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JCW GarageInterested in John Cooper Works (JCW) parts for your 1st Generation MINI? This is where JCW upgrades and accessories for the Cooper (R50), Cabrio (R52), and Cooper S (R53) MINIs are discussed.
Wayne....the pads that are in the calipers are not new....they are about 25% left on the pads......I even went so far as to disconnect both e-brake cables from the levers on each caliper, I still had to pry that lever up on them to release the rotors from being frozen by the pads.....the e-brake cable lever & springs are stuck internally so bad that they will not release on their own after releasing the e-brake
Still trying to recoup from my lower back injections I had on Monday........so not much progress getting done on the "Mini from Hell"
I did a lot of searching for rear calipers and pads for this car........I went through the repair shop that I retired from and found the best deal
Calipers are $109 each, which includes the mounting bridge as well, rear ceramic pads are $39 for the set......so the total with our sales tax is $282.70........I'll go up before this weekend and get them so I have them ready to put on the car when I'm able.....
These are a brand name part, not a fly-by-night part like I found on eBay and other auto part stores
I may paint the rear calipers red to match the JCW red units that are on the front of the car.....I still have to take the front calipers off and strip them apart to install new puck seals and dust boots......lube everything up and re-install........I hope this is the last big expense for this car......after I get the brakes on and done, I think I can put the wheels & tires on, install the divers seat and maybe take it around the block for a spin.......I still have most of the interior out of the car after trying to diagnose and fix the corroded electrical issues I was having with the NAV system, and the convertible top not working at all. (see pictures in my posts above of all the broken wires)
Now that I think about those corroded & broken K-bus wires under the passenger front seat that I fixed, I'm wondering if I have that same issue in my '04 R53 because the trunk mounted 6 disc changer stopped working all of a sudden earlier this summer......when I get a dry day here, I'll pull the passenger front seat out and check under the carpet
Bryan, I know how it is dealing with back issues, I did the cortisone shot a few years ago before I had my back surgery. I never had any luck with all my shots, hope they are helping you out. Working on these cars with back issues sucks for sure. I have read every post and enjoyed reading all of them. Did you ever figure out what the big plug was, if not it is for the power steering pump. I look forward to reading more as she comes along, also surprised no one mentioned the purple super bird that was in the background of one of your pictures.
ssean....the shots have been working for me.....they tried the nerve cauterization about a year ago, that lasted only one week.....I can't do any kind of surgery, nothing is physically broken in my lower back, I'm just old and worn out.....
Yes, I found out what the large electrical plug went to......it's for the PS pump.....reason I didn't know is because I didn't take this car apart the first time, and it was just laying on top of the starter heat shield....plus the plug cover was broken and the PS pump terminals were all bent.....I posted a pic of that in this thread, somewhere
The purple car is a Daytona, basically the same style car, but made one year before the 'Bird......no worries
Went and picked up my rear calipers & brake pads.....total cost was $274.......I also needed a rear brake sensor.....got one coming, should be here next week
If I feel good enough to put the brakes on this weekend, I will.....right now I'm not in a big hurry......the wife has me on a short leash since my lower back injections
When I take the core calipers back to the shop, I need to take my extra set of blue JCW injectors up there to test them on the machine to see if they are OK.......I have had some inquiries about them, and I'm not really sure what my plans are for the extra set as of yet.....but I can't honestly sell them to someone not knowing if they are good or not
Got the new rear calipers and brakes installed, the e-brake cables came out of the old calipers very easy. After installation of the parts, I bled the calipers and adjusted the e-brake cables, everything works as it should.....rotors turned free after letting off the brake pedal or releasing the e-brake cable.
My new rear pad sensor arrived today, will install that next. Ya know, I bet Mini could have made that sensor wire a bit longer and put the connector in a little more harder place to get to it......what a pain to replace it
Next on my list is to take the front JCW calipers off and put new seals and dust boots in them..... I'm not paying $300 each for rebuilt calipers. The left front won't release completely, it's tight to turn the rotor after letting off the brake
I got a used HK amp from a member here and installed in in the car.....I now have "noise" from the speakers.....radio stations and CD player work as they should
I also found the elusive hiding connector for my "tire monitor reset button" way under the carpet.....evidently someone has been into this car before.....
