Front subframe re-bushed and installed!

Before I drop her on the ground I'm going to take care of my leaky tensioner.

Jeremy

Control arms off.

The press is on!

Control arm bushings pressed in.

Sway bar bushings.

Stock control arm bushing in foreground. Steering rack bushing in background.



All back together.

Spent tensioner. All of the pulleys were oiled up..... . Good thing I've got a new belt and tensioner to go in!

 

She's alive and running well after a 20 mile drive!

The Motive bleeder worked without incident as did a knock off of Ryephile's clutch slave compressor. Thanks Ryan!

The clutch pedal is firmer(getting close to Mini pedal feel ), so that's nice because our stock pedals feel very wimpy. Engagement seems normal so far(FX200 clutch kit).

My part throttle sluggishness seems to have vanished. That result must have been from a cleaned/oiled up air filter or that CM light flywheel. Whatever it's gooooood!

The steering feedback feels precise with the powerflex lower control arm bushings. I've not pushed it yet to see what, if anything the steering rack bushing or the front sway bar bushings have done to at limit driving. Another 480 miles for clutch break-in.

Thanks to Jan @ RMW for the CM flywheel and clutch kit. And a final thanks goes out to all the NAM guys here for tips/suggustions/encouragement!

Jeremy

Used and new tensioners.

2 M8 bolts by 100mm(same for service mode), chunk of wood with 2.5" centered 5/16" holed, and a few strikes on the wood with a ball pean hammer(centers the slave pushrod on wood).

Clutch slave cylinder compressed.

Almost bleed time!

The syringe was to suck out a bit of fluid after depressurizing and removing bleeder from master cylinder. You can crack the bleeder cap, with the bleed valve closest to the MC to add air to the MC instead of sucking out fluid after.

Midway through the holiday fun.

 

Looking good! So did you remove the radiotor when you did this or did you just do the thing where you slide it forward?

 

I just slid it forward on 2 M8 bolts. There's plenty of room in there!

Jeremy

M8 by 100mm or 4" long, threaded in.

Service mode.

Top shot of service mode.

Side view of service mode.

 

I've got over 400-boring to and from work and backroad-miles on the new clutch kit, flyweel and diff so it looks like tomorrow I'll have some fun with this set-up.

Now I'm off to wash my MINI and then scoot to my wedding!

Jeremy

 

This thread should be a sticky.

 

Ok my bride has been carried into our home and she's sleeping peacefully on our sofa now.

I did manage to squirt around yesterday prior to getting hitched though and the wee MINI performs fabulously! The LW flywheel was indeed a big help with rolling acceleration. I've yet to hard launch the car/autocross it yet, so I don't know how the OBX with the FX 200 will mesh with the pavement. I'll keep you posted NAMers!

Jeremy

My wife, myself, our wedding party and marriage commissioner during the completion of our ceremony yesterday.

 

Congrats dude! I love the responsiveness you get from the LFW, makes executing rev-matched downshifts a whole lot easier, but more importantly, does your wife have a sister?

GotMINI

 

Thanks Alerious,

Yes it's easier to heel and toe now. I've also noticed on start-up the motor blips up to 2K....gone are the days of the 26+ pound flywheel.

Sorry mano, she's only got two single bros.

Jeremy

 

haha... darn... well I suppose it can't hurt to ask... seriously... we need our own signature badge for all us LFW users... hell, we could call it "Chatters United!"

GotMINI

 

Yep this sprung clutch disc likes to chirp at idle like a MF.

Jeremy

 

Jeremy: my car also revs up much higher with the light flywheel than stock; sounds like a race car, LOL. I have a feeling it's the ECU coding, because my old '04, which I intentionally kept away from any dealerships, adapted it's starting routine to "normal" after installing a light flywheel in it. Back to the ClutchMasters FX200, it does like to chatter a tiny bit when it's in neutral, but not nearly as bad as other brands on the market.

Have you noticed the clutch getting grabbier as it breaks in? Mine was stock-like-smooth during the first few days. At around 450 miles, it's like it hit a switch and suddenly it was much grabbier feeling, almost as sensitive as the FX300 I had in the old turbo-R53.

Glad to see the homemade slave compressor worked!

Cheers,
Ryan
P.S. Congrats on the marriage!

 

That's good to know that the CM noise level is lower than other brands Ryan! The chatter isn't really too bad at all. My idle so far is smoother with the CM LW flywheel/Ultrik Cam combo compared to Stock FW/Ultrik Cam combo.

I've not really noticed the engagement getting more grabbier with this FX 200. It's been smooth, boring sailing(close to stock feel but with more pedal pressure) during the break-in period. I'll be exercising the MINI a bit later today and I'll see if I can quantify a difference from stock or during this break-in period.

Thanks again for the help-especially with the 'Ryephile Special Slave Tool'. Stupid me-the only M8 nuts I had kicking around were nylock so next time I've got to get freakin M8 wing nuts as per your tool!

Thanks for the congrats and enjoy the rest of your long weekend!

Jeremy

 

Thank you very much for all your effort in documenting your work.

I'm curious if you notice improved economy with the lighter flywheel.

 

No problem SteveS; NAM is a great give and take community which works well most of the time(all the popcorn eating lovers???).

I've not noticed any improved economy with the lighter flywheel-remember the OBX diff while rolling is 5 lbs heavier than stock too. And like most mods(after the clutch break-in) my right foot loves to dip further and further down.

Jeremy

 

grats on the wedding and the parts going off with a successful install Jeremy. can't wait to hear your performance critques.

p.s. please don't be offended... but your wife is teh hotness. I wish you a happy married life.

 

Thanks for the well wishes Minimusprime. I'll fill NAM in, good or bad news. So far married life has been a super sweet. This threads bolt on MCS parts are sweet as well.

Jeremy

 

Just wanted to say thanks for the posts fellas. Seeing all those parts off the Mini showed me that you can DIY if you really want to. I was looking at this thread because I have a schrick Cam just sitting in my garage. (I'm waiting to get some money together for installation $340 doll hairs!) I was thinking I might try it myself, but that stuff looks crazy complicated. But if you guys can give me any advice on what I should make sure gets done right during the install process I would appreciate it. I'm just wondering the proper break in process for a camshaft, what kind of lubrication should be used ect. Well you guys are awesome and I admire you for being able to tackle the things you have done. Keep on tinkering and please feel free to post more pics and advice, it is much appreciated

 

Grab a Bentley shop manual and have at it Chumperdink! Dyno your MCS(same day) pre and post Schrick camshaft please with A/F ratios to boot.

I broke in my cam for 20 minutes between 1700-2800 rpm. Lube up the lobes and the cam followers with your standard synthetic motor oil and you'll be good!

Jeremy

 

At $340 for the work, I'd do it myself for sure! Really, even going slow, it's a half a day job the first time through. Take Jhiggs advice, get a manual, and,, like the Nike adds say, Just Do It!

Matt

 

Ok I'm ordering a bently manual today. I feel like I'm about to become addicted to this stuff, lord help us alll!!! lol