Hello all,

My name is Bill and I am from NC just outside Raleigh. I have been lurking for about a month while I narrow down my search for a Cooper S and figured I'd go ahead a register. I'm am coming from the land of the big V8. I've had about 6 camaros with a wide variety of modifications. My latest fbody project was a 99ss with a head cam package. It was fun but I am to the point in my life I want refinement as much as I want performance.

Currently I have my eye on a 2002 with 52k with sus. mods and a stoptech big brake kit for 19K. The dealer hasn't the foggiest clue about the car so they cannot answer my question. What is this button for? Also what does the button under the ebrake handle do?

Thanks for your help. I tried to search but really didn't know what to search for.

BC

 

That button is for dimming the gauges. The button under the e-brake is the tire pressure monitoring system reset.

-Cliff

 

Thanks. The car doesn't have a manual and I was checking it out in bright sunshine. Doh!

 

Does the car have anything extra under the hood? Like a pulley upgrade/intake or is it stock other than susp. and brakes?

 

Welcome to NAM, Bill! You may be able to download a PDF of your MINI's manual online. It was possible to do so back in 2002. Maybe someone else knows how to more specifically direct you. Enjoy your MINI!

 

Go to http://www.motoringfile.com

All the manuals are there online.

The big gauge with the ? mark is the "Chrono Package" That is optional. Usually a big speedo is there.

 

Thanks, Chowsie, for your quick response!

 

Most definitely on an '02!!!

 

Yeah big speedo. I pulled the pic off ebay for reference. The car seems to have at least aftermarket blue springs and sway bar front and back. I believe the car has been lowered some too. It has a CAI and Borla catback. I didn;t look close enough to see if it had a pulley or anything else. I was just so happy that I found a killer hatch that I fit in. I'm 6'4" and pushing 275lbs and fit fantastic.

 

i'm sorry but i think 19k for an '02 with over 50k is kind of high... you can actually buy a new S for 23k and not have to worry about the previous owner mistreatments.
just my 2 cents!

 

Most aftermarket springs will lower the car. Regarding the s/c reduction pulley, check the end of the supercharger by the passenger side (follow the ribbed rubber belt from the crank pulley up). If the pulley is shiny, it is quite likely you have a s/c reduction pulley (the stock pulley is black/dark grey in color). Determining which one (15%, 16%, 17%, 19%) will require access to the pulley itself for measurement.

 

Why are you sorry, I feel the same way. It is just an asking price and I haven't bought anything yet. I'm leaning toward a new one anyway. This just happened to be the first one I looked at.

 

Yes, I agree about getting a brand new one, only because these cars hold their resale value SO WELL... You could get a brand new Cooper S, stripped down, for about 20k, give or take.

Half the fun is modding your MINI, as most of us on this site will attest to...

But, on the other hand, it sounds like the previous owner of this one had a pretty good start on modding this one, so lots of the work has already been done.

Tough decision. I'm obviously not helping any, sorry! Good luck, and let us know what you decide to do.

 

Yeah but after a handful of Fbodies you can imagine I am very tired of being a grease monkey.

As for buying new, the closest is in Winston Salem. About 3 hr drive.