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General MINI TalkShared experiences, motoring minutes, and other general MINI-related discussion that applies to all MINIs, regardless of model, year or trim.
PO looks like he put in some of those cheap flea-bay brake parts. No wonder this car didn't stop to well...should have all 4 corners done by Friday, if UPS is on time.
Made some steady progress this afternoon on Egan by replacing the oil filter housing gasket, which originally I wasn't going to, but considering I had to replace the oil cooler gaskets, and I just so happened to have a spare filter housing gasket lying around (seriously, I do not remember when or where I got it ), I figured it was a good time to do it.
...and I'm glad I did because that gasket was certainly leaking as evidenced from the bolts that I removed that were covered in oil, and it definitely hardened over time as if felt more like a bendable plastic than a rubber seal. No wonder it was leaking.
I also removed the two bolts holding the starter motor in place to get ready to remove the transmission, and those two blasted bolts on the top f the transmission where all the wires and hoses are. Didn't have to remove the entire intake, which was nice, but damn was it tight. All that should be left is the remaining bell housing bolts, plus the clutch slave cylinder, and on Friday after work, I should be ready to remove the transmission, and see what the innards look like after 162k miles. Seriously, the clutch has never been touched since the car was built, so I'm extremely excited to see how well it has held up.
PO looks like he put in some of those cheap flea-bay brake parts. No wonder this car didn't stop to well...should have all 4 corners done by Friday, if UPS is on time.
Looks like you went with Centric Premiums. I'm doing the same tomorrow, with the same rotors and TRW Premium Ceramic pads. Surprisingly, I removed the rotor retention bolts last night with zero fuss
Upgraded to EBC green stuff pads and dimpled rotors, Sparco wheels, and Conti DWS - all huge improvements over what it came with. Also did a brake fluid flush and rebleed, reaffirming my distrust of mechanics in the process. It should not have made that big of a difference if they had been doing it correctly all along, but oh well, at least now I have the pedal feel I should've had.
I installed a clutch pedal stop from Burger Tuning.
Thoughts: I Like it! I left all 3 spacers on, and it took the travel down to about 1/4" until the clutch starts engaging. It feels great and makes shifting easier without needing muscle memory to know where the clutch engages. For $10 and free shipping, its hard to beat.
I installed a clutch pedal stop from Burger Tuning.
Thoughts: I Like it! I left all 3 spacers on, and it took the travel down to about 1/4" until the clutch starts engaging. It feels great and makes shifting easier without needing muscle memory to know where the clutch engages. For $10 and free shipping, its hard to beat.
The steering rack on my Elise has a bolt directly behind the clutch; I replaced it with a longer one, a locknut, and a plastic cap so I have an adjustable stop and it is awesome to have. I hadn't taken the time to look though the minis, so I will definitely check that out.
The steering rack on my Elise has a bolt directly behind the clutch; I replaced it with a longer one, a locknut, and a plastic cap so I have an adjustable stop and it is awesome to have. I hadn't taken the time to look though the minis, so I will definitely check that out.
I'm sure a custom stop could be made from parts lying around a garage, but for $10, free shipping, and about 2 minutes install time, it's hard to beat. And since it has shims for adjustment it should be able to work with different clutch packages and vehicles.
Had a setback while working on Egan today. After getting the rear main seal installed, the flywheel, clutch disc, and pressure plate, it was time to get the transmission put back into place.
After about an hour of fiddling, it was still not settling in correctly, so my Dad and I were going to take it back out, and try again (also to examine if the clutch disc had shifted in the process of wiggling the transmission back into place, which it did).
Before we were about to do that, I discovered I made a horrible mistake. I replaced the guide tube, input shaft seal, put new clutch fork bushings, and thought I buttoned everything up correctly. As it turns out, the clutch fork release shaft was in backwards. Yes, I actually somehow put it in backwards, and I found out what really went wrong upon removing the bolt that connects the release shaft and the clutch fork itself. I apparently stripped the threads on the release shaft (along with ruining my new bolt), so now I'm going to see if I can rethread the hole, reuse the old bolt, and try again.
If not, I'll have to buy a new Clutch Fork Release Shaft, which thankfully is only around 75 bucks n Pelican parts. But still, I mean COME ON!!!
Tough break. But, at least you caught it before you stuffed the transmission back on and damaged anything else. If it was me. I think I would go with new parts.
All I've done recently is test fit some new 3rd Gen parts for Raceseng and order some new coil overs from RMW. I will be doing a review of both after they go into production.
Tough break. But, at least you caught it before you stuffed the transmission back on and damaged anything else. If it was me. I think I would go with new parts.
All I've done recently is test fit some new 3rd Gen parts for Raceseng and order some new coil overs from RMW. I will be doing a review of both after they go into production.
Thinking about it, it would've been worse had I got the transmission in, some of the bell housing bolts put in, and then tried to reconnect the slave cylinder so I could test the clutch. I would've been like, "WTF?!"
In the end, that is likely what I will do, but I know my dad wants to try and rethread it first since he knew he used to have a full set in metric, but now it has since mysteriously disappeared, so he's determined to get another one, try it out first, and then we'll decide then.
First New Jersey state inspection! And I almost forgot that it was due this month, because I bought the car new 5 years ago. Fortunately, a few days ago, I happened to notice another car with a failure sticker in the windshield, and thought, "Oh, crap! Almost missed it!" From now on, it's due every two years.
earned a trophy with it, also broke the header flex pipe and I've got a boost leak, the fuel tank evap line broke. it did get home under it's own power though.
earned a trophy with it, also broke the header flex pipe and I've got a boost leak, the fuel tank evap line broke. it did get home under it's own power though.
So after rethreading the clutch fork release shaft, reapplying some grease, using some locktite on the bolt that holds in the fork, and release shaft, I was able to finally get that blasted transmission back into the engine bay.
I double checked to make sure the clutch disc was aligned perfectly, and using a transmission jack from harbor freight, as well as a ratchet strap, I was able to line up the transmission perfectly that it went in on the first try. I reconnected the clutch slave cylinder after getting some bellhousing bolts snugged in, and tested to make sure the clutch worked. That Valeo clutch kit is definitely lighter in feel compared to stock, which will take a little bit to get used to, but it reminds me of VW clutches, or my GF’s Fiat 500.
My kit from black stone labs also arrived, so I’ll put my sample that I collected earlier last week in there, and see how healthy my engine truly is.
Got the transmission mount put back on, so the car is holding the whole engine and tranny, which is nice. Also started doing some buttoning up on some parts, including reinstalling the drive side axle, and finally got the starter put back together.
Unfortunately i I ran into another snag when my coolant temperature sensor broke off, so now I have to buy a replacement, and then while I’m at it, I’ll replace the thermostat since it’s in the same area, and that has never been replaced.
When push comes to shove, one cannot afford to be elegant. Track events are coming up back to back, and no time to get a professional alignment, so I took matter into my hands. Performed a DIY alignment using some basic good enough adjustment and measurements. I didn't bother to do the trigonometry. Just some common sense and intuitions.
I also conducted a pre-track tech inspection. Fluids, torques, and tyre pressures as well as visual inspections. As always Mini is good to go.
JCW Scuttles that I had wrapped in white to match the color combo on the car.
Additionally, when I bought some other bits for the misses 2016 MCS, I happened to think ya know - those too would look good wrapped so the brake intakes were done as well.
Being that there was wrap left, thought hmmm... ya know, those little triangle bits on the rear would look good as well. Not trying to go bonkers with it I felt that there was enough "sticker" application done for a while.
), I figured it was a good time to do it. 
From now on, it's due every two years.
