Most liked posts in thread: What did you do with your MINI today?

Nice car. I really like the red stinger with the red interior. Not crazy about the wheels though. I prefer something more period correct, like maybe the OEM knockoff hubs or maybe a set of original American Racing Torq Thrust wheels.

 

I was at a Porsche dealer in Baltimore not so long ago
and they had a dark blue 918 on the showroom floor,
it was stunning.

 

Actually the last couple of days I have been trying to figure out a coolant leak. First thing in the morning have a small amount on the ground probably about the size of a half dollar. I let it sit over the weekend to see what I would have this morning, looked about like two, maybe three table spoons. I cant see anything by just looking though. Wondering if I should start stripping things back to the thermostat. Ideas - suggestions?

 

If it's on the left side of the car it's almost guaranteed to be the thermostat. If you've never changed it in the past, they have an updated one......

 

Yup what dave said ^^^

 

Yep, what Dave said! /\ :biggrin5::biggrin5::biggrin5:

 

So, we have a two Dave rating on this one?

CD

 

After driving it, pop the hood and see if it's pissing (misting) all over the hoses near the thermostat. I'm guessing like Dave said, if it's not been changed you can almost guarantee that that's what the issue is. Gotta love BM'r quality plastics. The whole pump/pulley/thermostat setup on the second Gen looks like a 5th grader designed it.

 

No I have never changed it out. I was hoping it was something that was going to be something a little simpler, like I forgot a clamp when I replaced the over flow tank, not my luck though.
There has been no consistency with the leaking, this morning barely anything at all.

I guess that makes it gospel! Time to get a hold of eMINIParts and get it on order! Thanks all.

 

So, I got to thinking this morning.....(yea, I know. The wife keeps telling me it's dangerous and I should make an effort to not do it) But, anyway I was thinking about the fact that after 14 yrs of ownership I have not had to replace any of my bulbs in the car.

Oh, great........I just jinxed myself. Dammit!

 

Buy a pair of spare headlight bulbs & brake/tail bulbs & keep them in the boot.

 

I have a drawer in the tool box with just those thing!!

 

Yesterday, took my kid down to local MINI dealer to look at the pre-owned MINI Cooper. Because it had been sitting on the lot for awhile, the manual transmission MINI was a good price, but still above kid's budget. we're talking a university student with little income. Though saleperson kept trying to weasel a deposit from us, we resisted. If they can come down a couple of thousand bucks, then maybe we'll talk.

Last night, we went to the Automall (after they closed) and looked at other cars. Most of the 3 year old low mileage lease returns are priced about the same. Did decided she didn't really like the pepper white of the MINI she drove earlier and preferred the blue at the other MINI dealership we were at. Other cars considered, Mazda3 Sport, Honda Fit/Civic, VW Golf (but the VW's seemed expensive).

 

Having raised two kids, their first cars need to be cheap.

 

I only raised one. Cheap but safe. :yesnod:

 

First cars should be cheap, safe and be able to take a beating with no maintenance. That rules out the MINI.

Get a Honda or Toyota because they are cheap, safe and reliable. College kids never take care of a car and abuse it. Remember we all had a first car we loved but trashed it.

 

Just ordered a ByteTronik OBD Tune for the Mini along with a set of plugs one range colder than stock. As soon as I receive the cable and program all I have to do is download my current tune and send it back to BT. Within a couple days they'll send me the stage 1 tune set up for my mods along with program I started with. That way I can return it to stock whenever I need to take it in for service.

 

Not me, I did just the opposite. I took the 73 Lemans my parents bought new, and my sister trashed and restored it in High School. My parents were amazed at how good that car looked after I was done with it. They bought me a brand new car for my graduation from HS. My sister was pissed. But, she learned a valuable lesson -- don't crap in your bed.

My parents sold that seven-year old Lemans for about 2/3 of what they paid for it new. My dad made it very clear to my sister, that's why your little brother got a new car for graduation.

People are genuinely surprised when I tell them my MINI is ten years old.

CD

 

My MINI is at home in the garage, while I do the family xmas tour in a rented Silverado crew-cab 4X4 pickup. I've got to build something for my sister this weekend, so I need a truck to pick up a bunch of lumber. I'm not paying for it, so I'm okay.

Man, five hours of driving in that truck sucked. The seats are soft and spongy. My back hurt when I got to my destination.

But, on the good side, I'm going to Scottsdale next month, and rented a Toyota Corolla and got a free upgrade to a Mercedes C-class from Hertz. I got benefit from rentals that I didn't pay for -- I bill my customers for my rental expenses. That Silverado scored me some good points, too.

CD