Sure thing! I plan on giving it a good wash job tomorrow, as I left fingerprints pretty much on every surface of the car. Will post a couple of shots of complete car tomorrow when it's nice and shiny.

 

Rob,


What'd you use for the blackout? Plasti-dip?

 

Yep, sure did. After sifting through countless threads of methods of black out I decided Plasti Dip was the best option for me. What I like about it is that it's not permanent, and easily fixed if you manage to have a mishap while painting. I probably put 5 coats on each piece I painted. I removed the HL/TL rings and grill trim to paint. The door handles, hatch handle, and "cooper" badge were just masked off on the car and sprayed. Still debating on if I want to mess with the actual MINI badge, may leave it chrome.

 

Changed the transmission fluid.

 

As promised, here are a few pics of the entire car after plasti dip.

 

Can only get one pic to upload at a time for some reason...here's another.

 

Last one. PD'd door handles

 

I like it, especially around the grille and headlights!

 

Washed the whole car inside and out. Removed washer fluid nozzles and fender flares and waxed the crap outta the hood, was looking pretty bad.
Waiting on my H11 led fog lights and my plethora of 194 led lights for the interior.

 

Thanks! I was really happy with how it turned out. Now I just have to get rid of that horrid wheel gap with some lowering springs. Only have to wait a couple more months.

 

R56Rob - the AR3's look nice on your car. I had a set on mine for a few months and decided they would look better on a darker colored car. Your car proves that now. I do miss them in street lights at night...

 

Ohh nice what range does the Omega have?

 

Thanks, Albiecrazy. I see what you mean about those wheels on a darker car. I like them on my red cooper, but I bet they would really pop on a black car. That's an awesome shot you took of your AR3s at night, thats when they definitely look their best!

 

Installed a bsh oil catch can

 

Albiecrazy..........here are your former AR3 wheels. They are being thoroughly enjoyed. We get comments all the time about how nice they are and how they fit the appearance of the car. Sporty and just the right amount of "different" that gains attention. Thank you!

 

If you get the 3m 33+ electrical tape you can do the belt line. Think I got mine from the hard ware store. 3/4" wide is perfect.

 

I thought the same thing but also ordered the roll from OutMotoring. Big difference between the two tapes and the electrical tape has a lot more adhesive so expect it to run/smear/peal in the heat as well as leave residue after time.

The kit from OM has a clear layer on top of it that makes it easy to manipulate without damaging the black portion, once finished you can remove the clear and touch up any of the ends.

 

R56brg thanks for the tip. I had read somewhere that the 3m electrical tape would work but didn't know what size....though Dark brings up a good point. I've wondered how well the 3m holds up in extreme heat. The summers where I live get up to 105-107 during June/July. I feel like the electrical tape would ultimately melt being exposed to that kinda heat for extended periods of time.

If the kit from OM was more that $15 I would give more thought to the 3m tape, but for such a small amount of money I will just elect to spend the extra and hope it weathers better in the long run

 

Just spent more money than I should have on black friday parts.

 

Seriously. Electrical tape. On the outside of a car. And people think chrome looks cheap? LOL. To each his own.

 

I took all my black parts, and put silver duct tape on them. That way I now have chrome. JK :-)

 

The tape has been on my 08 for four months and has not faded or anything. It got into the 90's here this summer and didn't shrink or bubble up like i thought it would. It matches the black of the little black trim that goes around the chrome belt line.

 

Could you post a pic of the belt line? I haven't ordered the OM kit yet....just kinda curious how the 3m looks. Thanks!

 

Today I hooked my headlights up with a little "joey mod" action. Came out good so far. Just need to reassemble.

Tomorrow, Bringing the headlight rings to the paint shop to have those painted body color. Once the lights are back on the car and while the trim is off I'm going to wet sand and polish the headlight lenses cause they are fairly cloudy/pitted

 

Kurtster, with respect, not all of us are willing to drop ~$40,000 on a JCW Coupe. The 3M 33+ tape actually looks OEM, and holds up for at least a summer or two. It can leave *some* (small amounts) residue, as can any vinyl tape, but it's a 15-minute, buy-it-at-the-hardware-store-on-a-whim $3.50 job on a shady summer day to see if you like the look, then leave it on a few months, and change it up when you're done, or "upgrade" to the Outmotoring kit (great folks, Outmotoring!). Just don't try it using anything BUT the 33+ tape, or it'll look like carp.

Me today? EBC Greenstuff and ATE slotted rotors. 25 minutes including cleanup. LOVE impact wrenches, don't love the sound of the EBC wear layer as it mates to the rotors, that first stop sounded like scraping teeth. Nice now, however.