I think i finally found my issue……

 

Replaced the tail/stop light bulb on the RR side.

 

I’ve run Bilsteins on other car, and have been impressed every time. These just sealed it for me. Bilsteins are my go to for shock replacement when the application is available.

 

So VERY important.
Too many distracted drivers these days to have some idiot slam in the back of you not noticing your brake light(s)...(or having them out).
When I see a car that has no brake lights; I always make an attempt to let them know.
You know what?....half of them are usually texting and look at me as if they couldn't give a s***.

 

how does one let someone know their brake light is out?

 

I’ve tried semaphore, but most people just look at me like I’m crazy - plus it’s kind of difficult to wave flags around from the driver’s seat. It turns out speech works pretty well instead.

 

@deepgrey interesting

 

Sine I don't feel comfortable or intend to stay driving behind them - I'll make an attempt to communicate verbally if I have the opportunity to pull up beside them at a light or in slow moving (bumper to bumper ),traffic.

EDIT: BTW- @deepgrey is right. Hand gestures may only get misinterpreted and potentially get you shot in the city that I now live in.

 

RE: replacing that taillight. I only was able to notice it because my daughter left her lights on when she parked it in the garage and went in the house. As I walked back to the house the other night (it was dark and well after midnight...I was working on my 350Z in the shop garage), I noticed she had left her lights on as I approached the also-left-open garage door. Then, I noticed the tail light was out. Teenagers...

I have to say, daytime running lights - especially the ones bright enough to make you think your headlights are already on in the dark - have led to a lot of confusion for new drivers as to whether they really have their lights on (Fully On) when driving at night. There are so many times I've had to call my daughter to remind her to really turn on her lights in the Mini when we see her leave the house or if we happen to be passing by as she's leaving her job at night, etc. I wonder what the accident statistics are for that as a partial cause (lights - tail lights - not on while driving at night) vs. the benefit from the DRLs.

 

Not to belabor the subject - but in some states having inoperable or a light out can result in ; not only a fix it ticket but it is also considered a moving violation = 1point, ( ask me how I know ).
I also run my Rally grille mounted spot lamps during the day as my daytime running lights.
It not only brings more attention...I think the car looks pretty cool coming down the road.
but that's just me.

 

The last time I pulled up next to a guy to let him know his taillights were out, he already knew... He's like "Yeah, I know. I'll get to them eventually." Heh. On the plus side, it was easy to get his attention, since his vehicle didn't have windows... or doors.

I don't know how many people I've had to flag down to get them to turn headlights on over the years, and I've told quite a few people that they have a seriously low tire while I'm out on my bike. The number of people who are clueless is disturbing sometimes.

 

Oh I thought deepgrey was being sarcastic.

 

Little bit of humor, little bit of veracity.

I guess I should somewhat forgive the people who drive around without headlights at night in the city. Between the bright street lights and the stupid light-up dashes these days, it's easier to make that mistake than it used to be.

 

New lower grille, replacing the one that was cut for the tow equipment. Whole tow setup sitting in basement till it’s time.

Electric throttle control from aliexpress, no more dead pedal or laggy throttle.

 

...but then again;...was he driving a jeep?

 

I want to say it was an old Bronco or Scout, but it could have been a CJ. For some reason my memory is a little hazy. You're on the right track either way.

 

Got my new socks n shoes on the mini today.. wow , 11lb only per rim. I need to weigh them with inflated tires now. It rides great even with the ebay forceum hena 205/50zr15 tires , they're tread rating is 400 but they're nothing to brag about other than their looks...

 

To a lot of people, a car is an appliance -- leave it alone until it stops working. I agree, it's very disturbing.

 

I just did.
I won't bother going into a long boring backstory.

Today I installed a pair of fiberglass Cowl vent scoops.


I have to say how pleased I was when they arrived and unpackaged them. These things were pretty nice, soild and hefty. They arrived from the vendor based out in lacquer primer ready to prep for paint.



Finished out, sprayed them up and installed them on the car Friday night.





After a 3year bout of internal deliberation as to whether to or not...I'm glad I did. I like them.
Definitely evidence of increased direct air flow (ram). My Supercharger whine has audibly increased as well!

For those who have never installed these before:
I will add to say - These things weren't as easy as I had hoped. I have large hands and not a tool known to man (that I had onhand), can facilitate tightening down the associated hardware screws.
It is so cramped underneath that cowl. One hand can barely fit let alone implementing a stubby screw driver while blindly trying to feel and engage the phillips head. Nearly as impossible using a small ratchet set up.

I would recommend taking the phillips screw that comes with the cowl scoops, down to your local hardware store and matching them up with a wing nut screw.

You're welcome.

 

@Here2Go They look great and increased supercharger whine is always welcome, imo. Which scoops did you buy?

 

I scored them off AliExpress when they were priced @ $82

 

Hehe me too.. scored the last set off ebay for ny aero mini. I have the carbonfiber version on my other mini already..
ypu can use 3m 2x sided tape to hold them down. Mine been on fir years that way and only come off with a heat gun.. removal of old and instalation of new ones took 30min.

 

I quickly discovered trying to wedge a hand under the cowl was going to be painful and impossible. It didn't take long to figure out a trick to get at least 3 of those swing tabs to clamp securely when guiding the cowls into place.
To your point: I also used a thin bead of black silicone as an extra added measure. These things ain't coming off without a good amount of intention.
I'm very happy that the cowls (being solid FRP), fit 99.8% perfect as they are a production piece out of a mold.

EDIT: BTW; here is another vendor that sells these same scoops on AliExpress for a little less $$.
Scroll down towards the bottom to see their cold and dank manufacturing facility...
For me; it is a bit of nostalgia reminding me of the early days, as part of my duties starting off in my career before I became an "industrial" artist. Of course the conditions were a lot warmer and nicer at our shop back then.

 

Changed the oil and filter, then had a chance to get the rear Bilsteins installed, and the H&R 22mm rear sway bar that’s been sitting around the garage for over a year. Looking forward to driving around tomorrow:

 

Although it was a blustery, frigid 44° out this afternoon, it was once again, time for the ceremonial 3,500 mile changing of the oil ritual.

Everything went smooth as usual until the unthinkable happened....

My 5 year old Craven Speed oil temp sending adapter snapped before it reached the end of it's threads. Luckily I was able to extract the remnants of the threaded inlet from the block with one end of a needlenose pliers.
Fortunately, I had also saved a brand new direct fit temp sending unit in my back-up stash.


Back in business for now.

While I won't blame Craven Speed for it's quality - It is certainly better than the "guaranteed to fail" = brass. The adapter has survived a little over 12 oil changes since that time.

I just placed an order for a new adapter.