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Mini Cooper Accessories to Enhance Performance

While the natural draw to the Mini Cooper for the enthusiast is in its obvious European styling, there are loads of aftermarket upgrades that make the car just more fun to drive through added boosts to the power load and in some cases even result in better fuel economy.

To add a noticeable punch to the acceleration of your Mini Cooper, the installation of a high quality turbo kit will satisfy your need for power in a small package. Mini Cooper short shifters are an accessory that will improve on the shifting ability of your vehicle, making your gearshifts smoother and dramatically impacting the ability to accelerate.

Without spending a lot of cash or time, the Mini Cooper owner can immediately add 35 H.P. to the engine performance. All it takes is about $200 in parts and a couple hours of your time.

To easily add an extra 10 to 12 H.P. on the Dyna Flow of your Mini Cooper, install a free flow racing filter kit. An easy install for the do it yourselfer, expect this upgrade to only take about 30 minutes to complete. This simple performance enhancing intake system accessory will lower the air flow restriction into the supercharger, resulting in more efficient air compression into the engine. End result: a noticeable kick behind the accelerator.

To pick up another potential 20 H.P. on the supercharger, adjust the pulley ratio by installing a smaller pulley to increase the RPM of the supercharger. Be sure to modify your exhaust system to compensate for the increase in back pressure and engine heat. Supersprint is known for being the leading supplier of street legal aftermarket exhaust systems that will give the deep throaty sound that the street rod enthusiasts love, while staying within noise level limits in sound emissions.

Installation of a high performance camshaft will increase horsepower and torque throughout the RPM range without requiring the disassembling of the motor.

To gain an additional 20 to 30 H.P. in the range that you drive the most often, consider cylinder head replacement to high performance stage 1 or 2 cylinder heads. The increase in airflow will max out at 20% and interport relations between intake and exhaust will be optimized for maximum power and improved combustion. If considering to implement this upgrade, larger injectors may also be required to compensate for additional power gains.

To improve on the safety as well as performance of your Mini Cooper during cornering, the installation of a precision steering amplifier is a must. A PSA will improve the suspension by reducing the characteristic roll center movement of the Mini Coopers, resulting in better handling and feedback to the driver.

To further improve on cornering, especially over uneven road surfaces, the installation of a carbon fiber strut brace will ties the two front upper strut towers together, resulting in an increase in front chassis rigidity and quicker steering response. In addition to the handling and safety performance enhancements, a carbon fiber strut brace is also an impressive looking accessory – which never hurts either!

With the big three already deep in the doo doo, is the Chevy Volt the answer to General Motors problems or will it prove to be the final nail in the manufacturers coffin.

Much has been made of the Chevy Volt, a plug-in electric hybrid. GM sees this idea as the saviour of its company. The only problem may be that the technology is already out of date by the time it is launched. Battery power may indeed prove to be a viable alternative to the internal combustion engine in the short term, but with limited mileage on a full charge and hours needed to recharge, the hydrogen fuel cell looks, on the face of it, a much better long term solution.

Enter the Honda FCX Clarity. Powered by a hydrogen fuel cell, the Clarity has been hailed as the most important car launched this century. Creating electricity by combining hydrogen that is stored in a fuel tank on board the vehicle, with oxygen from the air, the only bi products produced are heat and water. Giving us the first truly eco friendly car, that is, if you ignore how the hydrogen is produced (currently from electricity generated from fossil fuels).

With a top speed of one hundred miles per hour and a claimed range of 280 miles, the Honda Clarity does not need to be recharged and does not need a conventionalinternal combustion engine to top up its charge, it is simply filled with gaseous hydrogen at suitable filling stations. These stations may be limited at the moment, but as demand grows for these vehicles more stations will no doubt follow.

Currently available on a six hundred dollar a month three year lease, the Clarity will no doubt already have a host of celebrities lining up to confirm their green credentials and as it is only available in southern California (probably the most environmentally aware location in the States) the allocation has already been filled. This area has been chosen for the trials purely and simply because it has at least got a few of the hydrogen filling stations needed to refill the Clarity.

So, with General Motors announcing that it will delay the completion of the factory that will produce the engines for the Volt, even though it has been held up as the symbol of their future. It is looking more and more as if the hydrogen car may overtake the electric / hybrid plug in before it even makes it into the showrooms. GM hope to launch the Volt in 2010, but Honda will have no doubt ironed out any glitches with the Clarity by then, giving them a clear advantage over others, just as Toyota did with the Prius.

With technology moving towards cars that produce zero emissions General Motors may be pinning their hopes on a car that has a very limited shelf life. Historically, it has been very late in realising that its customers needs have changed. In its haste to catch up, has it once again misjudged the direction in which the market is moving? If it has, then theChevy Volt could very well prove to be the final nail in the coffin for General Motors.