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Thank you for having me here! I wanted to share a little background on myself and my 2004 MC40.
Up until recently, I was the guy making DIY videos for FCPEuro.com. During my time there, we took on an exciting project called the "Mini Cupper," centered around the idea of "cheap racing." I found a base-model, slick-top, manual R56 at a scrapyard, and we transformed it from a zero to a hero in just a few weeks—ultimately turning it into a track car in about nine hours at Lime Rock Park.
While working on the car in the paddock, someone stopped by and asked if anyone wanted a free Mini. Without hesitation, I jumped out from under the R56, raised my hand, and got the details. It turned out his friend had a Mini that had been sitting in his yard for years. Fast forward to pickup day, and there it was—a 2004 MC40!
The car had belonged to his son, who had put it through the wringer, and it had been parked for about five years due to brake issues. As it sat, it had accumulated a list of mods: blown Megan Racing coilovers, a 17% pulley, baffled oil pan, Alta intake, upgraded intercooler, 380cc injectors, a Megan Racing cat-back exhaust, and a gutted interior (though the carbon dash bits were still there!).
The Resurrection
Step one was getting it running to see if it was worth saving. A new starter, alternator, and clutch line later, it coughed back to life! That was all the motivation I needed to replace the rotted-out rear brake lines, finally allowing me to move it under its own power. However, that first drive was short-lived—I quickly realized it needed a new clutch and had a coolant leak from a rotted-out hardline.
To keep this from turning more into a novel, here’s everything I did to make it a daily driver—while watching The Italian Job on repeat for motivation: Oh and also resurrecting a 06' R52 JCW to help fund this project!
Interior: Cleaned, shampooed, and reassembled; headliner redone in black Alcantara.
Brakes & Clutch: Replaced all brake and clutch hydraulics with new hard lines, stainless steel lines, master cylinder, front calipers, pads, and rotors all around.
Engine & Transmission: Pulled and fully resealed, replaced clutch/flywheel and related components, and serviced the supercharger + full new cooling system
Drivetrain & Suspension: Installed new axles and wheel bearings, refreshed the entire front end with all new components including a power steering pump and lines, and added a fresh rear subframe with new control arms and an upgraded rear sway bar. To button that all up, some new coilovers as well.
Other Upgrades: Added a Bluetooth adapter for the stock radio and upgraded the speakers.
Along the way, I tackled plenty of smaller fixes to keep it running smoothly as my daily driver. After about 2,000 miles and six months of commuting, disaster struck this past February—it burned a valve in cylinder 2. But I was already too deep into this project to give up, so as of two days ago, it’s back on the road with a refreshed head!
With my commuting now minimal, the MC40 is transitioning to a fun weekend cruiser (and occasional airport shuttle). Next on the list: getting it tuned and restoring the MC40 livery!
Definitely a nice score and seems in the right hands (literally) to make this MCS shine (in more ways than paint finish). Agreed with the comment on extended outside yard storage with associated potential deterioration. Looking forward to more details on the entire project as all that unfolds...
The red does a nice job at making it look amazing from 10ft away! I have yet to do a proper paint correction, but if I am being honest, the little bit of rot around the tailights and the bottoms of the doors keep me from rushing to it. Interior shockingly had no nest or damage with the exception of a packed cabin air filter, which was an easy remedy.
Thank you all! As I mentioned to MacMini34, the red does a really good job at hiding imperfections. The car was pretty nasty inside and out when I first got it, luckily the only signs of rodents was in the cabin air filter. Headlights were brought back with a quick 600grit sand and 2k clear. I just had Adrian tune the car last weekend, so next time there is some spare change, I will be getting those graphics, cooper48! If any of you would like to see more pictures, I can probably put together a nice set of before and after pics!
As far as Mini Cupper goes, that was truly a labor of love. When I picked up the car, we were told it was just an engine mount that was bad. Fast forward to getting it on the lift, and the entire subframe was completely rotted out. I spent close to 100 hours doing an almost complete mechanical restoration on it before we got it to Lime Rock, which is what inspired me to follow the same with the MC40. The Cupper got a complete overhaul on the front and rear subframes with all associated components, wheel bearings, calipers rotors pads and fluid. The engine was resealed, along with a cooling system overhaul. We sent it to LRP with its original clutch we got it with (about 180k on the car) and same with the timing chain (unsure if the NA models have the same issues as the turbo's). I will link the video
for anyone who wants to see the transformation at LRP. We sent the car to the BMW CCA Museum in S.C after all of that where it was on display for a whole year. I miss that car, it was my favorite out of the bunch that we built, while I was at FCPEuro. Luckily, the MC40, or as I call it, the "Rot53" is here to fill that void.
