Hello, my name is Jon,

Welcome to “Operation MINI Revival” I have never started or kept a build thread so I figured what the hell. I plan to document the process and cost. So here goes...

The back story:
My wife and I bought this car used a while back with 70ish thousand miles. It was in great shape and before we pulled the trigger I did as much research as I could about the car. The car was a very recent trade in at the time and hadn’t been thoroughly checked by the dealer. Once checked they came up with a list of things that needed to get fixed, all of which I had read about. Before buying they fixed the power steering fan, a motor mount, did a full brake job, and a couple other minor things. Once done we made our deal and drove her home.



Worry free miles:
So far this car has been great! Luckily I feel like we have not had to deal with 1/10th the issues many speak of on here. I’ve done all the routine maintenance, and have had little to no issues with it. We never hesitate to take the car on a road trip anywhere. Most notable was the move and drive from NH to TX without the slightest hiccup. In a couple years of ownership the only part that has failed we the radiator fan. Not too shabby.



Time effects all:
So you may ask whats there to “revive” ? Well now the car has 115K and things just aren’t the same. It just doesn’t have the kick that it use to. I’m sure that the supercharger gears must be worn, I’ve yet to do a compression test as I'm worried about the results. The clutch amazingly still grabs fine but the pedal feel has changed. The car just feels tired, which is sad because the rest of the car is still in very good shape.

The Plan:
Now this wont be for everyone. This is my plan and may not make sense for your personal situation. My wife still loves the car, we do still have a small loan on the vehicle, trading it in is not an option for us as we do not want to assume a larger loan. We are in the process of shopping for a house so paying this car off and not having a car loan but a vehicle that will be dependable for years to come would be ideal. So...while the current engine is still running “ok” I will be collecting parts and preparing a replacement. Once completed, I will be swapping engines and refreshing as many components as I can and as budget allows.

The Goal:
Replacement engine, replacement supercharger, a focus on driveability, performance goodies , a new lease on life.

 

Parts List & Gathering:

1) I will be using a low mileage (20-30k) engine as the base for my plan - $2-3K. I'm not a fan of a rebuilt or re-man engine. Using a lower mileage OEM allows me to continue using the car while gathering parts for the swap and not needing a “break in” period once its all done. Depending on the miles of the replacement engine will determine what seals and other components will get replaced at that time.

2) I will be replacing the supercharger - $1k. Bought one here - https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...r-5th-gen.html I will document this process on another post. While off the car I will be adopting a system to hopefully make it easier to change the supercharger oil on the car. (saw a thread on this long time ago)

3) I want to port and polish the head, and add a mild cam - $???. This is one of the areas Id like to have a little fun and add some HP cause swapping stock for stock is boring.

4) Clutch - $??? I'm open to opinions here, so much controversy on what the better route to go here is. Id like a lighter flywheel and a more performance minded clutch but all have their pluses and minuses.

5) New parts in general - $???. Wheel bearings, suspension bushings, coolant tank, exhaust, harmonic balancer, pulley, intake, intercooler, this list will blow up I'm sure.

Parts purchased so far:
Supercharger - link above
Bentley Manual - cant believe I hadn't bought this earlier
Canton Coolant tank - http://www.racerpartswholesale.com/p...FeXm7AodpF4Aig
CS Oil dip stick - http://www.outmotoring.com/cravenspe...-dipstick.html (current one is broken, so just scooped this up now)

 

Just curious why you think you need a new block? Rather than port and polish your stock head why not get a thumper head? Lots of people have had great experience with his heads.

Supercharger replacement makes a lot of sense and I am with you there...I have a rebuilt one sitting on a shelf for the day that it's required.

Clutch at 115k you are definitely doing well with not riding it. Many people on here have gone further than that...I'm at 98k so I would be happy to see another 17k out of mine.

A stock engine with only 20-30k miles might be challenging to find....but best of luck in the hunt.

