In the second of our “Spotlight” series we'll be featuring Dave Bunting. Dave took delivery of his MCS very early on in production and has put an extraordinary amount of miles on it since. He's now at well over 40,000 miles with no signs of slowing down.

Dave has been a prominent fixture at North American Motoring.com as both a frequent contributor and a moderator. He also helped found one of the first new MINI clubs, MINI5280 – a Denver area club.

Dave recently took some time out of his busy schedule to tell us more about his MINI and how he's modified it:

'I took delivery of my “pre-spec” MINI COOPER S in June 2002. Being an early MINI owner meant doing a bit of pathfinding, especially when it came time for mods. Sometimes we forget how far the modification offerings
have come in the past two years.'

'In August of 2002, after a couple months of waiting, I finally got the
very first production Rogue / MINI Madness intake. I installed it the day
before heading out on a 3600 mile road trip to the Canadian Rockies. Once
I returned, both MINI Madness and Rogue were interested in what I thought
of the intake's fit and finish. I now have over 30,000 miles on the
intake without any issues.

Living in Denver, I was lucky enough to get to know Randy Webb. At the
time I met him, MINI Motorsport (now Webb Motorsport) hadn't opened for
business yet. Like many enthusiasts, Randy's technical knowledge has
guided my modifications. Together, we did some of the first how-tos for
exhausts, sway-bars, springs, and later on supercharger pulleys (mostly me
taking pictures and Randy turning the wrenches). In a fair number of
cases, we were working with the first production parts made available. It
was a great experience for a MINI enthusiast.

Overall I'd say my MINI has evolved into something that could be
categorized as OEM Plus, subtle, or maybe even a sleeper.

The exterior is fairly subdued with the MINI Aero Kit Spoiler, 35% tint,
and a change in ride height from H&R springs. The springs drop the car
about an inch, but it still looks natural. After seeing my MINI every day
with the springs, MINIs with the stock ride height take on a bit of a 4×4
stance in comparison.

The performance mods on my MINI include the previously mentioned Rogue
Intake, the Borla street exhaust, and a 15% pulley. At one point I had
installed the Magnaflow exhaust, and liked it quite a bit around town.
The issue for me with the Magnaflow was the amount of cabin noise during
road trips. Thus, the Magnaflow came off, and the Borla (my original
aftermarket exhaust) went back on. So far I have about 20,000 miles with
the intake/exhaust/pulley combination and have had no problems related to
any of those parts.

My intent with suspension modifications was to drop the car about an inch,
make it easier to rotate during autocross, and not reduce the ride quality
to the point it wasn't usable as a daily driver. The parts I selected for
this include: H&R lowering springs, the MINI Madness Rear Swaybar, and
changing the run-flats out for regular tires. Of those items, the
modification that I have enjoyed the most has been the change out to
regular tires. It improved the ride comfort and the acceleration of the
car. In addition, the tires are cheaper and there is a wider range of
tread options (I have used the Falken Azenis, Yokohama AVS ES100s, and the
BF Goodrich T/A V)'.