Mini R53 Mods Worth Considering !

[@DamoDrives]

What mods would you do next ?

[@geoffbishop6952]

Crank pulley

[@darrenlucas2768]

Go for a 63 mm throttle body....and a larger rear Anti roll bar

[@DamoDrives]

I did not mention every mode / forgot lol but I have 0% ATI Crank Pulley. I will add the full spec in the description

[@Camelhooof]

I would go for BC Racing Coilovers as they come with adjustable top mounts

[@Jonathan-qz9kd]

You want some decent suspension kw or st v2 I prefer stock top mounts much better for the uk roads! Bigger rear arb if you haven’t got one and r56 rear arm upgrade!

[@ghostwrench2292]

I am the original owner of a 2003 R53. I’ve spent more time & money on this car than I want to think about. I do all my own work. It has over 170k miles on it, I’m on my second engine, second clutch, full poly suspension bushings, Bilstein B14 coilovers, Hotchkis rear sway bar, WMW front strut tower brace, 17% pulley, 380cc injectors, CAI, Milltek cat back exhaust, ATI super damper and R53 trailing arms. A few more mods and tune on the way. The mods and repairs never stop but when I was giving fits to 2018 Ford Focus RS on the track and he gave me the point by and I started walking away from him it makes it all worth it!!

[@Tonycrossfit]

First and foremost, nice car and nice upgrades. Second, very informative video. In 2005 I test drove a Mini Cooper S and love it but I decided to go a different route. I’ve always wanted a Mini Cooper and finally found one. I just recently bought a 2004 S R53 with the six speed gear box with 63,000 miles. I’ve been watching a lot of videos and learning about the R53 and the upgrades that owners are doing. For now, I’m just gonna install a K&N air filter and new Continental DWS 06 tires. Eventually I’m gonna upgrade the intercooler, exhaust, wires and plugs. Thank you for your video and keep having fun 🤩.

[@DamoDrives]

Welcome to the mini family. I would suggest making sure the car is in good condition in terms of maintenance before too many changes.

[@Tonycrossfit]

Thank you for your reply. The car is in very good condition but I will take to the shop and them check it before I start the upgrades.

[@darrencottrell5541]

Great video mate. Love these catch ups on your prized MINI R53. Great energy and enthusiasm and rightly so. Video quality is also on point and you are so much more comfortable in front of the camera than ever, great to see. Take care buddy.

[@DamoDrives]

Glad you enjoyed this video and hopefully covered most of the upgrades along with a bit of history thrown in for good measure 😊

[@the3xplorer]

This is awesome! Great video. I just picked up a R53. It has 185k miles. It’s gonna be my project car/daily.

[@DamoDrives]

Glad you enjoyed the video. Good luck with the project, if it’s a daily I would make sure you have a suspension setup is not too extreme. Mine was really low when I purchased it and it was not very nice to drive but looked good.

[@the3xplorer]

@@DamoDrives Cool. Do you have any recommendations for suspension components like shocks, sway bars and arms?

[@DamoDrives]

@the3xplorer ST suspension ST XA coilovers are supposed to be good value for money

[@robertriley4105]

I have the 2003 r53, w 161 hp, I'm not a mechanic, I keep the fluids topped off, and new tires on it. I've been up to 105 mph, and it hugs the road like no other.

[@DamoDrives]

They are great little cars (although the build quality vs the latter models is a bit questionable lol) mine is 201whp and certainly progresses. Best on twisty roads

[@elvino9395]

Can't get enough of your build and the smile it brings you 😊

[@DamoDrives]

Thank you , appreciate your kind words 😊.

[@sprintlifecamp]

Just for an r53 2003 a few weeks ago.. Joined R53OC and this is one of my favourites so far

[@DamoDrives]

Welcome to mini ownership 🤜. Glad you like the car , quite a few videos on the car to catch up on

[@equaliser2265]

Its ULEZ exempt.

[@HarielA44]

What mount was used for the double din stereo head unit?

