Hi all,
New member here, very happy to have finally joined this community. So I have had my 102k Pepper White r53 for almost a year now, and recently took it to the dealer for a warrantied seat mat sensor replacement. Upon picking the car, they handed me a laundry list of repairs the the mini needed. I'm a good DIY mechanic and feel comfortable knocking down this list. ( Much to the service advisers chagrin)
I just wanted to check my reasoning with some of ya'll and get your input.

- For reference, my goal is to maintain the drivability of the vehicle, while extending its service life. Also, trying to keep within a reasonable budget.

- Order of completion for dealer suggested repairs
1. Lft front Wheel Bearing
2. Both Engine Mounts & Trans Mount
3. CV boot replacement ( will most likely replace both axle assemblies)
4. Manual Transmission Flush
5. Supercharger oil service and pulley upgrade /Water pump/Belt Tensioner/
6. Replace Spring/Strut assemblies ( bilstein B4)

-Repairs Completed
Valve cover gasket and pcv
Low power fan
Both outer ball joints
Cleaned and lubed sunroof
Greased door seals

Thanks in advance for all your help. There are a couple mini graveyards in Dallas that I have access to. Are there any parts here that could come from a salvage?

Cheers!

 

You will save yourself some good money being able to do the work yourself.

First, ModMini might have DIY videos for allot of the six items at Youtube. How long you are going to keep the car, and how far you plan on driving in a given day has a big impact on whether you want to try used parts for your list. I for one would not do. The other item on that list could be the Crank Pulley/Harmonic Damper, is it the original on the car?

Normally the passenger side motor mount and the lower "dogbone" mounts go. Have not heard too many of the transmission mounts going but I seem to remember seeing a transmission mount on ebay. Try SearchTempest

 

Going to move you to the Stock Problems/Issues area as well.

 

Thanks so much for the reply! I plan to keep the car as long as I can, and use it as a daily driver maybe 30-70 miles a day. So, yes used parts would sound out of the question.
A a new crankshaft pulley is on my radar. It is the original. I've read about the two piece design failing,
and MODmini rules!

 

Here is an easy one. Check to see that the wire to the oxygen sensor before the cat is routed in such a way that it isn't rubbing on anything. Mine was rubbing against a power steering line. It rubbed through the insulation and caused a short that triggered a check engine light. I routed it away from there and put some electric tape over the wiring. After a few starts of the engine the check engine light went off and hasn't come back on.

 

List order doesn't look bad and all are pretty easy to do.

I would use Redline MTL for the trans fluid. And that is really easy to just drain and fill

I would plan to do an ATI damper for a crank pulley replacement as they are very common to fail and will leave you stranded.
https://www.waymotorworks.com/super-...ulley-r53.html

Also for the shocks I've never been a fan of the B4 as they are priced cheap because they are. I'd spend the extra bucks on a set of Koni FSDs which ride great and perform.
https://www.waymotorworks.com/koni-fsd-shocks.html

 

Never heard of this one...Thanks! I'll give it a look once the weather clears up. I have had some intermittent check engine lights.

 

Thanks for the feedback and the links.
Yes, planning on using redline for trans flush.
Currently looking through the ATI vs PRW debates. It looks like ATI dampers are the more consistent option.
Will take a deep dive into the koni's soon....lots of research to do.

Cheers!

 

LOL that debate has been going on for years. I actually sell both brands and I have installed both and I can physically tell the ATI runs smoother so it is balancing better. Let alone the quality standard ATI has as they won't even sell one that the anodize is a shade off. I run an ATI on both my cars.

On the debate just google it as Chevy and Ford guys have been debating it for years. But when you really get down to it the ATI does actually work better. Hell they even have OE companies that want them to build dampers for them. Let alone Nascar and NHRA champions that use them. There is a reason for it.

Also someone mentioned that the ATI bolts come loose. That is total BS. I've sold hundreds of them and never seen one come loose. If it came loose for that person they didn't torque the bolt or loctite it. Was not the fault of ATI cause again their standard for quality surpasses all the others.

Crap I sound like an ATI billboard. Sorry. Don't mean that, just believe it is the best.

 

I would not replace the axles, just rebuild the boots. Way too many aftermarket axle failure threads on facebook

 

Thanks for the recommendation! I've used the brand on past cars with no qualms. I think the ATI damper will be my next purchase.

 

Thanks for the reply. I've considered just replacing the boots. The job is pretty straight forward, but I'm wary of the car being over 100k.
I've looked at GKN and Drive shaft shop over cardon/reman'd replacement cv's, they seem close to factory quality.
Also, I'll probably pull the axles anyway to do the boots. Its a messy job under the car

 

you have to pull the axles to repack & replace the boots

 

You are so correct. We just rebuild them as the aftermarkets fail all the time