So getting the radio system fixed is one more thing off my "repair list" on this car.......still left to do is rebuild both front calipers, replace both front & rear brake pad sensors, put the entire interior back into the car.....(hopefully in the correct order), put the front bumper cover back on, and I think it's ready for it's first test drive......I'm gonna need to get a set of tires also.....but those can wait until after a couple shakedown trips around town.....
Once I get it up and roadworthy, I have to put a few miles on the car for the ECM to relearn and complete it's drive cycles and take it through emissions to get my license tabs......
It may seem like it took a long time, to do this car rebuild, but actually it did not take very long! There will be a little more time dialing it in, but it is all downhill from now on! Bryan, Congrats on your perseverance and abilities to get this Beautiful 06 MCS JCW Vert going again! I know the many members that watched this come together, appreciate all that you are doing with it!
I hope you keep this, with that beautiful 66 Charger!
Thanks Wayne, appreciate the support.... for a while there I was chasing my tail trying to get all of these electrical issues solved.....once I found all those K-bus wires that were corroded and broken off under the passenger seat, after I fixed those, things started to fall into place.....
This car has sure been a learning experience for me.....if I ever find another MCS for real cheap, please feel free to slap me and remind me how this car has gone. I have two MCS's now, one hardtop, one convertible, that's my limit....no more
Again, appreciate all the help, but this ride ain't over yet until it's on the road under it's own power
Not sure what my plans are for the car, I know that we will keep it through next summer at least, the wife really wants to drive it....plus we need to test out that rear seat wind breaker that I bought this summer
Started putting the interior all back into the car....had to go to the dealer and get some of the door sill push pins that hold the sill panel on to the body....a few of them broke when removing them.......got 8 of the push pins for $11......all I have left to put back into the interior is both front seats......
I also had a few misc bolts and hardware missing from the car, the two T25 Torx bolts for the front bumper cover at the top, one bucket seat Torx bolt, and also one of the rear side marker arch light bulb sockets was bad.....I made a small list and got what I needed from ALLMAG Auto Parts ....those parts should arrive this week......I got a couple more items that I need....I'll start another list and contact them after these other parts arrive
Still have not done the front caliper rebuilds yet.......that is next on the list after the interior gets all back in
This may be my last update for a while....the car is going to be put on hold for a bit......the wife had her colonoscopy a couple weeks ago, the preliminary news was not good....we have a consultation with the surgeon next week to decide the best course of action.......
On the plus side, at least the convertible top and the NAV system is still working......I think a lot of this car's electrical issues was from that K-bus broken & corroded wire issue under the passenger front seat.....the only thing that I can't get to work is the remote unlocking of the car with the key fob.....if that is the only thing that I can't get to work, I think I'm way ahead of the game at this point......I don't even have a "push button" fob for my '04 R52 that we got a few years ago.....I was not going to pay over $225 for a key for that car
Actually, I did try that, but that was before I found all the K-bus wires that were bad, I should probably try that now that all the wires are repaired.
I just have to find the procedure that I printed out
OK, I tried all the key fob reset procedures that I could find in the forum & on the web.....still doesn't work......I may take the mirror off and see if the circuit board is corroded or broken.....if I can't find anything wrong, I just may not worry about it.....
Not much work has progressed on the car.....the wife is scheduled for surgery in a couple weeks, and my last set of Cortisone injections in my lower back did not work, so I'm getting an appointment set up for another round of shots....probably won't happen until late January at this point....plus it's been too damn cold out to do anything in the garage even though it's all heated in there.
I had to make another trip to MINI dealer to pick up that gray plastic electrical connector mounting piece that snaps into the inner frame rail that holds the rear brake pad sensor and the ABS sensor connectors, I broke that holder when replacing the rear pad sensor wire from the pad to the body wiring.....what a stoopid place to put those wire end connectors....on the plus side, MINI had a couple in stock for under $5 each....I bought two, as I didn't know if the left front one was on the car or not.....turns out it was there, so I have a spare
The interior is almost back in, except for the front seats. I took the front calipers off and removed the pucks from the calipers, took the calipers up to the shop and ran them through the hot water washing machine.....I have the new rebuild kits here, just have not gotten around to putting them all back together.....once I do that, I can put the inner front fenders back in, and put the front bumper cover back on, install the wheels & tires and maybe take it out for a quick spin.....but again, I have other issues to deal with up here at this time....the little "MINI from Hell" is on hold for now.....
