When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I should have the rest of the parts to do the front struts this afternoon, they say out for delivery. Looks like I won't get the bushings for the backs till tomorrow.
I installed my new front emblem while I waited for the mail lady. I have the front struts done and the bushings for the rear should be delivered today.
I’m thinking of trying to re-clear the scoop this weekend. Got to love all that pollen on the hood.
The pollen was way worse than that but we had some rain to knock it down some. We have been below freezing the last 3 mornings so it’s kind of been a tease.
The new struts are installed all the way around on the Mini!
I installed a new oil pan and gasket, changed the oil and filter and took it for a drive. It rode great and the pulling was gone! It's ready to flat towed to the mountains next month and then to the beach this summer. Can't wait to drive it down the beach front road with the top down!
Trying to adjust the drivers window on the R50, I had to replace the regulator a few weeks ago and now when I turn on the blower motor I get a whistling thru the glass. I bought a new relay for the interior blower motor, it still comes on when it wants too. The colder it is outside the longer it takes to come on. I have new power steering lines to install too.
I installed the new blower relay and the interior fan comes on instantly now. It was taking it's sweet time and I would drive 1/3 of the way to work without heat.
I found that the drivers seat detection pad is bad in the Cabrio.
I must be losing my mind, I guess it doesn't have one in Cabrio. I will relook at my new scan tool data tonight. I would like to get the airbag light off.
Is it the passenger side sensor? I wasn't sure when you mentioned it if it was something extra the cabrio has for rollover sensing or something since I've never dealt with one.
No sensor in the driver seat, and I am pretty sure the Gen 1s didn’t have a pressure sensor in passenger seat. Could be wrong, but I thought that came into being in the Gen 2s for the passenger seat. Or could be, like said above, something special for the Cabrio.
All facelift gen 1’s have a passenger seat occupancy sensor for the airbag but I think the recall only applies to some of them. You can run your VIN on MINI’s w the NHTSA website to see if your car is covered:
If I understand the function correctly, the passenger seat "occupancy sensor" mat is a pressure sensor intended to trigger deployment of the air bag in an accident. Many FL examples (including mine, not yet performed) were subject to recall to correct faulty sensors...
I have a 2005 R53 and received a recall notice for the seat sensor. The description above makes it seem like only some 2006 hardtops or some R52/R52 S of all years are included.
^^^ My 2006 built Nov 2005 was/is subject to the recall, so seems it's build date vs model year...
It says model year 2006 for non-cabrios in the description and you have a MY 2006 R53. I have a MY R53 2005 built 1/05 and received the recall notice from MINI. Hopefully the results of the lookup will be accurate for ChiefM and whoever else needs it regardless of what model years the description says.
I believe they changed the mat design for the facelift cars since you can't fool it with a resistor like the early cars, so it makes sense that it would be more than just MY 2006 cars involved. Mine failed a few years ago, and I just coded it out rather than dealing with the recall.
I didn't get to do anything yesterday on the Mini. My wife's puppy, He is a 6-month-old 37lb pocket pit came running through the kitchen, jumped like he was trying to get onto the counter and did a face plant into the kitchen cabinets. He fell to the ground and started yelling in pain. Ran him to the vet because I was almost sure he had broken his back leg. It wasn't but we spent all afternoon at the vet's office.
I relooked at my new scanner and it said passenger seat, guess I can't read. The only airbag code I have is the battery safety thingy. I replaced the cable already and I still have the code.
The 4 new tires from simple tire were delivered today!! Going to mount them on the stock R50 rims and move the R98 rims/ tires back to the Cabrio.
The passenger occupancy sensor that was added to the facelift gen 1’s is for the airbag. It prevents the airbag from going off if it doesn’t detect enough weight on the seat to protect children, and possibly to keep the airbags from going off unnecessarily if no one is sitting there.
If your getting that code it’s most likely the reason the airbag light is on.
I got the rims and new tires put on the R50. I put the R98 rims and tires back on the Cabriolet. So both Minis have new suspensions and tires. I took the R50 for a quick drive and it rode perfectly.
My airbag code on the Cabrio is the 0B- Battery Isolation fault. I replaced the red cable from the back to the front of the car with a used one from Allmag. The resistor thing looks good but the light still comes on, I have not tried to clear it with INPA but I have not had any luck with my other high-priced scanners.
I changed the tire size on the R50 from 205's to 215's. It looks a little strange because the tires really fill up the wheel wells now and I have grown use to the 17's with the low-profile tires. The tires also eliminated the annoying bumps from the little tar trails the road people put down on the blacktop. My speedo is also spot on now, it was about 5 mph off with the R98 rims and tires.
I might be misunderstanding the situation, and it’s not always easy to diagnose a condition over the internet, but this is the issue as I understand it:
The scanner had/has the battery isolation code which is labeled as an airbag fault
It also shows a code for the passenger seat occupancy sensor
an airbag light is on
The battery resistor was replaced
The occupancy sensor wasn’t fixed or replaced
The scanner was/is showing two codes, but only the battery isolation code refers to the airbag system
an airbag light is still on
Have you tried to clear the codes with your scanner after the battery resistor replacement?
It says model year 2006 for non-cabrios in the description and you have a MY 2006 R53. I have a MY R53 2005 built 1/05 and received the recall notice from MINI. Hopefully the results of the lookup will be accurate for ChiefM and whoever else needs it regardless of what model years the description says.
