I have a 2004 "Astro Black" R50 coming up on 90k miles and looking to do some "upkeep" type maintenance on it over this Spring - hoping to get at least another 90k miles out of it!

First, the basics (does all this sound good?):
Oil change - Mobil1 full synthetic 5w30 with Mann filter/pair of O-rings (do I need to replace plug/washer or can I reuse without issue?)
Manual tranny fluid change - Redline MTL, just over 2 bottles (same question with plug, need to replace?)
Spark plugs - NGK plugs (should I replace coil and wires at same time, and if so which would you recommend?)
Air filter cleaning - already have K&N drop in replacement
Serpentine belt - have belt, need tool, think I can improvise.....

Anything else I should do while I'm at it? I think I flushed the coolant last year, so I should still be good there - just top that off.

One technical question - power steering. On occasion, my power steering will "go out." It got bad at a point when I would lose it a few times a week, but I'd just park the car, turn it off, wait two seconds, and start it back up and it would work just fine. No issues over past 2-3 months, but I obviously don't want it to return or get worse.

One vanity question - a while back a guy backed his truck up into my car, and the ball hitch "dented" my chrome upper grill. It's not bad, but I wasn't crazy about the grill style on my car anyway and was thinking of replacing it with something a little more aggressive looking. I was thinking about this...
http://www.outmotoring.com/mini-coop...rsion_kit.html

First off, will that fit my car without having to do much work to make it fit? Secondly, my car also has those little "chrome bumpers" on the left and right side of my bumper, like on this car (not mine, but the exterior looks identical)...

http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail...nal&listType=1

And I'm not sure that an all black grill would work unless everything else is blacked out, which would take a lot of work. Any other ideas?

Thanks so much if you got all the way through this!

 

Add a coolant flush+fill....
Due every 36-48 months....failure to do so can cause internal corrosion....leading to the heater core getting plugged....and the head gasket failure is usually not far behind....
Brake fluid is dot4....has a similar 36 month lifespan (dot3 can sometimes last almost got life, but dot4, while being a higher performing fluid does have a shorter life)...so a full flush...not just a bleed would be a good added item.
Edit...see you say you did it (coolant flush)...

 

P.S.
The oil drain plug has a built in rubber gasket...made for one use, most folks do get multiple uses from one...but if it is deformed from using s wrench... Just replace it..so keep one handy.

 

I did the coolant flush and fill a year ago, so I should be good for another year correct?

Any online how to's for the brake fluid flush? I've never done one before.....

 

P.S.
Pump has a Extented warrenty ...13 years, 150,000 miles.....might want to check with your dealer to see (using your vin) if you are covered....
Check the fluid level....hoses leak...not covered...uses a special fluid.

 

HAHA, does "PS" in your post mean "post script" or " power steering"? I'll check with the dealer, but it hasn't been an issue in 2-3 months, and I'm not sure what was causing it. I'll check fluid level. What's the "special fluid" that it takes, and is that something I could order and have on hand?

Also was going to replace headlights for added viability (lots of deer where I am). Any suggestions? They are H11 and H7, correct?

Thank you so much for your posts.

 

I would take advantage of the PS Pump warranty and take it in as soon as you can, it sound like your pump is on the way out and it could give you a very unpleasant surprise and even an accident if you are not careful, even if the pump has been working lately I would still have it looked at by the dealer because it will fail again. Make sure that you use the correct fluid as Zippy said. Good luck

 

A few tips for maintenance:
Change ALL FLUIDS. Drain plugs can be reused if not leaking or stripped but they're cheap & there's no point in scrimping. Get magnetic 1s or OE.

Your PS pump maybe on the way out. Be prepared for a swap. You can check for warranty. New, not rebuilt, is best. If out of warranty & you're mechanically able, try cleaning the pump itself. Some had luck. Be sure to change the hoses, clamps & CHF11s fluid.

Check if you still have your low speed fan, if not, bypass the burnt resistor. There's an epic sticky on this in the Stock Problems section.

Suspension: Check your strut mounts for cracks & unbalanced wear; strut tower for mushrooming. If so, swap w/ OE/ IE fixed camber plates/Vorshlag, hammer back any mushrooming & add Cravenspeed or VIP strut tower plates if you haven't yet.
Kick your front tires towards the back. Any hint of movement means its time to swap LCA/swaybar bushes w/ Powerflex, inner & outer ball joints w/ Genuine or OE like Lemforders. Rear strut mount rubber pcs & sway bar bushes are best swapped w/ Powerflex. If struts are leaking, Koni FSDs are a worthy replacement.

Check your motor mounts. If passenger side has leaked, swap w/ VibraTechnics. Stay away from OE for reliability issues. TSW passenger side & BSH lower mounts are notorious for NVH.

Ignition: swap plugs , wires & even coilpack w/ Genuine or OE

Fuel system: change fuel filter. If you're having hard starts, check your submerged fuel pump to filter hoses for splitting. Pressure can be checked on the Schrader valve by the fuel injector rail. The little vacuum hose might need changing too.