[@amalmoore4119]

Hey…. Thanks a lot for the video Great video i enjoy watching your content keep up the great work and enjoy your mini💯🙂👍🏾 👍🏾👍🏾 #🇧🇧Barbados

[@DamoDrives]

Very much appreciated and glad you enjoy the content🤜

[@500bht]

I'm liking those fifteen 52 wheels a lot ❤❤. Are they 7 1/2 or 8j with 30 offset? Been looking for ages to find a set for my r53. Thanks for putting the time in to make these videos

[@DamoDrives]

Glad you enjoy the videos , they are an 8J but not sure of the offset. Might be difficult getting a set of these wheels as they don’t make this size anymore

[@fourdrracer]

Great video! Especially, thanks for the history overview. I have had many R53s and knew mostly bits & pieces about the Tritec choice. I also have a Classic Rover Mini and should not what a K series is, but my memory is failing me there. Lol. A 1275 maybe? I currently have (among others) a 2006 JCW street car with RMW head,cam, exhaust, 17% pulley, methanol injection, and TVS 900 supercharger. The car is wicked fast, at least to me. I also have a 2002 Cooper S track car with the same mods except no meth and stock supercharger. It dynoed at 242 wheel hp. It too, is quick. Thinking about swapping TVS supercharger and meth injection over to track car if I can find some help with tune. I’m in the US, in Mississippi, and nowhere close to a tuner! GidSpeed!

[@fourdrracer]

(Blushing). That should have read GODSpeed!

[@stainuponmypreme2001]

great videography in this vid - loving the car, i can remember seeing it posted around the owners club over the past few years, keep the content coming!

[@clydexoxoxo]

Would love to know how you managed to fit a double din stereo in there, desperately want one.

[@DamoDrives]

The previous owner fitted it so I don’t know I’m afraid

[@sionsk887]

to be honest you dont really know any thing haha @@DamoDrives

[@DamoDrives]

Thank you for the comment but would rather have some positivity rather than being rude @sionsk887

[@SAVING_ICONIC_MACHINES]

Great looking car 🚙 Iv got one sat at my mum’s I think 🤔 I need to get a build on very soon after seeing yours ❤

[@DamoDrives]

Go for it , will cause pain , money but you will love it once it’s done. What model have you got ?

[@SAVING_ICONIC_MACHINES]

Iv got a r53 s just like yours

[@Camelhooof]

Awesome car mate and awesome video, cant wait to get another one again. Yours sounds like my old one 😁

[@DamoDrives]

Glad you enjoyed the video, I agree it is a good fun car

[@LewReviews]

i know the guy who did this mini his name is Tim and the person who did the tune haywood both good lads and this car was built with pure love Tim loved this mini

[@DamoDrives]

Tim is who I purchased the car from. The Haywood map was pretty good although the map 1320 has done is incredible, not over pushing it and got another 10whp and no longer running rich. Few issues I have had to sort but that’s a 22 year old car

[@Tonycrossfit]

Do you have a list of the upgrades?

[@johnhall8564]

Great video I’m thinking of buying one of these old supercharged Minis….. the one I’m looking at has 126k on the clock and is highly modified would you recommend buying one with this kind of mileage ? How much mileage is one of these engines good for do you know ? If you can let me know your opinion that would be great thanks.

[@DamoDrives]

More than anything it’s more about how the car has been looked after rather than mileage. Regular services, where the modifications were Done , quality of parts etc. my car has been into a couple of performance specialists and have found and fixed modifications that were not quite done right originally. I would really recommend joining a few mini groups on Facebook and asking around. I’m no mechanic and my 1st Mini so you need people who are a lot more Experienced. They are great fun cars and love the supercharger but do have a budget to fix things as they are older cars (mine is 22 years old) hope this advice helps

[@johnhall8564]

@@DamoDrives thanks very much for your quick advice….. I don’t know much about the car only that it originally came from the Isle of Man. the garage don’t know what mods that have been done they just say it’s insanely fast it’s had a recent racing clutch fitted at 1900 quid and the lad there says it will spin wheels in 3rd gear in the dry lol…. Yeah I’ve got a weekend Lotus Elise but I want everyday fun without worrying to much I am in a group on Facebook but your the first person I’ve seeked advice from.

[@loomspace]

​@@johnhall8564I would never buy an extensively modded r53 with no history unless you're going into it being completely comfortable and equipped to do fairly involved retrograde maintenance/repair (or pay someone to do it) while also doing detective work on what's already been done to the car. Well worth it in my opinion.

[@johnhall8564]

@@loomspace Thanks for the reply, I’ve decided to go for a very low mileage one (24k) unmodified wasn’t cheap but worth it in my eyes….. I may get the mods done in the summer but the car feels pretty quick as standard tbh with the engine being so tight it looks and drives like a brand new car.

[@BurmaJ]

@@johnhall8564Good call, I didn’t want to be too negative on the modded one but I’ve had a few and I now keep them close to stock and well maintained. I do like a 15% pulley and light wheels setup. Congratulations on the purchase and enjoy, they’re special cars to be sure.

