Hello -

I thought it might be better to post this inquiry separately. I acquired a 2006 Cooper DINAN S a while back as a project. The PO told me he believed the engine's bottom end was done and it would be best to get a donor engine and swap the heads with the DINAN one and all the DINAN parts.

I have been doing a little research and asking around. Some are saying the issue is the tensioner in the engine? That the engine can still be fixed? I am new to Mini's so I have no prior experience with this kind of issue.

I am posting a clip of how the engine sounds. Any ideas? Thoughts? Or Input?

Thanks a bunch!

 

1. The belt tensioner should be an easy thing to diagnose just by looking at it. Is it vibrating more than about 1/8” or, at worst, flopping up and down? There’s a small strut assy that dampens the belt vibration normally. They are known to fail, and there are many threads on the matter. Otherwise..
2. Pull the plugs - inspect for oil, broken, fouling, etc
3. Drain the oil - Does enough come out? Metallic sheen? Is it chocolate milk? run a magnet through it to sift for metal if nothing is visible.
4. Pull the oil pan - any shiny presents waiting for you? You can also get a good look at the crank, rods, and piston undersides from there, plus some cyl walls depending on the crankshaft position.
5. Remove valve cover - burnt oil residue? Any play in the valve train components?
6. Pick up a borescope to peek into the cyl topside through spark plug sockets

Admittedly, I haven’t dealt with any internal engine problems on my R53s (knock on wood), but these are the places I’d start looking to confirm a mechanical failure if one exists.

These cars aren’t really that difficult to work on once you familiarize yourself with the design quirks.

I hope you don’t find anything terrible but if the car looks like it’s been wrung out and the P.O. says the block is suspect, then I bet a belt tensioner isn’t the only issue.

ModMini is a wonderful YouTube resource for mechanical R53 how-tos.

 

Thanks so much for the response. I will have to check the things you have mentioned. The tensioner someone mentioned was the timing tensioner which I would assume inside the engine. I've never opened one of these up before.

If I find metal shavings or pieces in the oil or pan, what does this indicate on an R53 and how catastrophic is that? The P.O. was honest enough to say the car did get wrung out, so I too suspect indeed the block may be gone / dead, etc. I'll have to see. It would be nice if it was repairable.

My current dilemma is what to do with the two R53's I have. The initial plan was to get a donor car for the DINAN S and swap out engine parts and possibly interior as it's interior is a royal mess. However, now that I have the Red '04 which is a complete and currently running car, I am wondering if I should just strip the DINAN S of all it's go fast and cool parts and put them on the 04 and call it a day. The DINAN S is better equipped and an 06 which I am told is the better year. First world problems aye?

 

All great advice, though I would not pull the oil pan just yet. Everything else on that list from Tragesaurusrex can be done in a couple of hours from the top of the motor.(pull plugs and inspect and remove valve cover). Pull the dipstick and see what the oil looks like before you drain too.

As for the hydraulic chain tensioner, it's pretty easy to replace, but it's in an awkward location. Best to replace when the engine is cool since you're working real close to the exhaust manifold.

ModMINI video:

 

Finding metal isn’t necessarily a catastrophe. It really depends on what the metal is and where it came from. You could find a whole oil squirter came off and didn’t really harm much, or you could find tiny bits of a piston and need a full rebuild.

If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't be able to decide which MINI to use as a donor just yet. (Or if you even need a donor car)

Rust would weigh heavily in that decision for me as well. I’d much much rather double down on mechanical work in order to keep the car with the better body. These cars rust, so getting ahead of that is an important investment to make for your own sanity.

 

Did you even look at your own video...LOL ?
What the hell is going on here, is that electrical current ?
What is that ?

 

It's water sitting in a little indentation. Engine vibration and the reflection of the sky are making it shimmer.

 

Start with the basics as mentioned above. From the video it sounds like the car is misfiring - are there any fault codes stored in the computer?

 

I took a peek at the tensioner, if it's what I think I was looking at, I ask the question what were they thinking at MINI to put it there?!?!? LOL! How the heck does one replace belts on these things?!?!

