just got my 2006 Mini Cooper S 2 days ago found out there is an issue with the pressure plate so going to have to wait and save to do a clutch till i can have any fun with the car its drivable but doesnt shift smooth and hard to drive smoothly. till then i would like to do the normal tune up stuff for the car and have questions i hope you all can help me with the car has 112000 miles and is stock till i do a tune up M7 reinforment plates with strut bar and clutch i wont be adding power but plan to if this affects any tune up parts please let me know

what engine oils work well with the R53 should i use minis oil or move to something else like mobil 1 and are there normal oil filters for the car or do you just change the filter inside a housing i keep seeing pictures that make me think that and what filter is best

what spark plugs work best with the car without more power or air currently would colder plug do anything or hurt things since i do plan on adding power mods and what are they supposed to be gapped at or do the ones you recommend come pre gapped

what coil pack and wires work well with the R53

does someone have a link to a diy for the cabin filter and what filter is good for the stock airbox

should i do coolant trans fluid and brake/clutch fluid? if so what is recommended for each

when i have the clutch done should i replace the oil pan gasket and oring for the crank sensor i have read they leak at some point and would like to not have to worry about it for a while and is there anything else i should do with the clutch gets done i think there is a gasket in where the clutch is and some guide i have seen mentioned as well

thanks for any and all help it is greatly appreciated cant wait to be able to enjoy the car

 

just went to look at the filter and the back clips on the back of the box are gone so the back isnt secured when the screws are tightened anyone know where to get a new lid? an not pay dealer prices

 

When I bought my vert, I changed all the fluids; brakes, oil, coolant, clutch and gear box. If you want to know what type of plugs etc to get, check out some of the vendors here, most have Minis that they drive.

What filter you talking about, in car or the engine air filter?

I just made a posting to another thread that said "There are almost 85,000 threads here on the Gen1 Mini. You need to know something about your car, between those threads, the members and vendors the chances are you will find/get the answer."

If you have not already done so, can I suggest you check some of those threads out? You may find answers to some items that you have not even thought about yet.

 

stick with the bmw coolant and go with engine oil that's fully synthetic.
Mobil1, mini, castrol edge, pennzoil platinum...

 

ok i will do that thank you and was talking about the engine air filter

 

thanks for the info i was thinking mobil 1 but went to their site to see what they recommend for the car and when i did that i get this message

Based on what you've told us, your vehicle manufacturer recommends a 5W-30 viscosity and oil that meets BMW Longlife-01. We currently do not offer any motor oils in the United States that meet these specifications.

do i not need to worry about that ?

when i go to castrol it recommends 0w-30 and pennzoil says 5w-40. also with 112000 should i be using a high mileage oil?

 

You can get the top of the air box at a salvage yard or on ebay.

On my R53, I drilled the sides and put coarse screws in. Held it with no issues.

 

I've always used Mobil 1 without issues. Don't get TOO hung up on the rating systems. Mobil 1 was ll-01 approved for a long time, probably still alright to use. If you're super worried about it, change oil slightly sooner.

Plugs - NGK bkr6equp

OEM is recommended for most things.

Coolant flush is probably a good thing to do.

When you replace the clutch, it's probably a good idea to do anything that requires to drop the subframe then. If your oil pan gasket is leaking then it's probably the best time to do it. I don't think they're known for leaking, though, so I don't think I'd replace it preventively. Crank sensor - yes. Do control arm bushings and ball joints if they're old, do power steering lines if they're weeping.

 

As far as motor oil, everyone has their favorites, the manufactures recommendations simply mean that company "X" is what we used when we spec'd the build for the motors, since they gave is the best price that would meet our requirements.
As long as it's a quality brand, it will work fine, esp. If you change it more often than BMW says to, which in most people's opinions is "way" too long.
For coolant, any reputable brand will do, just NEVER USE DEXCOOL, other than that, your good.

 

Welcome

There is plenty of mods you can do to that car and will be great bang for the buck.
We have a great ignition kit for that car. But if you are going to do a pulley I would wait and do the plugs with our cold heat range at the same time.
https://www.waymotorworks.com/wmw-ignition-package.html

For an a/c filter we have them too
https://www.waymotorworks.com/oem-in...ir-filter.html

If you are going to do an air intake don't bother with the filter now as you'll remove it with the intake install and just be throwing away money.
https://www.waymotorworks.com/paper-...-cooper-s.html

If you want a stock top half of an airbox we have good used ones
https://www.waymotorworks.com/oem-r5...e-box-top.html

Do the brake fluid as it should be done every two years.

coolant is due every 4, so I'd just wait till you do another cooling repair and change it out at the same time.

For strut brace check out ours
https://www.waymotorworks.com/wmw-st...e-r52-r53.html

Oil I like the LiquidMoly 5w30 full syn

 

gave my local yards a call no minis at all so wont be getting it from there could you add a picture of where you put the screws please?

