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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.
are those the Vland lamps? How do they differ from the oem besides aesthetics?
They are the Archaic ones.
They have a little extra wiring to do to get all the features to work, but it's really easy. I decided to hook the DRL wire to the parking light instead of pulling a wire in to the fuse box.
The headlight itself is an LED projector. Super bright, super sharp cut-off line, so if you aim them well, you won't blind oncoming traffic. The high beams are amazing....
So I must have pinched the gasket on the thermostat or something, because it started leaking a day later. So she sat on jack stands for almost 2 weeks until I actually had the time to look at it. So I put 15 lbs on the tank and immediately saw the huge leak at the thermostat. So I take it apart look at the thermostat and gasket, no tears, put everything back together and boom holding 15 lbs of pressure. So while it’s holding pressure time to tackle a few other pesky codes. I had a p1498 that was popping when it was cold, p0136, and every once and a blue moon p02096, the pita to clear. I pulled my t map sensor and one of the o rings had a slight tear, so off to harbor freight for some o rings. I picked up a set made for high temp and oil, which just happened to have the correct size, so I replaced them on both the t map a map sensors. Start the car and 1498 is gone. While looking to make sure I’m not leaking coolant, I could feel what appeared to be an exhaust leak pre cat, on my milltek header. I just happened to have an extra gasket, so I swapped it out. Haven’t seen the 136 or 2096 since replacing that gasket. She’s back to being happy and running great. Need to clean the engine bay when I have a chance.
Murphy has been playing tricks on me. I thought putting snow tires on Morris would keep the snow away and hasten the onset of spring, but no such luck. Saturday and yesterday, snow. But it did give me a chance to check out the BMW star spec Blizzaks in the slushy muck and general snow. Where the All season failed miserably under braking in these conditions. ABS initiation was almost immediate with touching the brake pedal. With the Blizzaks, braking is almost like on dry pavement. Acceleration from stop signs is really good. Didn’t push the car hard on cornering, but to the extent I did push, it seemed secure. So, a big plus for these. Down side? A bit of a howl on certain pavements at highway speeds. Hmmm???
As an avid skier, I have seen too many people stuck on a mountain access road with, clearly, the wrong tires. I used a much earlier version of these tires on a Cooper S and the car went just about any where I want to go. So, getting these didn’t take a second thought. I still need to get them out on a salt slush highway at speed. I expect they will do fine, but I am curious. And, oh, these give me the perfect excuse to buy a really nice set of summer wheels for the Countryman as the snows went on the MINI wheels…
Today - I re- repaired my cracked an broken upper dashboard on my 22 year old Mini.
This would be "round 2wo" of a previous repair I had done due to a cold weather snap around 3 years ago.
Well, this winter cold weather caused the plastic upper dash to crack again.
As usual, I jumped the gun and started repairs before I took pictures documenting the full scope of the damage...
My makeshift scraper/leveler....
Pictured above: Acrylic craft paint (Black and Dark Blue Grey) to match the factory Panther Black. Modge Podge (matte) as my binder and several sheets of antibacterial sheet wipes in lieu of fiberglass veil cloth.
The spray bottle contains a mixture of water and a little 90% isopropyl alcohol (not Iron Remover )...
Moving on - mixing up the paints and Modge to achieve factory Panther Black
Pre-wetting the dash and wetting out the veil/wipes...
Although the (Modge) mixture is kinda self-leveling; I find it always best to stipple and pat in when working with veil for this particular application...
Spritzing a bit of water to blend and unify the paint surface application before it dries...
Application dry. A bit of wet sanding to smooth and feather out any defects
Almost there - Just a last coat of very light paint/Modge mixture...
Ah -Ugh!! I completely forgot to glue in the replacement "rungs" I'd clipped from a salvage Mini's dash to replace my broken ones!
After another light wet sanding w/ 220 grit ...and a thin coat of sealer. Repair complete. Not bad if I do say so myself
Now that I've done this second repair incorporating a layer of mesh/veil (should've done it the first time) I'm confident that I should never have to deal with another cracked dash again.
