My solution was to buy another Mini and drive that where I don't want to go with the grip car. The lowered Mini now can get racing buckets, roll bar or cage, etc. No more "it already is uncomfortable" excuses.
I am running on Colin's recommended springs and shock settings. Nothing autocross stiff. It just seems to be the nature of our roads here, especially the Wisconsin special "we'll-lower-your-taxes-" broken concrete seam combined with 70+mph traffic. They cut them out and put in a band aid concrete spacer strip - and you have two new seams that will crumble and tear up tires for years.
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-1.5 to -2 camber up front will do just fine for me.
Here's the 'aggressive street' setup that I had on Jango.
![[IMG]](http://www.focusoa.bizland.com/rufus/JangoAlignmentSpec.jpg)
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and don't start browsing craigslist when you're at a lull point in your project
I just saw a nice silver JCW 2005 S with 17k miles
in Los Angeles... too expensive even with those low miles, though. All 12 year old Minis need a refresh, no matter if they have 17k or 88k miles on the clock.
I'm starting to look for a car for my daughter now. She wants an automatic, so if it's a Mini it should be a better price, as the enthusiast cars are almost all manual. Thing is, I know nothing about automatics in Minis. And I am even looking at Peugeot-powered Clubmans... sacrilege! I have until spring to locate something that works for her. Doesn't have to be a Mini, but I saw her face when she saw my electric blue. At first she thought it was for her. Then she saw the stick... -
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Dayum this is a pretty part! I'm so glad that someone stepped up to make a replacement for the crap factory part. Now, if they would just do a clutch slave...
![[IMG]](http://focusoa.com/rufus/refresh71.jpg)
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I'm a compulsive list maker (and a project manager by trade). Here's my punch-list of work to be done in the 'Engine service/refresh' phase. I've got a huge pile of parts and it's only growing, so my normal process of looking about the garage to see what's on the shelf that should be on the car isn't gonna work. Plus I like picking up a pen and checking off items when a job is done, so there's that...
I've tried to cluster the work into chunks, so I'm not un-doing work I did earlier in the process.
Crank Pulley replacement
Front Crank Seal replacement
Serpentine Belt replacement
New Vibrotechnics engine mount (passenger side, top)
New tensioner assembly
New, metal idler pulley
New timing chain tensioner
New timing chain guiderails
valve cover gasket and valve cover seals (4)
Fuel Filter change
Cooling fan resistor rebuild
Change supercharger oil
Oil change
New Oil Pan gasket
Coolant change
New Water Pump
Coolant tank install
new Crank sensor o-ring
dipstick o ring
supercharger gaskets
brass bleeder screw for coolant system
Oil Catch Can
New Thermostat
New Thermostat housing
Fuel filter
cabin air filter
Transmission fluid change
Out of scope: Suspension and brakes... I'll start getting those items organized once I get close to having the engine service done. I've got some parts on the shelf for that work... I'm keeping my eyes on the forums and snatch up parts at a bargain when I can. I've got some front lower control arm brackets and bushings out in the garage, and a set of lower rear control arms as well. -
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It is VERY dirty!
Yeah... I've seen R53s that make a tablespoon or two of condensate over a year and ones that need the OCC cleaned out every 2-3 months. I found a nice looking one on Amazon for 30-something bucks and it's an easy enough mod to do, so I'm gonna do it. In for a penny, in for a pound. If nothing else, it's a mechanism to monitor change in the internals. It won't really diagnose anything in particular, but a change in accumulation rate could be something interesting to know. -
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That kit was sold out forever and now doesn't even show on the web site any longer
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