No fogs on my R57, for now. May swap in F/R fogs later.
Definitely need to improve the 'candle in a mason jar' that is the halogen units.
Cleaning up the lenses helps, but coming from pretty great LEDs to halogens is like going slightly blind.

 

Well I opened a can of **** , I went to do my maintenance and and replace coolant hoses and aluminum thermostat housing and install the remote oil cooler and new oilcooler seals..
I found my turbo drain bolt was loose because I must havd forget to torque it and it definitely was leaking oil but I'm sure that was the only cause of my leaks.
soooooo after about 10hr i got it all done almost , just had to button up front end ect so I filled it up with coolant and bled ot befor I headed in to bed. When I came out the next morning my coolant was low and I had a puddle under the waterpump. My FRICKEN LUCK !!! I must have broke the coolant tube where it connects inside the waterpump housing. Idk how but I must have pushed it back too hard or the plastic just gave way because I seen it chipping off and the rubber seal showing on the coolant tube once I FINALLY got the waterpump out.. and omfg ,idk how I'm getting the new waterpump back in after how much I fought getting tgat pulley out. I had to completely lower the engine down as far as the transmission mount would allow and then even hammer the pulley out from the topside because there was no ooooo way I was pulling it out. Uuuuugggggghhhhhh
I also got all the tools n stuff to get my intake valves blasted so Its perfect timing it all came because i HAD to remove the manifold to get the water pipe out and to know ille route and put in the new one correctly.
oooo yea. I also flushed my block and head with dishsoap and the hose and I did my radiator too , not much buildup/gunk was present and I didn't see and scaling or corrosion thankfully. The waterpump looked fine too BUUUUT i did wanna risk it leaking from the weaphole and not actually have been the coolantpipe causing the leak. Better safe than sorry , so i hunted down n ordered an all aluminum waterpump with aluminum impellers so it should last much much longer. I also ordered a new pulley because i my one i removed has cracks all throughout it.
so the new waterpump, pulley and tube should be here today and once I get the oil and coolant cooling system done THEN I will be blasting the valves and if all is good , then I'm finishing the last suspension work with the control arms and bushings and balljoints..then , FINALLY THEN . It should have no issues and be ready to just enjoy.
BTW, I've had 0 cel since the last tuning adrian did. The engine definitely is making decent power and running well. Looolol I also armt replacing the tob , it no longer makes any squealing or squeaking noise what so ever. No more janky noise at idle. It kinda sounded like a bad serpentine belt it would squeal so similar. Soooo now im just relaxing waiting on parts to get here then ilke update on my progress.

 

So how is the media removed after the blasting is done....

 

Why do you spend all this money on parts, upgrades, and silicone hoses...and then use those ***** a$$ band clamps that cut in to the hoses?

Just wondering.

 

Usually you have a vacuum attached to the tool that sucks the media up as you're blasting.

 

I used the wire brush that goes on a drill first and then carbon blasted mine. Mine looked a little better then the one below. Its vacuumed out if you use the wand/adapter combo.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ispreloading=1

 

For radiator / cooling hoses you really want to use the OEM spring style clamps, not those band clamps. The OEM clamps will fit with the silicone hoses, they are just a little tight getting them on. The spring clamps are desired because they allow the hoses and fitting to expand and contract without losing tension.

 

I installed a set of Mishimoto hoses on my R55S - could not use the OE spring clamps, they wouldn't fit. Personally, I prefer the spring clamps less than a good external screw thread clamp. I'm not sure how much concern I'd have over expansion in hose diameter over a change in temperature of 125 degrees. In some locations/applications, the spring clamps are easier to work with, while in others the screw style is preferred.

 

I too installed the Mishimoto hose kit, and I reused the OEM spring clamps. They were tight, but they fit.

 

I long ago lost the desire to fight with hose clamps. As we all know, there's plenty of struggle inherent in working on MINIS.

 

yes I know but I didn't over or under tighten the clamps. I unfortunately couldn't use the spring style oe clamps , there's no way I was slidding them over the hoses once the hosevwas pressed onto its inlet , the clamps absolutely could not fit and the next step size were too loose once compressed so i had no choice.. lol i used aliexpress hoses so im sure they have an extra ply if material on them causing them to have thicker walls than oem hoses even though the inside diameter of the hoses are the same.
I had to do the samething on my r53 also and i mever had an issue or leak running wormgear clamps and i very much would rather have the gear style because I oriented every single clamp so that I can easily loosen or tighten them again with an 8mm instead of trying to get the rote angle for the clamps with a plyers or have to buy that special flexi tool with the head attachment made for those compression style clamps..

