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2003 Mini Cooper S (R53) - Fixing creaking interior panels


Peter C

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On 10/27/2021 at 10:25 AM, Noel Tidybeard said:

i think we can safely say this won't me true after some winter roads 🤣

No need to wait until the winter. After today's 100 mile run up and down the M40 and M25, the back window was filthy.

Admittedly, as the rear wiper was fucked anyway, the situation is no worse than it would have been if I had not removed the wiper.

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On 10/27/2021 at 4:08 PM, Peter C said:

This afternoon I had an opportunity to drive the Aygo 8 miles to Amersham and back via the A413. Here's what I think.

I'm 6ft2 and fitted behind the wheel with room to spare. Note automatic transmission and paddle shifts - more about them later.

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However, only amputees would fit in the seat behind me.

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And there isn't much more space in the boot either.

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It has an engine, somewhere.

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I don't like the interior architecture and some of the plastics are rough. There is a fucking annoying rattle coming from the bottom of the front passenger door. The radio sounds shit, probably because the bass has been set to -1 because the speakers are knackered. The steering wheel is a good size and looks pretty enough. The seats have zero support. Overall, the interior is piss poor.

The engine is willing enough, I don't know what capacity it is but it pulls ok once wound up, however at sub 3k rpms it suffers from a very annoying hesitation. The biggest problem is the transmission, which jerks and feels like the clutch and brake pedal are being pressed concurrently whenever it changes gears up or down. It's horrible. There is no point in using the paddles because it won't let you go up and down through the gears when you want to. If you try to change gear when it won't let you, the dashboard will warn you with an annoying beeping sound. Oh, and the transmission won't let the engine rev past 6k. I've tried. 

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It got me to my destination and back and probably didn't use much fuel. I shall therefore give it 3/10.

My Kia Exceed, which is bigger but probably not much more expensive is ten times the car. I want it back!

 

 

Apart from those details, are you pleased with it? 😅

We hired a five door manual 2014 Aygo en France a few years back. It was a fantastic little thing. Surprisingly spacious considering it's tiny footprint, intelligent use of interior space, very rev happy, the three pot sounded good rather than strained and perfect for the narrow twisties around where we were based. Small but perfectly formed basically.

Ours was identical to this one, aside from having rental steelies. I'd happily buy one if I required a small ecobox for hammering around locally. It was infinitely better as a car than the dull and gutless Yaris we hired in Lanzarote more recently. 

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It sounds like the newer generation has sacrificed intelligent small car design and engineering for modern* looks and flashy detail. 

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I am a big fan of the Aygo and its clones. Well the first ones anyway. I am sort of looking out for one with A/C but they seem to reach about £1200 then never drop below (into my open jaws). It would be a good starter shite for 15yo to hone his bodge skills on. 

I am a huge fan of 'minimum viable' car, which this is, and (proper) Ka before it, Panda MK1 before that and Mini/2CV before that.

Beetles can get to fuck, though. 

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10 minutes ago, grogee said:

I am a huge fan of 'minimum viable' car, which this is, and (proper) Ka before it, Panda MK1 before that and Mini/2CV before that.

Beetles can get to fuck, though. 

As I said, the previous generation are small but perfectly formed. They are perfect for what they need to do, and are great fun to hoon around in to boot. Unlikely little hooligans really. As you say, a more accurate interpretation of a modern version of a 1960s Mini - lightweight, no lardy bits and substance over style (although they look alright too). The Aygo is what the Bini should have been. 

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Let's just say that I've parked the Aygo on my side drive, behind gates, where it cannot be seen and where it doesn't restrict access to the garage where my Cooper sleeps.

I do not propose to drive the hateful piece of shit again.

If it wasn't for the awful transmission and noisy trim, it would be ok, I guess, if one has hit rock bottom.

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2 hours ago, Peter C said:

No need to wait until the winter. After today's 100 mile run up and down the M40 and M25, the back window was filthy.

Admittedly, as the rear wiper was fucked anyway, the situation is no worse than it would have been if I had not removed the wiper.

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definite candidate for rain-x or some sort of nano coating

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  • Peter C changed the title to 2003 Mini Cooper S (R53) - It's still going!

I've been using the Cooper every day since my Kia Exceed was taken away for repairs last week. I've been loving every minute of it and nothing has gone wrong.

Yesterday, to my surprise, my Kia was delivered, all fixed. It's looking fresh and clean and the repairs have been completed to a good standard.

So, this morning, I jumped straight in the Cooper and went off to work. I bloody love it!

 

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  • Peter C changed the title to 2003 Mini Cooper S (R53) - To bling or not to bling, that is the question

At some point in the past, a previous owner had painted the dashboard panels black. The finish is ok but the effect makes the interior look very austere. 

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Mark @gm  recently removed chrome* (plastic) rings from the dials and centre vents that were fitted to a Mini that he recently acquired and offered them for the cost of p&p. Thank you Mark! I thought that fitting these rings might be a quick and cheap way of blinging up my dashboard.

Fitting took about 30 seconds, the rings just push on.

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Usually, when it comes to modifying cars, I believe that less is more but I like the contrast that the rings have added.

Win or no win?

 

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4 minutes ago, EyesWeldedShut said:

It's a win for us - my wife's first R50 had the full plastic chrome treatment inside when she bought it - including the rocker switches and the half round dividers - you know you want those too, go on.....

That might be taking things a bit too far!

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18 hours ago, Peter C said:

At some point in the past, a previous owner had painted the dashboard panels black. The finish is ok but the effect makes the interior look very austere. 

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Mark @gm  recently removed chrome* (plastic) rings from the dials and centre vents that were fitted to a Mini that he recently acquired and offered them for the cost of p&p. Thank you Mark! I thought that fitting these rings might be a quick and cheap way of blinging up my dashboard.