I am most certainly having a dilemma about which car to use as a donor. The Red Car is in better shape overall. The Yellow car has the engine issue, the interior is trashed, the entire stereo system has been "ripped" out - literally - and it has amongst other things a broken windshield and one busted drive axle. However, the Yellow one is a 2006 and the Red is a 2004. 2006 is supposedly the better year. I am wondering if I can transfer just about everything to the 2004 - including clutch, transmission, etc. Maybe even DME? Both are Sleek Tops which apparently are nice to have. Neither car has rust from what I've been able to see so far.

If both were 2006 models, I would have already made the decision to use the Yellow Wasp as the Donor.

Tragesaurusrex answered this question I believe :-)

Yup! That's it.

I haven't scanned it yet. I just found out I can use INPA on the MINI's as well, so that will be the next step. However, that sounds a lot worse than just a misfire and from what the Seller told me - it need an engine rebuild or new block. The guy owns an Auto-Shop, I'd guess he has decent knowledge about what he's saying. :-)

 

Gotta tell ya, the car is a lil confusing at the moment. I was able to find out more about it and the upgrades it got. The Intercooler says DINAN, but on one report, there is no mention of this. One BMW / MINI report shows it had a DINAN SC installed.

Another report says it got Stage 5 Tuning, while yet another report lists only Exhaust, Throttle Body, Stage 1 Tune and also Intake. And then something called a Boost Hop Up Kit - whatever that is. According to the package listing for an S1 DINAN MINI, it should also have a DINAN Pulley, Cams and Brembo Brakes up front.

 

The chain tensioner is not visible if you are looking for it in the engine compartment. I suspect the tensioner you saw is the belt tensioner (with a gas strut). In order to inspect the chain tensioner, you have to remove it from the back side of the block just below the exhaust manifold. It is in line with the passenger side of the valve cover. Look for a single 19mm bolt and it's best to find this little bugger from the passenger wheel well. Yep, best to take the wheel off.

Check this: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ioner-r53.html

The yellow car sounds beat. There's probably more problems lurking under all the damage you can see.

 

Thank You! And yes, it was the belt tensioner I was looking at. I agree with you that the Yellow car sounds beat.... sadly. It sounds like it would be more trouble than it would end up being worth, especially now that I have the Red one on hand. Just gotta see all what I can swap over if it comes to that.

I have heard the 2006 transmission is better and nicer to have, so wonder if that will bolt up. Wondering if even the DME can be transfered over and coded to a 2004? If so, I can keep the DINAN Tune on it.

 

I was able to get the cars together this weekend. It was good to see them side by side. I think my decision is I will be using the Yellow 2006 as a donor car for the Red 2004.



Yellow Wasp (2006) on the Left and Red Sonja (2004) on the Right.


After putting them side by side, I realize there is more to putting the 2006 back on the road than just the engine - which might need a lot more than just a tensioner. As I mentioned, the interior was roughly taken apart, even though the door panels and seats are still in one piece. The headliner is coming apart badly, the center console is missing major pieces, the windshield is broken, and the entire stereo system was gutted.

The Red car runs well, is complete, passed CA Smog and based on the INPA Scan I did, the engine seems in pretty good condition. I wish I could swap all the goodies from the 2006 to the 2004, but I am learning there are differences between the two years. Any input anyone has here would be appreciated.

I examined the 2006 closer over the weekend and got to see some of the parts on it. I had the build data from DINAN for the car, some of which seemed inconsistent but it was nice to see some of the bits on it. According to the information I have, the car had a DINAN SuperCharger installed (Not sure why that was mentioned, I don't see one). Other information shows it hada Stage 1 Tune, Freeflow Exhaust, Cold Air Intake, Throttle Body and something called a Boost Hop Up kit. Then at a later stage if got Stage 5 Tuning and an upgraded Fuel Injection Kit.

