The front of your beast looks good anyway

 

Hey guys its been a while but most of you know I have traded in my mini an purchased a VW R32.. but i just wanted to let you all know about a local german car. Also someone was interested in talking with some mini owners.
http://forums.projektgerman.com/show...Mini%29-Owners

here is the forum:http://forums.projektgerman.com/forum.php


and my caR

 

Hey Austen, good to hear from you. Hope that R32 is treating you well. Are the VW guys as active as the MINI clan?

That reference post seems to be in a non-public access thread. I searched some of the general forums but couldn't find it.

 

nice photos Austin! Have you bought some snows for it?

 

Sorry you may have to be a member to see that section. Yes the vw guys are, we had a fall tour that went from dubuque to sabula to savanna to galena back to dubuque... we had 55 cars!! most all VW and audi's few Bmws and Saabs. but they are always looking for more members and its a nice group of people. There are a few members that have Minis, its mostly VW but anything German is welcome!

 

still looking for those chrome ducks however I pulled the trigger on a wing. I will have a bunch of extra Carbon parts to get rid of.
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...2c-wing&cat=28

 

Looks like you've got lots of nibbles already.

 

My name is Travis and I am new to the quad cities (davenport) and even newer mini cooper owner. I bought an 08 MCS last Thursday. Other then a CEL scare the 2nd day I had the car I am very happy with it. I have the "Mod" itch but I have only been able to do a couple things to it so far.

One was making sure my co-pilot had a nice place to ride without getting 2 much fur all over the place.



The other I posted here: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...tor-slick.html

I want the 50 degree weather we had just last week so I can do some hardwire and wire hiding installs for my iPhone, OBCII adaptor, and my V1 radar with remote display!

 

Welcome, Travis & Co-Pilot! I am sure you will have many happy miles in your MINI!

 

Email sent.

 

Where did you get those amazing fog/driving lights? Did you do the install yourself? Did you use the original switch locations for them on the pedestal under the radio? I really would love to put some like that on mine, but dont know where to begin.

Oh, and you guys talked about the vinyl-ringed headlamp trim... where did you get that? WAY COOL!

Wayne

 

All,

I am also interested in what was done to this racing Mini.... the headlight treatment is awesome I think. But I can't tell if this is just darkening jel in a wierd shape to make the headlights round, or if they actually modified the ring around them (or even replaced them) to make them look this way.

Any ideas? Here is the pic (attached); you all have likely seen it from the FB Mini page.

 

Wayne, you've got me pining for the good ol' days by digging up these pictures of my former MINI.

The rally/fog lights and bar were a self-install using a kit available from Alta Performance. I really loved these lights. The installation wasn't too challenging using a combination of their instructions and some others available online from other people who had done the install themselves. I went with the two-light configuration (rather than four) to stay legal in IA and to leave space for the front plate. It comes with a separate switch (not a toggle) that you can mount as desired. Here's a link to the kit:

http://www.altaperformance.com/hardt...ally-light-bar

The vinyl wrapped headlight rings were obtained from Lyle at Vinyl Styles. This is another do-able DIY mod.

http://www.vinylstyles.com/index2.php#/rtext_8/1/

 

Pilotguy1050,
I believe that's a picture of the Countryman, they have a completely different shaped headlight and the head-on view in your attached picture gives them a unique look.

 

Why did you get rid of it? I thought this was your current one. Is that an aftermarket front bumper? I'm not sure but the lower dam looks much bigger than mine.

So its pretty easily done? Would you give any advice before jumping into this project?

I read your earlier posts and thought I heard you talk about special tools to get the lights out/rings off? Any comments to clarify?

Many thanks! I am putting those lights on my Christmas list!

 

Wow... ok. Thanks for the answer!

I guess that you all can tell i'm a "Noob", huh? Oh well, over time that will change.
Stay tuned.

 

Steve, still liking your NM intake? Getting the itch here lately, and I have my eye on this one among many. Since the N18 kit doesn't require the intake tube, it seems like a pretty good value.

 

Sold me, do it!

 

Carbotech Brake Pads all around Brisk spark plugs.

 

Nice! I had Carbotech 1521's on SFAX.

 

You guys use the brakes? Huh, who'd of thought..........

 

oops! no brisk plugs. manufacturer defect. going OEM on the plugs.

 

Sorry Wayne, I somehow missed this post and failed to reply...until now.

I loved my '05 but over time I just got the itch to get something new. When the R56 turbo engines were upgraded with Valvetronic, etc., that was enough of a catalyst for me to bite the bullet. I have a bunch more creature comfort options on the new MINI too. Some days, though, I do miss my PW/B with all of its many nice mods, both aesthetic and performance.

The front and rear bumper covers and the side skirts are the OEM Aero Kit, which I added after ~18 months of ownership.

With the benefit of some guidance from folks who had done this mod before, and my trusty Bentley Manual, it wasn't very difficult. The most challenging part is drilling the mounting holes in the aluminum bumper frame, only because the holes need to be correctly located and aligned. Disassembling the bumper to do the install and putting it back together is easy. The wiring is pretty easy too; the electrical harness with the kit is fairly self-explanatory. I can send you a link to some good guidance if you're interested.

It's a bit of a trick to separate the ring from the light without breaking any mounting tabs, mainly because it's also held together with double-sided tape. I finally mastered the process by using two flat-bladed screwdrivers, one to gently pry the parts apart and the other to keep the parts separated as I progressed around the ring. The first one took me about 15 minutes; the second one about 2 minutes. As I recall, Lyle's instructions also included tips for getting the rings off without breaking the tabs.

Cool. Let me know how I can help.

 

I agree +

 

Steve, my intake was waiting for me when I got home from Davenport today.

===================

Update: Got 'er installed this afternoon --



Went for a spin out east of town to test it out. The BPV sound is fantastic -- couldn't wipe the grin off my face. My fuel mileage is sure to suffer until I become less enamored with spooling the turbo to get it to "woosh."

Though, I confess that my favorite part of the install process was after pulling the stock air box off. There was so much room to give the firewall, intake manifold, and back of the valve cover a much-needed cleaning.