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from eventually blowing up by changing the tranny fluid from the original Texaco to something else? Maybe Amsoil, Redline, Royal Purple, etc.
I think the answer is probably no, but I'm wondering if there is any statistical evidence that says Midland failures are less likely to occur with a different transmission fluid.
Sure would be nice if there was statistical evidence that a non OE gear oil would prolong the life of a Midlands but that study doesn't seem to exist!
I contacted Redline a while back & asked if a blend might help this gearbox. For hot weather (consistently over 90 degrees) I run 1 quart of redline MT90 & 1 quart of MTL. They felt this could provide some additional protection & would not harm the gearbox.. I run straight MTL from Fall through Spring & started doing this when I began adding power mods at about 40,000 miles . I'm at 72,000 miles now. There's been a slight bearing rattle since 1200 miles which MINIUSA dismissed as "oh they all do that, the Getrags are even louder.." The quart of MT90 does make it slightly less noisy in summer but I honestly cannot say if this has helped longevity. but i'm not seeing lots of metal particles when the oil is changed & my syncros don't crunch on quick shifts. (yet..?)
Matching revs on the downshift & not dropping the clutch at 3 grand is probably the cheapest insurance! If you were already going to rebuild an R65, Cryo-treating the bearings might help (about $8.00 per bearing).
My midland went at 12 months replaced under warranty,this one is 4 yrs old now on Amsoil and not too bad but i avoid burnouts etc,hope i have not put a curse on myself for saying this. Redline is also a good product
I lost my first Midlands during it's second (extremely cold Manitoba -45F) winter. It was not the tranny that failed, but an axle seal, which in turn caused all the fluids to dump out. The dealer replaced the seals on that tranny, and it ran fine for about a month, until the replacement tranny could be installed. The replacement was not a rebuild, but a brand new one, which now has over 80K miles on it, and feels like it did when new.
I do motor the car hard, once it is rolling, no burn-outs, rev-match on downshifts, change the oil every 25K miles, with the OEM oil.
I had changed my fluid out at 30K miles with Redline MTL and my trans went at 80K for a snapped shifter fork. Then it went 4K and chunked all my gears and grenaded the gearbox. ALTHOUGH...this was me running around town for a few days with NO transmission oil in the gearbox. I wanted to see how long it would last. It would have run for quite a long time if I wasnt doing a 105mph when the shifter popped into neutral and the tach went to 7800 RPM or so.... On a side note....some transmissions have fluid filters and if you change the oil viscosity you will overheat the gearbox due to lack of lubrication. Plus, you have to take into account the fluid rating. GL-4, GL-5, GL-6. That can really mess up a trans....
If it's worth anything to anyone, MiniMania offers a "Midlands Rebuild Kit" for around $500.00. They also have individual parts too.
Good to know, however you can get these same parts from the dealer and I doubt that MM price includes any "hard" parts(gears, shafts) and is onll bearing and seals. Cheaper yet is probably to get the part numbers off of the bearing and source them at a bearing supply house.
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Supercharger delete mod,Toolio's P/P head matched to OBX header, ARP head studs, Crower Camshaft, "S" throttle body and intake with Silicone tube, Milltek Catback, Engine Dampner, JCW Software,Eibach Springs and S-bars, IE Adj. Camber plates, Alta Rear CA, SS brake lines,Super Blue BF,Flik Wheels,M7 STB, Louvered hood for air intake
For what it is worth. I autocrossed my Cooper for the first three years of its life and drive 70 miles round trip each day for work, so I have 146,+++ miles on my 2003. I changed the fluid in the tranny to AMSOIL recommended and do so about every 60,000 miles. My tranny still shifts like new and I have been known to shift it quickly. I think if you take reasonable care with anything it will last and last.
Ifnore the signature that I haven't updated until sending this reply. That was from 2.5 years ago.
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Scott
Caretaker of Rollin' 7
MMC #242
CROC #50
157,213 miles
Mine went at 112K. still had fluid. haven't torn it apart to check what went wrong. It still "worked" but sounded awful! Getrag 6-spd is wonderful. I went with the older 6-spd since it had taller gearing and was cheaper (found on NAM). The taller gearing is nice on the highway. Getting off the line requires a bit more finnesse
you might not NEED new flywheel, but you're going to want one lighter than the stock S flywheel at ~27 lbs. And a new clutch on a new flywheel might not be a bad idea you know. Of course there goes another $300 or so . I'm not an expert AT ALL! I just did quite a bit of reading beforehand.
Your screen name is fitting to having a COOPER with a getRAG!
Well, my Midlands gave out last Friday. 100,6xx miles. Sucks. No 6 speed for me unless I find a super cheap one. More than likely putting another grenade in. We'll see......
