New on the Forum but loving it already - bought myself a Mini JCW in Qatar ! It is basically a very well looked after car, judging by all the work recorded (and thousands spent) on the BMW Mini service centre computer records. I was there yesterday picking up some Coolant and MTF and asked to see the records - they tend not to stamp the service books here, but more rely on the computerized records. Anyway suffice it to say no expense seems to have been spared for this little pampered Mini, and now I need to keep it going with a few minor jobs (famous last words!).





So far I have on the list:
1. Oils and Filters Service (Air, Cabin AC and Oil filters, with Engine oil and MTF) - Brake Fluid done at BMW in 2016
2. Radiator / Coolant flush
3. Rear Wheel bearings / hubs
4. CV Boots - only inner ones split but might as well do them all - clean out and new grease on CV joints
5. Either engine mounts and/or suspension bushings - will know more once I start stripping bits off
6. AC not cooling much - was sorted easily with a re-gas but will keep an eye in it in case there is a leak somewhere
7. New Tyres needed - having a look around at what's available

I'll keep the list updated as the work progresses and put some pictures up as we go along. Hope you guys will keep me on the straight and narrow !

 

Will this be your "build" thread?


Very nice looking, especially for a 12 year old car. I like the Pepper White with the black , but where you are you might have been better off with a white roof. None the less, really nice find there.



A couple of things to consider. Over the years I have read about how poor the shocks are in these cars and thought that people were just whining. Mine seemed fine. Well, after changing mine out with about 50k miles on the car to some performance shocks that I thought would make the ride worse, and found that the ride is actually better, I have to agree with all of those other posts. The MINI shocks are poor (some would say "crap"). So, at 45k miles, I would put shocks on my short list. Second, while you are at it add a set of IE fixed camber plates. The increase in camber is just what this car needs for sharp turn-in and these do not add to tire wear or decrease ride quality. And, a bonus, they are made with a plate that will keep the strut towers from mushrooming.


Enjoy!

 

With the location the car was in, how is the paint from either sunlight or sand as well as the windshield?

 

OK, I got my popcorn, ready to watch the build...

Lets do this thing...

Motor On!

 

Thanks for the comments and yes I suspect this will become the 'build thread' and not just a 'refresh'
Shocks and camber plates are definitely on the shopping list, not sure exactly when though. She had shocks replaced a few years back at BMW so I hope they last for a little while.

 

The paint is exceptional - as is the interior- all I can guess is that it has been in the shade all its life. The Ministry of Transport (Interior) provide the residents of Qatar with a free 'app' which provides a vehicle history check service. As you need a Police report to get ANY repairs to bodywork done here, every little (even a bumper respray) or large accident is recorded on the central database. This little beauty has zero accidents recorded and the paintwork is testimony to that - can't find any tell tale signs of respray or panel repair. Now that is very unusual for Qatar - they drive like idiots here.

 

Ok it has started - we had a 4 hour session night before last - in 40 Celsius heat and 70% humidity- basically stripped to front end service mode - drained engine/tranny oil and radiator.
We had a break last night to recover 8

 

Ok here we go time for some pics of our little project - had my team of helpers on hand too - seemed like a good idea and they were so keen - but they felt it yesterday !
The trolley jack is under - after some help from the OEM wind up jack
Our home made 'block stands'
Both front sides up now

As it was
My youngest helper !
Wheels in good nick - Cheapy Accelera tyres - plenty of tread
Discs have a lip on them but pads are almost new

 

Bit too dirty for my liking and not a great deal of oil came out I was expecting around 4 .5 litres atleast - might be due to the fact that the dipstick is broken and no-one could check the level - and obviously hasn't been changed for a while -
Those clips are a pain sometimes - if they are siezed up the plastic screw head gets rounded - so what i do is heat up a flat head screwdriver and stick it in the top - creating a nice new slot - let it cool and bam jobs a good'un
bumper off more easy than I was expecting
Oil filter top removed - 36mm shallow socket required
extra little heat shield above exhaust manifold

Radiator off next

Looks like dirty old plain water - had a fair amount of very fine grit in the bottom of the bucket
Ok where does this condenser go now ?? I can't stay here all night lol
Well cable ties to the rescue again


Crank pulley looks fairly new ??

 

Anyone seen anything unusual yet on this Mini to make it a 'Gulf Spec' ??

 

Split CV Boot

Baked on CV grease

These CV Boots look like the originals
Engine mount looks ok - how can you check which engine mount has perished ??
Lower wishbone

Looks pretty dry so should be ok ??
Brake fluid reservoir looks like its seen better days - bit of a leak in the bottom maybe
Oil filter housing
And almost forgot to drain the transmission fluid - again looks pretty old, but atleast there's plenty of it

Nasty looking

 

Can anyone tell me where to find the coolant bolt on the engine block somewhere - to completely empty out all the coolant ?

