Shared some of this on the What did you do to your Mini today? thread yesterday but I think this weekend warrants its very own thread! Plus I've been on here for a couple months and I'm thinking I do need to get that post count up a bit.

Coming from 8 years of G35 DIY's, I must say this it is quite refreshing to have disassembly, performing the task at-hand then reassembly down in just a few steps. There isn't a plethora of screws laying around and it's fairly easy to trace back steps if you missed one. Although <b>working with plastics a f*cking b*tch of a pain in the ****</b>. I guess I'll get used to it eventually--I bought this car for practicality, and it is definitely winning in that regard.

I've said this before and I'll say it again, glad to be on here. It's a good community that isn't filled with Douchy McDouchfaces.

The weather is awesome over here in the SF Bay Area.. Hope y'all are having a good one as well.

Done this weekend
- Installed JCW CF/alcantara shift ****
- Glove box fix (with foam lock insert)
- Rear wiper delete ($2 wiper delete kit)

On the car right now
- Alta CAI (no silicone)
- OEM Mini R121 on Sumitomo HTR-Z (contemplating some changes later on)

<b><u>Still in the box</b></u>
- Cravenspeed 17% reduction pulley (thinking of trading for 15% - unsure)
- Gates belt
- JCW Aero grill (top and bottom)

<b><u>On deck - to purchase within the next month or so</b></u>
- Driver side Euro parcel shelf (CL special)
- Iridium spark plugs
- Mobil 1 or Castrol fully syn
<b>***Coming up on 70k miles--anything specific I should look out for regarding maintenance?***</b>
- OEM/Mann oil filter
- Pulley install
- Change rotors and pads
<b>***Should I go with a brake upgrade now? Was looking at doing Level 3--thoughts?***

DIY pics








Laundry day.


Someone had gone out of their way to do this to my rear wiper assembly, which is really what prompted me to do the delete




Excuse the shitty epoxy job


Water reservoir hose plugged


Pièce de résistance


A little selfie action




Alta intake - installed in March but never got around to sharing **excuse all the dog hair on it**


In all its dirty glory - PS, drip marks are not mine


Not much has changed since I got it on Valentines Day this year.

Thanks for looking!

 

Go with r53 jcw or r56s front brakes, big diff in feel/power and cheap to do

 

I'm at about 20% left on current pads--I guess I need to get to lookin' for a set then.

Thanks for the feedback!

 

Centric rotors and pull off calipers and carriers. Best price I found on SS lines Was from ecs

 

This deal seems legit--includes install! But it's $$$ I don't want to spend right now: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/pts/5689090575.html

 

As far as maintenance items, have you checked the condition of crank pulley? They're known to fail and cause problems. Usually not too difficult to install, so you can always change it later if you don't do it at the same time as the SC pulley.

 

No I have not.. but it's exposed right? Any tell-tale signs I should be looking for specifically? Will be doing some thread lurking on this

 

It's exposed once you take off the wheel liner. You can look for cracks in the rubber center, wobbling or looseness, or a burning rubber smell. They are a weak point so with all the maintenance you are doing, and that many miles, I would keep my eye on it.

 

Awesome tip good sir! I'm installing the 17% reduction pulley next month--I'll have my mechanic look into it and see where we're at