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Cruising Craigslist early yesterday morning and i came across an add for an 04 MCS. It looked clean with some body damage, price seemed like a steal. So i got ahold of the owner... long story short i took a nice 9.5hr drive today and brought it home.
One owner 215k miles, original engine, 2nd clutch, original transmission. Needs brakes, and tires but otherwise driveable.
here are a few things that are haunting me. The original owner was real good when it came to oil changes, and ways ran synthetic. However, he never serviced the supercharger. Still original waterpump. And what look like the origin spark plugs, NGKs that say MINI on them. How the hell is this possible??? The supercharger alone should've taken a dump 100k miles ago?
i will be doing a complete refresher on the car within the next few weeks.
i only paid $600 for the car, assuming it will need loads of work. Honestly, it seems like a really solid car. I just cant help but feeling i bought a ticking time bomb...
Last edited by JoeyF; Jul 1, 2018 at 01:55 PM.
Reason: Spelling
Looks to be a good car from the outside. I think a $600 price gives you room to make the necessary repairs. You may just want to drive it until the supercharger dies- it may go on and on, then buy rebuilt or new. Maybe the plugs aren't original if the former owner bought MINI plugs at the dealer. In any event it should be an interesting project-enjoy!
I just finished replacing the rear brake lines and went for my first safe ride in it. (Drove it yesterday with just hand brake. Good ol' white knuckle fun)
she rips pretty good. Plenty of power. It can only get better from here. (I hope)
Gear selection seems a bit harder than it should be. It doesnt grind and clutch is fine. I just needs to be pushed harder than one would think. It did sit untouched since December 2017, does it just need to be used? I plan to buy 2 qts of Redline MTF and swap that out asap. Moneys tight right now after the purchase plus cost to bring it home. Plus we are camping this week.
should i get OEM plugs? I pulled cylinder 1, it is pretty burnt. Plus you can see a spot where it was arcing in the plug wire. I noticed these plugs have the 4 electrodes. I remember that being a fad 15 or so years ago. Just wondering whats good in today's market?
oh well, off to try and remove a metric ton of pine sap off the paint, and give her a bath. Her name is Cheryl btw, i didnt pick it PO did.
K&N filter bra! Good for a million miles! Instantly gains 20-30 HP!
Quick inspection of the throttle body, Just as black. Off to find some TB cleaner...
Oh, I took the intercooler off because I wanted to shoot air through the fins. Is it normal to have the inside coated in oil? Or is that a sign of impending doom???
K&N filter bra! Good for a million miles! Instantly gains 20-30 HP!
Quick inspection of the throttle body, Just as black. Off to find some TB cleaner...
Oh, I took the intercooler off because I wanted to shoot air through the fins. Is it normal to have the inside coated in oil? Or is that a sign of impending doom???
that's normal after so many miles.
i used acetone to degrease the intercooler.
Supercharger is off! However while doing so i broke the two lines coming off the plenum. Could someone please tell me what they are named, and where do i get replacements?
