What did you do to your mini today?
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: North Denver Colorado
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At least my holes are *real* and *functional*.
IMHO, they *should have been* factory holes.
Weapon of choice: Rotozip with diamond-grit blade.
Take that, desert summers! Stop-and-go traffic in 110+ temps with the A/C on no longer results in crappy performance and a pinging engine due to heat soak jacking up my IATs. Let that heat OUT!!!
C ya,
Dutch
I do like function! :D
How? I borrowed the idea from Helix.
After that, it was acquiring the proper vent louvers, a lot of measuring and re-measuring, and a little roto-zipping. Measure twice, cut once FTW! I measured off the window squirters and the edges of the intercooler scoop, so that I had reliable lines to use for proper placement. As it turns out, the vents line up about perfectly with where bonnet stripes would be placed.
Seeing someone else report having successfully done the mod and posting stats to prove its usefulness is a big encouragement toward doing it, especially considering the ridiculously hot summers here in Phoenix. Heat soak is *greatly* reduced, as even natural convection provides pretty good airflow even when not moving, and when moving, airflow really increases, keeping *everything* under the bonnet cooler and happier. I bet it prevents me from losing *at least* 20 HP to heat soak on really hot days, if not more....
C ya,
Dutch
I made a Vertical Blind Lateral Sun Visor Extension to stop getting "hot face" from the gap back to the door post that isn't protected.
Last edited by BlackIce; 04-23-2013 at 03:40 PM.
Thanks... Those black things are functional. They are purge vents for the NOS system. I wanted something different. I had other choices where to put the purge vent but selected to put it back in the rear. It required a lot more work to route the hoses but it was worth the extra effort for my liking.
At least my holes are *real* and *functional*.
IMHO, they *should have been* factory holes.
Weapon of choice: Rotozip with diamond-grit blade.
Take that, desert summers! Stop-and-go traffic in 110+ temps with the A/C on no longer results in crappy performance and a pinging engine due to heat soak jacking up my IATs. Let that heat OUT!!!
C ya,
Dutch
IMHO, they *should have been* factory holes.
Weapon of choice: Rotozip with diamond-grit blade.
Take that, desert summers! Stop-and-go traffic in 110+ temps with the A/C on no longer results in crappy performance and a pinging engine due to heat soak jacking up my IATs. Let that heat OUT!!!
C ya,
Dutch
To a degree having the bonnet not completely "flow thru" aids in engine/radiator cooling. Providing tighter/sealing bonnet gaps or increasing flow out reducing/increasing positive pressures can actually reduce the performance of the radiator....
I want to do this real bad!
How did you attach the louvers to the hood? Glue? Rivets? Bolts?
...I'm still too scared to cut bigass holes in my hood. So afraid of being off by half a centimeter, or less even, and not being able to do squat about it
How did you attach the louvers to the hood? Glue? Rivets? Bolts?
...I'm still too scared to cut bigass holes in my hood. So afraid of being off by half a centimeter, or less even, and not being able to do squat about it
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Spokane, Wa. it's not near Seattle
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Did you use the goo b gone method or whatever? Where you remove the visors, slather that stuff on, and let it sit for a while? Any issues with that?
Did you take the back roads over Storm King? That would be a blast in a Mini!
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Spokane, Wa. it's not near Seattle
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I searched for "visor sticker" and there was a thread a member posted with an attached PDF on how he did it. It took me a little longer than ten minutes per side.
Keep an eye on your water temps.......
To a degree having the bonnet not completely "flow thru" aids in engine/radiator cooling. Providing tighter/sealing bonnet gaps or increasing flow out reducing/increasing positive pressures can actually reduce the performance of the radiator....
To a degree having the bonnet not completely "flow thru" aids in engine/radiator cooling. Providing tighter/sealing bonnet gaps or increasing flow out reducing/increasing positive pressures can actually reduce the performance of the radiator....
If increasing the airflow through the radiator doesn't increase cooling, why do the manufacturers put a fan on the radiator to do just that in order to ensure adequate cooling even when sitting idle?
C ya,
Dutch
Last edited by joe_bfstplk; 04-24-2013 at 09:14 AM.
"Measure twice, cut once" applies....
It was almost a year ago, but from what I remember, I put down a wide stripe of painter's blue tape, using the outside corner of the window squirter and the bonnet scoop as my alignment for the tape, then I used the forward outside corner of the window squirter as a pivot and traced a 2" (IIRC) radius on the tape with a Sharpie to ensure clearance of its hardware. I used the inside edge of the tape as a guide, and traced a parallel line on the tape to intersect the radius, then used that point as the inside rear corner of the rectangle. I traced the vents themselves, aligning them parallel with the inside edge of the tape to ensure placement was correct, then cut on the Sharpie line. I will not lie and say that the moment applying the Roto-Zip blade to the factory sheetmetal was not endowed with a very high "pucker factor"....
HTH!
C ya,
Dutch
OVERDRIVE
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gave her a wash. then went over some more plastic with Kiwi black scuff stuff. works great not only on the wheel arches, but even on the roof line, side view mirrors, front grill, and even the faded plastic / metal on the windshield wipers! car looks almost new
First hand wash of the new Mini. Looking good! Rather upsetting, however, when the bottle of car wash I bought tipped over and drained almost a gallon onto my passanger seat and ran through on the rear floor. I guess they didnt bother to put a peel off cap under the obviously loose plastic cap. I was not pleased! Did I mention the car looks good?
Back in my VW days, the Kiwi dye was popular. Always ran though. No issue for you? Or do you have dark paint?
Join Date: Feb 2010
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4th Gear
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