First Post...First Mini

[Surfless Surfer]

Hello all,

I've recently taken ownership of a 2006 Mini Cooper JCW. And am loving every minute of it!
Only hassle with being a first time driver of a Mini is...does it really "feel & sound" like that when you drive it!?
Be great to hear if you guys get together occasionally...who your recommended mechanics are...things like that.

 

[Jerez]

You mean the whining Of the Supercharger. Yes

 

[Surfless Surfer]

Haha.... Definitely not that sound... But just generalising on getting accustomed to a vehicle I've never driven before, except for when I test drove it. Things like:
》Should the suspension be that hard?
》Should I be losing traction already around that traffic circle?
》Should there be such a loud rattle on a cold start in the mornings?
Stuff like that...

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[131GAV]

Welcome and enjoy the forum.. Post some pics of your ride...

In terms of the mini, I am no expert but having driven my cousins for a lengthy period of times (ACS Cooper S) - Suspension was hardish and a few rattles due to the low profile on her tyres but around traffic circles.. Cant say I had that feeling. The car actually handles pretty decently... Very good centre of gravity on these things....

 

[Surfless Surfer]

Will post some pics soon. There may be a secret project coming up soon as well
Need someone to look at my engine mounting as well as the side arm bushes. Any good mechs around?
Preferably someone that can also do decats and tune-ups...

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[ChefDJ]

Welcome to the forum bud :thumbs:

 

[jcwdrop]

Haha.... Definitely not that sound... But just generalising on getting accustomed to a vehicle I've never driven before, except for when I test drove it. Things like:
》Should the suspension be that hard?
》Should I be losing traction already around that traffic circle?
》Should there be such a loud rattle on a cold start in the mornings?
Stuff like that...

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Nice acquisition. I think the supercharged JCW is the best of the lot. From my experience, the supercharged mini feels surefooted until you completely break traction. When you break traction the steering wheel completely loses weight and you feel like you have no control. I found this point relatively hard to get to but my supercharged was not a JCW. To break traction at a traffic circle i would have to be pulling superman stunts going in and it was easy to fix the under-steer because you have such a controllable lift off over-steer.

Suspension should be fairly hard compared to a your GTI's and the lot, but i found it very livable.

I did not have any rattle on a cold start.

 

[Cooper]

Post pics.

Sound...the R53 is generally makes a noise on acceleration.
With regards to losing traction around circles - check your tyres :rollsmile:
The only time you will lose traction around a bend/circle is if the traction control is off and you really flooring it.

 

[Surfless Surfer]

Nice acquisition. I think the supercharged JCW is the best of the lot. From my experience, the supercharged mini feels surefooted until you completely break traction. When you break traction the steering wheel completely loses weight and you feel like you have no control. I found this point relatively hard to get to but my supercharged was not a JCW. To break traction at a traffic circle i would have to be pulling superman stunts going in and it was easy to fix the under-steer because you have such a controllable lift off over-steer.

With regards to losing traction around circles - check your tyres

I took MiniMe over to Tiger wheel & Tyre after my original post. I'm not very mechanical so please excuse my lack of tech speak, but they found the camber to be "leaning" to one side; hence my loss of traction & hearing a sound that made me think it was a ball joint. They tightened up a few loose nuts & bolts on the suspension and my handling issues are mostly sorted out.
Now I'm getting someone to replace my engine mountings and possibly my side arm bushes.

I know I should be getting the dealership to sort all of these out, but I feel that I would have better peace of mind by getting people I know to do all this work.
But when I saw this car for sale, I felt it would be worth it to get it now and fix the possible problems as we find them...but I'm not willing to wait for them to happen...seek & destroy!

 

[Cooper]

Did you buy the car knowing all these faults?
Should have done your homework if you didnt know about it :fencelook:

 

[Surfless Surfer]

Nah. These faults arose 2 weeks after I got the car. I'm not to phased as it's minor stuff.... I hope

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[Surfless Surfer]

So I got the performance specialist at Audio Evolution to check out my car today. And he found nothing wrong with the suspension or anything.
The problem was tyre pressure! There was a difference of 0.1 bar between my tyres which was causing my instability at high speeds; and made me think it was an issue with the engine mountings.
This guy just saved me alot of cash! TWT didn't even pick that up!
Audio Evolution is building up a performance division, I strongly recommend visiting and keeping in touch with them... and they excellent with sound installs!

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