1st Gen JCW Most liked posts in thread: Refreshing Rufus - 2005 MCS JCW

OK. That's it. I'm declaring this project as DONE!

I had PDR drop by on Monday, went for an alignment yesterday and today I took Rufus out to Kinetech (https://www.kinetechmotorwerkes.com/) and had a MINI trained tech go over the car for an hour. They found a small notchy feeling in the steering rack when not under load (if you put the car on the lift and pivot the front wheels back and forth, you can feel a quick binding when the wheels are almost straight), but you can't feel any issue through the wheel when the car is on the ground. The clutch is also fairly worn (which I suspected), but isn't in any immediate danger of going, so that's a project for next winter, probably.

The new alignment felt great on the highway and certainly felt more stable in the few corners where I tried to be a bit more aggressive (hard to do in rush-hour).

I've gotta drive a few hundred miles this weekend to visit my mother... I think I'll take Rufus as a pre-Dragon shake out.

Of course I've got a small list of other projects to do and the mod bug never really goes away, but my goal was to get a clean, sporty, safe, well-maintained and (hopefully) reliable car ready for MOTD and I'm calling that a success.

What's still on the list?

• Clutch / flywheel replacement... maybe a LSD while I'm in there.
• Re-apply foam on the inside of the vents, just under the rear hatch opening.
• Install the new cooling fan resistor to restore the 'low' fan speed function.
• Put the aux input jack into the correct location (It's kinda bodged together now, but it's not in a visible location and it's functional, so I didn't worry about it)
• Have the steering wheel refurbished (it isn't bad, but it's a bit slick and hard... I'd like a nicer leather, a bit more padding and a larger diameter)
• New e-brake boot (I'll probably have it and the shift boot made by the same person who does the wheel... it's breaking down a bit and is due for a refresh and some additional style).
• Engine bay styling: I like the engine bay to be clean, tidy and cool looking, but this is a very low priority item. Maybe once everything else is wrapped up. I've got lots of areas that could use a color refresh, lots of cleaning and some fun powder coating ideas...

For now, I'm just going to try enjoy driving the car for a bit!

 

Could be. I also got a couple of 'fuel lean' codes in there, which I attributed to the O2 sensor going bad. Rufus did seem to have a bit more low-end pull yesterday (according to the butt-dyno)... perhaps things are running more smoothly. Better emissions and fuel economy are better for the world as well.

I believe that it was really the post-cat sensor that died, but with this car I tend to over-do maintenance... If it breaks, it's going to break when I'm out having fun on a vacation day (and nowhere near my house), not when I'm getting groceries (as it's not my daily driver). If one went, odds are that the other was getting old as well, so if I'm there w/ the tools in my hands, why not get it done?

Oh yeah... I got an unsolicited request to buy my spare webspoke wheels from a fellow R53 owner (a local guy who bent a rim and needed some extras), so I turned that cash into a TireRack.com order... I've got a spare wheel w/ a 215 width tire on the way (I put on 205 width because I heard of some clearance issues). This will be my 'pitch it in the boot' wheel so I can have a spare tire handy and will let me test fit the 215 width before I commit to buying a full set. I'll also have a spare wheel in the exact same color, just in case something bad happens...

 

I'm trying to come up w/ a BBW fetish story for the broken fuel tank, but I've been heavier than any of my long past girlfriends or my wife of 20+ years, so any damage would have been on me.

We've got a lot of construction in our neighborhood.... they were starter homes from the 1940's and are wearing out. Combine that with a proximity to downtown Charlotte, an economic boom in the city and a quick walk to a light rail line that has fueled dense residential growth (and all of the great shops / restaurants that follow), our street has been transformed in the past 5-6 years... I'd guess that 1/2 of the houses have been torn down in that time and new homes built. The street 1 block to our south was bought up by a developer and 20+ lots are being rebuilt into town homes.

