NM Engineering Visit & NM R56 Test Drive

I visited NM Engineering yesterday in Camarillo.  They are the new MINI tuning arm of Neuspeed - a 33 yr old VW/Audi tuner.  I've known of Neuspeed for many yrs, in fact I purchased a front strut bar for my '91 GTI 18 yrs ago!  They had a great reputation then and have continued to develop well sorted solutions for various makes.  

I met with Joseph and Jerry and toured their facility.  It was quite impressive.  Neuspeed bring so many years of experience in tuning sport compacts to the MINI market.  This level of expertise and engineering is something that will be a great boon for folks wanting to tweak their MINIs. Obviously I am a bit biased as we are a NM Dealer, but I was impressed with their approach to engineering proper solutions.   Their parts fit the car very well, unlike several competitive products that I've seen that fit poorly.

As they say, the 'proof is in the pudding' - so I had a go behind the wheel of their R56.  I drove our bone stock R56 to NM and had it for comparison.  The NM car was equipped with the stock 17" wheels/tires along with the NM Alpha spings and rear sawy bar. It had their intake and engine torque arm insert and exhaust system.  The car was a blast.  It handled better, had excellent acceleration and sounded great.  Their MINI remained very comfortable and easy to drive.  The ride was still great with even quicker responsiveness.  The exhaust had NO drone.  I tested it in 6th gear cruising along the 101 and it was nice and quiet.  It had a sporty sound that I would refer to as a mature sound - I'm so sick of the boomy exhausts that are out there and get more excited by the systems that still allow you to have a conversation with passengers.

Needless to say, I can't wait to install all of these parts on our MINI.  First I want to get past the break-in period and dyno our car.  Then the mods can begin.....

We plan to have a tech session at our shop with NM Engineering this Spring.  Stay tuned.

Solstice Coupe Rendering

Chris sketched a sweet version of the Solstice Coupe.  The front fascia and wheels are particularily aggressive.  We thought you'd love it - we sure do!  My GM buddies still say the Coupe is on track so we are anticipating ours - GXP flavor this time!  

Our New MINI

We have just bought a MINI Cooper 'S'.  This is the second generation of the 'new' MINI - aka R56.  We've secured a stripped model that will start getting our tuning shortly.  We're now putting miles on her and getting used to the driving dynamics.  I owned a Cooper about 4 yrs ago and loved it.  It feels great to be back in the saddle of one now.  This is a turbo charged version - I had a NA model before.  The R56 is much quicker.  

Performance through lightweight will be a focus of ours with the MINI.  Our upgrade path will include handling tweaks, power and a few lifestyle items. Track safety products will also be found in our product mix.  

We are going to source products from some of our existing suppliers and a couple of new ones as well.  We're pretty close friends with Schroth's US distributor, HMS.  Joe, the owner of HMS, is a MINI owner and has his car fully set up for track work.  We will also have products from several other companies including NM Engineering.  NM Engineering is a new entrant into the MINI space but has been one of the oldest tuners in the VW/Audi arena for 30+ years.  They have developed some great new items for the new gen MINI.  

We're still on the wait list of the Solstice Coupe - hopefully it'll show up late 1Q09!

Gratuitous Shop Pic

We're selling the Sky so I had to take one more shot of it in our shop with its distant cousin.  Though we are excited about the impending Solstice Coupe, our Sky will be missed! 

Fujita Intercooler Pipes work with GM CAI

Last week we got a phone call from a kappa owner and he was inquiring about the Fujita intercooler pipes. He was in town visiting some friends and had to head back up north the next day. He wanted to get these on as soon as possible. However it turned out that he had a GM CAI in his car. We had never test fitted our pipes with this CAI. I offered to take a look at it and if it fit help him with the install. It turned out great. There wasn’t any fitment issues with this configuration. We can now say that the Fujita Intercooler pipes for GXP and Redline do work with a GM and Fujita CAI.

Yesterday Chris had the opportunity to attend the LA Auto Show. Many cool cars were present but the one that we have been waiting patiently for is the Solstice coupe. We saw one at SEMA and now at the LA Auto Show. The car looks great in silver which really highlights the surface forms. This time we were able to see it with the hardtop in place. There appeared to be no interior changes. Overall a very clean and muscular car. Especially from the rear. We can't wait to start working on one.

New Solstice Coupe at SEMA!

While attending the SEMA show this year we have finally seen the Solstice Coupe in person. This dynamic vehicle is sure to stir many when it hits the streets starting early spring '09.

The Coupe has quite a presence and looked great in the white color on display. The interior is little changed from the roadster with the exception of more interior space located behind the occupants. The removable top will be a nice feature for those that still wish to enjoy a more breeze filled drive.

We are looking forward to getting a Coupe in our hands for future product support as it is certain this car will be a hit!