 

Just looking for newer internals. New head, or new SC on top an engine with 115k just doesn't sound too appealing. The current engine has some signs of burning oil as well. I really don't want to get into rebuilding the current engine because of down time. My plan to build up a spare engine and swapping when complete eliminates some of that down time. Also, it gives me the opportunity to address all the common issues these cars face ahead of time before the engine gets installed.

The clutch has been very surprising. It grabs perfect in any gear, I suspect what's giving up and wearing out is the master or slave cylinder, or both.

As far as low mileage engines, they are out there. Probably the lowest mileage engine advertised in the country just recently sold from a salvage yard in MA, it had a documented 14k miles! I've found several in the range I'm looking for. Pulling the trigger on one is the tough part.

 

new engine seems a little extreme imo. have you tried some other basics first? injector cleaner, maybe a pulley (might as well push the last bit out of the thing), plugs, ect? maybe she just needs a tune up. you could also reset the ecu, clear out old adaptations; this reportedly helps many people get that zippy-ness back to the car.

other guys have gone over 200k on their original engine with mods. seems like you should have a lot left!

 

I agree that replacing the engine is an extreme and likely unnecessary measure. Do a compression test first. And, you say it 'burns' oil; check first to see whether its leaking oil through crank position sensor, valve cover, or oil pan gaskets, all of which are far more likely sources of oil consumption than a block that has been well-cared for with regular oil and filter changes.

 

I do agree with both of you that this plan is fairly extreme. But replacing little parts here and there just to prolong the inevitable doesn't sound too appealing to me. Same with placing a new/rebuilt supercharger on top an engine with miles on it. To your point astroBlackMetallic_Mini plugs, wires, ecu resets, general tune ups have been completed before intervals required.

 

you should put a ridiculously small pulley on just for the hell of it then, burn through the engine since your going to replace it anyway! see what kind of power you can get for a while

 

Seems a bit extreme to me. The super charger is likely fine. I pulled mine at 190,000 and its gears were fine, and still was full of oil. Replacing the engine - ill take you're old one.

I plan on "reviving" mine someday too. But not before it needs it........

Nik

 

A bit excessive, but go for it, a compression test will tell you everything. also being up here in NH the injectors could be a bit rusted also clean out the IC of oil blow by, mine only has 39k miles and i had a decent amount of oil in there, quite a bit pooled in the couplers as well. TX heat will also pull some timing making it feel slower since intake temps will be higher. the pistons and crank shouldnt be "tired"

but do a dyno pull before and after, prove us wrong!

 

Hey Whitey (by the way that's an edgy screen name for us Bostonians) have you read this thread?

Cheers,

Charlie

 

I thought the screen name was fitting for the car, and why not as a native of New England myself. I will look at your thread, from the first couple of post it looks like you were/are where my heads at. Fixing it on my schedule vs something failing and not being prepared. I will continue reading it tonight.

You will recognize the first pic in the OP of the MINI of Peabody showroom

 

LOL - a fellow sinner and a damned Yankee. Careful down there in the Republic of TX.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

I think its funny that my plan "seems extreme" because Im jumping on this BEFORE any major meltdown, yet I know others will be interested in some of the take off parts so they can do the same down the line.

Thank you sir, I love new england but im digging it here in TX, just a lot more going on.


Anyway... So a couple parts trickled in today, and my search continues for others. I have a list I'm working on and as mentioned I will pull the trigger as budget allows. First things first, I needed a service manual. Just got tired of having to search for answers and reading through misinformation before getting the right story so this was first up on the list.


With it came a Craven Speed oil dipstick. How does that help with the rebuild you ask? It doesn't. But it does fix this little issue with the stock one. And yes thats duct tape, Im not usually that ghetto with fixing things, but you do what you have to to get by

What a great little product, and I highly suggest it. Works great, no fiddling around getting the stock one lined up, and most importantly, the oil level marks are WAY easier to read.


Next up will be the supercharger which is on its way. And hopefully over the weekend Ill get around to a compression and leak down test. Find out some real numbers of whats going in the motor after 100k

Have a good one!
Jon

 

I like your plan. You can always take your current motor and clean it up, rebuild it, and have it ready if it's ever needed...on your timeline.