**If your wondering why I chose "craft products" for this and not polyester or epoxy - The answer is simple: Water Bourne. Modge Podge is water based emulsified PVA = very strong, water resistant when cured and can be easily
pigmented with simple inexpensive acrylic paints. Easy cleanup. No fuss, No muss. Most importantly no toxic odor to linger around for days in my Mini.
Smoothed out the casting bumps on the inside quite a bit with some sandpaper and elbow grease. Inside was as bumpy as the outside when it arrived. Next, need to put in TimeSerts for the throttle body flange bolt holes, so they have a little more strength, then off to the powder coating guy....
After my wife got the new to us 2015 R59 Convertable, (26k miles on the odometer) it was time to initially service it. My first time working on this and proud to say, I didn't break anything, except for a little wind.
Greyhounds don't offer much help, but they like to watch.
1. Oil and filter change.
Changed out the plastic oil filter cartridge housing for a metal one in the process. Even with the new drain bolt washer installed, there is still a drip from it, after a few short road tests. Bought a replacement drain plug with washer, and will use some thread tape to seal it better. Any other solutions?
2.. AEM Dry Flow Cold Air Intake.
Not a difficult install, but the the engine coil cover with "MINI" on it, is no longer used, when installing the kit-supplied heat shield. Added the filter rain sock, and opened up the holes in hood scoop/snorkle grill. AEM 21-721C Cold Air Intake System
Ordered a Short-Shifter and Turner Motorsport Wheel Stud Conversion that are on the way.
Looking for a cat-back exhaust that doesn't crackle and pop on decel.
Last edited by CoreyDSFA; Mar 9, 2026 at 01:19 PM.
1. Oil and filter change.
Changed out the plastic oil filter cartridge housing for a metal one in the process. Even with the new drain bolt washer installed, there is still a drip from it, after a few short road tests. Bought a replacement drain plug with washer, and will use some thread tape to seal it better. Any other solutions?
2.. AEM Dry Flow Cold Air Intake.
Not a difficult install, but the the engine coil cover with "MINI" on it, is no longer used, when installing the kit-supplied heat shield. Added the filter rain sock, and opened up the holes in hood scoop/snorkle grill. AEM 21-721C Cold Air Intake System
***snip***
Ordered a Short-Shifter and Turner Motorsport Wheel Stud Conversion that are on the way.
Looking for a cat-back exhaust that doesn't crackle and pop on decel.
Use an OEM oil drain washer. Those aftermarket ones don't have enough 'squish' to seal correctly.
I loved the AEM intake on my Clubman. I also opened up the scoop grill like you to allow for more airflow. For what it's worth, I didn't run the filter sock, and drove through many a heavy rainstorms, and never had any issue with water.
Any exhaust you buy will have no impact on the snap-crackle-pop. The popping is part of the ECU tuning. The only way to delete would be to get an aftermarket tune.
Ok, yesterday…
Morris took me into the Green Mtns of south central VT for a day of skiing at a really fun, throwback, old school New England ski area called Magic Mountain. After a week of warm temperatures and rain, they were predicted to get 1-4” of new snow for the day. The reality was that the strong westerly winds brought in lake effect snows that lasted almost all day. 6 - 8” in total, by my estimate. This was all day
The real interesting thing was that the weather radar showed the lake effect snows coming across upstate NY, then disappearing, only to reappear right over Magic Mtn. I’ll take it however it happens.
With lunch I got to enjoyed a gourmet cold brew coffee from a local coffee shop that just recently opened up: A first for me, cold brew coffee
Definitely an eye opener…
Changed the oil, replaced both O2 sensors, recalibrated the Innovate wideband gauge's sensor....
Took it on an errand for the test drive. San Tan Valley to Lone Butte Trading Center, to get the OL her cigarettes. Ran well, some subtle and not-so-subtle improvement. Original 23 year old pre-cat sensor and newer post-cat sensor with a nicked wire insulation right as it comes out of the sensor, probably from the wires being bent over at a less-than-friendly angle. Made sure that the wires going to it were dressed with a little slack to prevent a repeat....
Last edited by joe_bfstplk; Mar 27, 2026 at 07:03 AM.
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