Hey guys, just joined and this is my first post! I've been drooling over MINI's since they came out and I have finally saved up enough to get one. My lease on my current car is up in June so I'm shopping and researching now to educate myself.

So I've decided on a used 02-03-04 MC_S (I'm still shopping) and I went for my first test drive today. Man I love this car.....

There was only one big problem that I ran into and that was that I'm a tall guy 6'5" and my feet are pretty wide. I kept hitting the brake when I put my foot on the gas. With my foot all the way over against the tunnel there is only like 10mm between my foot and the brake. Do you guys know if there is a do-it-yourself way to move that brake pedal over to the left a bit? or get more room to the right of the gas?

Also on a side note this car had a pretty annoying squeak/rattle emanating from the rear hatch (like it wasn't engaged fully) even though it was tightly shut. Is this normal?

Thanks in advance! and these forums Rock!

 

mabe think about purchasing a nice set of Adidas Goodyears sneakers. they are wicked comfortable and look great. best of all is they are pretty thin sneakers ( contour the foot ) and make driving alot easier. i have the same issue when driving with my doc martins. try the adidas, bet you like them.

 

Yeah, I could get a thinner pair of shoes but I have to wear "nice" shoes to work and it would be kind of a pain to change shoes every time I go to and from work. Are there any after market pedal pads that are thinner?

 

The rattle from the rear hatch is fairly common, but not 'normal' in the sense that it was meant to be there. I had it, and from reading some posts here, fixed it by wrapping some electrical tape on the metal bracket (the square-ish piece that engages the hinge).

 

I removed the entire brake pedal arm right up to the pivot point. Then put it in a huge vise and applied a lot of elbow grease and bent it in a double bend affair to keep the pedal still parallel to the clutch and put it back in. I only needed about 5/8 inch move to the left to make it perfect. Not hard at all.

YD

 

Cool! thanks Yo's Dad! thats exactly what I was looking for I was worried that it might be a bear to pull it apart. I think 5/8ths should be enough for my duck feet too.
Just so happens I've got a vice and some elbow grease at my work.

So the hatch can be fixed with a little tape too, all good news.

Thanks for the replies guys

 

be careful about the trade-offs here... the brake and gas are somewhat close in the MINI to allow for better heel-and-toe downshifting. It would be shame to ruin that capability by going too far to accommodate big feet.

 

I had the exact same problem with my size 13s. Basically, I had to stop wearing two or three pairs of shoes because they were too wide to allow for independent brake/throttle control. Certain shoes definitely pose a safety hazaard, not just an inconvenience.

Also, provided the OP is going to keep the car for awhile, I don't see the problem with bending the brake pedal. Perhaps by moving it to the left, it will ENABLE him to heel/toe should he desire to do so. It's probably too tight for him to have a chance to do that now.

Or maybe he could order a spare and reinstall an unbent one for when he sells it down the road.

 

wow, i have the exact opposite problem, when i go to throw the clutch down in a hurry, on more than one occasion i've stepped on the brake at the same time, causing all sorts of road chaos. i would be careful about moving the brake to the left, as that would put it even closer to the clutch.

 

Converse all stars, chuck taylors, aka "chucks"

 

Damn skippy

 

Well, if you're wearing two or three pairs of shoes, that's your problem right there! Try just wearing one pair from now on...

 

What about buying an after market pedal kit and modifying that?

 

I found its not the pedal pads but the metal arms that support them, I second the comment about the brake/clutch. I was pressing the brake and the clutch pedal was moving at the same time, also when releasing the clutch the bar supporting the pedal hit my foot resting on the brake, This should be interesting to figure out.

Had the exact same problem with a Isuzu rodeo.

Peter

 

Then perhaps move your clutch some to the left also. The pedals need to be comfortable and positioned where you like them best to make the drive as fun and enjoyable as possible. If there is something you don't like consider changing it.

My left down tube kept my right leg from laying over where I wanted it. It hit me in the shin... so I carved a nice chunk out of it, redid it in fiberglass and now it is perfect.

YD

 

You really need to post a picture of it so everyone can see how nice of a job you did. I know a lot of people were interested in them for their cars - did you ever end up doing a production run?

 

i remember seeing pix of that. really nice work. on long drives my shin starts to get sore as well... even with a leather/foam pad on the downtube.

 

The whole set of pics is buried somewhere in "Interior and Exterior", I'll see if I can find it. With my forum skills I may have to tell you where it is and have one of you bring it back to life.

YD

 

I found it but don't know how to bring it to this forum other than listing the link where it is in Interior/Exterior.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ight=ergonomic

YD

I made an second one and sold it to a guy in Texas who said he would install it, then post a review on the forum. I emailed him a couple of months later and he was just getting around to getting it painted some custom color and I gave up. They are not hard to make, just need a blank and a reasonable amt of time. But man, it feels so good.


YD

 

I initially had concerns with the clutch/brake pedal proximity to each other as I wear size 13 shoes (steel toed) shoes to work but I've gotten used to it. Wearing good driving shoes or something similar really makes a difference. I really like wearing my narrow Sketchers sneaks when I drive.. they make you feel like you're in a dancer's shoes.

 

only 5'10", but have a real wide foot. If I wear my high top sneakers, it can be a little trouble some. I'm thinking of buying some dedicated driving shoes, (though Wifey will probably give a little grief. It's ok for "them" to buy shoes dedicated for specific functions...)

 

The hatch rattle can usually be fixed by unscrewing the two "bumpers" on the body at the bottom edge a turn or so. This is the adjuster to make the hatch fit tighter.