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MINI Club Of WNY -> Picture Post -> hi, jet black 2003 r53
Post Info TOPIC: hi, jet black 2003 r53
dirty


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hi, jet black 2003 r53
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car.JPG

 

Bought it used in 05 with a little over 16k miles from some craigslist dude that needed cash to rebuild a porsche.

83k miles now.

 

Things that broke and the fix

 

1. headlights would not aim properly, dealer replaced some module on control arms

2. windows doesn't work when really really hot, ignored

3. left and right wheel bearing / hub went bad, replaced

4. cracked windshield, replaced it

5. leaky windshield from the replacement, eletrical tape

6. left headlight stopped working, took apart module and cleaned corrosion inside

7. cracked strut towers, replaced with ireland engineering

8. fuel pump failed, replaced fuel pump, filter, and fuse.

9. dashboard lights went out, dealer replaced some computer module

10. leaking power steering fluid, tighten a loose screw

11. exhaust rusted off, replace with some aftermarket

12. huge coolant leak, replaced rusted clips connecting rubber coolant tubes

13. alternator fried, replaced with aftermarket unit

14. cylinder 3 misfires, replace spark plugs and cleaned rusty terminal #3

15. power steering pump failure, took it apart and cleaned the motor (removed a cupful of brush dust)

16. steering wheel U joint rusted, applied a fistful of pink lithium lube

17. power steering pump fan siezed, replaced fan and fuse

18. passenger drive cv axle boot leaking, replaced with cheapoo aftermarket

19. left parking brake cable jammed with rust, replaced

20. aftermarket alternator sucks, replaced with oem denso unit

21. oil leaking from crank sensor, replaced o ring

22. afraid of supercharger running out of oil, took it apart and filled it with fresh oil!

 

 

things to do: 

1. replace cheap aftermarket exhaust that just blew up

2. replace cheap axle that's going bad

3. tower struts cracked again, need to replace or buy coilovers

someone from NAM: "buy nice or buy twice"

4. creaking clutch, don't know if it's transmission or just the clutch pedal

 

I drive around with a set of metric tools, jacks, tire repair kit, and random spare parts. Because in a mini, you never know!



-- Edited by dirty on Wednesday 9th of November 2011 06:49:06 PM



-- Edited by dirty on Wednesday 9th of November 2011 10:59:01 PM

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cereal


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Well, welcome to the forums! Sounds like you've had an experience with your MINI, hopefully mine is a much smaller list! However, one thing I noticed is that you fixed a leaky replacement windshield, not sure how long ago that was but I've made companies replace windshields for that (even multiple times one time).

I just got my MINI this month and am loving it!

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The first rule of MINI ownership is always wave at the other MINIs.
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dirty


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the replacement windshield has a lifetime warranty but am too lazy to go back

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cereal


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Haha, I can understand that! I pretty much weigh everything on convenience versus annoyance factors, seems to work pretty well at work which boils down to "ignore most everything if possible". :D

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The first rule of MINI ownership is always wave at the other MINIs.
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SPDinNY


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Welcome to the club!!!!! Very nice looking R53!

I have the creaking clutch, I am just waiting for it to go then have it upgraded. Sounds like you are very familiar with your Mini so I am jealous :)

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drewstermalloy


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I would have probably sold it after #7 lol, but I'm glad you kept going! Good looking R53! (I wish I had one)

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cereal


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I'm a fan of this statement:

"someone from NAM: "buy nice or buy twice""

However, I really hope that in 5 years my list of parts fixed or replaced is much smaller!

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The first rule of MINI ownership is always wave at the other MINIs.
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dirty


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I haven't realized the total number of things i've done until i had listed them. I had The Little Speed Shop (best garage ever) install some exhaust today while I played GT5 in their waiting area.

 

IMG_0880.JPG



-- Edited by dirty on Tuesday 15th of November 2011 09:25:39 PM



-- Edited by dirty on Tuesday 15th of November 2011 10:48:45 PM

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cereal


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Always good too hear another good word on The Little Speed Shop, which is also right around the corner from me!



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The first rule of MINI ownership is always wave at the other MINIs.
The second rule of MINI ownership is always wave at the other MINIs.
yellowmininy


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Welcome! Sounds lie you have certainly taken the time to get to know your Mini! I had the same passenger side window motor problem on my 2003- it works all winter, and won't go down when it's hot. It was such a classic example of Lucas electrics that I left it that way.

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Bagpiper


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My window does the same thing... sometimes it works ..sometimes it doesn't ... but just wait a while and it will work again... no



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dirty


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When it doesn't work, I hold both window switches up for 10 - 15 seconds to reset it. Then it works, then it'll stop working after a couple hours in the heat.



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