41 replies to this topic

[tomsbluemini]

Morning Guys

with a baby on the way and still desperate to keep my enthusiasms for minis, ROsie and I have bought an 1998 R reg MPi cooper.

I've never driven one before, and only looked under the bonnet of a few.

What problems am I likely to encounter and what should I be looking out for?

Cheers

Tom

[Mini_Magic]

Excellent Tom!

Main problems with an MPi...um...same problems as a normal Mini I guess. Can't think of anything in particular that you need to watch out for that you don't on a normal Mini.

Onlt things that have ever gone wrong on mine are the water pump (pretty cheap and easy to replace) and some dirt getting stuck in the throttle butterfly valve (I had been playing with the air filter the night before because I was bored). If you hit a pot hole and the engine cuts out, just press the big black button in the top right corner of the engine bay.

Have fun pulling over for broken down Minis!

[CooperTrooper]

Ball joints get munched quickly if your running big wheels, change yearly, a couple of mine went in 8 months!

If the gearbox hasnt been reconned the MPi gearbox is renowned for crunching in 2nd gear!

Apart from them i had no major problems, car was ultra reliable. Be prepared to dig deep if anything goes wrong though, as im sure your aware the parts cost a fair whack

[Juju]

What problems am I likely to encounter and what should I be looking out for?

Whether to choose either the "Soothing Scirocco" or "Howling Tornado" settings on your 2 speed heater.

[tomsbluemini]

What problems am I likely to encounter and what should I be looking out for?

Whether to choose either the "Soothing Scirocco" or "Howling Tornado" settings on your 2 speed heater.

I must say, i'm REALLY looking forward to getting it for a number of reasons:

1 - the baby's on the way
2 - finally a reliable car
3 - intermittent wipers
4 - 2 speed heater

see pic... it's this one... plate is included

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[Mini_Magic]

If the gearbox hasnt been reconned the MPi gearbox is renowned for crunching in 2nd gear!

Mine crunches in second gear, but only if I'm not careful with the gear change. Doesn't tend to happen now if I get the speed and revs just right.

[CooperTrooper]

If the gearbox hasnt been reconned the MPi gearbox is renowned for crunching in 2nd gear!

Mine crunches in second gear, but only if I'm not careful with the gear change. Doesn't tend to happen now if I get the speed and revs just right.

Very annoying, cant drive as aggressive and when you downshift it is impossible to avoid. It will only get worse as the synchro dies, id get it sorted before it gets any worse. S'pose its how you drive n'all, put it this way, i used to make the most of each gear! If you drive conservatively im sure it can be put up with.. still highly annoying though, and expensive to fix.

[Mini_Magic]

If the gearbox hasnt been reconned the MPi gearbox is renowned for crunching in 2nd gear!

Mine crunches in second gear, but only if I'm not careful with the gear change. Doesn't tend to happen now if I get the speed and revs just right.

Very annoying, cant drive as aggressive and when you downshift it is impossible to avoid. It will only get worse as the synchro dies, id get it sorted before it gets any worse. S'pose its how you drive n'all, put it this way, i used to make the most of each gear! If you drive conservatively im sure it can be put up with.. still highly annoying though, and expensive to fix.

It only ever happens on downshift, even then it's still very rare. You just have to take your time with it and treat it like your mother.

[mini_lover]

If the gearbox hasnt been reconned the MPi gearbox is renowned for crunching in 2nd gear!

Mine crunches in second gear, but only if I'm not careful with the gear change. Doesn't tend to happen now if I get the speed and revs just right.

Very annoying, cant drive as aggressive and when you downshift it is impossible to avoid. It will only get worse as the synchro dies, id get it sorted before it gets any worse. S'pose its how you drive n'all, put it this way, i used to make the most of each gear! If you drive conservatively im sure it can be put up with.. still highly annoying though, and expensive to fix.

How do you fix this?

[Mini_Magic]

How do you fix this?

You buy one of these...

http://www.minisport...rd_Helical.html

[mini_lover]

How do you fix this?

You buy one of these...

http://www.minisport...rd_Helical.html

Whats that and what does it do?

[Mini_Magic]

Those are the gears. I don't think you can buy just second gear on it's own.

[CooperTrooper]

If the gearbox hasnt been reconned the MPi gearbox is renowned for crunching in 2nd gear!

Mine crunches in second gear, but only if I'm not careful with the gear change. Doesn't tend to happen now if I get the speed and revs just right.

Very annoying, cant drive as aggressive and when you downshift it is impossible to avoid. It will only get worse as the synchro dies, id get it sorted before it gets any worse. S'pose its how you drive n'all, put it this way, i used to make the most of each gear! If you drive conservatively im sure it can be put up with.. still highly annoying though, and expensive to fix.

It only ever happens on downshift, even then it's still very rare. You just have to take your time with it and treat it like your mother.

Who wants to treat a cooper s like your mother?! lol

Put it this way dude, you will need it sorting eventually and like i said depends how aggresive you are when you downshift and by that i mean at what speed you are doing when you enter 2nd. I just found it dead annoying, and wasnt able to make the most of the engine with the problem.

@ minilover - I got a remanafactured box, which i was recomended, that way whoever you choose to sort it, can completely take apart your box and replace anything else that is worn while they are in the heart of the box. Speak to guessworks.

[mini_lover]

Those are the gears. I don't think you can buy just second gear on it's own.

Ah I thought they were some kind of special gears...something im prob never going to attempt, but.. am I to assume this is very hard to do?

[mini_lover]

If the gearbox hasnt been reconned the MPi gearbox is renowned for crunching in 2nd gear!

Mine crunches in second gear, but only if I'm not careful with the gear change. Doesn't tend to happen now if I get the speed and revs just right.

Very annoying, cant drive as aggressive and when you downshift it is impossible to avoid. It will only get worse as the synchro dies, id get it sorted before it gets any worse. S'pose its how you drive n'all, put it this way, i used to make the most of each gear! If you drive conservatively im sure it can be put up with.. still highly annoying though, and expensive to fix.

It only ever happens on downshift, even then it's still very rare. You just have to take your time with it and treat it like your mother.

Who wants to treat a cooper s like your mother?! lol

Put it this way dude, you will need it sorting eventually and like i said depends how aggresive you are when you downshift and by that i mean at what speed you are doing when you enter 2nd. I just found it dead annoying, and wasnt able to make the most of the engine with the problem.

@ minilover - I got a remanafactured box, which i was recomended, that way whoever you choose to sort it, can completely take apart your box and replace anything else that is worn while they are in the heart of the box. Speak to guessworks.

Oo, thanks for reply I asked him about it earlier Am I correct to assume its a big job? Its only just started doing it this month and only like twice... so just wondering really... its a bit of a pain when its my daily drive...