[@TheM3smg]

Where did you get the rear g wing from looks good

[@simonangood306]

Great video Damo! I've recently fitted the Tein coilovers to my 2005 R53 too...what dampening setting have you set yours to? Fully 'to the left' is too soft and a little wallowy for me...too far over to the right and my fillings are shaken from my head! Any recommendations? Cheers, Simon

[@DamoDrives]

Afraid I am not sure on the settings. I take it to a local performance garage that also does setup for road and track

[@Henno_editz.]

Damo what clocks and speedo are in the mini I want the black with blue led looks mint

[@AaronV_PNW]

Hey Damo! Great video. Been following your build for a while now. On the same R53 journey as you, but on the other side of the world! Do you get much tire rubbing with those wide wheels? I put spacers on my stock 17s to get a stance similar to you, but had to pull them due to rear tire rubbing on lowered springs. Would coilovers solve that?

[@DamoDrives]

Im pleased too enjoyed the video , was not sure how popular a bit of history would be at the start ! If you get large dips in the road they will scrap slightly but no where near as bad as when I got the car. Previous owner had it more as a stance car so as low as possible and would continuously rub and even worse with 2 people. Really depends on what you are going for , if it’s driving then 7-7.5j. It fits better and less unsprung mass.

[@mertcapkin7263]

Which version of the atomspeed scoop is fitted? Number 1?

[@DamoDrives]

Was fitted on the car when I got it so guessing it’s at least 2 years old but expect more like 3-4. Just had it stripped back and been painted by a local body shop who did an amazing job and under £100 (video on the channel if you want to watch paint dry; in all honesty it is quite interesting)

[@joaogoncalves6078]

Congratulations on the project, what is the brand of the rims and model? I'm a follower of Portugal👍🇵🇹

[@jaysonchilvers]

One mod missing is the mod that all european cars need. Change the headlining to black what is it with all the euro's having that awful grey/ creme headling colour?

[@kathleenmacdonald2843]

Id rather a light airy cream colour rather than a black one

[@nuvix9216]

I can back this, black looks so much better

[@dr.abuzerkomurcu63]

Got mine alcantara, so much better.

[@joebuczkowski8605]

I'm going to get myself a MINI Cooper!

[@DamoDrives]

Which generation ?

[@joebuczkowski8605]

@@DamoDrives I'd like to put those 52 wheels on it also.

[@joebuczkowski8605]

​@@DamoDrives 2006

[@kurbeco]

The Rover K Series engine wasn't used as the body lines were defined before the drivetrain was, and the K series was too tall to fit under the bonnet lines that had been drawn.

[@equaliser2265]

Becoming collectable now,

[@DamoDrives]

It does seem a lot of them (certainly modified) are being sold for parts as people can get more for them.

[@chris_cogan]

Hope you got home from 1320 safely yesterday 😃

[@DamoDrives]

Was good thanks, the map has made a real difference to the way it drives , in a strange way is more relaxing

[@The_Cheques_Offender]

I get 35mpg out of my r53, idk what everyone else is doing with them. If i reset the clock and floor it for the entire drive i do 20.5 but i average 35.4 (says the clock)

[@DamoDrives]

I don’t have a mpg on mine (not sure if that’s due to it being a very early model) need to fill up and then drive it and fill back up again but rough calculation are certainly less. Is yours stock ?

[@The_Cheques_Offender]

Mines a more or less stock 52 plate. 15% pulley and a larger intercooler is about it performance wise with a catback. If theres a button on the top of the indicator stalk it should have the display. If not its probably becasue someones changed the centre clock (Kombi) and not coded it to the car.

[@DamoDrives]

@Bombastic_Spastic different stalks on the car and no button, guessing the original car did not have that option. There is an option on the ultra gauge for MPG but does not seem to do anything. Might have to do some googling

[@dannymelyea]

Hey what offset of those Wheels if you know thank you

[@DamoDrives]

8J but not sure of the offset ,

[@joebuczkowski8605]

I want to test drive a 2006 MINI S. It has around 74,000 miles on the odometer. I'd like to learn how to modify it's engine to increase HP and Torque. I also like your 52 wheels.⭐

[@equaliser2265]

Just check its service history, if someone loved it they will have all the history and documentation, if it hasnt got any, leave it. Get the R53, the 56 engine isnt very reliable at all.

[@equaliser2265]

Sir, Bergen 15kg , 7km per day. Crack on. Nice Cooper S by the way, 59000 on mine 2003.