On a side note....some transmissions have fluid filters and if you change the oil viscosity you will overheat the gearbox due to lack of lubrication. Plus, you have to take into account the fluid rating. GL-4, GL-5, GL-6. That can really mess up a trans....
UKSUV
Does the 02 R50 have the fluid filter? I'm wanting to swap out to the RedLine MTL. I've seen many other cooper owners who have that. Does that have the same viscosity as OEM?
I'm thinking that I will fill some shavings in the oil when I change it It feels a bit rakish when shifting 1-2-3 sometimes. No grinding, whirring, or any other strange noises though. I don't have problems shifting and I always match-revs on downshift and even upshift.
When I took my MINI to be serviced at a BMW specialist, the guy said it looked like my tranny is fairly new...so who knows how many actual miles are on it. I'm sitting at 81k miles right now.
There aren't fluid filters in manual trannies. Only in Automatics. So no worries with the Midlands 5 speed.
I am not sure what the "experts" are referring to when saying viscosity changes could be a problem. Maybe in an automatic but, you change all of the fluid when changing the manual tranny.
Scott
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Scott
Caretaker of Rollin' 7
MMC #242
CROC #50
157,213 miles
The Red Line MT90 suits better the Midland in my opinion. (That's what i use) The MTL is suitable also, but it is very thin, good for very cold climates round the year, but not in any other case. Also, thin oils are good for transmisions with small tolerances between the moving parts, and i don't think Midland is one of them...
Okay thanks. Would you recommend changing out the tranny fluid?
Also, nick, I saw your videos on youtube. Sick cooper you have. Do you know how much bhp you have after all the mods? I've considered doing some of those things myself. By the way, have you had any problems with your midlands?
If you have the stock oil in your geabox, i'd suggest you change it with the MT90
It is dynoed at 128whp and 110lbs/ft wtq on a Mustang dyno! But i haven't finished yet, i am doing some fine tuning on the parts now, and then doing the final remap. The problem is, i have reached the point where i have to touch engine parts to go further, which is expensive :(
My Midland is broken at the moment, the 2nd gear pops out on its own i shift from 1st to 3rd lol, i am waiting for a few parts to arrive, and i am rebuilding it and doing a shorter final drive at the same time.
Not sure what's in it at the moment, I bought it used. But, I'll change it to be safe anyway
Yeah, I know what you mean. Have you ported and polished your head yet or upgraded valves?
As far as engine work, what are you thinking about doing? Piston upgrades or what?
It sounds like you're doing the work yourself. Are you? I've wondered if there is anyway to custom work the midlands to make it stronger?
Sorry about the midlands. Just curious, has it given you much grief since you've owned your mini? I'm just wondering if I should stay with my R50 or upgrade to an R53. Although, I do like the idea of having a stealth just-a-cooper. I just think it would be more rewarding to have a naturally aspirated cooper over an S. Plus, cheaper on car insurance because they won't know what I did to it
If you have the stock oil in your geabox, i'd suggest you change it with the MT90
It is dynoed at 128whp and 110lbs/ft wtq on a Mustang dyno! But i haven't finished yet, i am doing some fine tuning on the parts now, and then doing the final remap. The problem is, i have reached the point where i have to touch engine parts to go further, which is expensive :(
My Midland is broken at the moment, the 2nd gear pops out on its own i shift from 1st to 3rd lol, i am waiting for a few parts to arrive, and i am rebuilding it and doing a shorter final drive at the same time.
Hooray Mustang dynos read insanely high. Congrats, you have stock HP
Not sure what's in it at the moment, I bought it used. But, I'll change it to be safe anyway
Yeah, I know what you mean. Have you ported and polished your head yet or upgraded valves?
As far as engine work, what are you thinking about doing? Piston upgrades or what?
It sounds like you're doing the work yourself. Are you? I've wondered if there is anyway to custom work the midlands to make it stronger?
Sorry about the midlands. Just curious, has it given you much grief since you've owned your mini? I'm just wondering if I should stay with my R50 or upgrade to an R53. Although, I do like the idea of having a stealth just-a-cooper. I just think it would be more rewarding to have a naturally aspirated cooper over an S. Plus, cheaper on car insurance because they won't know what I did to it
How many quick Coopers have you seen? 0. How many quick S's? Tons. Everyone quit wasting their time and get an S.
The quart of MT90 does make it slightly less noisy in summer but I honestly cannot say if this has helped longevity. but i'm not seeing lots of metal particles when the oil is changed & my syncros don't crunch on quick shifts. (yet..?) 
Redline is also a good product
On a side note....some transmissions have fluid filters and if you change the oil viscosity you will overheat the gearbox due to lack of lubrication. Plus, you have to take into account the fluid rating. GL-4, GL-5, GL-6. That can really mess up a trans....
trust me its worth every penny.
No 6 speed for me unless I find a super cheap one. More than likely putting another grenade in. We'll see......