 

On the coolant, and while you are in front service mode, have you thought about changing out the water pump? There may be a threaded engine block screw to drain but I am not aware of one.

 

You have quite the project here!

I did a coolant flush on my last car, which has been several years ago now......seems like there is a coolant drain bolt on the back side of the block beneath the exhaust header, but I can’t tell you for sure where it is. I do remember it was a bit tricky to reach and I used a long handled wrench to access it.

On the engine mount, the thing to look for is if there’s a gap between the rubber “pad” and the metal canister portion of the mount. If the rubber is resting on the top of the metal portion, the mount is dead and the fluid has likely leaked out long ago. Here’s a picture of the new mount I installed just a couple of months ago and the way it should look if it’s ok.....notice the gap between the sides of the rubber portion of the mount and the metal part.

 

Thanks - been searching on here and apparently its a silver coloured bolt obscured by the passenger side driveshaft - which is due to come out later today so I'll have a butchers. As far as water pump goes, no I haven't thought about replacement - is this preventive maintenance ? I will also check the BMW service history to see if it has been done already.

 

Awesome tip - many thanks. Hopefully the drain plug will become apparent once I fish out the passenger side driveshaft for new CV boots later today.

 

Air filter removed - pretty filthy - notice the missing jubilee clip on intake pipe

Airbox removal
Needs a good clean
Front of the engine block was caked in oil and sand mixture - obscuring a connector for some kind of sensor on the front of block
Good brush down with Qatar's finest 95 octane gasoline
Also took the dipstick tube off to remove the remains of the broken dipstick - but nothing found inside



Ok all clean - exposing the rusty block - can't win !!

Dipstick tube back in place - can anyone tell me what this connector plug is for ??

 

Ok next target for cleaning is the power steering pump which is also caked in a oil and sand mixture




Pipes going down from power steering filler reservoir look caked in oil and sand mixture too

 

Oh boy, that sand is everywhere! That might be as bad as the salt they use around here in the winter.

Nice job of cleaning it up. MINIs respond well to that kind of love and attention.

 

The connector on the front of the block should be for the crank position sensor. The seals are known to leak so I would replace it since you have access to it now.

 

Beautiful MINI. Glad your giving it some TLC.

I just went through pretty much all the repair your working on so I'll give you my newbie info -

- The sensor in the front of the engine is your crankshaft position sensor. Definitely replace the o-ring seal on it. It is the source of the oily mess in the front of your block.
- Your power steering return and feed hoses are leaking. Replace them both. That is why your PS pump is all wet
- Cheap insurance, replace the power steering pump fan. New version has a small box on the rear flange inline with the plug. This is a thermal overload protector that might save your car from a fiery doom.
- I haven't had problems with CV boots yet, but I recall hearing that it is typically best to replace complete axle assy
- Make the investment in jack stands. Loose cinder blocks fail without warning and will drop the car on you (or your helpers)
-Craven Speed makes a greatly improved (but $$) dipstick

Keep the pictures coming!

 

Having a mini that leaks and sand don’t mix... I have seen what that sand can do to a car that isn’t cleaned regularly, that is one of the down falls of being in that kind of climate... good to see you are doing all the work yourself... keep up the good work

 

On the dip stick, check "Dorman".
Many say they are as good as aftermarket, better than OEM, and aren't over priced.

Mike

 

Thanks - if you live on the coastline here in Qatar, then salt corrosion can be a real headache to fix, but sand stuck to the oil and grease is a tough clean up job too - super unleaded seems to be doing the job nicely

Thanks - thought thats what it was - and yes new o-ring needed indeed

Thanks - yep that sand gets everywhere - its really fine sand too - powder like- there was a load of it at the bottom of the bucket after i had drained the coolant (water actually). Regular maintenance out here is a must and to be fair this Mini has been well looked after - cars age rapidly out here due to not only the weather but the drivers too.

Thanks - I found an OEM dipstick on eBay which I will go with for now - I read somewhere that there is a right way to extract the dipstick but most people do it the wrong way - or is that BMW created PR - could it be that twisting it as you remove it and replace it might help ??

 

Thanks for your very helpful comments - always good to learn from people's personal experiences - especially fellow noobs
What was the reason your PS return and feeder hoses failed ? Is it the rubber that perishes or something else ? Is it an easy job to replace them ?
With the newer PS Pump fan, do you know which year they were introduced ? Is it a BMW only part or is there after market supply ?
Yes need to get jack stands