I'm only guessing that I caught a bit of scrap wood and didn't notice the hit, though one would think that it would have caused quite the commotion in the cabin if it was able to break the plastic gas tank. I did have one good bump on the highway (hit a bump so hard I hit my head on the roof) on the way home from the Dragon, but I made several drives after that with no code...

New tank should arrive today. I'd assume that the car taking up lift space right now, disassembled and waiting for parts, so knowing the garage, they will try to get it done and reclaim the shop space later today, once the part arrives.

Oh well.

 

$500 for the leather work on the wheel and boots, plus return shipping to the Netherlands for the old wheel. $100 for a R56 donor steering wheel for the black button covers. $5 for vinyl (I already had it from other projects on the car).

Chico does the work on a core wheel and ships it to you. You do the swap and return your wheel to him for the next customer (so no downtime for your daily driver, if it is one). The whole process from older to arrival usually takes 4 weeks... 5 for me this time because of an emergency in Chico's family where he had t be away from the shop.

 

Yep. It hurt my wallet quite a bit, but it's the part of the car that I interact with most and my old one had seen much better days... plus Rufus' build has long since stopped being about getting it good enough and getting everything spot on. It had to go and I decided to get everything I wanted . The leather was hard and starting to crack with 3 or 4 deep scratches right where I put my hands. I'm a firm believer in really liking your wheel and your shift knob.

A telescoping wheel would be nice... I'm a tall guy and tend to sit fairly far back. In the MINI I compensate by sitting a notch more upright and sliding the seat a notch or two forward if I'm going for a spirited run. My wife's A6 has a great telescoping wheel which is wonderful on a long cruise. I can roll the seat back and really stretch out.

The wheel got mounted last night and I got the boots glued up onto the plastic mounts (which are crumbling and took a lot of glue to get back into decent shape. I hope to get those on later today and get some pics. We had a cold snap and poor Rufus is blocked into the garage by all of the plants that we pulled into the garage to survive the 20 degree temps the past few nights.

 

Yes. The options I ordered:

• Padded out 1.5mm the whole way around.
• Solid leather all the way around (perforations and alacantera would drive me a bit nutty w/ cleaning).
• red 12 o'clock marker
• A 'small' flat bottom (flattened, but not to an extreme)
• Sport grips (the thumb pads at 10 and 2)

Chico, the guy who did my wheel, also does a beautiful carbon fiber thing (replacing the top and bottom sections w/ CF), but I've got too much CF wrap on my car and I didn't want to mix 2 CF materials.

 

Rufus in in Dragon prep mode for MOTD 2019... He's off with Sal at Kintech Motorwerks here in Charlotte, NC for a new clutch (Southbend Stage 2 - Driver clutch... recommended to me by Way for a clutch that is a bit more sporting than stock but not so heavy that it will break my left knee), a Quaife LSD and a new PS pump.

Once I get Rufus back from the shop, he will get some fresh brake fluid, an oil/filter change and I'll install a VHF radio that I bought back from Jango's (my first R53) second owner... it can broadcast on GMRS frequencies at 20 watts (2-3 watts is the max for hand-held radios) and has an external antenna (the real limiting factor on the hand-held radios... lock the antenna in a big metal box and you lose a lot of signal). It isn't 100% legal, but it sure does make leading drives easier and I'm a considerate user of the airspace (usually in the middle of nowhere). The rear end of my drive groups have NO problems hearing the instructions from the front!

 

I use a magnetic mount. When I'm not using it (99% of the time), I unscrew the antenna from the magnetic base, toss the antenna onto the boot floor and stick the magnetic mount onto the side of my CD changer that is in the boot. On my first R53, I pop-riveted a piece of steel to the side wall in the boot, so I could just stick the magnetic mount there and the antenna stuck out into the boot, but was so high that it never interfered with anything. When I'm running the radio, I just let the antenna wire out through the rear hatch opening and stick it to the roof (I keep a microfiber handy to clean both the base and the roof before adhering).

Here are some old photos from my first R53.

 

I haven't had much time for Rufus in the past 8-10 months. My wife and I did a couple of drives and I got him out every other week or so for a lunch run, but I've been too tied up with other things... a kitchen renovation project, in particular, just chewed up a bunch of my time.