[@joebuczkowski8605]

I'd like to build my own MINI just like this.💥💥💥💥💨💨💨💨🦾🦾🔩🔩🔩🔩

[@DamoDrives]

It’s a bit addictive as you finish 1 thing and start thinking what else can I spend my money on 😂

[@DaHobbyGoblin]

I went from Dodge Dakota w a 5.9L v8 to an R53, the fuel consumption feels great by comparison lol

[@DamoDrives]

I bet , from diabolical to bad 😂

[@DaHobbyGoblin]

@DamoDrives Here with the highways I drive I've been getting around 28, and Mines got similar engine mods to this one, I just have to keep the right foot under control

[@WH04NAZ]

Wasn't this Tim Woodfords car?

[@DamoDrives]

It was

[@WH04NAZ]

Yeah thought I recognised it that car was a inspiration to my mods and my twist..

[@darrenlucas2768]

Under the engine?? Don't you mean under the bonnet?😂. .nice car dude ...good taste

[@DamoDrives]

I certainly did mean the bonnet unless I was talking about the ummmm floor 😂 and did not realise until I was editing but I’m sure everyone understands 🫣.

[@darrenlucas2768]

@@DamoDrives sorry buddy....I wasn't being fair....just made me laugh. Have the same car.....similar tune

[@DamoDrives]

Being 100% fair , I was editing it and thought what on earth did I say 😱 and wondered if I had come up with a new saying. Getting it re-re mapped next week and trying to get a bit more power on a rolling road map rather than a standard map , while it’s ok never going to be as good with 1320 being able to tweak on the fly

[@darrenlucas2768]

@@DamoDrives that's on my list......1320 too. I'm looking for 250 ponnies when I'm finished

[@DamoDrives]

@darrenlucas2768 think I would need a significant investment to get to that number , bigger injectors , different cam, big head not sure if it would need to be forged ??. Certainly no expert but will ask them when I am there next week (doing a video with them as well on modified car question and answers)

[@The_BenboBaggins]

As I understand it, the K-series was dropped for packaging and reputation reasons - by comparison, the K is taller than the Tritec. Also, the K-series has a poor reputation for reliability, even though they were sorted for head gasket failures by the 00s.

[@richardbaxter9130]

Damo, you keep quoting 161hp? I thought the early r53's were 163hp? Facelift 170. JCW tuning kits had 200hp then later had 210hp with cold intake.

[@DamoDrives]

@@richardbaxter9130 cannot remember the source I used for the 161 but looking again it’s 163

[@equaliser2265]

N14 engine turbo, shite. Supercharger vey nice.

[@DamoDrives]

The N14 certainly had its reliability issues and considering they moved away from the supercharged engine as BMW did not think it was a good engine was almost funny. N18 on the other hand was so much better

[@alexmarin882000]

under the engine?:))

[@aevans692]

you said you have coil overs ... all mini Cooper are fitted with coil overs ..

[@DamoDrives]

Tein adjustable coilovers

[@SofaKingTouge]

Go to make more power but then put the heaviest wheels known to man on it to lose all that extra power. Stock r53 with light 15s would run circles around you. In other words get some proper wheels.

[@DamoDrives]

Really like the look of my wheels and while saving 20kg of weight would be beneficial (I did look at some TD 1.2 pro race wheels) there is no way a 161 bhp (at the crank) stock cooper S is going to be faster than 201bhp (crank so approx 220bhp) and all of the other mods will be quicker. It’s not a track car either. So you are right lighter and slightly narrow wheels (7j ideally rather than 8j) would improve it it’s not worth doing.

[@varelastheo]

shouldve been a K series sigh

[@Lukksia]

lots of people k swap these. but that would have been really cool if it came with a supercharged k engine

[@kurbeco]

@@Lukksia A K-Series engine is the Rover engine. The K swaps that people do are the K24 Honda engine

[@Tonycrossfit]

First and foremost, nice car and nice upgrades. Second, very informative video. In 2005 I test drove a Mini Cooper S and love it but I decided to go a different route. I’ve always wanted a Mini Cooper and finally found one. I just recently bought a 2004 S R53 with the six speed gear box with 63,000 miles. I’ve been watching a lot of videos and learning about the R53 and the upgrades that owners are doing. For now, I’m just gonna install a K&N air filter and new Continental DWS 06 tires. Eventually I’m gonna upgrade the intercooler, exhaust, wires and plugs. Thank you for your video and keep having fun 🤩.