Cool MINI build

I know a few of you here go over to Special Stage as well, but for those that don’t, here’s a link to a cool R50 MINI rally build. Pretty stock, but some cool stuff. 5:1 final drive, Cooper Works head (NA Version not sold here). Like me he’s an Ex-Pat Brit, but he spends his time between Massachusetts and Costa-Rica where the car is located and rallied.

http://www.specialstage.com/forums/showthread.php?45489-The-rally-Mini-build

Car before shipping to Costa Rica

On stage

I think it will appeal here as it's a true low buck effort. No fancy $$"s suspension.. Instead he uses stock Scoobie STI parts in a small lighter car. He started with 08 take offs, then went to 13 take offs, modded to fit the Mini. Swap later R56 alloy trailing arms in place of the stock heavy R50 steel pieces. I think it's a nice build. Now I want an R50 MINI, hence the cheap Detroit Craigs list car I posted the other day. Not happening though.

Damn, it looks like he has more trouble finding parts than me!

GameboyRMH wrote: Damn, it looks like he has more trouble finding parts than me!

YEah, I loved the welding three bolts together to make one long enough as he couldn't source one.

That is a cool build. I like it.

I can't see the pics at work, so I'll have to wait until I get home tonight, but 5 pages in and my initial thought is, "man... he did some things the hard way..." I do like the Subie suspension idea, although I need to see the pics first. There was a neat stage-rally build of an '03 R53 about 10 years ago, but he spent a lot more money using custom coil-overs and raising the strut towers to get more travel.

There was an R50 JCW kit sold in the US that included a different head (a friend in the local MINI club had one), but they are very rare.