Took it for a drive and everything is great! I see why you guys love the S model so much.
I think I diverted a major disaster. The dampener was rubbing on the front cover and there was almost nothing left of the belt.

 

Amazing that the belt held together. Glad it's running well now. Doesn't look like the seal is leaking.

 

The seal is not but the oil pan is, I have a gasket on order.
Going to need lower control arm bushings just like the R50.
Took the wife for her first ride in it tonight, she was surprised at how quick it was.

 

Hey Steve -- what paint did you use when you sprayed the silver parts of your door cards?

 

Paint: Clear:
I wiped the parts down with regular alcohol prior to painting.

 

I am gathering parts for the R52. I ordered new power flex bushings for the front lower control arms, a new oil pan gasket, and 2 new rear replacement speaker grilles. I also have a supercharger service kit and a new oil filter. I need to order new inner and outer ball joints. About March when the weather is a little warmer, I will do one big service and repair to the old girl and get her back into shape. I am also going to order the positive battery cable from Allmag and hopefully get the airbag light to go out.

I am getting a little water into the trunk of the R50 when it rains, it looks like it's coming around the seals of the new tail lights.

Shifting focus to my Cadillac Escalade for a week because I need to install my new rear differential. It was my original restoration project till I fell in love with Mini's and then it was put on the back burner for a while.

 

After lots of thought I think I am going to buy a car dolly. I just can't bring myself to cut into the front facia to add the flat towing adapters on either Mini.

I had a flat tire on the R52 yesterday morning, picked up a nail somewhere so I had to fix that. I went ahead and did a good detail of the outside of the car. Someone decided to paint the black wheel arches and did a horrendous job. They didn't mask it off, they just went to town painting and black is all over the paint of the car. I can get it off with gasoline but it is going to take me forever.

Checked the drive belt and it is perfect, so the new dampener and new idler fixed that issue.

 

What's it like driving the Escalade after a Mini? Must feel just a little different...

 

They are two totally different vehicles. I have an ESV, the long one, so it's like driving a cruise ship. Where the Mini is solid and responsive the Caddy with the magna ride suspension is like floating on a cloud. We had a 2018 short Escalade and it had a lot of bells and whistles but didn't ride near as good as my 07. That was one of the main reasons we traded it in for the wife's new Maserati and kept the 07. For a road trip you really can't beat it.

 

I ordered a new fuel pump for the R50 today. I don't want to run out of gas again because the fuel gauge is reading wrong. I am wondering if it is failing and also is contributing to my running lean code every now and then and crazy idle.

 

I hope you can splash less gas on the interior of your car than I did on mine.

 

I didn't do too bad when I replaced the fuel filter so I guess we will see how it goes.

 

The new fuel pump for the R50 was delivered today!! I was doing something for my Mrs. so, I will try and install it tomorrow. If not then I will do it this weekend.
My new shifter ball arrived for R52, nice to have one with chrome on it. The chrome was completely worn off on the old one.
Still waiting for the new rear speaker grilles to arrive for the R52, I didn't tell the wife I paid $120 each for them. Sometimes it's better she doesn't know what I pay for parts, she doesn't really care but it's information I don't divulge.

 

Worn out shift ****

Nice and shiney

 

I installed the new fuel pump today; I was successful and got very little fuel inside the car. I think it also solved the crazy idle issue I was having, but it may be a little early to tell on that.

 

I ordered a new to me glove box for the R50 off of the market place. It was pretty moldy but after a bunch of Clorox wipes it looks almost new. I have a piece of cardboard wedged in the handle of the old one in order to keep it closed. I can't wait to get it installed this weekend. Not exactly new looking but at least it won't pop open.

Before, pretty nasty

Oh my

Much better

Oh yes

 

Nice - quite an improvement. I'm hoping for a similar find for a Euro parcel shelf.

 

I was going to try and get one of those shelves too but I'm ok with a regular glove box. I also bought a front cup holder that installs on the down tubes for the R52 but it has not arrived yet.

I've driven the R50 for the last 2 days since I installed the new fuel pump. It starts right up on the first turn of the key now and no more funny idle when I slow down for traffic lights!! It would want to spit and spudder and then it would finally smooth out. All of that is gone now and it idles smoothly when coming down to an idle. It was probably on its last leg and the reason I would get an intermittent running lean code too. Needless to say, it's a lot more of a pleasure to drive.

I ordered a new brake and clutch pedal pads for the R50. They are both worn but the brake pad keeps falling off.

 

I found out what the alien goo was hiding under it. I replaced the intake tube with a new one.



Someone put some kind of dressing or paint onto the fender flares, problem is they also did it 1/2 inch over the flares and onto the paint. They did the same thing around the rear-view mirrors.


After 3 hours of hard work and going around the whole car it looks a million times better. The pic makes it worse than it really is. I do need some new rear view mirror gaskets.

 

It has been nice outside the last 2 days and I have knocked out a few things this week, new tires on my zero-turn mower, new tail light installed in the Escalade. Installed new pedal covers on the R50 along with that new air intake tube. Installed an Aux adapter to the R52 but the volume button on the radio doesn't work so I can't up the aux input. It's the radio and not the **** so I'm hunting for a new radio. I installed the 2 missing foam pieces on the down tubes and hopefully got that squeaking stopped. I ordered the new rear view mirror gaskets today for the R52.

 

The foam pieces stopped the squeeking inside the car !!!
Got home from work and jacked up the R52, removed the posotive battery cable from the front of the car to the rear and I got the new cable installed. I need to clean up the little yellow squib connector tomorrow and hopefully the airbag light will be gone.

 

Minis are not quiet cars -- glad you were able to kill a noise. Where exactly do these foam pieces go?

 

They fit inside of the radio down tubes and sit on top of the cup holder.

 

I got the battery cable installed but I still get the battery isolation fault. My hand held scanner didnt reset it and the computer with INPA is at work so I will try to clear it Monday.

 

This afternoon was R52 day
I tried to reset the air bag light with INPA, no luck. Replaced the small connector thinking that was the issue and still no luck.
I installed the new radio I bought from Allmag and it works perfectly, even the steering wheel controls. I also installed the Aux adapter cable. I still need to drill the hole in the plastic piece in the glove box.
I received in my new rear-view mirror seals. I would have installed one but I can't get the freaking arm rest off again, I gave up for the day.


I finally got around to taking care of something that has driven me crazy wince I got the car.

Very used and the yellow showing thru would drive me nuts.

Much better, not perfect but better.