Hey guys.. I owned and restored a beautiful Liquid Yellow R53 over the course of 2016...until it was hit from behind and totaled, while stopped, in November. I'm young and have never bought a car on my own before, and I really loved my last MINI. When all the R53's for sale in AZ ended up being in really bad condition, and I didn't have transporation for two months, I got antsy and went against everyone's advice and went to California by Greyhound to buy a promising-sounding MINI. I didn't have the intuition to avoid cars that had this much (supposed) work done:



Anyway, I'll save you guys the sob story. Basically, it's mixing coolant into the oil at an alarming rate. You can read more about the headache this car has been here.

I've now replaced two head gaskets trying to track down the coolant mixing, and a plethora of other parts. The last head gasket I replaced, I did everything by the book, supervised by a mechanic. Thicker head gasket, new everything, proper torque sequence and torque values, double and triple checked everything. The weird thing though, now that I've had the head milled and I replaced the head gasket, the oil looks worse in 3 minutes of running than it did after the 300 miles back from California.

I'm left to believe that the block is cracked. What should I do, and what's the best way to get my money back? I've dumped $5k (including purchase) into this car as a college student, currently at my limits.

a. Part the car, cut my losses, and start over next summer
b. Save up for a new motor, build it separately in my apartment over the summer.

If option B, where is a good place to get good used engine parts? Thanks in advice guys.

 

Did you check the compression in each cylinder after you put the head back on? If so..what was it?

When you had the head off, did you look down into the bores of each cylinder to see if you could see any cracks? Did one cylinder and/or piston look to be a different color or have any weird marks on it compared to the others? When you had the head off, did you take it to a machine shop and have it checked out for cracks? The head could have a crack....

Those are some things I would have done before I would start to think about going through the hassle of parting an entire car out. That's going to take you months and months (if not longer)...and talk about a hassle.

You could always put an add on Craiglist list and put in the add that it has some kind of motor issue...there are people out there looking for cars to repair, and resell. List it for what you have it in, and then go down from there.

 

I looked down each spark plug tube hole with one of those bendy cameras before taking the head off. That was how I judged to buy a new head gasket kit originally.

The first time I took the head off to replace the head gasket, I inspected and cleaned the top of the pistons off.

Cylinder walls still had uniform machine marks on them.
There was a small lip of carbon built up at the very top of the cylinder wall.
Piston #2 apparently was showing signs of "piston wash," according to my friend's dad who is supervising/mentoring me in this process. The top of piston #2 was clean of carbon in a few spots around the edges.
The head gasket showed signs of leaking near cyl #2 as well, and had lots of small scratches in the graphite coating.

My friend's dad checked the compression. If I remember correctly, it was 10 [insert unit of measurement] across the board.

 

After you run it for a while, how to all of the plugs look? It one really fouled out? That at least might tell you what cylinder is the problem....if any of them. 10psi compression....that doesn't sound right. Should be around 130-140 if I remember right. If your friends dad is a mechanic...what's he saying he things the problem is?

If it was me, I would still take the head back off and take it to a machine shop and have them check it for leaks......it could have a microscopic crack in one of the chambers that is letting coolant into the cylinder, or down into the block somewhere.

Sorry to say.....but it sounds like you've got a mess to deal with. It doesn't make things easier when you don't have a lot of money to throw at it. Hope you figure it out soon.

 

Was the head checked for cracks?
You said it was milled but that doesn't mean they checked for cracks.

I doubt it's the problem but you could try a new oil cooler.

https://www.waymotorworks.com/oil-co...s-r52-r53.html

 

Great point on the oil cooler!!! I've heard that a bad oring on that can let coolant into your oil. Definitely something to check out.

 

A compression test isn't going to help you at this point. You need to do a leak down test.

 

Sorry this has happened to you....You're in a tough spot.

IF the condition of the interior AND exterior is VERY good to Excellent and NO rust... with ALL the $$$$ you have spent on it, I would fix the engine.

This way you KNOW what you have into it. Some might say to get a used engine. For ME this is a no. Used engine........you do not know what could be wrong. Even with a warranty, you would have to take the engine out....ship it back.....doubt they would pay for repairs.
Your Mini might be SO close to being fixed......you have come this far......see it to completion..IMHO....

Good Luck and be patient......I know its not easy.......

 

Thanks for all the advice guys, I really appreciate it. I got myself into quite the pickle.

As far as the condition--

Interior: 10/10
Exterior: 5/10. Paint nearly perfect, clearly garaged, body damaged in multiple areas, in one area there is a tear in the metal. Friend's dad does body work, though.

School is back in full swing now, so I'll have to wait until the summer to do the work, but here's what it needs besides a motor, lol:

• Transmission bearings (Here's a video he posted of the noise it makes when the clutch pedal is released, even in neutral, varies in intensity by gear (worst in 4th and 6th). Also audible when synchros are working, i.e. at a stop, trying to put it in 1st.
• Rotors and Pads
• Tires
• Rear bumper
• Window regulators (have 1/2)
• Strut mounts (have both)
• Head light leveling sensor
• Intake (even one size bigger screws aren't holding it any more, might as well, if i have to do all of this)

I really should have pressure tested the head when I had it off, darn. Well, another one of the many lessons I am learning over this process. I guess I'll remove the head the first chance I get and have that done. If it's not the head, I guess I'll just buy a new block and build the engine over the first month of summer in my apartment. Any ideas where I can get a good, cheap, used block?

 

Everyone told you in the last thread to get a new head instead of changing the head gasket a second time on the same head.

I'd start from there. Generally when you get coolant mixing with oil, if its not the head gasket it's the head that's cracked.

 

Or at least pull the head off and have it checked over for cracks by a good engine/machine shop. It just have a cracked head....which can be repaired.

 

I don't trust cracked heads, even if repaired. I'd say get another not cracked head.

 

If done right by a shop that knows what they are doing, and is familiar with repairing aluminum heads......I would have no issues trusting the repair. Guys do it on 1000hp LS motors all the time with no issues. But you can't just take it to Bubba down the street, have him get his tig welder out.....crack open a PBR and start welding....

 

Lol

Yep get it done right and you'll be ok

 

Exactly, I've seen entire holes repaired.
Secret is exactly what IQ said, find someone who knows what they're doing and don't try and get it done with a low ball price, the extra you spend on a quality job, normally far outweighs what you'll spend to redo a poor job.

 

I'm going to remove the head next weekend and have it magnafluxed, like I should've in the first place.

Do you guys know of any good resources for used engine parts, besides my friendly local auto wreckers?

 

bump?