This car popped up at LKQ today and although the pic was small I could tell it was a factory aero grill and not the ebay version, so hoping I'd be quick enough to grab it this afternoon I headed down to Fayetteville which is a 3 hour round trip for me and it is always a nightmarish hell-scape of traffic it seems - today was no exception and seemed particularly bad even for a Friday.

So I was very happy to see the grill still in place when I got there because I was thinking that I got too late of a start and that was the main thing I was after.

Amazingly all tabs were intact save one broken on the bottom grill, it's a bugbear to fit an aero grill to a stock bumper and many get butchered in, this one was installed pretty gracefully and was quite easy to remove.

$30 which I moan about because the junkyard used to be real bargains but prices keep going up and then at checkout they automatically add the warranty adding even more money so you have to tell them no I don't need a warranty LOL not on trim bits like this!



Got a couple other minor things like the pre-FL smaller rearview mirror because I want swap it with mine, and a couple other small bits.

Noticed that it had a WMW 17% pulley and that's why I'm posting this thread, just in case someone may want to grab it, I didn't have any allen keys only sockets and I couldn't fit 'em in there so left it alone.




Also had a Forge-style coolant tank:



And what appears to be custom re-upholstered seats,
they looked good in white with the perforations:




So,
just a headsup letting y'all know might be worth a visit.

 

Did you happen to see what condition the rims were in and if it has a 5 or 6 speed transmission?

 

2004 MCS with a 6 speed.

Wheels were very strange oddballs, I did look but could not identify maker, struck me as cheapos , RF may have had slight impact damage but all 4 were still on the car.

You could tell that the car had been sitting somewhere for a long time, musty funk and battery box full of water.

Surprised the supercharger was still on it because there's a gang of guys that yank 'em out first thing almost instantaneously it seems like

 

It's a little over 2 hours one way from my house but it might be worth a trip for the transmission and shifter stuff. The wife said after the first of year she was good with it!!! I would love a 6 speed. Anyone up for a junk yard party?

 

I forgot to mention that it also had the soft rubber factory floor mats, new they're only around $50 dunno how much LKQ would charge.

I love these mats, almost grabbed them too but I already have a new backup set on standby so didn't really need them.

 

Those would be cool but my interior is mainly black.
I am pumped about getting the stuff to convert to a 6 speed.

 

Those seats are great!

 

Congrats on nabbing the grill. I wish there was a similar place around here.

 

When I was looking underneath it, I did notice that the gearbox drain plug had been buggered up, dunno if it was the yards fault when they drained or what, didn't inspect too much in detail otherwise.

Did notice a quick lube sticker in the windscreen stating next due at 119,00 --- I miss the old days when the speedo was analog and you'd always know exactly what mileage the poor car died at, of course you can sort of tell with the digital ones just by condition but you never really know, this one was fair but neglected from sitting, some of them are completely thrashed and it's a bummer after driving there only to find out that it's all ratted out, I wish every yard had pictures but most don't.

The car appeared to be there due to mechanical failure as opposed to being totaled from a crash, it appeared to have a minor fender bender right front but not enough to total it.

 

^^^ Agreed! Also, well done on nabbing before posting about that score!

 

Yeah, the genuine aero grills seem rather scarce over here, not entirely rare but a little difficult to find, so I was stoked to find one for my stash as a backup, should clean up nicely.

They're a bit more common in the UK...





Note above that sometimes you can find a bargain and get a genuine one for cheaper than the later-style wide honeycomb knock-offs.

You often see aero grills on offer that have been cut to fit the factory rally lights because that was official instruction,
that deffo impacts their value for the worse (unless you're planning on using the factory rally lights then it doesn't matter!)

 

FWIW, people seem to prefer the ratios in the facelift six speed better.

 

What years are those? I am still a newb at this.
Not going to be a long distance driver so is there that big of a difference in gearing?

 

‘05 and up model years. I believe production is July ‘04 and up. Facelift R53s got a box with shorter gearing. In fact, both the facelift 5- and 6-speed Getrags have shorter gearing than the older transmissions.

 

I agree - nice score on the Aero Grille.
Well, Fayetteville is a bit of a drive even for me (Buckhead).
I did manage to take a trip out to the Conley, GA (30288) P-A-P yard this morning and scored a few items off a 2003 R53..
Chief: The 6 speed transmission was still installed but the bell housing (clutch end) was missing. Probably not much good to you.

Yesterday my Mini went into a severe "Limp" mode after hitting the pedal hard. Until I can do a diagnostic (smoke test) to see if it is a fuel vs vacuum leak (or otherwise), It maybe prudent for me to stay closer to "home" for now.

 

Dang OB, I gotta set up some alerts on LKQ, there’s quite a few salvage yards around me. Those seats are interesting, nice to see someone cared enough about their Gen1 to invest in them. If they weren’t so ratty and probably smelly, they’d make a nice custom touch for someone. Is the color of the pics accurate, looks like off white…

 

Yeah you should,
especially with LKQ they usually show 4 or 5 pictures and you can ascertain if it's worth the time to go out and get dirty at the yard.

Yep, slightly off white, an excellent match to the PW.

 

Did you get any codes?

I once had a failing TMAP sensor while working out-of-state and I seriously thought something was severely eff'd, fortunately was only in Alabama so I nursed it back home, then installed a new TMAP and all was okay again.

 

Yep - Thanks for asking. I was going to post on my previous thread "Jerkn' Back and Forth" but since you were so kind to ask...
Fault codes:
P0302 = "Misfire Cylinder 2",
P1237 = "Pressure Sensor Intake manifold before compressor ~ input low",
P0313 = "Misfire Detected With Low Fuel"
and a dreaded;
P5E19 = "CAN data fault from DME/DDE (DSC lamp on as long as error is present)"
After cycling the engine the SES, DSC or TPS warning light(s) turned off on the speedo and haven't returned. However, OBD II still won't clear this fault code from memory.

Did some searching which has lead me to believe the MAP & TMAP maybe the cause. I pulled them and both were super clean and look brand new. Cleaned them anyway/re-installed. I don't know if it helped.
I still feels a little jerky if I hit the pedal hard around 3k rpms.
I pulled a used MAP from the Mini I scored the (JCW 380) injectors from.@ the salvage yard. Looks like this MAP sensor had also been recently been replaced as well. Very clean and looks new.
Correct me if I am wrong. The 'MAP' sensor is next to the air box and the 'TMAP' is located in front (i.e: supercharger) ?. I have the one next to the air box and will swap tomorrow.

 

Yep, correct on locations.

Grabbed my little notebook I carry in the glovebox, I always write down whatever codes may pop up,
here's what codes I got when my TMAP failed:

 

I think you solved some of my issue!
I remembered buying one of the sensors about a year ago. It turned out I bought a new MAP sensor (next to the air box). I R&R'd the old w/new. I believe it made a huge difference I can pretty much hit the pedal WOT with no jerking/hesitations.
Thanks for the fix!

 

I like the way you roll lol.