I got through the kitchen projects and wrapped up the pre-spring yard clean-up (10-12 hours in total), so I decided it was time for some 'me' time. I got out in the garage and just puttered about... a massive clean out of boxes and bits from the kitchen project. A good sweeping. Then I got into Rufus... the new Airtec intercooler went on with a new pair of OEM boots, a pair of cabrio braces and a new air intake silicone hose. I've still got a set of silicone radiator hoses and a pair of Canton coolant/PS tanks... maybe next weekend!

I forgot how relaxing it was to be puttering about in the garage. I'm not in a mad rush to get projects done before MOTD, like the last 2 years, so it was nice just to work at a relaxed pace (plus these are relatively simple part swaps... not in-depth maintenance / refresh nightmares) and putter about.

I did have a bit of a mess with the hood scoop. I had to remove the inner air guide for the OEM intercooler and one of the bolts that holds the outer painted scoop bit broke the plastic holder around it... probably overtightened by the bodyshop during reassembly after painting, so I'll need to get out the JB weld.

We also finally got the last of the old boxes and crap from a move (way too many years ago) out of the garage... so I had it all to myself. Wonderful to have a space of my own.

 

This baby, a TSW X-brace, which I've wanted since Dr. Mike and the Texas Speewerks guys invented it back when I had my first R53, just arrived along with some PS fluid and some brake fluid. Thanks for the speedy shipping during the COVID outbreak. In Charlotte, we are apparently a 1 hub transfer from Atlanta, so most boxes from Way get here in 1 day.

 

Just ordered Rufus a 'silver' level car cover (indoor). I've been wanting to get something on him for a bit of protection and dust covering in the garage. https://www.cover-company.com/

Pics to come in 10 or so days when it arrives. Here's the stock photo.

 

On Sunday, I got the second coat of Gyeon MOHS (ceramic base-coat) on and then a coat of Gyeon Skin (ceramic top-coat). I forgot how slick Skin was and almost lost the bottle when I set it on the center of the recently coated roof and it slid off (last-minute catch).

I washed the car several weeks ago in anticipation of the coating (which got delayed). It was SO nice to take Rufus out for a spin... Just a few miles to go pick up a pizza for dinner, but it was a an early Summer/Late Spring, sunny, 80-degree day here in Charlotte... windows down and sunroof open. All was right with the world and Rufus ran like a brand new car.

 

2 new tires on the way for Rufus. During the alignment at the good race shop last year, they discovered that my coil-overs were loose in the mounts (due to the seized / drilled-out pinch-bolts) and I was running too much negative camber (probably due to the mis-managed shop that did my first post-refresh alignment). I had a screw in a tread and a bit of excess wear on the inside edge. I hadn't spent anything on the car lately and TireRack was running a sale on my favorite Bridgestone RE71Rs, so I ordered up 2 new ones. Tire Racks new mobile service, ASAP Tire, is coming out tomorrow to mount and balance.

That should put the MINI back in 'finished' condition... well... he could use a bit of an interior cleaning, but mechanically he will be good to go.

I need to get out and find a local club run soon. The South Carolina club seems to have a run every other week and they have some solid drive leaders.

 

Rufus is back on the road!

The ASAP Tire guy came out on Friday and the install went as expected. In less than an hour he had the two new tires mounted, balanced and installed. I basically opened up the garage door and he did the rest. $50 well spent (plus $150 each for the tires). My only nitpick is that he left the adhesive goo from the old balancing weights on the inside of the rims, so I'll have to get out the goo-gone and maybe remove the wheels to get it all. He did use some cool black-painted adhesive weights for the new balancing, so they look better on the dark grey wheels than the old grey metal (unpainted) ones.

I ran out to pick up a pizza on Friday night and it was nice being out and about in the MINI again. I should get out today for a spin as well... we've had 3-4 nice, dry days here in Charlotte (a rarity in early spring like this).