Hello! I have a 2005 mini cooper with about 79,000 miles on it. I took it into the dealer for an inspection this week to find out there are quite a few things that need to be fixed. I cannot afford to spend the quoted $2300 so I am looking for your help in providing any DIY guides / step-by-step instructions (with pictures would be great!).

Here is the list:

#1) The hook that holds my glove box closed, snapped off. Mini says I need to buy an entirely new glove box for a grand total of $326! Anyone know how to remove the glove box cover and install a new one?

#2) The oil pan gasket is leaking...

#3) The lower control arm bushing on the front control arm is torn in the rear corner. (the other one is starting to tear)

#4) The valve cover gasket is seaping oil...

The unfortunate part is that my warranty expired about 4,000 miles ago. Any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated. I'm located in Cincinnati. A great deal on a mechanic is welcome, if you have that as well.

Thank you so much! Please let me know if you need further clarification. I really appreciate your help.

 

I haven't seen a DIY step-by-step with pictures on any of your problems. I may have missed them though.

I know some have tried doing the oil pan gasket fix, but after doing it, have claimed the ~$500 that the dealer charges is almost worth it. Some have found that just properly torquing the bolts of the pan may fix the problem (some of the bolts were loose).

I wonder though --- if you can't figure out how to do no. 1, I worry that you will have problems doing 2-4 on your own! Good luck!

 

The glove box is easy. I think I saw one on Mini Mania....

http://new.minimania.com/web/Item/NMI7667/InvDetail.cfm

Because of their Tax Day Sale, it's only $166. If you wait till Thurs, it's like $200.

Swapping out the old one for the new one is easy. It's just a couple screws. If you Google it, I know there are some good write-ups out there.

As for the leaking seals, I'd take it to a good import repair shop. They'd a least be able to do it a little cheaper than the stealership. And they'd do just as good of a job.

 

if you do a search for each issue you will need to dig, but you will find some good info. That bushing job's been talked about and having done it, I know it's a PIA. Feel free to call me with ?'s

 

PM sent

 

Where are you located? May be a good independent shop in your area that can do the work for substantially less....

 

Planning to replace my bushings soon. Here's an amazing DIY for it.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...g-install.html

I couldn't find anything for the rest.

 

We have a long list of links for DIYs and aftermarket parts that may help.

 

Good luck. The oil pan gasket was 1K at the dealership when under extended warranty.
OUCH!

On a Chevy, $50 !

Doug.

 

I am attemping a diy on the oil pan gasket this weekend. I have the factory bmw repair manual (tis) and Bentley. the part is only around $40 bucks. However labor is around $500 from what I have been qouted. In the BMW manual it says that you have to drop the engine a bit and hold it in place with two special tools from BMW. But from what I have read this is an unessary step if you don't mind working in tight spaces and a bruised knuckle or two. Part of this is so you can unhook the air conditioner compressor easily from the oil pan. It is mounted on there. I say *easily* because I guess it can be done with dropping it it's just really tight and takes a bit longer. Thus why BMW says drop the engine so it's faster. I am planning on making a post with step by step and photos of what I do this weekend with a combination of the Bentley and BMW Tis information. It also says the entire front bumber has to be removed to get to some things *easily*. But like I said I think it can be done without all the extra steps from what I have read. Attached are the complete steps from BMW for replace the oil pan gasket and all the additional steps for the "correct" way. I'm going to give it a shot "my" way this weekend. This is for a 2002 Cooper S. But see attached PDF for the *correct* way for now.

 

Thanks so much for all your helpful replies! I REALLY appreciate it! Have a great day! Happy motoring

 

Wow, Good luck! Looking forward to your DIY with pics!

 

The hook part of my glovebox latch snapped off about a year ago, too. I was amazed at the cost of a new glovebox (even through cheap sources), so I fixed it myself. I got some Plastic Welder adhesive at Ace Hardware for about $5, cleaned up the broken areas well with some light sandpaper and then alcohol, and glued it back together. The hook is actually hollow on the back, allowing you to put a lot of the epoxy-like glue in to reinforce it (as the glue is fluid for about 15 minutes, I put a piece of clear tape over the open section to hold it in, and propped the glovebox upside down - it was out of the car for this job). A year later, the repaired latch is still working just fine and shows no signs of breaking again. I'd never do something like this on a visible portion of the car, but you can barely even see this with the glovebox open so I happily spent the $150 on other things.

 

Update on Oil Gasket replacement: I am dead in the water. I need a special tool to release the belt to remove the AC unit. I should have it Tuesday. There is ONE bolt on the oil pan you can not remove without removing the AC Unit and entire front end. It's a big job. Not hard but time consuming. I am putting together step by step instructions while I am doing this. Along with the REQUIRED BMW tools and OPTIONAL BMW tools. A universial serpitine tenioner release tool does not work at all on the Mini. Thus why BMW has a special tool. I tried two different universal tools and none would work. I have read some people have used a block of wood and screw driver but talk about bending or damaging things under the hood! No way after seeing how flimsy some things are that you would need to brace for leavage. I'm getting the tool. And since I have the front end off and 80K miles I ordererd a new serpetine belt and a new fog lamp since one of mine is cracked. Might is well since I have it apart.