Cooling system: if your tank is split & cap leaking, don't hesitate to swap w/ Canton or RMW w/ the Stant cap. Check thermostat for leaking. Coolant should be changed every coupla years. So w/ brake fluid.

Engine oil leaks are usually from crank position sensor O-ring, valve cover & oil pan gaskets. Sometimes, the crank shaft seal & the oil filter housing gasket.

Boots: check all for cracking.

Check Serpentine belt.

And.....keep a spare ALTERNATOR!!!!

Hope this helps keep your R50 in tip top shape!!!!

MINI on, MINIon!!!!

 

Halogen bulbs do dim a bit with age....
As an example...
I have xenon headlights on my car (Factory setup uses xenon lows, halogen high beams)....one of the halogen hi beams burnt out...put new $4 (each) Wagner brand bulbs from rockauto.com...and my hi beams were about 50% brighter....the old working bulb had turned almost black....
So just getting new bulbs...(cheap) or spending a bit more on $$ bulbs might get you a nice change...that and imo get a $20 headlight polishing kit...make the lenses clear like new...might be surprised. High power " off road" bulbs can cause wiring issues, fuse issue's or even melt and discolor the housing lens....most xenon kits are worse than stock halogen since the housing is not replaced...so optimize what you have imo.

 

Oil change - 'pair of o-rings'? There's only one.
No need for new tranny plugs, but as Zippy said the OEM plug is designed for single use.
Strange that the PS pump would 'go out'. Might want to check that the PS fan is working. As Zippy said, this is now a warranty item - might be worth a call to the dealer.
Plugs - NGK are fine. I'd probably do wires (OEM are fine.) No need to replace the coil, but be aware that some get corrosion on #3. Good to pull it and check.
That's my input. Happy motoring!

 

The grille? Those from Outmotoring should fit fine. If you want a fresh look, Color-code vinyl wrap your chrome trims on bumper, headlight rings & blackout your beltline. If you opt to keep the chrome, the facelift R53 CC'd slats w smooth chrome trim can be a nice touch. Just my 2cents.

 

Amazing responses, and I got about 1/3rd of what minsanity said, so I guess I have some homework to do. I've never ever done anything relating to suspension, maybe that's something else I should look into. I have a local shop that I've worked with for years and really trust, and I have an inspection due in a month. I'll have their trained eyes look at a few of these things for me....

 

You can go crazy/ocd on mantaince.....
I run most items "on condition"....meaning if it us worn or failed... I fix it...in good shape I run it.
A mini, driven nicely, on THE street, can be very reliable....
Folks that race cars or rev the crap out of them do have more issues.... Just a fact of life....high rpms tend to kill alternators...lots of "at the limit" turns can be tuff on ball joints...
Some cars are nightmares.... Many are pretty good.
You just need to look...a determine what needs to be done to YOUR car.
Good luck!

 

Don't worry much. Gen1 faults & weaknesses are all known, have proper upgrades & pretty DIYable fixes now. These cars, when well cared for, are pretty reliable & FUN!!!!

 

Thanks Zippy, that's kinda what I'm doing. It's my daily driver, and driven on THE road, and I'd like to keep it my daily driver for the next 5+ years if I can! I love not having a "car payment", but I guess maintenance is my current "car payment", so I'd like to keep that low if possible - but I also need to keep the car running properly.

I consider myself pretty handy, but also realistic in that some of the stuff listed above I have zero idea how to do. I can do the oil, tranny fluid, serp. belt (I think), plugs and wires (any wire recommendation by the way?), headlights, coolant flush, air and cabin filters, likely even fuel filter swap (I did this maybe at 50k miles with mechanic buddy's help). Once you get to power steering pumps, brake jobs, suspension stuff....I'm out of my element pretty quick.

 

I may be thinking of my wife's car, but I thought there was a large O-ring between the housing and the engine, and then a little one for the "plug" that's in the housing.....

Again, might have mixed up my cars, though.

 

Either of these power steering fluids suitable for my car? Good idea to have some on hand?

 

Its the Petrosin....
It is used in a few makes...
So it is sometimes sold locally....
I would stay away from "universal" euro fluids...even Petrosian is made in two different versions to different specs......

 

As others have said, go to the dealer regarding the power steering pump. After years of many owners having failures, MINI is now covering replacement with extended warranty.

See this (post # 298): https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ml#post3744289

 

Thanks for this. Yeah, I'll let dealer handle everything with power steering issues. I won't even get additional fluid at this point, just let them "fix it".

My car would take two pairs of H7 and another pair of H11 headlights/foglamps, right?

 

Correct those are the right ones

 

Well what about the left ones? :-)

 

Suitable plug wire replacements, or would you suggest others?


Thanks again for all the great help with this, I hope that others who read this are getting as much information out of it as I am!

 

Lol

 

That's a good price however I'm unsure when it comes to that, I need to get cables myself, I may get the original ones but not sure yet