Well guys, I'm now the proud new owner of a 2003 Mini Cooper S in need of a bit of TLC. I picked this up to give to my son, and I think it's going to turn out to be a great deal. It's in great shape, but the son of the last owner drove it around with the check engine light lit up until the engine overheated and seized up. Driving up to Tennessee tomorrow to pick up a used motor to go in it. I'll have less than $3500 invested in the project at that point, so I'm pretty happy so far. There are just a couple of other very minor things to fix besides the motor (that I know of so far), but I know the value of getting involved with the proper bunch of people to share knowledge with. So you will see me around here asking questions and sharing progress with others. I'm really looking forward to learning about my first Cooper, and I think my son is going to love the car.

 

Good looking R53 can't wait to hear more about putting it all back together. Sounds like it will be fun.

 

Thanks.... other the the engine, I need a glove box door, and the drivers side front arch trim. That's all I can find wrong with it. Of course, once we get it cranked up and moving, I'm sure I'll find something else. Any particular things that I need to be checking out that are common problems?

 

Welcome aboard. This is an awesome father and son bonding project. Once you start, you will have memories to last a lifetime. Take your time and do it right. We are here for you.

Check all the bushing like the lower control arm bushing, sway bar etc..
Check Power steering pump, cooling fan and all hoses.
Check the supercharger for any issues and change all the fluids in it before you install the engine. Makes life easier.
Check the radiator overflow container. They are known to leak.

This is where I would start for sure. Good luck and continue posting pics of your progress.

 

Welcome aboard! You will quickly discover that these are fun little cars!

 

Welcome

FYI I have 8 wrecked R53's for parts in Atlanta, including engines that we know are good if you need parts.

 

^+1 to waymotorworks

 

My own father came up with a better deal on a motor than I thought was possible, but Way Motor Works came through with the perfect gasket set for getting everything together. He even customized the stuff I needed so I didn't have to buy things that I didn't need. I'm sure as the assembly goes I'm going to discover that there are more parts that I'm going to need, and the first place I'm going to look at is Way Motor Works. It's nice to know he's only a few hours away over in Atlanta.

Here's what I have going, see if I have a good deal so far.

Turns out it's a 2002 Mini S; about 106K miles on it, very very clean, looks like a car with less than 25K miles on it. Black leather seats, aftermarket black aluminum 18" wheels with a couple of minor scuffs. Needs 2 tires. Blown engine, needs 1 piece of fender trim. $2250 for the car.

Got a motor with the supercharger included from a 2005 Mini that caught on fire. Motor has 23K miles on it, my mechanic has looked it over and pronounced it in great shape. A couple of pieces of plastic are melted, but I've got good plastic from the original motor. Got a full gasket/seal set from Way. $1000 for the motor, $186 for the gaskets. Even going to have a good spare S/C.

4 new 215/35/18 Kumho Ecsta ASX tires, $316 shipped.

I love it when a plan comes together.

 

Sounds like fun! Been looking for a project like this. Please keep us posted with pics on the process and best of luck!

 

Ordered a 15% pulley and belt from Way today, figured a good time to put one on was when the motor was out.

 

Try to take pics all the way thru your build and post it for all to see your progress. good luck

 

I will when I can; the car is at my mechanics shop right now. Thought about doing it myself, but I'll let him do the engine swap. Getting with my son to help him figure out what else to do with it.

 

Update: Well, things have been going slow. My mechanic owes me a big one, so he's been doing the swap at a huge discount. But since he's not making much off of this, other paying jobs will take priority sometimes. This arrangement has been OK for me, since my main ride is a 2012 Dodge Charger. BTW, I'll be keeping this car, I'm sinking too much money into it to give it to my son LOL.

It's going together nicely; the car was very well taken care of with meticulous records, right up until the last owner let her kid drive it; he drove it around with the parking brake up until he wore holes in the tires and blew the motor. It's probably a good thing he blew the motor so fast, he didn't have time to mess anything else up.

Like I said, the car was very well maintained, with a few choice upgrades. Found that someone had already installed a 15% pulley on it, so I sold the one I had ordered from Way. I was under it yesterday and saw that it doesn't have a stock R53 exhaust on it; I think it might be a JCW system, I'll have to look at it closer. Been on the phone with Way (great guy) and replaced the things he recommended since the motor was out; water pump, hoses, SC belt; put a single mass flywheel on it. Upgraded the brakes, put slotted rotors on it. New tires. More stuff.

The big fun will be in the next couple of weeks, I should have it on the road later on this week, and then I get to figure out what else might be wrong with it. Gonna break out the clay bar, polisher, and wax; I'll take some pics after she's all purdy'd up.

More to come.

 

Welcome to NAM and congrats on your new MINI project.

 

Thanks T, though it's starting to feel like an OLD Mini project, lol.

 

Almost done! Almost everything works, and it drives like a dream. Gotta figure out if it's possible to adjust the new clutch; I've got about an inch of play before it grabs and takes off. I stalled out the first 3 times I tried to drive off from the shop with it. It's better once I got used to it, but if I don't have the clutch literally touching the floor it's trying to grab.

When I said almost everything works, I was talking about the A/C; the compressor isn't getting a signal to turn on, so no A/C at the moment. Luckily, it's not as hot here in Alabama as it is in the midwest. Drove it over to the next town to drop it off at a shop that specializes in BMW's and Mini's, they are going to put it on the computer tomorrow and figure out what's up with it. Once that's fixed, the rebuild is done, everything after that is modding. I've already starting signing up for some OT to pay for some stuff that I'm gonna want. I'll get some pictures up later this week before I succumb to the mod bug.

 

It sounds like you are off to a good start. No pun intended. What's next? Do we have some new pics?

 

No new ones yet, gonna have to wait until I get it back from the shop fixing the A/C. I should have it spit shined and ready for pics at the end of the week!