Hello all, I just acquired a 2009 chili pepper red hardtop/hatchback S model to add to my fleet!!! Been looking at them for years and finally had enough of my Super Duty truck. Yes that's quite the change! First Mini and first German car as well. Absolutely love the car... should have done this years ago. Lots to learn, but it looks like this is the place to do it.

It will take a while to get back in good graces with my better half, but then the first order of business will be to fix the heat sensitive radio display!

My other toys are a 1974 Datsun 260Z and a 1966 Dodge D200 crew cab truck. I also currently own a 1996 Nissan 300ZX with only 20,000 miles. It is one of the last 300 300ZX's to be imported and, as such, is a numbered car 263/300. I bought it in 1998 as an investment but when Nissan came out with the 350Z, my plan was foiled. I need to thin the ranks so the 300 is going to go up for sale... I'm hoping it has gotten back to the value I paid but time will tell.

Anyway, glad to be among the ranks here!

Thanks,
Dan

 

Another Chili Red R56! Welcome.

Is your 300ZX the twin turbo model? I remember that one, scary quick. Post up some pics of the MINI next to the 260Z.

 

Congrats, don't forget to post up some pics!

For the radio display check out this, its a common fault with the leds: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...08-mcsa-2.html

 

Hi and welcome to the NAM family!

 

Thanks to all and again I'm glad to be here.

I have done a lot of reading up on the radio display issue and am confident in being able to do it since I was a car stereo technician in a former life (seems like a life time ago anyway). I really dread taking it out more than repairing it!

Depending on when I get to it, maybe I'll be the first to do some pictures! I have to get totally out of the dog house with my wife before I spent too much on the car! I'll just need to source the part and it looks like there are numerous suppliers... I have a friend who is still in the stereo repair business so I'll see if he can get the part at any better price.

It appears everyone is fussing at Mini and BMW and they do have plenty of the blame, but my main beef would be with Alpine. I have worked on a number of their products before and they are usually well made, but this problem went on for too many years - and too many thousands of units - I would think they knew about it early on and just kept cranking them out!!! So, not only did they make a ton of $$$ on the radios from BMW, they are now making profit on the replacement part!!!

I had hoped in my reasearch to find someone who had repaired the actual display without replacing it. Since it is a heat issue, sort of sounds like an intermittent connection. More probably though, it is a chemical issue with the "liquid" in the liquid crystal display... my guess anyway.

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Welcome to the forum

 

welcome and Congrats

that Z sounds cool, but I have too many cars right now as is.

 

Welcome to NAM, Dan!

 

As soon as I get out of the dog house (where I have carpet and a big screen!) I'll be ordering the radio display. Since I was a car stereo technician in a former life (at least it seems a lifetime ago!) I am not concerned about the actual repair. What I dread is fighting all the plastic to get it out - Mini sure didn't make that easy!!! I would like to upgrade the stereo and send a message to Alpine (whom I might point out, is making $$$ on both the original sale of the car/radio and now for the repair part). But the design does not make that easy either and it seems like retrofitting the factory NAV unit is both very involved and very expensive

Anyway, I have a friend who is actually still in the stereo repair business so I will see if he can source the part at any better cost... probably not but worth a shot!

Hey, maybe I will be the one who finally posts pictures of the repair process. Now, I might be wrong, but everything I have seen indicates there are several videos on getting it out of the car - but little on the actual repair. We will,see what happens.

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