New here

Hi everyone.

I've been lurking here for a long time, but never got around to signing up. Needed to see some images yesterday and this site would not let me unless I was a bona fide member with all the rights and obligations that go along with that :biggrin5:

I was going to get my first Mini back in 2010 already, but at the time it was too small for my needs (kids, haul motorcycles, etc). But I never lost interest in the Mini, kept checking for sale ads, and learned more and more about the car along the way. So last May, knowing exactly what I wanted by then, I bought my R53 within 2 hours of spotting the ad, and I never regretted it. In fact, I am about to buy a second Mini for my son, or perhaps for myself, giving him my current car. If so, he's a lucky kid who will get to drive off into the sunset in this ride :drool


R53 Sunset


Right now, the pretty car above needs coilovers, because the Alta springs from the first owner have had it. I will probably go with the Greene BC setup, although I really want some Öhlins one of these days.

Anyway, that's about it. Oh, mods on the car right now are a 15% pulley, CAI of unknown origin, Wilwood big brakes, Hotchkiss camber plates, Koni FSBs with those crappy Alta springs, rear seat delete, 16" lightweight rims with brand new Bridgestone RE 960s, a fat rear anti roll bar, too much camber due to previous owner doing autocross events, sagging Alta springs and lack of adjustable control arms.

Been racing on iRacing.com for years, but got tired of that a few years ago. Used to work in the Champcar era of CART as a photographer, so I have some petrol (methanol?) pumping in my veins. All that probably began when I grew uphalf a mile from a major VW plant in Germany, in a town that was breathing cars. Never could have imagined then that I'd pick a BMW-made Mini Cooper over a GTI...

Peter

 

Thanks for the warm welcome - and since you liked the photo so much, a few more, some from last year, some from last month. It's a pretty car, so you just keep taking pictures of it...


Back from winter hibernation


Stretched look


Best upgrade on the car


luscious "leatherette"


Mini in the CA Mountains

I keep adding to this album on Flickr whenever I get around to shoot some more.


So here's my "buy another R53" dilemma: I love this car. Puts a smile on my face every time I just walk past it. I also drives as well as it looks, even with the worn suspension. This has rubbed off on my son and instead of his early WRX dreams every teenager has, he now wants an R53 as well. Perhaps because his friend inherited his dad's '06 JCW? Or was it that intoxicating supercharger whine when we were in the mountains last year, zoomin up those winding roads into Yosemite or flying through Nevada at speeds not to be disclosed here? All that while still one may still be able to afford the insurance on that thing for a teenager, have plenty of room for our mountaineering gear, and getting over 30mpg over 5000 fun miles, and not to forget all the people around us uttering things like "cool car!" Not bad for a 10 year old compact :biggrin5:

Heck, the day I bought this car and towed it home from St. Louis, I was flagged down on the interstate and a guy made an offer to buy it on the spot. Last month the guy who put new tires on it wanted to buy it, but figured he could not afford this "near $20k ride" ...

So since the decision was made late last year to get a second one of these toys, any R53 to even catch my attention needs to be something pretty special, which filters out 98% of those cars being offered.

So far I've only seen 3 cars interesting enough for me to possibly give this car to my son. It's difficult to go the other way and buy a cheap R53 for him and then face the fact that he knows everything about the car and will want pulley, brakes, coilovers, exhaust, etc done anyway, all while you're probably faced with addressing important maintenance stuff on a 10 year old R53 will need if not maintained by a total enthusiast.

But I'll probably post something over in the Gen1 forum. We have the whole summer to find the right car. Maybe it'll happen like last year, when I knew within 2 hours that this dark gray '05 was the one to buy.

 

just met Myles and they are indeed nice coilovers. Since my suspension is absolutely shot and all the testimonials about those Swift/BCs are thumbs up, I think we will soon be talking.

This is a good reason to get something sooner than later - happened last weekend on a rough rail crossing:



Left front, looks like busted Hotchkis camber plate spring mount at the top. The spring still sits where it belongs, but the core part seems to have rusted out and now has been center-punched by the ill-suited Koni FSDs - the car rides lower than Myles' GP, so obviously, the shocks made contact with those camber plates (a very harsh jolt every time it happened)

So now I have to count my dollars for coilovers, rear camber arms an some adjustable downlinks in the rear.