechanic (aka MINI Pimp) handle. In his words, "Try it yourself - if it gets ugly, stop!" These were very familiar words, in which I have spoken myself to other people about fixing and upgrading their computers.
That introduction was a long one, but necessary. Pete belongs to our MINI club, and is also our resident mechanic. We've had "tech days" in which we go to the shop where he works, and wash our cars, get parts installed, and enjoy the company.
Pete's wife is a member of Pixie Posse Racing, so we've even been fortunate to have a real "Pit crew" when we autocross.
The bottom line is that Pete gives up a lot of his time to help us all out, answer our questions, and install things for us. It was time to say a heartfelt thank you!
Some members of our club felt that our very own MINI Pimp should not be riding around in stock rims. We all chipped in, and got him something to make him very, very happy!
Here's Pete, aka MINI Pimp, finally riding in style the way he deserves!
If you are in the MA/Worcester area and need a good mechanic, take your car to DT Automotive (508-754-1400). Your car will receive top notch service, and you will receive top notch customer service. Matt and I live an hour away, yet it's still worth the drive up there for the quality.
Three cheers for Pete and DT Automotive! Gold stars all around. Enjoy the wheels, Pete, you deserve it!
Permalink
Comments
Hmmm.... I never would have thought of "one-balled" as helping performance. And given that Eloise is a SHE ...I'm just all confused.
LOL.. the "one-ball exhaust" is when the right muffler is removed, and a pipe is welded through to the remaining muffler (which the two tips led to anyway). The engine runs a *little* cleaner, but the real gain is the throaty, popping sound from the exhaust.
It's a nice alternative when you can't justify $600 for a complete exhaust system overhaul. :-)
Now thats just serious car-porn. Lovely...
Wish my wife would let me do this to my wee monster..
:-)
---* Bill
Fortunately, most of it I was able to get on eBay. Since so many things on the MINI are swappable, I've also bought things second hand from other owners (I bought the chome grille off someone who just upgraded to a black mesh grille.)
The big splurge was the lowering springs and the Unichip, but even that I was able to get second hand at a great deal!
