Hi guys i am a newish member i have been searching for the perfect mini for me, for a solid month. Yes it is a daily driver and yes before i get flamed it is a cabrio, the reason i am posting in the hatchback is because the section seems way more active and the questions dont pertain to any convertible features or anything.

Well let me get to it,

I bought a 2005 MCS Cabrio with 45k miles, I do not know anything about it(I got it from some garbage dealership that dident know about it either, It was a steal in my opinion ) I traveled 3 hours to pick it up and the first thing i noticed about it was a Borla upgraded exhaust system that sounded beautiful.

I also noted a upgraded speaker system with a massive sub woofer in the trunk.

But i am 19 years old, and know barley nothing about cars i have done my fair share of research on everything and what i am mostly intrested in now is upgrading the car, Because it is the enthusiest car and i would love to make it more mine and the way i want it exactly so i am looking for some insight!


TL;DR Help me mod my new car that i know nothing about

I am going to add some pictures of my car that kind of throw me off of what it there and what could be there, Also i noticed a long cable on the dash board? it has nothing attached to it but it is just laying on the dash and i am not sure what it is .. i will attach that picture later

Here is the front(Yes i added the euro plate :D )



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On the topic of the front, Right below the fog light is like a open socket? I do not know what i could put there but i would love something other then emptyness.



Like another light possibly or.. I am open to suggestions cause personally i am clueless.
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I also went out and read a major first step is the stubby antenna,



Well i got a Alta one but the reception is atrocious so i have to stick with the stock one and leave the alta one just lying on my desk :/ I wish it would work
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Just random picture of the rims

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Stock Cold air intake or?

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I heard about the to topic of mushrooming and did lots of research and i believe my struts are mushroomed..





So i compulsivly ordered myself a M7 Front strut bar and it is sitting on my floor because i do not know how to approach the mushrooming issue( They suggest the 2x4 wooden plank and a hammer but that just seems barbaric to me, I will do it but i was wondering if you guys have used this method and succeeded .

So if you guys have any addon ideas and i will try to get the picture of the subwoofer/ Cable and also i have 2 empty switches on my dashboard that are just blank and i feel like those could be added lights or something of the sort.

Sorry if this was to long, Like i said i am a fairly new member and do not know how things go around here yet so thank-you in advance !

 

Added pictures i mentioned before,

Subwoofer:



2 free switch slots / Speaker system:



Random cable i mentioned on my dash:





Picture of the entire front dash/ Tachometer/ ect:



Of course any ideas or info would be greatly appreciated!

 

Ok first Welcome to NAM
Second nice car, the cable seems to be a direct wire for a radar detector, the air filter is not stock it's a performance one and it seems to be from Madness (brand)

 

The fog light retrofit is this http://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2005-C...ghts/ES173352/

You can also get the rear fog ligh then you will need to have it coded at the dealer or someone that has the software.
You'll need to get a new switch bank or toggle bank, that why you are missing bottons those are the rear and front fogs, if you decide just to get the fronts you still need the new toggle bank or whatever they call it its not cheap but not crazy expensive.

 

What you are calling a fog light is the parking light. The finned hole below is for OEM fog lights.
Airbox is aftermarket
Can't really see the mushrooming, but the barbaric 2x4 and sledge is how I did it
As said before, the empty toggles are for front and rear fog lights
Cable is a hardwired radar detector, or possibly a Scangauge - check the OBDII port (under left side of the dash) and see if there is a plug in it

Good luck, and welcome to NAM!

 

Thankyou so much guys And would that plug into any radar detector ? Like a valentine one, Whistler or escort? or do you think its for a specific one?

Also that fog light kit looks great thankyou for the link!

 

Go with Val1 and you wont regret it.

Maybe that cable is for a dial up house phone? LOL

 

Is the price worth it 100% ?

