A very special little R53 MINI (now with Milltek)

G N K

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You should of out them on with stickys as opposed to hateful screws.

Cars ooking good though.
 
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_Stu_

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You should of out them on with stickys as opposed to hateful screws.

Cars looking good though.

I was going to do that but when I took the old plate off I realised it had been screwed on from new and the car has never had sticky pads anywhere near it so I wanted to keep it that way.
 

300trophy

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Great story behind this car and I do like reading each update as they come through. Nice one with all the perseverance on getting the plate on the car too and for all the charity work :grinning:
 

_Stu_

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Not really anything to update on this thread but more kind of ideas for future plans. Seth went in to storage at the start of November and hasn’t been out since. I call over quite regularly to start the engine and move the car back and forward in the garage to stop the brakes sticking but I’m really missing driving it and now can’t wait to bring it out of storage again.

I’m a bit torn about what direction to go with this one at the minute. When David bought Seth in London there were a few dents and scratches but as this was only to be a short term car David never bothered with fixing them. When I got the car I thought I’d keep it exactly as it was but if it’s to be a long term keeper I’d quite like everything to be mint but still undecided.

Also this is the first MINI David ever had that didn’t have stripes, again mainly because it was only to be a short term car. I’m considering black Cooper Bonnet stripes with an orange pinstripe outline which was the colour of the plaque for his memorial run but again I’m undecided.

Lots of decisions to be made between now and the summer but hopefully there’ll be more progress soon.

Looking in to doing the London to Brighton run in May and already have a list of shows and runs for the summer. Plan on having the car out as much as I can this year.

Cheers

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_Stu_

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Tonight I got some more stuff for the MINI from @Neil_M (absolute gentleman to deal with). Bought a set of run flat tyres to replace the non run flat landsails that have been on the car from its owner in London and also ended up getting these Goodridge brake hoses too. The plan now is to get the MINI to @Wild Thing when it is back on the road for all new brake pipes along with the new hoses and a good thorough health check.

When that is all done I’ll replace the rear brake discs and pads with brembo ones as I fitted a set to the front for David last February and it’d be nice to know all the brake components are fresh.

Ideally I’ll have all this sorted pretty soon after the car goes back on the road. As soon as I’m happy with the mechanicals I’ll move on to the interior and bodywork which needs surprisingly little work done but I’m a bit of a perfectionist with this one.

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_Stu_

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Hoping to bring Seth out of the garage in late March so felt it would be a good time to start a bit of a clean up. I’m working 7 days a week at the minute and it’s rare for me to find much time to spend on the car but I was bored this afternoon so spent an hour in the garage cleaning up the engine bay.

I don’t have any pictures of it before but I doubt it had ever really been cleaned. I never opened the bonnet at shows or anything because I was quite embarrassed by the muck and grime in the engine bay. There’s still a bit more work to do in there, will possibly replace the coolant tank too due to age and staining. For now though I’m happy that it is looking presentable.

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_Stu_

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Went on a little shopping spree today getting some parts for Seth coming back on the road. Spent the day at ECP, Prentice MINI and then a trip to castlewellan to see @markmeus for parts.

So far I have got the following
- Genuine timing chain tensioner
- Genuine oil filter
- Genuine sump bung
- Millars 5w30 long life oil
- Brembo rear discs
- Brembo rear pads
- Bosch rear brake wear sensor (not in pic)
- Goodridge brake hoses
- Copper replacement brake pipe
- 4x genuine centre caps for when the wheels get a refurb
- Genuine metal valve caps (yes I’m sad)
- Genuine MINI boot badge as the old one was very tarnished

I’ve spoken with @Wild Thing so will be taking Seth to him shortly to get all the mechanicals sorted. While there it will be getting a thorough health check and also investigate the slight knock through the steering (suspected P bushes) any worn out bushes will be replaced with polyurethane bushes.

As soon as this is done it’ll be off to get the wheels refurbished and new tyres fitted. After all that I will maybe look at getting some bodywork done but it may be for next years list of work.

I got tickets for the London to Brighton MINI run in May so will be driving down to that. While I’m there the lady who David bought Seth from wants to meet me and see the car again, she misses it a lot and I still send her photos from runs and shows.

That’s about all for now but will keep this thread up to date with all progress. It is quickly moving towards a small restoration project now really.

Cheers

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_Stu_

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cheese wire or fishing line and mind the paintwork, they are well stuck with double sided sponge tape

I used the plastic strapping stuff they use for boxes of office paper and made sure I kept it pulled away from the paint. Worked a treat but certainly not easiest to remove
 

_Stu_

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thats a good idea, just not as flexible, but whatever works is a result

It worked well because it sawed through the sticky pad stuff. Will message you later about getting the car up to you next week or the week after
 

_Stu_

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Big update time:

As per the original plan I left Seth up to @Wild Thing for a bit of work. I left a list of work in the car and knew it was in the right hands. I got a phone call the next day to say my worsening oil leak was suspected to be coming from the rear crank oil seal so it would be a gearbox out job to fix. As soon as I heard this I decided that it was time to just sort everything the car needed and gave permission for any work needed to be carried out. My little list then became the following.

Timing Chain Kit
Service
Rear crank oil seal
Clutch kit
Slave cylinder
Xenon Headlamp washer pump
Brake pipes front and rear
Goodridge braided brake hoses
Rear discs and pads
P Bushes
Coolant change
Brake fluid change
Gearbox oil change

The timing chain was done for peace of mind as there’s now 105k on the car and it was getting rattly on starting. Very glad I opted to have all the work done now.

Picked the car up last night and it’s smoother, quieter, pulling better, handling better. It’s just been completely transformed and I was grinning from ear to ear on the drive home. I was so pleased too when I got sent these pictures from the work being carried out (although had I seen them prior to getting the car back I imagine I would have had sleepless nights).

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And finally all done and ready for home
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So that’s enough work for a while. Time to get all cleaned up and ready for some runs, shows and weekend trips.

Next on the list will be bodywork but my bank account is screaming for a break.

Cheers
 

_Stu_

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Been racking up the miles and enjoying having Seth driving like new. Only current issue is a creaky top mount but will get that sorted soon. Yesterday I took a run to Loughgall show and gave Seth a quick clean up for the occasion. Going to maybe get the wheels refurbished next week as they really are looking quite poor now.

Hopefully next year I’ll get some bodywork done but until then I touched up some of the paint defects. It’s not a professional job by any means but it takes the look off the worst marks a bit. Took a before and after pic of the passenger door to show the improvement.

Heading to London in 2 weeks for the London to Brighton run. Can’t wait but dreading the fuel bill.

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Jonny-FN2.GT

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Cars looking really well, I worked with Dave in Mercedes in Belfast. Im sure he would be chuffed with the way the car has turned out.
Really good project, glad to see it still on the road..
 

simon4563

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Anymore photos of the mini behind yours with the R95 wheels on it? Wondering if its my old one. Think the reg was somthing like NLZ 8905 (i think lol)
 
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