Tweedbean 151 Report post Posted October 29, 2016 Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr The Story Hi all, I will start this off with a little intro before moving on to my new GT86. Over the past couple of months I have been considering a number of more exotic cars however I decided I didn’t want to go down the route of getting an older car just so I can have a 911, GTR etc. I would rather waiting until I can afford an nearly new version of those cars. Therefore I decided I had unfinished with the GT86 and so last week I decided to purchase a GT86/BRZ. Yesterday I travelled all the way to Edinburgh to collect this beauty. The seller was a joy to deal with and the car was as clean as he had described before I placed a deposit and booked my one way flight. Its just a shame that it took nearly 9 hours to drive home due to crazy traffic on the M6 which double the journey time. I had to resort to plenty of sugar and double expressos in the end to keep me going. My other cars This will be my third car as I currently own two others which you may be aware of, a 2006 R53 supercharged mini R53 which I am currently building which is more track focused with its cage, Yellowspeed BBK and numerous suspension mods such as KW clubsports, 2 pairs of hard race control arms, Hardrace roll centre adjusters, to name just a few: http://www.minitorque.com/forum/f273/tweedbeans-r53-second-bite-cherry-116162/ That went from this in March, totally stock: Clean by James Baker, on Flickr To its current state today, as you can see a work in progress with a full body respray to boot: Untitled by James Baker, on FlickrThe rebuild by James Baker, on Flickr And I also own a 2014 Mini Cooper S 2.0 Turbo, currently running 300bhp and 460nm torque:http://www.minitorque.com/forum/f890/tweedbeans-f56-project-97834/MITP 2016 by James Baker, on Flickr I also have an Evoque family wagon, mostly driven by my other half. My previous GT86: This isn’t the first time I have owned a GT86, about a year ago I sold it on to Gudzy on here and since then I have wanted to get another when the time was right. My previous one: http://www.gt86.org.uk/forums/topic/2511-tweedbeans-gt86/ Front by James Baker, on Flickr Rear by James Baker, on Flickr My new ginger GT86: So onto my new one, its very low mileage and it great condition. Current spec above. Plans Immediate plans for this car include removing those strips, changing those rear lights and deciding on a new colour for the wheels as the matt black is nice but you lose the shape of a great looking wheel in that colour. Also after that drive home, an arm rest is a must so I will get one of those ordered ASAP, After that I want to adjust the look of the car with the HT Autos lip kit potentially and get this sitting on coilovers. After that I am planning for FI and forging. Hopefully you kind folks will allow me a couple of test drives in different FI applications to see which one works best for my needs. Lots more plans but lets get on to where it is now: Latests pictures:GT86 by James Baker, on Flickr GT86 by James Baker, on Flickr GT86 by James Baker, on Flickr Window spoiler and shark fin by James Baker, on Flickr Carbon badges by James Baker, on Flickr Work Emotion CR Ultimate 8.5 Front wheel by James Baker, on Flickr Work Emotion CR Ultimate 9.5 Rear wheel by James Baker, on Flickr JPM Coachworks Alcantara Dash by James Baker, on Flickr Perrin Shifter knob by James Baker, on Flickr 2 shiftspark and Keethos reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shiftspark 41 Report post Posted October 29, 2016 Looks a great buy. The Mini is coming on well I decided to stick with my 86 in the end as I think I need to master rwd (hopefully lol) Are you planning on big power ? Cosworth maybe @Ade ? Or a big turbo, I guess having both types on the Mini ? Would give you an inclination which you prefer. 1 Tweedbean reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tweedbean 151 Report post Posted October 29, 2016 @shiftspark yes planning on big power, in two stages, around 300bhp at first to get used to that power in RWD then step it up after that and see how far I get. Hence why I want to forge the engine. In terms of the supercharger/turbo debate, like you say I own both currently and both offer something different. Initial plan was avo turbo or HKS supercharger. However interested to look at other options now it looks like Cosworth are stepping up their power levels and also the TD turbo kit. So not 100% sure which route yet, I do like low down power as that's where I spend most of time rather than rev'ing the nuts off the car to get some power. 2 Keethos and shiftspark reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Keethos 842 Report post Posted October 29, 2016 Welcome back dude, be good to catch up some time! Looking foward to your build too. 1 Tweedbean reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lauren 2259 Report post Posted October 30, 2016 Welcome back. Looking good. How are you finding the Litchfield 'handling kit'? I found it to be terrible (what were they thinking?) when I went out in a friends with it on. He ended up swopping it out for coilovers. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Deacon 1357 Report post Posted October 30, 2016 Welcome back! 