 

This is the toggle switch bank, http://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2005-C...ches/ES167631/
Parts change by built date even on the same year so check your built date on the driver's door and go from there to research for OEM parts realoem.com is great for that you will need your VIN number to get the correct part numbers and as Mr Rowland said check to see if there is anything attached to the OBDII port, in case that you don't know it's the port were you would connect (or a MINI tech) the scan tool or computer to the car it's under the left side of the dash by the fuse box, if there is nothing connected then that cable is connected to the fuse box in order to plug Ina radar detector, in some ways you are kind of set with this car, I wouldn't be surprised that it have a smaller supercharged pulley as well

 

I don't have the V1 I have an escort but they are both worth the money, is not bulletproof if you see the word LASER on your radar detector you are screwed lol, but it is a good tool, saved me some money.
By the way they are illegal in VA and DC, don't know where you are kind of looks like FL

 

Here's is the rear fog light, this one is very easy to install, just pop the black plastic and put this one in, the connector should be already there, I think that on the 05 it's pre wired, mine is

http://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2005-C...hts/ES2207526/

You can also get this part at Way motor works or Outmotoring
I try to support MINI vendors as much as I can, the only thing is that I'm going broke already and only had the car for 6 months lol
Seriously buy from small MINI business and keep them around much longer

 

Two months ago i was being trailed by another car on the way to Texas. I saw the car behind me has a radar detector by looking on my rear view mirror. A mile ahead is a hill and i get a beep from a POPO signal so i slowed down. The car behind me overtake and sped up and i just laugh. Sure enough after the hill the cop stopped that same car. Is it worth it? I wouldn't buy other brand.

 

Yeah i assume i have a upgraded pulley but just cant check unless i took it to a shop, And the cable goes all the way into the far end of the dash like towards the engine compartment? i don't believe its to under the steering wheel. But i will check, like i said i am not very car smart.. Yet :D

And if not the Val 1 will come with the proper cables i assume so i will probably pick it up off amazon

I might have to put the installing the fog lights and switch kits off for a little while because it seems very complex, Unless i can maybe find a performance mini shop that can install it if i supply the parts or maybe its better for me to just learn on my own and do it.

 

So just to clarify i would need a whole new toggle bank / rear and front fog lights for the whole install? So roughly 260$ and all 3 links youposted minibx ?

 

That is correct, you don't have to get the rear fog light if you don't want to but since is so cheap why not.

 

Okay that could be a good project for me as long as they come with good instructions. Thankyou again minibx

So now i can safely order those and start 1 set of addons to my car aswell as the strut bar, Now i guess im back on the topic of that radar detector/Cable

So i looked under my steering wheel and above the pedals and i just see stuff that i am not familiar with, I do not see the solo black wire and like i said it dosent look like its going to under my wheel anyway



I cant follow it after this :/ not sure where it goes i looked under my hood to see if i could see it going anywhere else but nope

 

Ok, on the fog lights I saw that you have DSC so if do this make sure that you order the correct toggle switch built date with DSC it with fogs it will have both front and back even if you don't order the rear fog light.
On the pulley you should be able to tell I'm not the right person to ask since I don't have one and I'm not near the car to show you pics but it should be easy to tell if you have one it
On the cable I'm sure that the cable goes to the fuse box it's by the dead pedal next to the clutch pedal there is a panel there that if you open it you should be able to see it, if you go to the how to section look for how to hard wire a radar detector and that will give you an idea, my guess is that it could work with different brand as but I could be wrong about is, I do know that a regular telephone cord will work depending on the length go the cable it has to be short to work well but that one looks a bit different so I'm not sure, someone will chime in I'm sure

On the strut towers I hear that is the way to go hammer and mallet weird right?