 

Stupid waterpump and stuff hasn't come yet , so long for 1x day delivery...lol ugh....but the waterpipe came and I got that installed easily. Just had to take off the thermostat housing again but it was 1000x faster because I had wormgears on the hoses and set so they're all easily accessible.
So since i cant finish my colling system I finished making a tool to fit perfectly into the adapter to walnut blast my valves and if the pump isn't out for delivery soon , I'm just gonna go out and get my valves blasted in the meantime.
I rerouted the oilcooler hoses too and didn't end up using the hole I cut in the core support of course. but now i womt have to shorten the feed lines because I REALLY wanted to keep them longer like that because my thinking is that they'll then hold more oil to help cooling abit better and abit more volume then.
theeeeeen , **** I STILL am leaking oil , not as bad but Def still leaking and im almost positive its the oilpan seal. But I ordered a new turno drain hose because this one i have has alot of slop and i want a better fitting hose. I also just replaced that pan gasket month and it was a month old prior to that replacement. It looks like the gasket is folding in on its self where it pinched on the mating surfaces..
idk wtf is wrong with it , 1st time rtv was used on the seal so I thought maybe that caused the leaking so I got a new gasket and put it on clean and apparently that didn't work either. So idk if my pan is warped or something sooooo I said F' it , ordered a new pan and another gasket SOOOO do i NEED to use rtv on the pan gasket ? If so where ? Or do I just thinly coat the whole dang thing , OOOOORRRRRR could I use my goto 'copper gasket spray ' ????

 

yes I have a shop vac and the tool attaches to the shop vacuum hose so it's immediately sucked up after blasting the intake.

 

Got the valves done today and they're crispy clean now , I also seen ny homemade gasket was actually restricting all the ports by a few mm so I corrected that and made a new one also I will put the intake manifold back on tomorrow after I install the new turbo drain tube..
I pre soaked the valves with brake cleaner/marvel mystery oil for about 20min and then scaped them and then i blasted them. Then i cleaned them again with brake cleaner and blew them out one last time and rotated the engine to make sure nothing was left behind. It didn't make that big of a mess because I towled up my engine bay and they caught all the overspray. I also used probably 1/10 of the media I bought but atleast I Have extra for future projects or when I port out sc's and intake stuff for the r53's to sell..the big box at harborfrieght cost as much as 1/4 the amount anywhere else..
hoping the waterpump n stuff will finally get here soon because i wanna get this car back together.
lol this thing sure is sucking up time but atleast I enjoy it..

 

looking good!

 

Got the new pan on today and the new turbo draintube waterpump and pulley are out for delivery FINALLY so soon as they're here I'm gonna go and try to wrestle the waterpump in.
i put on the intake manifold yesterday too and buttoned up a few things..ofcourse i forgot to pkyg in my throttlebody rite as i was torqing the last bolt lololol derder so I had to pop it off , make another new gasket and redo it. Then I decided to clean the pcv system since I can service it with my aluminum valvecover, it wasn't bad by any means but I want the car running tiptop when all is fiiiiiiiiinally done , when ever that'll be..lol
Then I got bored yesterday waiting on parts to get here so I fixed a broken tab on my hood scoop and i seen a little tab on the hood below it , the tab is in the PERFECT spot for a air diverter. It's like factory knew what I wanted to do lolol so I bent it down amd angled it so as the scoop takes in air it doesn't just pass over the engine n intake manifold but NOW it hits the diverter and it diverts alot of the air directly at the turbo..

 

Got my next mod figured out too and new project to start..
I snagged a cyl head and I plan on porting it out , getting aftermarket highlift cams , better springs and black nitrade filled valves.
dude I got the gead from tossed in an oilpump too so itle be nice to have a spare.
I will also have it gone through with a 3x angle valvejob and i haven't decided yet as I need to do more research BUT I'm considering having it decked not just to make fully flay but to take off a little extra and raise compression abit.
so hopefully I can get to this sooner than later and have it done n completed in time to enjoy this sunmer/fall yet.
I absolutely plan on parking the car over winter too so thats another reason i didnt care about running an oil cooler on it..

 