I am not sure I even want to or need to bother with the head as I see nothing that indicates any work was done there. I checked the Intercooler and it is a stock unit. I wasn't able to open up the engine this weekend and could only check the oil from the dip stick and that looked fine to me.

Here are some of the things I did find:


Raceland Coil Overs - Nothing too fancy or special from what I can tell.

Brembo Brakes - NOT! LOL!

I had to chuckle here at the Brembo Stickers as these are clearly BMW Stock Brakes.

Rear Raceland Coilovers

Some kind of adjustable rear control arms. Not sure what brand they are till I pull them off.


DINAN Exhaust with different tips.

Someone added a valved extra pipe I guess for sound effect. Might be deleting that eventually.

 

Passenger seat driving here so keep that in mind...

maybe sell the yellow one. Use the money for your build. Looks like you got a good base to start with on the red...

 

Oof Brembo stickers on stock calipers does not bode well yellow wasp.

Those rear adjustable control arms look like Doorman brand. Prob the cheapest option out there, but it seems like plenty of people run them without issue.

Im starting to agree with you that yellow wasp is a donor car at best. If wrenching is part of the fun for you, I’d still put in the time to take them apart and compare things like supercharger condition so you can keep the healthiest components between the two - not necessarily just what’s on the 06.

That exhaust cut out valve is interesting too. Have you found the switch to activate it?

 

The rear control arms are HK (or H&K, I can't remember exactly), I'm running them on my '05 MCS, They're a good, inexpensive way to get negative camber corrected with coilovers.

 

Interesting idea, however based on the state / condition of the Yellow Car, I don't think it worth selling it at this point. I'd dare say it's worth more in parts than as a whole.

Yup! Says quite a bit when Brembo stickers are put on brakes! LOL! If you saw the condition of Yellow Wasp up close - and particularly the interior, I believe you would come to the same conclusion I have - she is a the donor car.

It got even more interesting as I swapped wheels between cars. I found 15mm Spacers on fronts of the Yellow Wasp's wheels. That was not the big deal. What was of concern is that none of the four aftermarket wheels had hubcentric rings on them - and the wheels had about 73mm center bores! YIKES! Needless to say, the drive that day involved quite a bit of vibration at speeds of 60 MPH or so. Luckily, that has been resolved.

I wrench on cars, and I do enjoy it so I will indeed be taking Yellow Wasp apart and will take your advice and pull all the best parts I can off the car like the ones you have mentioned. I am wondering what else can be swapped over between the cars? The steering wheel? Some interior bits? I also wonder if Yellow Wasp has an LSD, but I doubt it.

With what I'm seeing, and also your mention of those rear control arms - I now have my doubts about the "quality" of other added parts besides the DINAN parts.

I believe I found the switch for that exhaust cut out valve, but since the car is a non-runner, no way to test it unfortunately.

Thanks for the feedback by the way, It's greatly appreciated as I build up my knowledge of the MINIs

 

Okay... thanks for the info. Good to know they are of decent quality. They will be swapped over as well.

 

Agree. Keep for parts. Looks like you have a plan then!

 

I brought the Yellow 2006 DINAN S R53 in to sadly start taking her apart as the donor car for the Red '04 MCS. I was able to move it under it's own power - I put in a fully charged battery. It was smoking worse than a chimney and you could hear the banging from the block. It is indeed toast.

Based on the overall condition of the car, I think this is the best decision I can make. I will be taking the following off her:

Suspension
Brakes
Wheels (Already Gone)
DINAN Intake
DINAN Exhaust
DINAN Pulley (If it has one)
DINAN Head (It supposedly has one)
DINAN Badge (Of course)
Adjustable Rear control arms
Some random interior bits
Hood and Headlights
Passenger side window regulator
Steering Wheel
Possibly transmission & LIghtweight Clutch

There might be more I take off depending on what I find as I start taking it apart.

If anyone wants anything, please let me know. The current wheels on it are up for grabs - they have really good tires on them.

Cheers!

