I just purchased my first MINI (06 MCS) and actually European car. The car appears to be pretty solid (80,000 miles on her), but has pretty decent oil leaks (know the suspects) and needs a timing chain tensioner and idler pulley. I'm very familiar with wrenching on Japanese cars, but not as much European cars. I pretty much have a do it once and right mindset with the hopes that I don't have to mess with the issue anymore. Based on my research this can be lot to ask for, but one can hope!

Anyway, to my question:

Should I stick to OEM gaskets and parts, or are there better ones available that may have solved or minimized some of the common "quirks" of the car (e.g. oil leaks, premature failure)? What are reputable alternative aftermarket parts brands and one's to avoid?

 

My 2 cents is that I read this forum like a private investigator before I do anything. Some things are OEM (because nobody else makes it) but many are from non-OEM sources. For instance, I just replaced my harmonic balancer this weekend on my 03 MCS but instead of the OEM that has flaws, I went to Way Motor Works and got their ATI version. Found out while replacing that, I had an inner axle cv boot torn and axle is worn. Ordered the pair off amazon due to Mod Mini (Go to YouTube) used them in multiple cars with no issues. Use this site - these guys have found out most of the bugs in these cars and I'm not great mechanic but they give great instructions and help in fixing these vehicles so I don't spend a fortune at a local shop. BTW, I saved about $400 replacing the balance myself just in labor costs and got a new tool in the process.

 

That's a fairly broad question my man! Different manufacturers excel in different areas for parts. Powerflex for example makes some of the best bushings you can get for a Mini. I personally also replaced a lot of the "to-do's" like pancaked joints, etc. with Lemforder and haven't had any issues though there are much fancier versions of that stuff out there. There are also a plethora of performance parts out there too so it just depends.

As far as gaskets though, I will only use OEM. I tried other brands and they either have a wonky fit or fail pretty quickly - in my experience.

Edit:

x100.

If I ever find ModMini out in the wild I'm going to give him a big, wet kiss. His videos are absolutely amazing and has saved me countless thousands of dollars. He's incredibly thorough, explains everything in detail, shows what he's doing and why he's doing it. I have a man-crush on him.

NAM is also a wonderful place to get advice too. I think I have a few active threads on different questions myself at present lol. More than likely too if you have a question, it's been asked here!

 

Thanks for the advice. I think I watched all of ModMini's video's prior to purchasing the car. I was a bit hesitant about a mini due to reputation, but his videos are fantastic and show that just about any repair should be in my wheelhouse. It gave me peace of mind to fully jump into the MINI family.

 

It is a good idea, to look at the common problems in this gen 1 area. Most all issues are covered.
It is hard often to help from afar, with complicated issues.
You may try to find Mini people in your area to help.

 

My ONLY issue is I'm afraid that some "not paying attention driver" will wreck into my car and the insurance will total it or worse - I can't fix it. ACGOG, you are funny as heck..."wet kiss"....That's just funny.

 

Yeah, the car insurance / totalling thing is all too real for me. My son wrecked my Prius with low miles and in fantastic condition. They only wanted to pay me NADA value for the car. It would have cost me several thousand more than they gave me for a comparable vehicle, if I could find one. It was definitely a learning opportunity between "appraised value" and "replacement value." They also pretty much forced me to sell it to them as it would have been brandished with a salvage title should I have kept. Somebody is going to get a real nice car at auction. The damage wasn't even that extensive.

Oh my, did we get off topic!!!

 

My car was totaled for this:

 

Chassis are all disposable. Just buy it back from the insurance company and either fix it if minor like the hood damage shown below, or if you have a bunch of go-fast goodies on it, swap them over and part out the old one. You'll profit regardless if you do it right. :thumbup:

 

Yep! They told my mom $8,000 and no car or $7,000 and the car. I looked at the car and told her immediately I'd buy it from her for the $1,000. Still has a clean title too.

Edit: So what is it? That the cars depreciate so much in value and the parts are so expensive that they just total them out all the time? Does BMW want you to go buy a new one?!?!?

 

In hindsight, especially with damage as minor as yours, I wouldn't do another insurance claim unless it was catastrophic.