Glad I can help,
Did you have a pre purchase inspection on this car? If not check for leaks Lower control arm bushings, sway bar bushings, motor mounts, coolant expansion tank, rad fan and power steering fan and houses, check for common problems on your type of car here in NAM

 

Should be a madness brand intake- check the left side of the box... Bottom right should say MINI MADNESS.
Filter is an off brand, not a K&N from the color is how I'm assuming.
Check the front grill to see If that cable is up there, there is a brand that installs in the grill for longer range and more discretion, or check the fuse box to see If that wire is in there, its next to the intake.
To check the SC pulley, you should be able to look at the pulley on the left side,top-most pulley, and itll have a brand if its not stock, may be hard to read but a decent cell phone will usually get you zoomed in well enough to read it if your hands are steady enough.

All Input was pretty clear about the driving lights and fog lamps. You could always buy the module for the dash and connect later, or run some underglow off that switch since the wires are ran already, which I plan on doing.

Great colors on the MINI!! Congrats on the purchase.

 

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...smartcord.html

This should give you an idea to where does the cord goes

 

minibx - thanks for the referral

The rear fog lights can be a little confusing: Also with the addition of the front fog light add on.

Depending on options and year corresponds to the toggle panel you will need.

There was a wire kit that was needed for certain years because MINI decided to not install them from the factory for the ability of the fog light option, which was due to the west coast states dragging there feet on the legality of the rear fog light.

Rear lens : Part # 63247166015
ttp://www.ecstuning.com/Search/63247166015/ES2207526/



Rear fog light wire kit: part # 63120406620
http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/63120406620/ES172109/



Wire kit:
***For vehicles built from 7/2004 - 11/2004.
Since some production cars might have factory wiring, please check under the rear bumper near the center on the body for rear plug harness.***



:::::Toggle switches::::::

9/2004 was the split year. For the R50 R53 model.

http://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2004-C...rior/Switches/


First what does the toggle back look like. There are six switches.

For example:


From left to right:
All MINIs have windows / locks , so the "DCS or ACS or blank" for the one between the lock and driver window.

Then Rear fog light option , then front fog light option , then window switch.

Determine production month / year and you should be good to go. Toogle - "Rear fog light " section is for all toggle combinations that include the rear fog light.


Install PDF for rear fog lights pre 7/2004


http://www.motoringfile.com/howto/Fog%20Lights.PDF


Here is the front fog light add on kit for Gen 1 - 63130395387

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/63130395387/ES173352/





This will require the corresponding toggle back with your options. Its easy to just let me know what you have and what you end up doing .


Thanks

 

Cable looks like it goes to a ScanGuage 2

http://www.outmotoring.com/mini-coop...de_reader.html

The rest has been covered by others. Check to see if that cable is routed under the dash and connected to the OBC connecter on the left side of the drive foot well.

 

no problem ECS Im also in need to order this set up but first I have to deal with my passenger widow motor or regulator or both and I think that I will be ordering that instead, I really don't want to be without being able to use my window once it gets warmer, I just ordered a couple of things from you guys.
Thanks

 

Sorry for the late reply guys was busy till now,

And firstly thank you everyone on how inviting, nice and helpful the community of north american motoring is

And i checked it does not appear to be routed under the foot well daflake,

So is it safe to assume it is for a police radar?

 

And i had a brief inspection by just a random mechanic at like tire kingdom, Just the basics you know

he put the car up in the air on the hydraulics checked the wheel rotation and looked for leaks ect, nothing to intense

 

ok, did you check the OBDII connector? if is empty the cable is not a ScanGuage then you could look inside the fuse box did you find it? I'm not sure if it is on the same side as the hardtop, it could be on the right side on the Cabrio but I'm not sure, once you locate the fuse box you should open it and see if there is a cable attached to one of the fuses, it won't look stock, if you see something like that it has to be for a radar detector not for a Police radar, if you have a friend that has one they can try it out and see if it works, just by the location of the cable I'm sure that it is a Radar detector cable that would be a common place to place one.
If you have a MINI dealer or a MINI or BMW shop near you I would advise that you check the car there since they will know what to look for, a regular one will not look for MINI specific issues.
Also you are missing this part is the positive terminal cover next to the cold air intake http://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2005-C...rical/ES31272/