Thats funny.... you used "MX3 1.6" and "high performance" in the same paragraph...
Jokes aside, the 1.8 BP or BPT are you best bets by far. Do a search on either term, you will get hours and hours of fun reading. There are plenty of good right-ups, lots of threads, plenty to get you going. Lots of people here have done BP swaps, any questions you have you will have no problem getting answers.
Also, hoping you are running a 5-speed? If not, start there. The automatic, if thats what you have, wont take much abuse before calling it quits. The 5-speed can handle a decent amount of abuse, but the automatic, noooo.
"The answer is: More power. I dont care what the question is."
-Tim Allen