Don't worry....this saga will be finished, and I'll keep you all informed as work progresses
Hope everyone has a good Christmas and a Happy New Year if you don't hear from me before then
Seeing that the progress has come to a stop for a bit, I went and ordered all the LED replacement bulbs for all of the standard bulbs for the interior, glove box, the two puddle lights under each door, and trunk light. Will install them when they get here. I replaced all the interior lights in my '04 R53 last year, really made a difference.
That glove box light connector could have been made maybe an inch or so longer, probably gonna have to pull the glove box compartment just to plug the electrical connector back in.....(sigh)
Also, I think that I'm gonna remove the new rear calipers and paint them red to match the JCW front brakes. I know that the rears were left bare, but I think by painting the rears will "balance out" the car when you look at it from the side. I'm not trying to make it look like the "tuner crowd", but I don't like the looks of just the red calipers on the front only.
Tinkered with the R52 a bit today.....finally got that dome light panel out of the car to replace the three #194 bulbs up there with the LED bulbs I bought.....I really thought I was gonna break the housing trying to get it un-snapped from the header panel.....there is no reason that light module has to be in there that tight.....replaced the bulbs, and snapped it back in.....I finally got my inside rear view mirror re-installed back on it's mounting point also....I had to take the plastic covers off of the mounting bracket that's attached to the mirror, then put the covers back on after I got the mounting snapped back into place. I'll try and get a few pics of the LED's in action when I get back out to the garage
That inside mirror is heavy.....it's the one with auto-dimming and also has the 3 little buttons in the lower left corner.....I'm guessing for garage door opener and such....
I also got the replacement fuel filler door locking mechanism installed as well.....had to remove the driver side rear tail light assembly to get the broken one out and the new one back in.....and it even works.....
I might try and get the front calipers all put back together and install them back on the car this weekend.....all depends on the weather, we're supposed to have heavy winds up here, and the power usually goes out.....
The wife's surgery is next Tuesday, the 18th.....so we're getting things ready for her hospital stay for about a week and then home for about the next month.....car work is on the back burner then
Wife is home after spending 5 days in the hospital, surgery went well. Now it's just recovery time and taking it easy for a while.....no date as to when she will be able to return to work, it all depends on how she's feeling. I took her to the grocery store this morning, she needed a few things, we got home and she's back in bed, she's running out of steam.
So, I tinkered with the LED interior lights today. I got my LED footwell lights the other day, figured I would like to see how they work......MAN, what a difference......the first pic shows the different style lights I have here, regular #194 bulb, flat LED light, and the new 18 LED light with housing at the top. The trunk light is the same as the footwell lights, at least on my 2006 car, so I put the new LED housing in there also.....these photos have not been edited or adjusted.....these new LED housings are really bright
The puddle light housings are the same as the footwell lights, I'm still waiting for those to arrive, will post pics of those when installed as well
(I just ordered another set of footwell lights for my '04 R53......I knew I was gonna like these)
Oops.....sorry, I fergot to post where I got them from......my 3 working brain cells are fried.....wife spent 5 days in hospital last week for surgery.....trying to keep her on house arrest and a short leash
Anyway, link to what I bought is below....came from eBay overseas......now I know there are other vendors that are USA based, and if you look at the auction, nowhere does it say it fit's the MINI.....I looked at these lights that specifically say they are for MINI, but prices were 2 to 3 times more.....so I did a little research, and found a number of these lights on eBay that are for BMW, the lights are the same as the MINI.....at least some are, you have to be careful and make sure the electrical wire pins are the same as our cars....some of these light housings have the two little electrical pins a little farther apart.......
There are a number of these lights on eBay.....just be careful about the pins
First off, I am glad to read you honey is doing well! I suppose she will be weak for some time. Hugs go out to her!
The lights are nice and bright!
Keep us posted on progress and take care of your back too!
10-30-2018, 04:27 PM
