Thanks to some very helpful posts here at NAM, I, a complete newbie to MINI DIY, did the following this weekend:

1. Replaced brake pads, rotors and sensors on my 2004 R53.
2. Changed oil and oil filter
3. Changed out air filter

I have some comments and questions. Some things went better than expected. Some things worse:

A. I was ready to start the job on Friday morning but discovered that the guy I bought the car from had wheel locks put on. I never noticed this, 'cause this is the first time I've worked on the car. No "key" for the lock was anywhere in the car, so I had to go to a tire place and ask them to loosen the locking bolt for me. This really cut into the time I had put aside for the work.

B. OctaneGuy's detailed how-to on brake-pad R&R was very hepful. One thing I had a heck of a time with that OctaneGuy didn't seem to gripe about was insertion of the new sensor into its slot in the brake pad's backing plate. On both front and rear pads, the plastic back of the sensor head cracked and broke off as I attempted to slide it into its seat. This happened even when I got wise the second time around and added a bit of silicon lube to the channel that the sensor slides in. I would not be surprised if one or both pop out of their seats from road vibration. That's about $25 down the tube. To make matters worse, even though I have two new sensors installed, the brake-pad light still shines on my dash. I thought that adding a new sensor turned the light off!

C. I bought (online) an "Astro Pneumatic 7860 11-Piece Caliper and Brake Service Tool Kit". Not one of the faces fit the rear piston holes, including the prongs on the end of the primary "T" tool. The prongs were too fat to fit into he holes. Very disappointed in the time that was wasted trying to get the tool to work, using needle-nosed pliers instead, not to mention to waste of $ spent buying the thing.

</SPAN>D. The mixed opinions about how easy/hard it is to remove and (especially replace) the oil filter had me spooked, but after reading a few posts on the topic, I gave it a whirl this morning, without problems. That was a relief.

E. Getting at the air filter was a small hassle, made "small" by reading a couple of helpful NAM posts. The filter seemed too big for its space. Tightening the cover almost seemed to "squish" the edge of the filter between top and bottom, rather than just enclosing it inside the housing. It also appears that the hole for one of the torx-head screws is stripped, which has left a small-ish crack between the housing cover and its base. Not sure what I'm going to do, but I'm considering finding a screw at the hardware store that is slightly bigger in circumference than the original and forcing it to bite into the stripped plastic. Other suggestions?

F. Several folks on NAM have found a secondary jacking point at the front left-right of the MINI that allows a jack stand to be placed at the primary jacking point. I haven't found a post that identifies a similar, secondary jacking point at the rear. Anyone have a suggestion?

Sorry for the long post. I am really enjoying being part of the NAM community.

 

There is another way to jack up the whole side of your MINI all at once. Blimey Cabrio discusses in his blog here: http://www.blimeycabrio.com/?p=76

I have used this with great success.

I have got job similar to yours coming up soon, so it is good to see this here.

 

Some Guy: I checked out Blimey Cabrio's how-to for full-side lifting. Thanks. I might just try that when I venture back in to see what's going on with my brake sensors.