Well, about a week ago I should say. 87k miles on the clock. I am the car's 4th owner, it's always been in northern California, so it has virtually no rust (a nice change from my Subaru!). The previous owner had it for the past 6 years, was diligent about oil changes.....and that's about it. SO, over the past week, I have:

Replaced the spark plugs with OEM NGK's
Replaced the coolant tank cap
Replaced a licence plate illumination lens & both bulbs
Updated the Sat Nav to latest firmware & bought 2015 DVD's
Fixed the middle armrest's sliding top & creaking hinge
JB welded the studs for the hood scoop
Changed the oil & filter (Castrol / WIX)
Changed the transmission fluid (Redline MTL)
Bled the brakes & clutch slave cylinder (ATE Super Blue)
Changed the power steering fluid (CHF 11S)

I have ordered:
Koni FSD Struts
Ireland Engineering fixed camber plates
Alta foam intake filter for the JCW intake
TYC cabin air filter
New Pass. side hydraulic motor mount
Gatorback serp. belt
Supercharger oil
Alta belt tensioner stop
CPS O-ring
Rad. Fan resistor
Gallon of Mini OEM coolant
Redline Water Wetter
Powerflex control arm bushings

So, while I feel that I did get a pretty good deal on my car, it does need a LOT more work than I had originally intended. I am also terrified that I'm going to go to the trouble of pulling the SC only to find that the water pump gears are dust. It still boggles my mind that there is no coolant temperature gauge on this car. That being said, I still love it and can't wait to finish all this initial work on it so that I can really start to enjoy it!! Oh yeah, and his name is Winston! Pics:

 

I see a jcw intake, was that added or is it a jcw?

 

Welcome to the MINIacs...

Careful with the MODing... once you start, it is hard to stop...

Motor on!

 

Very nice Mini; it looks new . I bought my R53 this past December with 121K miles and immediately went after the s/c not knowing what I'd find. The s/c oil was down a little and came out a brown color. I used an inspection camera to see what I could of the gears and they were fine. The new oil is clear so I was glad I took care of that. While s/c was out I also replaced the water pump and thermostat.

Your to do list is similar to mine and I have a lot more work ahead of me. Koni FSD struts, ball joints, and control arm bushings hopefully this year.

What resistor did you decide on for the low-speed fan? Wish I'd known about that issue when I removed the radiator and housing. I have a Arcol resistor (mounted to an aluminum plate for extra cooling) to install in the next couple of weeks.

All in all, great fun to drive which makes working on them okay too.

Rich

 

Congrats, you just won the fun-to-drive MINI sweepstakes in terms of model, year and condition.

 

I decided to go with the Dorman unit, installs in OEM location, has a lifetime warranty & has a totally different design than OEM.

 

Alrighty, well, the weekend has come to a close. I managed to install:

Koni FSD Struts
Ireland Engineering fixed camber plates
New front passenger bumpstop
New rear strut bushings
Alta foam intake filter for the JCW intake
TYC cabin air filter
New Pass. side hydraulic motor mount
New 3rd brake light

Now that all that's done, the car rides MUCH better & I'm much more excited about it haha. Unfortunately, two new issues have reared their heads:

"Check gas cap" light keep coming on
Airbag warning light keeps coming on / going off

So, I'm planning on picking up a new gas cap soon, as the gasket on mine is cracked all over the place. As for the Airbag warning light, I think I may have found a TSB that applies to my model year to get it covered by the dealer. Any additional info anyone may have would be greatly appreciated!

 

Nice and clean. Keep a close eye on that OEM coolant tank.

 

Just thought I'd post a new update to the status of this guy. Over the past couple weekends, I have done:

Fuel Filter
Supercharger Oil
Crank Sensor O-Ring
PowerFlex Control arm bushings
Gatorback Serp. Belt
Low speed fan Resistor
Timing chain tensioner
Re-filled Coolant system with BMW coolant & water wetter
Cut & buffed horribly oxidized & cracked clear coat on silver roof / hood stripes (sorta helped, ultimately need to be repainted)
Updated Nav to v32 firmware & 2015 maps
Hooked up GLI to Aux input
Stole the gasket off my new Gates gas cap & put it on my OEM cap (much higher quality)
Cleaned PCV valve

Next up:
Install VIP pitch mount
Replace P/S line hose clamps
Clear headlight oxidation & install Xpel films
Replace cracking rubber intercooler boots
Replace Serp. Belt tensioner & add Alta tensioner stop
Install yellow fog light bulbs

So yeah, it's moving along nicely!

 

Welcome to the MINI community, I loved my R53 and your new ride looks very nice. Enjoy!

 

Great progress on your car

 

Good lookin' MINI!!

 

You've done a LOT of work! Looks good.

We've had our 05 MCS for 18 months now, 98,000 miles, and have been thinking about the SC oil. What did you find? Was the old oil very beat? Was the level low? Similarly, when you replaced your tranny oil, what was the condition?

Finally, on the Airbag light: ours is on all the time. The passenger seat has a sensor to turn that side airbag on or off; if there's a passenger of sufficient weight the airbag turns on and the light goes off; conversely, if there is no passenger or they are very light, the airbag is off and the light is on. At least I think that's how it's supposed to work. Ours is on all the time, as I said, but I have had experiences where I was riding shotgun and moved a certain way in the seat and saw the light go off for short periods. Come to find out that the sensor in the seat, called a "mat", is flaky and this is a common problem. Did you find out anything about the recall? I thought I found one, but when I called the dealer it turned out that recall or TSB number was actually for a BMW model. I'd like to get the mat replaced if I could do it under a recall or extended warranty, but I'm not willing to pay full price to have it done.

Jeremy