7 replies to this topic

[jamesmacc]

hey guys,

watching for a mini for the mrs and came across a stunning 2007 jcw with full leather and colour sat nav for under 2500, no mot, no tax , wheels need refurb and engine is knocking, apparantly the bottom end bearings are gone, anyone know how much a big end and main bearing set will cost me? i would be cleaning everything up at the same time, replacing belts etc and possibly do a little head work while its off.

failing that i can get a engine from a older shape 1.6 supercharged mini for £750, is this the same bottom end as the newer 1.6 turbos? im into tuning fords but always had a soft spot for the minis cooper s's after working on a few.

any help would be greatly appreciated as the auction ends in the next few hours

thanks

James

[humph]

Not really the right forum to be asking on as this is a classic Mini site, but I will try to answer your questions (or some of them at least) as a new MINI owner.

 

The supercharged engine and the turbo charged unit are completely different units. The 1.6 supercharged engine found in the 2001-2006 R53 models (& R50 models in normally aspirated form) are Chrysler derived Tritec units. The 1.6 turbo used in the post 2006 2nd gen cars is a Peugeot/Citroen PSA unit & is similar, but not the same as, the unit found in the Peugeot 208 GTI (& I believe some Ford models). I believe the only parts shared with the Peugeot, Citroen & Ford cars is the block & some internals.

 

As far as MINI specialists goes try Lohen, 1320Mini, Minisport (although mostly classic).

 

For new MINI forums try www.totalmini.com, www.mini2.com, www.minitorque.com

Edited by humph, 11 August 2014 - 08:31 PM.

[Alex_B]

I would imagine you are looking at about a £1500 bill when you have everything accounted for. Why is the bottom end failing? I cant imagine it will be due to age or miles, if it is then I would avoid anyway as things will start failing and cost a lot. If the engine has a fault thats caused the bottom end to fail then you will obviously need to rectify this whilst replacing the bottom end, I would look into oil pressure. 

What else has failed with the bottom end? I would imagine the crank needs a regrind or replacement, I would look into a replacement so you dont have issues with loosing heat treatment which can occur after grinding. Whilst you're there a replacement clutch would be wise unless its already new, then gaskets and whatnot. 

Personally I am thinking its a bargepole car, my mum has had experience of an R56 Cooper S and it was less than reliable from new, and by the time it was 3 years old it had probably owed MINI about £8-10,000 in repairs (all done under warranty), so buying one with serious faults wouldn't be wise in my opinion unless you want to rebuild the engine for fun. 

Also it wouldn't really be feasible to transfer the older supercharged lump into it due to regulations, engine design and other factors. 

[CityEPete]

This is why our Cooper Clubman has a chili pack and some goodies but no turbo, I had a renault 5gt turbo back in the day and its put me off turbos ever since, lol

[Badboytunes]

Are you sure its the bottom end? The R56 ( turbo lump , N14  i think ) has a known issue with "death rallte ". Sounds awfull and is sooo similar to bottom end noise. Google, MINI MATT is Shropshire too for advice.

 

As stated above the R53 and R56 engines are totally different.

 

If its a JCW , the head is different and im sure  the internals are different to the turbo engine. These early ones were done by the dealer not by the manufacturer and should have a certificate to prove.

 

 

Cheers

Edited by Badboytunes, 12 August 2014 - 06:44 AM.

[humph]

 

If its a JCW , the head is different and im sure  the internals are different to the turbo engine. These early ones were done by the dealer not by the manufacturer and should have a certificate to prove.
 
 
Cheers

Good point, is it the dealer fit kit making it a Cooper S JCW (192bhp), or the factory fit JCW model (210bhp)? These models have different engine components.

[Badboytunes]

The JCW of that era was a dealer retro fit. Not sure of the power output from the early ones but the later ones done by the manufacturer are 211bhp im led to believe.

 

I think the manufacturer started doing them from 2008......

[humph]

If it's a dealer fit kit it'll be 192bhp. We've had both and the 192bhp is a punchy car, but the 211bhp JCW is a significant upgrade.

Edited by humph, 12 August 2014 - 07:58 PM.