 

Charlie, I got to read through your thread. You were exactly where I am thought wise. Although I dont have a ton of miles I feel like refreshing the car within the next 5k-6k miles will:

1) Bring back the performance I've slowly started to miss over time and then some.
2) Make for a very reliable car, as I will be in control of maintenance from the start (bought the car with 70k, who knows how it was taken care of during that time)
3) Even if I go crazy and spend $5-$7k that's a drop in the bucket to $26,800 of a new one, and obviously the financing that goes with it
http://www.miniusa.com/content/miniu...ld/build.html# (comparably built, color, interior, etc)

(As I mentioned in OP, wife and I will be buying a house and want a paid off car)

Thanks for the link to your thread!
Jon

 

Today's installment:

I picked up a Canton Coolant tank a couple weeks ago and figured Id post it up. There are a bunch of different choices for an aluminum tanks and prices vary. I went with the Canton for no other reason other then I got it at good price and just like the way it looks. Very scientific I know.


The harder choice really is what cap to run. Many on here have had to get fairly high pressure caps so that they don't leak. Canton suggest a Stant cap, Moroso makes a good selection of different caps at a slightly lower price. Id really like to get one from Mishimoto but they don't make a cap with a high enough rating (that I've found anyway)


What wont be difficult is how I'm buying one. I got this gift certificate at a local speed shop for grabbing 2nd place at an autocross event (with my 06 mustang). When I got it I really didn't think it would be very useful as its only good for $25, but that means im picking up what ever cap I choose for not. I dig it!


Anyway, hope everyone has a safe and happy 4th of July weekend!

 

I think your plan is extreme and likely very wasteful. At least do a compression and leakdown first to see if there is any evidence for a new block. Also an oil analysis would be useful. There are lots of MINIs with over 300k miles on them and going strong, so 115k is no where near worn out on a well cared for engine. These same cars have original untouched superchargers too.
You can also put it on a dyno to see if it is down on power.
If it were my money, I would do the diagnostics first then make a plan. Spend some money on new struts, bushings and ball joints, a pulley, injectors and a custom tune. Keeps some cash for the inevitable power steering failure, new clutch and other weird items like airbag sensors and evap leaks. I.e. if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
You could end up spending Texa$ on a new motor and SC (both serviceable) only to face repairs on the clutch, tranny, PS pump and assorted stuff shortly thereafter.

 

Then the 115k engine I pull out will still be worth something to someone thus making back some of the money I invest in a new(er) engine. At 300K it wont be.

I will be performing a leakdown test this weekend/up coming week as mentioned before to get some numbers. If I can swing it, a couple pulls on the dyno perhaps as well.

 

Maybe you'll have better luck with your Canton tank. I sent mine back because the fitment is awful. It would not even fit in the bracket. I ended up buying a Forge Tank

 

I can stand behind preventive replacement of weak parts that are prone to catastrophic failure. The Supercharger seems like a good idea, clutch, plastic cooling parts, rubber suspension parts, etc would be on my list if I were to embark on such a project.
That being said, replacing the engine based on seat of the pants feel that it is not as peppy as it used to be and to prevent engine replacement down the line seems excessive. Minimally I would do a dyno test to confirm the output along with a compression and leak down test to put number behind what the gut says. Oil analysis as well (I started doing that at every other oil change on all cars.) The engine is actually one of the most durable components of the R53, so unless yours was totally abused in its first 70k miles, spend the 2-3k for a newer one elsewhere (like down payment on the house.)

 

Definitely do a leak down test! R53 head intake valves have the tendency over time to en-longate due to the compression/flow from the SC. If those are not seating properly thats where your loss of power could be coming from...and check out RMW heads and other parts, little more expensive but if you're trying to surprise the **** out of everyone you'll consider it!

 

Hey whitey_bulger look for user sport pop he has a brand new engine sitting on a crate...might be what you are looking for