R53 Cooper S Exhaust options

[V8A*ndy]

Wife has a Cooper S (R53 facelift) and is wanting a milltek.

I know nothing about these things and someone has suggested to be done with it and get the JCW item and tail pipe finishers.

So what exactly do I need to order and are there any alternatives that don't look and sound chavy?

Thanks.

[DavidLScott]

The JCW's look classy and are pretty quiet but with a slight 'edge' to the sound so very subtle.
The only Milteks I've heard have been on Audis and they were quite loud.

[V8A*ndy]

Thanks for the reply

Do you by chance know what bits I need to order for the JCW? I am confused by the center pipe option and brackets or do I just need the rear section and tail pipe finishers?

I'm disabled so can't get under the car to have a look and I don't want to turn up to our local garage and look like a knob with the wrong bits.

It's a surprise for the missus.

[0llie]

Milltek exhaust sounds fantastic on the R53, it's a little louder under hard throttle at high revs than the JCW in my experience, but definitely not too loud. Lifetime warranty, too.

[Mr Cooper]

V8A*ndy said:

Wife has a Cooper S (R53 facelift) and is wanting a milltek.

I know nothing about these things and someone has suggested to be done with it and get the JCW item and tail pipe finishers.

So what exactly do I need to order and are there any alternatives that don't look and sound chavy?

Thanks.

Where abouts are you based? I can't recommend 1320 MINI nr. St Neots highly enought. They will sort you out for sure.

I'm runnning a PlayMINI on my R53, it has a very nice tone, and quite rare to see. The Milltek's are highly regarded and wide-spread, the JCW is (in my opinion) too quiet unless you replace the manifold.

If you're looking for OEM looks and love the 'JCW' association, then this will be fine.

Edited by Mr Cooper on Tuesday 11th February 15:03

[DavidLScott]

Mine was already fitted so I'm not sure what you need. Climbing under the car is a no-no for me as well as it would take me a day or two to get back up again.
I'd do the 1320 route as suggested as they come heavily recommended across various forums (fora?).
I wouldn't go anywhere near a Mini dealer if I could avoid it.

[si_xsi]

I also had a playmini on mine and it was superb, a good mmix between standard and loud, it provoked more pops and bangs on up shifts and overrun, I went for the cat back system as it was only the rear boxes on the standard system which were getting rusty. It was £450 delivered and £50 to fit and came with all the brackets and hangers, although these weren't required. It was easy to fit. If I find the link I post below.

Nothing wrong with the Miltek but was more money at the time. The only thing I found with a stainless system was that the supercharger sound was diluted a little at lower revs although still audible higher up the rev range.

[si_xsi]

there we go, link to pic of it fitted

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

[nottyash]

I bought a Fletcher for the wife's Cooper S. I also have a sport cat on it.
I was told the Fletcher was similar to the Miltek, and its a very well made system.
Its louder than I expected on throttle, but does sound good.

[Hyde]

We have two R53s, I fitted a Miltek to mine and a Playmini (same as the Scorpion system) to my Wife's

I would go for the Miltek all day long, it sounds great (I much prefer it to the JCW system)

[nottyash]

We had a JCW car before, its not much different to standard apart from the fancy tail pipes. The Fletcher sounds a lot better.

[gonzales]

Plumped for the Miltek on my R53 when the OEM back box rusted through. Loved the sound of it.

1320 in St Neots fitted it and it sounds fantastic. Just over £500 supplied and fitted (with a few other bits thrown in whilst I was there )

[mneame]

If you want a bit more noise then just one ball it and keep the original look. Will give a bit more has flow and save you about £400.

[V8A*ndy]

I'm in Northern Ireland so I'd want something that's not too hard to fit for the local exhaust guys.

Narrowing this down to Milltek or Fletcher.

I am assuming the non resonated Milltek would be too noisy/boomy?

The look of the Polished Fletcher does seem appealing also.

Hmmmm decisions.

[Hyde]

V8A*ndy said:

I'm in Northern Ireland so I'd want something that's not too hard to fit for the local exhaust guys.

Also in Norn Iron

I bought my Milltek via a garage/shop in Bangor, they fitted it for me
I bought my Playmini (scorpion system) privately and got a mechanic mate to fit it for me

Both were straight forward fits

I have never heard a fletcher system fitted, the Milltek is similar to the JCW (my choice is the Milltek), the Playmini/Scorpion is quieter again.

[hyperblue]

The Fletcher exhaust is very loud, much more so than a Miltek. I ditched it for a JCW exhaust as I couldn't use the Fletcher on track.

[JRH63]

Just fitted a Milltek to my partners R53, really good quality, easy to fit, and sounds lovely.
No noisier at cruising, just throaty on acceleration.
Perfect.

[supertans]

Is there by any chance a decent alternative to BMW/Mini original for the Cooper ( 2005 model ) ??

[supertans]

Is there by any chance a decent alternative to BMW/Mini original for the Cooper ( 2005 model ) ??

[V8A*ndy]

Just to update this.

Milltek (non resonated) now fitted.

It's perfect. Sounds very good indeed and not chavy at all.

No motorway drone and plenty of cracks and pops on the overrun.

Ta