👍 1 Tweedbean reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ade 517 Report post Posted October 31, 2016 Welcome back! Lots of options for forced induction. No doubt you've read the Cosworth thread on the other side. Lots of info on their analysis of the stock engine over there. I believe your mini R53 is an older generation Eaton roots charger so I suspect that will feel similar to the current TVS charger kits. Basically like a bigger engine. Welcome to have a test drive in mine. I'm at Bedford Auto on the 2nd December. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tweedbean 151 Report post Posted October 31, 2016 On 30/10/2016 at 8:12 AM, Lauren said: Welcome back. Looking good. How are you finding the Litchfield 'handling kit'? I found it to be terrible (what were they thinking?) when I went out in a friends with it on. He ended up swopping it out for coilovers. Unfortunately only driven back from Edinburgh o far and most of that was at 5mph on the M6 so I havent really had chance to test it. It seemed pretty stiff, however I will reserve judgement until I drive it properly as I am still using my F56 mini right now as my daily. However the plan is to switch to coilovers anyway, rather than the Litchfield springs. 1 hour ago, Ade said: Welcome back! Lots of options for forced induction. No doubt you've read the Cosworth thread on the other side. Lots of info on their analysis of the stock engine over there. I believe your mini R53 is an older generation Eaton roots charger so I suspect that will feel similar to the current TVS charger kits. Basically like a bigger engine. Welcome to have a test drive in mine. I'm at Bedford Auto on the 2nd December. Thanks for the offer. The Current Cosworth offering isn't enough power for my plans yet their cooling solution seems to be ready for a lot more power. With the latest updates coming from Cosworth this week, their current solution can be upgraded with a smaller puller offering 10% more power again however this still is not enough. To solve this they are working on a new nose cone for the charger, if this happens I could definitely be interested. Found them really open when talking to them and their testing is second to none. Lots of options to consider. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ade 517 Report post Posted October 31, 2016 Yes Matt is as open as management allow him to be. He's offered me the drawing for the smaller pulley if I want to get one made up, but I like my stock rods! Matt is currently running the SC at 19k rpms (0.9Bar boost) for around 350hp currently but it require a larger crank pully to make it work with the 10% smaller pulley and some welding. So the best option is a new nose with higher gearing to spin it faster. 1 Tweedbean reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tweedbean 151 Report post Posted November 4, 2016 Currently busy planning the next steps for this car, but in the mean time here are some more pictures of the engine bay and mods as it's had a good cleaner in there: Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr A bit of Carbon on the interior: Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr Also noticed this rear spoiler which wasn't listed in the ad for the car. Any idea which one it is? Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr 1 Keethos reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Keethos 842 Report post Posted November 7, 2016 No idea on the windscreen spoiler, Tarmac were selling a black one at some point not long ago. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tweedbean 151 Report post Posted November 21, 2016 Well I've decided exactly what my plan is with this car which means the F56 Mini is going. I decided I just don't need 3 cars so the F56 was the one to go. The funds from the F56 sale will give me a very healthy pot of funds to get straight into this car. Until that is sold, the 86 has ended up keeping the garage company. Before it was tucked away in the garage I gave it a good clean: Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr I decided to pull off the front number plate holder as I remember there being some sort of holes under there that I will get filled when the front bumper gets resprayed to fix a little bit of damage from a pheasant strike. Before:Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr After, looks so much better without a plate: Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr I think im going to paint that front lip under the centre grill like I did on my old 86, gives that front end a more aggressive look, here is a quick photoshop: Untitled by James Baker, on Flickr I also want to pull out some of those grey interior plastic trims and get them painted up satin or gloss black. All small things for now until the F56 sells. 2 Tom B and Keethos reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tweedbean 151 Report post Posted December 5, 2016 Progress is a little slower than anticipated as my F56 Mini is still looking for a new home before I get started on this. One thing I couldn't stand looking at was the stripes on the side of the 86. So out came the heat gun and glue remover: Stripes removed by James Baker, on Flickr Before, during and after: Stripes removed by James Baker, on Flickr It looks so much cleaner without the stripes. Trying to decide what colour to go with the wheels as they will be powder coated in the new year as not keen on the matt black finish. 1 Ade reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