Saweeeeeeeeeet !
I gave the car a good shakedown and testing. It fired RITE up and there were NOOOOO leaks , atleast upon startup. So i took it on a 3hr round trip and did nothing but smile the entire trip. Woooooow , it ACTUALLY seemed to pick up a decent amount of power , idk if it got gains from the walnut cleaning ,my better fitting gaskets I made ( old ones were restricting each port a few mm ) or making sure ALLLLLLL turbo and exhaust bolts have been torqued fully with locktight and lock washers too..but dang , it's Definitely DEFINITELY quicker and not only is it quicker but daaaaaang is it smoooooooth. Befor ,at partial throttle and mid boost it would kinda yoyo just like the r53s would do in 1st gear partial throttle, this r58 did that in ANY gear at partial throttle, so I usually accelerated like a grandma or a boy racer with no in-between. Now it doesn't matter what throttle % I'm inputting into it , it accelerates smooth. It ALSO seemed to have gained throttle response BUT lolol at 1st I didn't like how touchy and responsive it was BUT an hr into my cruise I was loving it. The car is a fricken BLAST to drive.
I also 2x checked over night and there's NOOOO MOOOOORE leaks WHAT AO EVER ! SAWEEEEEEEET ! now I can finally park in driveways again lolol..
BUT that odd noise I hear that corresponds with speed and rpm , im almost POSITIVE its NOT steering or suspension related. I can hear it when i 1st start the engine ever so slightly and my hub bearings are NOT the issue. This is not that type noise.. I FEAR it's coming from the bottom end or MAYBE timing chain ??? I did just have the complete timing done a few months back so I can't forsee it being that bit who knows ? All I know is it's getting worrisome and I neeeeeeeeeed to figure out what it is before something catastrophic happens. Could it possibly be my oilpump or drive gear for it ??? Idk , the noise didn't change one bit woth an oil change or the amount of oil in it doesn't effect the noise either. I also had 0 metal or material in my oil what so ever and I have no other odd engine noises or bad running symptoms..
any clue on what i could check/inspect or something??? I've never heard this type noise befor , you'd THINK it was my tire tread humming because it sounds so similar or the hubbearings but I'm 95% sure it's not either of them.
help plz !

 

Lol as you see I had to cut my grill to fit the cooler , perhaps I didn't plan it as well as I'd thought. Btw ,i did make sure to prime the oil systemand add 3/4qt extra oil too..
but I plan on shaving the backside of the grill to see IF I can get a grill to fit over it , if not , I have NO problem running it as is. I actually wanted to mount it outside the front bumper in front of the lower grill on the drivers side like the Bozuku cars do. Buuuuuut I decided against that living in the area I do because I kinda fear someone doing something stupid like kicking it off or cutting a hose just to be a ****. Unfortunately that's what society has become 😕...
anyways ,I'm gonna look into that hum noise today and just go over anything and everything I can think of and that I can inspect..

 

Didn't even notice the trim for the cooler. Blends in nicely. No way to fit it behind the lower grille?

 

Glad the car is running better! Probably due to the walnut blast.

I'm not sure, but I don't think you want to pinch those oil lines between the condenser and the intercooler.... Seems like a recipe for disaster... I would expect either the lines to rub through the condenser, or the lines to get worn through.

 

they're baaaaaarely pinched actually. Lol i actually put a miiiiinor bend in the condenser so it wasn't continuous pressure on them. But I will 2x check them in a week or so n see if there's any freying ir anything...
any other things you see that might be off ? I feel like I took my time not to overlook anything.
Buuuuut I diiiiiid see a drop of fresh oil ,baaaareky a drop but none the less a drop coming from the rear of the engine onto the front of the rear mount , what could I have missed that'd be leaking back there ???

 

 

 

I still have a fricken oil leak from the rear of the engine yet and I cannot find where the F it's coming from.. I guess it's uv dye time AGAIN.. I swapped back on the alta intercooler too because the cheapo unfortunately couldn't handle the cfm my engine is ingesting and it would run so hot my car would go into limp mode after a wot pull because there was too much of a difference between outside temps and iats. Buuuut that cheapo intercooler definitely definitely allowed more flow and though I could do one pul befor cel cane on ,that pull was Def the most power I felt this car make. Too bad that ic wasn't abit bigger. My cel/limpmode would immediately turn off once I went wot for a few seconds and soon as I'd do that,cel would go off by it's self. But I don't want my car running half assed and imo a cel is ghetto.
THANKGOD I don't gotta drop my subframe again either , my front end clunking IS GOOOOOOONE !!!! the car finally finally once again drives perfect. No clunks ,rattles or anything. My alignment is spot on too without even having to readjust them. Sooo long story short I decided to yank on and better inspect the tierods and soon as I did ,I could replicate the clunk I'd hear any bump I'd hot while driving. Both the inner AND out joints had play and I could feel and hear clunking as I'd move them. Lol the boots looked dang near new as well as the arms but I guess they were far from. Maybe they are newer but replaced woth bogus parts that failed premature?? Idk , but atleast it's driving fricken PERFECT again..
NOW , I'm PRAYING to MrCooper that replacing my oilpump will stop that humming noise.
I'm leaning towards the oil pump.Being bad because around the time it started making noise was around the time.I accidentally drove with my oil cap off.When about 2-3 qt low on oil. Then the ONLY oil available to me at then was fricken racecar oil non synthetic 20/50 weight and i had to put in 3qt to get back home and changed the oil n filter immediately but I think the damage was already done. I drove it 1hr spitting oil out all over and then had to drive an hr and half back with that heavy shitty oil because I'd hit rush hour stop n go traffic the whole way back..
so I'm gonna cross my fingers and twist my ***** and hope to Cooper that the oilpump fixs it. Because if I get this dang humming noise fixed , my OOOOOONLY issue with the car will be a slight oil leak.. I'd take that ! Lol..