Greetings,
I recently bought a 2004 Mini Cooper S. 6 spd, nav, heated leather (Blue) seats, blue carpet (odd IMO), only 54k on it!
Pictures:







I've owned many cars, and i'm looking forward to working on this gocart.
Pictures were taken by the PO... I'll need to take some of my own eventually... for now it hasn't changed though
fresh filters and oils are in the current to-do list.
Speaking of oil... is there a "general maintenance" subforum? I was look'n for one to consult oil brands and what majority of people are using.

 

Looks very good for an 04 ! Other than the butt imprint on the driver's seat and a need of cleaning in the boot, looks nearly new.

Any mods planned ?

 

i really like the idea of exhaust and a slightly smaller s/c pulley... for now though i'm having fun with it as is. The rims, while they look good in the pictures, are kinda beat up... lots of scuffs and the rear driver one has a nice chunk missing from the outter rim... so i'm going to use them for winters and get some other rims for summer... looking for 17" White Enkei RPF1's... super lightweight FTW... want white to match the rest of the car... I've been looking for ideas to make it more aggressive looking... but haven't seen anything that stands out yet...
An idea I had and haven't seen in the area was to sharpie the stripes... the vinyl is pretty faded on the hood so I figured worst case I replace them if it looks horrible. also was thinking of doing the "sharpie" in blue, not the traditional black... figured that'd match the car more too. best example of what I plan on doing is googling "sharpied motorcycle" its a helmet motorcycle combo a painter did to his/her motorcycle... amazing work.

 

04? Helluva year! LOL!

Enjoy your MINI! Good choice for rims.

I'm running Castrol synthetic, the same stuff they tell you to add at MINI. Just hit 130K this weekend.

 

does your mini burn oil? do all mini's burn oil? haha... I've done some reading about that... and mine was a little low when i checked it yesterday... i'm going to start with mobil 1 synthetic this change (I have a case in my garage that was for my "old" car I recently sold).. but I think I will switch to Castrol Synthetic. My old car was a 2008 Subaru Legacy Spec B (with 17" rpf1's, TBE and a Cobb AP running stage 2)

Recommendation for oil for the Supercharger? at 54k I think it's due for a change.

if the Subaru got 30+ mpg i'd of kept it... MAYBE... the payments i was making on that car equals what i'm paying for all 3 of our cars now ...

Other thing I need to think about is tranny fluids... another recommendations? i'm think'n a redline blend or a mobil 1 synthetic.

 

Just googled Steampunk Mini Cooper and my golly there's one picture of a real one that is extremely awesome... interior is alittle over the top... exterior is Fabulous though! theres a mini that's drawn and i like the way it looks.. That's what I want to do... siiiick.... started off with the wrong color though... Nuts! maybe someday. loved the rims on the real mini and the roof...

 

I throw a few answers that I can.

Do my MINI burn oil? Not really. My oil pan seal and valve cover seal leak. Not really a drip, they just sweat out oil. Which is normal for MINI motors.

The supercharger is quite specialized. I believe the oil in it is a GM synthetic product they sell for the supercharged engines they've made over the years. There may be other oils for it, but I haven't read of any...yet. Having it rebuild at 54K is a waste of time in my opinion. My supercharger has never been opened and has 131K on it today. It does see over six grand often on the tach. You could have the oil changed, but to get it off you need to remove the water pump. Probably around 300-500$ to have it done and your supercharger serviced or rebuilt if needed. Might as well put a new water pump in since you're there.

Transmission oil: Redline seems to be the big replacement tranny oil. Tips here: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ion-fluid.html

Oh...30mpg...it's rare for me to get that mileage, I'm usually around 25-27mpg. My wife can get over 30...

 

Thanks for the info!
i'm managing 31-32mpg on the highway... i'm content with that.
I wouldn't rebuild the charger, just change the oil. and I do all my own work on my vehicles...
So you're saying the charger has to come out to change the oil, and to take it off you need to remove the waterpump? if so, that's interesting and good to know... though i would have though it'd be easier then that... hmmmm thanks for the link to the fluids, i'll check it out.