Does anyone know anything about this highly-modified car ?

[Ireland]

I've been thinking of getting a Cooper S JCW to use mainly for track days but I've also been looking at this car

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/854399.htm

as it has a lot of work done to it and is still listed as a Cooper S which would mean a saving for me on the VRT import duty into Ireland.

Do any of you know anything about it?

How well has the work been done on it?

How much is the reliability of the Cooper S engine compromised with this level of tuning?

[Ireland]

I've been checking it out and it turns out the owner passed away last year.

I hope to have some more info on the car during the week.

Is it normal to need to run a tuned car on 97 octane petrol?

I as as it's not sold overe here.

The best we have available is 95 octane so obviously I don't want to destroy an engine prematurely.

[Ireland]

So if it was all "go faster" work that was done and not handling or stopping, does that mean that the brakes and suspension will be inadequate for the extra power or is the standard set-up good enough to take it?

Also would I be correct in assuming that a new blower could probably be got off a breakers at this stage and it would do fine so long as it was a relatively low milage unit?

[Ireland]

Is there an LSD available for those cars with that much power or do people just use the satandard one?

From all the checking of the spec of that car that I've done I can't see any mention of one being fitted.

Surely that'd be a necessity?

[Ireland]

DanGT said:

The LSD is good. Ive driven a Copper S with and with out and the extra grip out of corners is realy good with the LSD.

Yeah, that's what I reckoned.

Surely it would be essential on something with the power of that one.

[Ireland]

Silent1 said:

Also, if you want someone to come and look at the car with you and want their opinion, i'm more than happy to go with you, as i'll be coming from cambridge i can pick you up from the airport etc.

You might be sorry you offered to do that as I might just take you up on that offer.

I'm waiting for one or two more small bits of information on the car and I'll decide sometine next week if I'm going to go and look at it.

I would probably go on a weekday but I'll let you know if I'm going and we can sort it from there.

Thanks.

[Ireland]

So far the majority of the feedback I'm getting off here is very positive and that the car is in good order.

The thing that's holding me back is that a lot of the people dealing in high-powered and modified cars over here feel I'd possibly destroy the engine before too long using the 95 octane petrol which is all that is available over here.


Have any of you run modified engines on 95 octane petrol for an extended period of time (ie YEARS) and if so what sort of problems did you encounter along the way in terms of reliability (or lack of as the case may be) ?

[Ireland]

I bought a 4.2 rather than a 4.5 Cerbera to avoid having to add the correct amount of octane booster per tank.

I just felt it would be too difficult to get it spot on every time.

As much as I want the 265 bhp Cooper S I'm starting to think I'd end up blowing the engine through forgetting the "cough bottle" every time I filled it up.

But we'll see ....

[Ireland]

Loui said:

haggi said:

Ireland said:

I bought a 4.2 rather than a 4.5 Cerbera to avoid having to add the correct amount of octane booster per tank.

I just felt it would be too difficult to get it spot on every time.

As much as I want the 265 bhp Cooper S I'm starting to think I'd end up blowing the engine through forgetting the "cough bottle" every time I filled it up.

But we'll see ....

the cooper S lump is a solid engine, but i would take it to 1320 in st neots and have them re-map it for 95 ron

I think you`ll struggle to do it tbh and even if you do it will loose loads of power IMHO

Yeah, that's what I've been told over here as well.

I suppose I was probably expecting to hear that but was hoping I wouldn't.

I actually fancied the challenge of all that power, particularly on a track day.

It's just a pity that I'd have to shed so much performance to get it to run on ste petrol.


I'd probably be as well off just betting an S JCW.

Actually I just realise I never asked if they run on 95 octane?

I assume they do as there are a small few JCW on the road over here already.

[Ireland]

A JCW is looking far more likely right now.

It would be a pity to go and get a highly tuned car and de-tune it for the sake of the fuel.

I know a JCW will probably cost me more but I could run it on 95 most of the time and add a "cough bottle" or fit a fuel-cat for track days.

[Ireland]

I think it may have sold.

The seller emailed me to say someone was coming with cash-in-hand to look at it.

I was still in the middle of asking about re-mapping, etc at the time.

I didn't here anything since.