Hello fellow MINIacs,

I just wanted to introduce myself or rather come out from hiding. My name is Ricky. I'm in the greater metro Detroit, MI area. I have been stalking this site and a few other MINI sites for years now. I fell in love with MINIs since I first saw one at the Detroit auto show way back in 2002. I almost bought one and at the last minute decided it wasn't practical enough for me (too small). Two TDI (diesel) Golfs and over 400,000 miles later I am throwing practical out the window (sorta... it's still a hatch so there's that).

I have looked at all iterations of Coopers on the road for years, pined over them, and whimpered like a dog wanting to play. I almost bought an F55 but my heart and eyes still averted to the R53. Scouring the internet for an R53 I searched for months. I was willing to travel even by plane to find a gently used version and on several occasions I had one sold from under me. I did not realize people circle like vultures looking for one! FINALLY found one 1.5 hours away and got in before the dealership opened to buy only to find it had been sold late the night before. Ugh! Divine intervention or their bad luck later (bad credit) I became the owner of this very gently (less than 29,000 miles) enjoyed 2004 Cooper S AND in my dream color combo. How someone could own such an amazingly fun car and barely drive it is beyond me. Why have a dog if you are going to keep it crated all the time? I haven't even owned it a month and I have a grocery list of mods I want to do. Stripes, DDM intake, 15% pulley, lighter wheels (white anyone?), braces (underbody TSW and strut tower defenders), sway bar, cooler plugs, rust proofing (hey I live in MI, I have to worry about those things if I want to keep my new toy from dissolving away over the winter) and and and.... who knows what else!

Without further adieu here's what I am naming Jack. I've never owned a Jack Russell terrier but that is what comes to mind driving this thing! Friendly, fun, frenetic, quick, darty, loyal, always ready to play and always puts a smile on my face.

Looking forward to seeing fellow miniasts on the road!

 

Congratulation for your great find. Low mileage is most important given a choice. That is a classy color combo too.

 

Welcome and Congrats, looks like a nice one

 

Very nice! I too have one in electric blue, though I have a black roof. And lucky you to find one with so few miles!

When I went from a GTI to the R53, there was of course a decrease in storage. But it was easy to adapt, and it is a rare occasion when I need more space. However, it sounds like you are over that concern...

Welcome, and maybe make a post in the electric blue owners club thread...

 

Welcome, it looks great!

 

Welcome to NAM.

A pulley and a rear sway bar are some good low cost mods that will put even more smiles on your face.

 

Thanks for the welcome Blues!

I'm used to the smaller cargo space for the most part. I'm still getting used to the difference between supercharged vs turbocharged and how low revving a diesel is compared to our MINIs. I'm so used to shifting at 3k and wondering why I'm not pulling away like before. My TDI was chipped and had a larger turbo so it's been a learning curve. The biggest change was going from 700+ miles/tank to just shy of 400! At least gas $ is cheap for now.

 

Thanks r53coop!

The pulley is definitely the first thing on the list to mod! I miss the torque pull of my diesel so I'm thinking a 15% pulley should do the trick. I've already contacted Detroit Tuned and am looking forward to checking it out. I forgot about the rear sway bar! Thanks!

 

Love electric blue. White R85's and stripes will look great. That's my dream combo too.

 

Congrats and welcome.

 

I would love to hear your over all thoughts on converting from the GTI to the R53, sounds like a down grade, but I love my 29,000 mile BRG 2005 R53, probably will never sell it in fact.

 

Nice car Ricky! I'm just south of Toledo. Next Saturday, August 5, is MINI on the Mack. Bring your new MINI and cross the Mackinac bridge with at least 1,200 other MINI's!

https://www.minionthemack.com/

-Jeff

 

It would probably be more appropriate for me to respond to this by PM rather than go into much detail in this particular thread. However I will say that both the Mk IV GTI and the R53 MCS are great cars, completely different in my eyes, and I would not consider the R53 a downgrade at all. And if you've only got 29k miles on a BRG R53, you should sell it to me, for cheap.