Fitting took about 30 seconds, the rings just push on.

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Usually, when it comes to modifying cars, I believe that less is more but I like the contrast that the rings have added.

Win or no win?

 

That is definitely an improvement, the all black is too dark. Mine was a dark metallic grey under the chrome which I prefer so everyone’s a winner :) 

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First time this week the weather was warm enough to allow tinkering with cars.

I removed the nearside door trim (very easy) to see what could be causing a rattle that’s been annoying me all week. All I found was a couple of loose clips and to my surprise, standard speakers. The ICE sounded great before I fitted my amp and sub and I was convinced that the speakers must have been upgraded by a previous owner.

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I’ve clocked up about 500 miles since the last time I washed the Cooper, most of them in bad weather. I gave it a deep clean and put it back in the garage as I won’t be using it again before next weekend.

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I can’t get over how pretty an R53 is. For a car that is approaching its 20th birthday (R50s are already two decades old) it still looks fresh. Rover/BMW got the design so right.

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On 11/5/2021 at 7:07 PM, Peter C said:

Do you have any photos of the incident?

None of our old car but here's an equivalent. About £2 from AliExpress - needs hooking into the sidelights and then routing the wiring so it does not get crimped by closing the bonnet.
Fitting also discovered the R50 had heated washer jets (whooo) which were not a lot of use but that also means heated side mirrors which were.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The heated washer jets were an option.  £40.

My Cooper S also has the two spoke wheel, with more buttons as mine has cruise and the S249  Multifunction F Steering Wheel stereo controls (which are on the back of the wheel).

I quite like the black dash mod. There were a few different dash / trim mods available on the early R53s. Mine has the S463  Interior Surface Alloy Patina  option which kinda freaks me out a bit as I can't work out which bits of it are worn. I'll have to investigate how they looked new. 

I believe a worthwhile tweak is to fit the front chassis braces from the R52. Unfortunately, the R53 chassis wasn't drilled for them until 2004, but it's meant to be a couple of hours work to fit them, they're genuine parts so they fit (the holes for them are pre-drilled on facelift R53s) they fit properly and stiffen the shell just enough to stop the dash from creaking.. I'll be fitting those. 

 

They are funky little things

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On 11/6/2021 at 7:21 PM, greengartside said:

I bet they are a bloody riot to drive. I sat in one this morning and was still surprised as to how much room there is inside. 

They really are, a lot of people ask me why I still have mine with having a GR Yaris too but it's genuinely 90% of the fun. It actually feels quite airy and spacious compared to more modern small cars with thicker pillars. I am 6 foot 2 ish and fit perfectly fine. 

7 minutes ago, Pete-M said:

I believe a worthwhile tweak is to fit the front chassis braces from the R52. Unfortunately, the R53 chassis wasn't drilled for them until 2004, but it's meant to be a couple of hours work to fit them, they're genuine parts so they fit (the holes for them are pre-drilled on facelift R53s) they fit properly and stiffen the shell just enough to stop the dash from creaking.. I'll be fitting those. 

The best modification I've made to mine is the thicker rear anti roll, it just amplifies the directness. Probably my favourite mod I've ever done for effectiveness and cost £140! 

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37 minutes ago, Liggle said:

 

The best modification I've made to mine is the thicker rear anti roll, it just amplifies the directness. Probably my favourite mod I've ever done for effectiveness and cost £140! 

I'll probably do the cabrio braces first.  My Golf has adjustable anti-roll bars and they work very well indeed. 

I need to drive the Mini more before deciding on any possible chassis mods. Mine is polybushed with new OEM springs, shocks, links, arms and top mounts etc. It's also had the R56 trailing arm upgrade. Cast alloy rear trailing arms save 5kg of unsprung weight from the rear end and the pivot point changes slightly which improves feel and sharpness whilst also improving ride quality. Win win. All genuine BMW bits as well.  Does involve changing a lot of parts though. 

That's the kind of mod I like.  Ride and handling improved but everything looks totally factory and the bits all have factory part numbers. It's effectively a factory upgrade.  It's a safety feature! 

Same with the cabrio under bonnet chassis braces. Obviously the cabrio shell flexes more due to being decapitated, but the little chassis braces are again genuine Mini parts and if they stiffen the shell slightly the suspension can work more precisely. I believe the cabrio braces don't affect handling much at all but they do reduce dash rattles and creaks. 

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  • Peter C changed the title to 2003 Mini Cooper S (R53) - Fixing creaking interior panels

It's been a while since I've updated this thread.

Since buying the Cooper last summer I’ve been keeping it unlocked in the garage and I’ve had a few issues with the battery going flat whenever I left it unused for more than a week. In December I replaced the battery but having left the Cooper in the garage for three weeks over Christmas, the new battery was completely flat upon my return. A car electrician friend took a look at it for me a few weeks ago. He did various checks and concluded that the battery and the charging system are ok but his checks revealed that by leaving the car unlocked, the electrical system was drawing 0.4 amps but with it locked and alarmed, the draw was down to 0.1 amps. His advice was to keep the Cooper locked and hope that everything is ok. I've had no more battery issues since.

The oil leak from the engine has not fixed itself. Once the weather improves and I can kick my W124 out of the garage I promise to get it sorted.

I'm still really enjoying driving the Cooper but noisy internal trim has been spoiling the experience somewhat, especially creaks that emanated from the rear nearside quarter panel. I took action yesterday and stripped out the rear seat and removed the offending panel. I found a couple of broken and loose clips as well as evidence of rubbing between the panel and adjoining plastic surfaces. I applied gaffer tape and packed out various plastics and after re-assembly the panel was more securely fixed and hopefully will be less creaky. 

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