Alright fellow R56 owners, after much deliberation, reading, then more deliberation, I have decided that tonight, yes, at 11:30 pm PST, I will begin the Joey mod for my MCS with Xenons... I will update this thread as i progress.

Currently, I have both headlights de-bulbed and de-ballasted... Next up is the oven... I already tried prying it open after removing a couple of clips on each light but its a no go, I think heat is required. I will start off with a lower temperature and baking them a couple minutes at a time. Hopefully I dont have to stick them in the oven too much. Wish me luck!

BTW... why is it called the joey mod? anyone know the history of this mod?




**Some of you may have been experiencing some bubbling near the projector, I have gone back in and fixed the issue by adding a heat shield...take a look at page 6 for more info**

 

ok, disassembly took much longer than anticipated. It was hard to figure out how to get the projectors separated from the chrome but it all worked out in the end. the paint is drying as you read.

 

whew, finally finished. Im super tired so im just going to post a teaser...




Good morning! I will try to get more pix tomorrow. Next up i think i will paint the chrome trim around the headlight to match the grille.

 

looks good

 

Looks great!

 

Hey very nice work there. It's called the Joey Mod after some guy on VWVortex who did this to his V-Dub a while back. A lot of MINI owners are ex VW people, so the name came over to the MINI community. Anyway congrats on the mod, it's a nerve wracking one, but it looks great. I did it to my R53 last month.

 

Does this effect how well the lights work at night? Was it tough to do, or just tedious? I hadn't even heard of this until just now lol. Is there a step by step listed for this somewhere?

 

Nope. Both high and low beams come out of the projector that is unaffected by the joey mod.

Beautiful job. I love bi-xenons, no unnecessary chrome for the high beam!

 

Do you mind showing a picture from a little further away? I'd like to see them on the car from a distance.


Thanks!

 

Wow, in approx 6 hours you had this completed! Hmmm, maybe I should quit thinking and just do it...

 

it's the whole "oven" thing that has me weary...

 

Jeez 6 hours? It took me about 20 hrs over 2 two weeks to do them on my R53. I am kind of a slow **** though.

 

More pics PLease

 

Awesome job

 

Well considering his first post was at 7:30 and his final post was at 1:30, I'm just assuming thats how long it took him to do the job. I'm sure he'll confirm the time though

 

Thanks for the comments! If you have been thinking about it, just bite the bullet and do it!! ive been wanting to do this for a long time... even before i got the MINI but i was always too scared. I realized that my fear and nervousness were not going to get the headlights blacked out so i just decided once and for all that i just had to grow a pair and do it. Now im very happy!

yeah it took about 5-6 hours. i wasnt able to get them into the oven right away as i didnt want other family members getting in my way asking too many questions about why my headlights are in the oven.

I wouldnt say its hard, just tedious. I wasnt able to get step by step picture tutorials but its pretty much the same as the R53 joey mod... remove all the electronics, remove 2 clips, then bake at 200 for about 4-5 minutes. The hotter it gets the easier the goopy stuff will be to pull apart.

The hardest part was getting the shroud on the projector disassembled. Luckily since i was going to paint it i didnt have to worry about scratches or anything like that. I used some steel wool to scuff up everything then used kryon fusion satin black for the actual paint. I will get more pix in a little.

 

sweet looking headlight~
i will do that on my Cooper S soon~

please post more photo!

 

Alrite, heres some more pix. Today im going to paint the chrome trim around the headlights.

 

Sweet!!! Light bulb mods you did are very cool as well.

 

Hmmm, that looks OK I guess. I kinda like the headlights the way they are. To each their own. That's why I love MINIs and NAM!

 

I like it!

 

You are so right! This mod definitely isnt for everyone, it was for me though!

Happy motoring!

 

They look awsome!! Good job.

 

I really like them!!!! Good job!

 

The headlights remind me of a Mini Subaru! :p



Looks good! Might want to just have Lyle of Vinyl Styles hook you up with some vinyl for the chrome around the lights. In a few weeks that paint would most likely chip. Just a thought.