How can I identify if my 2004 (pre facelift) Cooper has been retrofitted with a Getrag 5 speed? I know it was fitted with a Midlands transmission from the factory and I saw the thread on them today. Needless to say with 139,000mi on my wonderful little Cooper I was in a minor little panic (not really, just became concerned about what the symptoms were so I can keep an eye out) and did some research about the differences between the two transmissions. What I found is that my experience with my transmission matches the getrag exactly. Notchy shifts (though I have to say I am not the best to judge this as it is the only manual I have daily driven and my other experience is with a rally school's 2011 Ford Fiesta which was like pushing a stick through mud), occasional difficulty getting into reverse (sometimes the gears just don't line up right meaning that I have to let the clutch out to spin the gears before trying again). Is there a way to easily identify a Midlands vs a Getrag? I would like to know just so I know if I need to keep an eye out for potential problems with the Midlands. Thanks for the help.

 

Top image and part number is the Midlands, second is the Getreg.

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/part...i-Cooper&mg=23

 

I thought the Midlands was 5 speed and the Getrag was 6.

James

 

The 5 speeds were both the early Midlands and the later Getregs, all the 6 speeds were Getregs.

 

Looking at those images it looks like the easiest way to tell would be that the starter is mounted towards the front of the car on the Getrag unlike the Midlands where it is towards the firewall. I will have to check it out next time I am working on my car.

 

It's very unlikely that you have a 5 spd Getrag. It is not a drop in replacement for the Midlands and requires different clutch and flywheel along with fittings. People have done the conversion to get a 6 spd Getrag, and the same effort would be needed for 5 spd Getrag.

http://www.mini2.com/forum/first-gen...ml#post3076200 (read the whole thread for background info)

If your Midlands has gone bad, they are only available now as used/rebuilt units. If you do a Getrag conversion you may as well go to a 6 spd.

 

The trans in my car is still good and isn't showing any signs of failing. Like I said I am really more interested in knowing which I have so that I can keep an eye on potential issues. The previous owner of this car is the owner of my local Mini shop. He purchased it last year as a project car. I do not know the condition of the vehicle at the time that he purchased it as I was at school and my Dad made the actual purchase of the vehicle for me so I don't know the exact work that was done to the vehicle (my mechanic has the full records and I know that all wear items were replaced including breaks, clutch, all belts, all fluids, anything that was starting to wear such as bushings etc, new struts and tires). Most of his projects are purchased with a major mechanical issue that is then upgraded. For example the current project car is an R50 which had a blown CVT which they swapped to a 6-speed. I would not be hugely surprised to learn that my car was purchased with a blown trans which they then swapped to a Getrag (I do know it sat for a while before he purchased it). The shop kinda specializes in the R50 and R53 so they know that the Midlands is weaker than the Getrag and they may have had a Getrag from another project to use.

Honestly either way my unit has a clean bill of health as of the time of purchase. When I am home for thanksgiving I am going to bring it in to have an idler pulley swapped (it was known bad at the time of purchase and was replaced before I left for school.

 

Why don't you just ask....if it's the shop I think it is, they will be happy to tell you.
If a conversion was done, I think they would tell you, because you would need to know if you ever order a CV joint/Axel...the number of splines for each application is different....so a different part number.

 

Greasy's Garage in Worcester. It's a curiosity thing not a problem. This is also something I can check this weekend while I have the hood open to mock up driving light brackets. It isn't worth calling them and using their time to determine what transmission I have for curiosity's sake when I am going to have the hood open this weekend.

 

Pete does good work....I wouldn't worry too much...heck, you bought a car from him....so you qualify as a customer.....just leave a message with Tom, and say you can call back later for the info....just so you know what you need should you ever do work on it...be it lube or an Axle.....

 

Pete does all the service on our older cars (the new ones just go to the dealers because they have warranties). My Dad has known him for years and Pete helped with a lot of the fab work to make gravel suspension work on my Dads Merkur rally car. It somehow took this long for him to sell us a Mini. I am confident my car is better off mechanically than Coopers with half its mileage and if it isn't he gave me the "this car won't need anything for at least a year" warranty.

 

The easiest way to tell is my your build date. They switched from the Midlands 5-speed to the Getrag 5-speed mid to late 2004. My 2004 is a Midlands. I know this because it died and was rebuilt. The car was built in March 2004. The axels and a host of other things are different on the Getrags. If you check Real OEM, look for a change in part numbers for axels, shift linkages, ect. I know this because when mine died, I wanted to do the 5-speed Getrag swap, until I was told that I would have to replace the axels, shift linkage, linkage box and a bunch of other stuff to the tune of about $5000. $6000 for a 6-speed swap. $2500 to rebuild.

 

Took a look at it today while I was checking all the fluids in preparation for the trip home next weekend and I was able to confirm that I have a Midlands in mine.