Hopefully Tuesday/Wednesday night I should have this completed. Attached is some pics with the front end removed so you have an idea of what kind of job you have to do just to change the oil gasket.

 

I don't have DIY's to share, but seeing as you are just a couple hours away (shorter if you drive fast ), I recently used an independent shop here in town for an alignment on the recommendation of a fellow MINI club member. This particular shop does performance mod stuff as well as general repair and does alot of work on MINIs, apparently. They did a great job on my alignment and then quoted me a VERY cheap price to replace a belt.....I ended up doing it myself, but I should have just had them do it for the price they were going to charge me (like 1/3 the labor price of the dealership!). It's a bit of a drive for you, but they are open late on Wednesdays if I recall (til like 8 p.m.). The next time I need something fixed, I will definitely go back as they pretty much work on one car at a time and pay special attention to what they are working on....and it's very reasonable!

http://www.performancedrivenllc.com/

 

Anyone find a DIY for the Valve cover gasket?

 

valve cover gasket is as easy as it looks. If there is no oil leaking into your spark plug tubes, I would try torqueing the valve cover bolts first, before replacing the gasket.

 

Thanx... what is that torqued to? 9 lbs?

 

I finally finished my DIY Oil Pan Gasket Replacement!!! I started a blog for it so feel free to comment to ask questions on my blog.

Here you go... and enjoy!
http://r53minicooper.wordpress.com/2...s-r53-summary/

 

Congratulations, and thanks for the write-up!

(By the way, you have a picture of an R56 on your R53 blog.)

 

I dropped my oil pan to install an RMW oil pan baffle and I didn't have to take the front end off. 3 hours tops. Various socket extensions helps to get to the AC compressor bolts. Probably can do it in half that time now that I've done it.

 

Could you please give us your opinion on why BMW and the Bentley manual would recommend removing the front if all that is needed is socket extensions? Thanks!

 

Maybe to justify repair rates? Who knows... one of the down-sides to the Bentley manual is it is basically a [barely] edited print version of the BMW TIS data... this can be both good and bad... good in that it demonstrates the manufacturer's recommended repair procedures... bad because they often use BMW-specific tools with little discussion about DIY work-arounds... and further in that most dealers have developed their own work-arounds to save time and maximize profits (which is quite normal).

I also wondered about the need to completely remove the compressor... however, not having the need to do this job myself yet, I just watched with quiet curiosity in case I was missing something... I know it's bolted to the oil pan, but it shouldn't need to be completely removed. For that matter, the belt doesn't even "need" to be removed... just the tension released so you can shift the compressor out of the way slightly.

 

I've noticed with the Bentley, it is either feast or famine. Either they take you down the road of removing way too many things unnecessarily, or they skim over or omit steps that are critical to the procedure.

Not only socket extensions, but an inspection mirror helps to locate the bolts holding the AC compressor. Once you know where they are, it's a matter of guiding the socket on there by feel. I needed to remove the compressor in order to get to several bolts that secure the pan to the block. You just need to swing the compressor away, no need to disconnect the hoses. I also removed the belt just to make things easier. Then remove the power steering fan, lower engine mount bracket, couple of bolts that go through the tranny, and all the assorted bolts holding the pan. The Bentley details the order for loosening and tightening the oil pan bolts to prevent warping.

 

There are several reasons for removing the front end. Some have already been touch upon. Yes you can remove the ac compressor without removing the front. The front end is just time consuming and not hard to do. But it is a best practice procedure. 1.) It's A lot easier to see the bolts you are removing (in particular one bolt on the AC compressor) - utility mirrors help as do extension ratchets. I guess easier is a relative question. Is it easier removing the front end in a couple hours or is it easier busting your knuckles in a tight space for one hour? 2.) When the front end is removed you have a few extra inches to rotate the compressor and pull it out by hand. Without removing the front you can still rotate it but not fully and I you must use a hammer or other device loosing the AC compressor out of the mountings on the oil pan. Yes it will come off with a couple good whacks but you risk cracking or damaging the oil pan, mountings, or your AC compressor. There is risk for not doing it properly. 3.) We all know the more attachments, angles, adapters, etc. affect the accuracy of a torque wrench. If you are just using a ratchet shame on you. When you are torquing those items back on in such a tight space you are either over or under tightening. Again it is up to you how exact you want to be and if saving a couple hours or several hundred or thousand dollars in repairs in the future because you over or under tighten something. Again it's a choice left up to the owner. BMW wants to be safe and lessen the chance of future repairs. Good luck!