 

So, I am forging ahead with my decision to use the Yellow DINAN MCS as a donor car. As I start taking it apart, I realize it is not "all that" as far as being a DINAN. So far, all I see are the Intake and the Exhaust and possibly the tune.

I got to check out the main pulley, and it's an OEM Piece, seems kinda. I suspect the DINAN one was removed prior to sale as the build sheet shows it should have one. I am waiting to check on the SC Pulley, but I doubt its a DINAN either. C'est la vie.

As some know, the poor Red 04 MCS had her passenger side glass broken last week. So, first order of work was to harvest the window from the Yellow Wasp as well as the regulator. Dear Lord! I really want to meet some manufacturing engineers to ask what the heck goes through their minds when they build and design cars. The regulator is a PITA! Thankfully, I was able to make the swap happen.

Next was the Steering Wheel, that was much easier and straight forward. Pretty much same set up as a BMW of that era. Airbags, connector, etc.

With that done, I am slowly starting to take the Yellow Wasp apart. First make me feel good move today was to remove the front left brake / caliper and the Coil Over strut. Gotta tell ya, I am kinda glad I am wrenching on these cars. I am find stuff that just not done properly by previous owners on both cars. Inexperience, carelessness... or both? Ugh. On the front strut, the spring is not seated properly on the upper pad / mount. Gonna have to correct that. Might just replace the shock mounts while I'm at it.... Hmmm?

I'll update as work progresses..... Cheers!

And now... .pictures:



Donor and Recipient, side by side

Regulator from Donot, PITA!

Going in - Door Panel Out!

Regular has been swapped, broken glass and old regulator are gone.

Replacement Glass is in - from the donor as well.

Glass all installed.

Yay!

Old Steering wheel coming out. First the airbag

Then the wheel itself.

Old Wheel Out! Anyone need / want this?

Old New Wheel going in. Bolting it down

Wheel installed.

Here is the pulley on the car. Notice new looking bolt

Time to take this assembly off....

There we go!

Front strut assembly

Spring not seated properly - Ugh!

 

how was it swapping the steering wheel? plug and play? even with the steering wheel controls.

 

It pretty much is plug and play. The wheels have their own wiring behind air bags and plug into the slip ring to power up the controls.

 

Got a bit more work done on the Yellow Wasp today. I was also able to crawl under it to check a few things out. I found of course the DINAN muffler, however that second pipe was added to the exhaust as a side piece. Not sure I want to keep it yet.

Also, I did find an A/M Pulley on the Supercharger - doesn't say DINAN though. And it seems to say 13% or is that 15%? I was able to pull the front bumper off today as well as remove the strut assembly on the driver's side. This one seems to be in good order - that's good!

I came across an interesting Coil Pack. Wonder if anyone has any idea about it. It's called Screamin Demon.


Front Bumper cover is off!

Front Bumper and Support are off. Seems the bumper has to come off for any serious work on this car

This is the pulley on the SC. Any info, thoughts and such would be appreciated.

I got this new Sway Bar with the car. Not sure what brand - it is adjustable though. Need to measure the diameter

Adjustability - similar to DINAN Sway bars

This is the exhaust set up. The wiring (loooong harness) runs under the car.

The end piece with a valve.

Clearer view of the adjustable rear arm.

The DINAN Muffler.

The Coil Pack from the car - Any ideas? Can I use Stock Plugs with this? Anyone ever used this?

The driver's side assembly

 

Did a bit of work on Red Sonja today. I installed the Raceland Coilovers from the Yellow Wasp on the car - fronts only today. I will be doing the rears as well, just need to ready myself as I will also be installing the new Adjustable Rear Sway Bar

I did practice on the rear sway bar today on the Yellow Wasp, able to get it out - but I haven't figured out how to get the bloody subframe bolted back up. Till that is figured out, I'll hold of on installing the new rear sway bar.

While replacing the front shocks, I sadly noticed that the car will be needing a new Driver's Side Axle Assembly. Same as the Yellow one actually. I wonder if this is a MINI R53 issue?

While I was in there, I also replaced the front brake rotors.