Most liked posts in thread: Dark Silver in the garage

and it has never been polished, ever. The last wax was put on a year ago... I hope to paint correct what needs to be corrected and do a ceramic coating before the end of this year.

 

good info on the bushings - given those in the brackets look near new, I assume there really isn't a lot of lateral motion going on. With the Helix arms already eliminating some wobble in the whole assembly, I guess having at least one soft spot isn't a bad thing.

I was going to blast it myself (ghetto harbor freight setup with play sand sprayed into the landscape next to my house). Finishing off with spray paint is probably good enough. I don't drive the thing in the rain or winter anyway. Powder coating isnt' too expensive, but yeah, I think I'll do the spray can. Got a case of red caliper paint sitting around, as well as several silver and clear cans which I was going to use to refinish some Toyota Tundra wheels, but then sold as they were.

Additional costs to do the rear control arm conversion based on latest web search

Hardware:

2 Self tapping Screw M14x1.5x101 33-32-6-770-089 $9.37 ea
2 Hex Bolt with Washer M12x1.5x83-10.9 33-30-6-768-048 $5.79 ea
2 Self Locking Collar Nut M12x1.5-10 ZNS3 33-32-6-760-374 $3.74 ea
2 Hex Bolt with Washer M12x1.5x100 33-30-6-772-658 $5.79 ea
2 Cage Nut M12x1.5-10ZNS3 33-30-6-770-138 $4.90 ea
8 Hex Bolt with Washer M10x75-10.9 33-50-6-771-928 $4.10 ea (I am getting those non-OEM for $0.50 ea)
2 "adjusting plate" custom part needed for shock mount, from Helix $ ??

rough guess, without shipping, getting a lot from bmwpartswarehouse
$90 total plus whatever Helix wants for those plates

That is the minimum for the job - $148 for the arms and brackets, so for just over $250, you can swap out your arms. Everything else I am spending is optional. The control arms are going in for sure, because I only want to pay for the alignment once.

bearings and 2 new upper control arms
2 Timken rear wheel bearings $93.79 ea (bolts to mount are those 8 10.9 hex bolts already listed up on top)
2 Helix upper rear control arms $229 (optional. I may just paint my uppers and put them back in)

alignment when all done about $75


One part I am not sure about (the same part should already be on the car right now)
2 Bushing Stopper 33-31-6-761-779 $32.78 ea

same part?
https://parts.miniofkennesaw.com/products/Mini/2005/Cooper-S/Stopper--rear/1292823/33316761779.html
https://parts.miniofkennesaw.com/products/Mini/2008/Cooper-S/Stopper--rear/1292823/33316761779.html

 

alignment isn't really the issue with the upper arms. You can drop 1.5 pounds each by going with another Helix pair, plus you have the option to slightly change the wheelbase of the car by shortening or lengthening both, upper and lower - not that I have a clue what that would actually buy me. Keeping the uppers and just blasting and painting them is still an option.

Re the links - open the diagram image lower on the page and see part #6 - it looks like a big washer and goes on the outside of those bushings I am not replacing with Powerflex.

 

The garage is fully insulated and drywalled, 6 inch studs and R19 or something like that in there. The only part not insulated is the front 1/3rd of the ceiling that has just drywall and a roof above it (will address that soon) plus the door is only 2" foam covered, but it seals real well. In either like today, 1500 watt heaters can get the temp up to 55 at best, but you have to be careful what else you plug in. I've tripped the circuits many times. Now that I have a compressor more so than ever.

It just sucks to burn through electricity for hours to spend a few more relatively uncomfortable hours in that garage. Without the heater, it is usually 20 F warmer in there than outside. A 1500 watt heater will bring it up 10F more in 2-3 hours, but not much more. Right now it's 25F outside, so I could get it to 55 in there if I really needed to do something on the cars. It's not comfortable even if you put the heater close to the workspace. You can't do any detailing on the paint, you can't paint, etc. I can't use the sand blaster as that is an outside tool due to the mess it makes. It just all stops here when the temps drop and we've already been down to something like 13F a week ago.

I am waiting for next weekend when it's going reach 40F to tackle the fluid film application under the blue car. Even stuff like that works better closer to 70F than 40F.

 

I don't see why not. It's a bit expensive for that. 32 ounces about $15. You mix it 1:1 or 1:2 with water depending on how strong you want it to be.

 

If you plan to rip the stuff off every 3-4 years and don't mind the that plastic shine rather than paint, it will do the job and it should not take so much time to get off. It did protect the paint on the bumper of that car for 100,000 miles wherever it was covered. You can see the line where the original owner had it on the front edge of the hood - paint fade is different. I'd do the entire hood to avoid that, but now it is getting even more expensive. I was thinking if I ever found a car in a color I don't like but otherwise checks all the boxes, I'd wrap it in a different color. 4-5 years and $1k in material isn't such a bad gig and I am sure it'll protect just as well as the clear stuff.

However, I barely drive my cars (first gas fillip since Oct. 9 yesterday - 200 miles and 8.9 gallons), so spending money on this stuff makes no sense. I spend enough on insuring cars I barely drive. My operating cost per mile driven is easily 90% insurance and registration. Spending hundreds of dollars on a plastic paint protection on old cars, only to rip off every 4 years before it gets too darn brittle again isn't going to happen. The only thing I will use the clear material for is to protect the headlight plastic on the blue car after I polish it clear (and with that remove the factory UV protection).

Meanwhile ECS Tuning is again selling me stuff they don't actually have in stock (my Milltek exhaust took 3 months to ship): exhaust hanger and mounts were ordered May 17, estimated delivery June 4-6. So much for working on the car next weekend. Guess I will swap cars in the work space and do the engine damper of the blue car first.