 

cool probably go with mobil 1 extended performance then found those plugs on amazon will be ordering them soon. yes i plan on replacing the oil pan seal and crank sensor seal when i have that done suspension rubber from what i have seen looks ok for now and rides well the power steering fluid is a bit low and has gunk on the lid so will see if they are weeping and replace the oring on the cap as well thanks didnt know about the lines weeping at all

 

im going to get the plugs for now from amazon only 25 when i checked for all 4 and the wires look kinda new beru name on them and i checked the connectors on them and the coil pack and no corrosion might have been replaced will wait to upgrade for later on that

found this cabin air filter and has the active carbon as well like the stock one from what i have read

i agree on just getting an intake instead of doing the filter and lid since i want to do that anyways for the power and sound but that will depend on if the clutch is actually bad took it to the mechanic i bought the car from after i told him i thought it was the pressure plate which someone my friends take their cars to for transmission work said he thought it was and he said to bring it in he thinks its just air in the system or something and is going to bleed it and hopefully save me from having to do the clutch now then i would just get an intake what intake do you recommend i have seen the ddm name while reading up on different things?

thats awesome that you carry the stock airbox lid used for such a good price if it does turn out i need the clutch i will be getting the lid to tide me over since air getting around passed the filter isnt good

thank you for the fluid maintenance times i will write them down

i was looking at another brace but yours is solid not multi piece and i do like that better and is a good price thats added to my list of things to get with the tune up stuff

think im going to run mobil 1 extended performance i ran it on my old s2000 and worked well for me but thank you for for all your help

 

I see the entire box on ebay for around $60.00. Sorry I don't have a modern smart phone with a camera, yes I am an anachronism. On the screw route, you need to have some small drill bits. The box has about a 1/4" lip so you need to be careful if you drill. Pilot hole a real small hole first with the top in place. Then remove the the top and make that hole larger enough for you screw to pass through. The bottom hole needs to be smaller than the screw.

Need to know what you are doing when tightening as too much and you strip the bottom hole out. Way Motors has great price for the top only (hint).

 

ya $20 seems easier to me and it a a good price and easy solution

 

1. OEM filters, because MINI.
2. Mobil1 full synthetic works great for me.
3. Spark plugs depend on pulley. Do not gap. Stock: NGK BRK6EQUP Pulley: NGK BRK7EQUP
4. OEM coil pack, always. If yours is tired, grab a wire brush and carefully brush the rust off. Any wires will do, but make sure to get new wires if the coil pack terminals are rusty.
5. Use the search function and look for "R53 [insert part] replacement DIY". You'll find something.
6. Coolant is Pentosin NF. Expensive stuff, comes undiluted, so you'll need distilled water. For trans fluid, get the Redline 75W80. Best stuff in the world. Look up "girls guide to changing transmission fluid," best DIY in the books.
7. Replace oil pan gasket and other gaskets if you see oil leaks below where the respective gaskets are (ie if oil pan is covered in oil, oil pan; if front of engine above oil pan is covered, get crank sensor o-ring; if back left of engine is leaky, get a cam sensor o-ring).

Good luck and welcome to NAM! Never hesitate to ask if you have any more questions.

 

ok will look for oem oil filter. so mobil one extended performance would be good? stock pull will change belt pulley and plugs after i pay my dad back and get clutch done. i will try searching that way thank you. not sure anyone carries that local i will check was thinking about switching to prestone. redline sounds good i have heard good things about them on other cars thank you for the tip since i will need to do that when i change the clutch. and been looking at the fel-pro oil pan gasket would that be good for that and oem crank sensor o-ring?

 

ok so it looks like im not that lucky and definitely need to replace the clutch. just ordered the valeo conversion kit from carid for $360 with 2 day shipping.

trying to figure out what else to do at the same time. rear main seal i have seen people say should be and seen mention of clutch fork and bushings for fork and guide tube is all that really needed the bushings and tube arent that expensive but the fork itself is.

is the fork needed and is there anything else that would be better to do while its being done?

 

Guide tube yes, Fork no, the seals are cheap enough it wouldn't hurt to have them in case you need them. (Rear Main, Front Transmission)

And wouldn't hurt to have a new slave cylinder around, they are notorious for leaking with the slightest movement of the piston shaft when removing it.
(If you have to replace it, a power bleeder is almost a must)

 

ok good rear main im getting but what front transmission do you mean?

slave and master have been changed yesterday was hoping they were the problem.

 

Transmission input shaft seal

 

ok thanks i ordered that as well

 

installed new plugs and cabin air filter dont think that filter had ever been changed it was completely gunked up now waiting for rest of parts for clutch install

 

just a heads up DONT EVER BUY FROM CARID horrible experience with them over the clutch kit i ordered from them.

are the seats in the mini leather? im trying to figure out a cleaners for the car

 

I have a clutch kit available