What have you done to your Mini today ?
Discussion
A few tweaks to the Clubbie recently
MINI logo "black orange" airfreshner was the cheapest and easiest to fit
Then I maybe got carried away!
A GP2 gear knob, JCW steering wheel, leather handbrake gaiter, handbrake grip and armrest cover to match the gear lever gaiter.
Alas the JCW additional gauges are no longer available so I sourced alternatives
(they are level it is just the angle the photo was taken)
MINI logo "black orange" airfreshner was the cheapest and easiest to fit
Then I maybe got carried away!
A GP2 gear knob, JCW steering wheel, leather handbrake gaiter, handbrake grip and armrest cover to match the gear lever gaiter.
Alas the JCW additional gauges are no longer available so I sourced alternatives
(they are level it is just the angle the photo was taken)
Deep Thought said:
Ordered a Racechips GTS tuning box, +54BHP so that will take my MCS to around 246BHP. I've also in ITG air filter element in so in theory that should take it to around 250BHP.
What is your experience of the RaceChip so far? I'm toying with the idea of one, but looking for some feedback.Superdry said:
Deep Thought said:
Ordered a Racechips GTS tuning box, +54BHP so that will take my MCS to around 246BHP. I've also in ITG air filter element in so in theory that should take it to around 250BHP.
What is your experience of the RaceChip so far? I'm toying with the idea of one, but looking for some feedback.Their customer service TBH is terrible.
Thread on it that i started over on minif56.com
https://www.minif56.com/forum/833-engine-powertrai...
But heres the text if you're not a member...
Deep Thought said:
Thought i'd share my experiences with buying the Racechip GTS for my 2018 Cooper S
Paid £399 for the box to take it to 246BHP a month ago.
Their racechip.co.uk website is just a front for the parent company in germany, so everything is shipped from there. I've also found out the published "UK Number" to ring them on doesnt work...
Box took about a week to arrive, instructions were for a VW 1.9 TDI. Quite a comprehensive booklet on how to fit it to a VW, but not sure of the significance on a MINI? This seems to be standard practice for them.
Fitted the box, initially no issues but EML light came on after a few journeys with a P100 fault code.
Contacted Racechip via Facebook and email, and after insisting i sent them pictures of the installation (which meant a weeks delay for nothing as i work away from home during the week) they concluded it needed a new wiring loom and reprogrammed. They were prepared to refund 15 euro postage, cost me £35 to return it to them insured via UPS. No apology for it being faulty / wrongly coded, just return it.
So they've had it back a week (signed for delivery showed delivery last Friday to Germany), no correspondence since.
Emailed this morning and Facebook chatted them this morning, no reply to either.
So bit the bullet and rang them in Germany an hour ago. Quoted the order number and they have no trace on the order of either the box being returned or what status its at. The "customer service" agent said he'd email the tech team and email me on monday. I hold out little hope of this.
Hugely disappointed with them and their customer service. I'm so far out £399 + £35 returning it and they dont even know where it is, and when / if i might get it back.
Now i've no doubt that many many people get a box and have no issues but BE WARNED - if you DO have ANY issues they are a horror story to deal with.
Sadly i'm not the only one to have found this out the hard way.
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.racechip.de
Reverted in the meantime to my trusty Bluespark tuning box.
Will mark any updates to conclusion, however i'm now looking at having to do a Section 75 through my credit card to get my money back.
Very very disappointed.
Finally got it back last week and fitted again last friday.Paid £399 for the box to take it to 246BHP a month ago.
Their racechip.co.uk website is just a front for the parent company in germany, so everything is shipped from there. I've also found out the published "UK Number" to ring them on doesnt work...
Box took about a week to arrive, instructions were for a VW 1.9 TDI. Quite a comprehensive booklet on how to fit it to a VW, but not sure of the significance on a MINI? This seems to be standard practice for them.
Fitted the box, initially no issues but EML light came on after a few journeys with a P100 fault code.
Contacted Racechip via Facebook and email, and after insisting i sent them pictures of the installation (which meant a weeks delay for nothing as i work away from home during the week) they concluded it needed a new wiring loom and reprogrammed. They were prepared to refund 15 euro postage, cost me £35 to return it to them insured via UPS. No apology for it being faulty / wrongly coded, just return it.
So they've had it back a week (signed for delivery showed delivery last Friday to Germany), no correspondence since.
Emailed this morning and Facebook chatted them this morning, no reply to either.
So bit the bullet and rang them in Germany an hour ago. Quoted the order number and they have no trace on the order of either the box being returned or what status its at. The "customer service" agent said he'd email the tech team and email me on monday. I hold out little hope of this.
Hugely disappointed with them and their customer service. I'm so far out £399 + £35 returning it and they dont even know where it is, and when / if i might get it back.
Now i've no doubt that many many people get a box and have no issues but BE WARNED - if you DO have ANY issues they are a horror story to deal with.
Sadly i'm not the only one to have found this out the hard way.
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.racechip.de
Reverted in the meantime to my trusty Bluespark tuning box.
Will mark any updates to conclusion, however i'm now looking at having to do a Section 75 through my credit card to get my money back.
Very very disappointed.
Deep Thought said:
Fitted and no engine management lights so far....
Need to give it a good run to bed in now. Initial thoughts are that perhaps the Bluespark gave me a little more torque than the Racechip but it may well be the Racechip is giving me more power and torque across the rev range - perhaps less "peaky"....
Time will tell
It seems "smoother" than my Bluespark was. I've currently it at '5' and it goes to '7' so will be upping it to '6' this weekend, then '7' next weekend.Need to give it a good run to bed in now. Initial thoughts are that perhaps the Bluespark gave me a little more torque than the Racechip but it may well be the Racechip is giving me more power and torque across the rev range - perhaps less "peaky"....
Time will tell
The terrible customer service experience has left a really bad taste in my mouth though.....
Decided i needed to get the AC checked out given its blowing out warm air .... given we do it in house your own car is always puhed out of the que. So we checked the pressure, it was down but ok, we regassed it so we know it has the right amount in and still warm air.
Given the radiator fan does not kick in at all when the AC is turned on i guess that's where i'll start - you can here the relay click.
Given the radiator fan does not kick in at all when the AC is turned on i guess that's where i'll start - you can here the relay click.
(the other day but meh)
Anyway, wash, clay, polish and wax
Looks good but the paintwork is really a mess, full of scratches and other than a complete respray (not an option on the leaky shed) what else can I do to improve the paint? As it is the cheap run-about it needs to be cost effective (ie cheap) - I've already spent more on cleaning stuff for this than any other car / motorbike I have ever owned and it's the first car I've ever used a clay bar on ! The other half thinks I'm a bit mad...
Anyway, wash, clay, polish and wax
Looks good but the paintwork is really a mess, full of scratches and other than a complete respray (not an option on the leaky shed) what else can I do to improve the paint? As it is the cheap run-about it needs to be cost effective (ie cheap) - I've already spent more on cleaning stuff for this than any other car / motorbike I have ever owned and it's the first car I've ever used a clay bar on ! The other half thinks I'm a bit mad...
I carried out a few things today that I had been putting off for ages but finally I cleaned the ITG filter out. Considering its been in there 20,000 miles it wasn't too bad.
Next was the battery, its the original AGM battery so coming up to 8 years old, stop start hasn't worked for around 4 years which truth be told has never bothered me. So being a fan of all things OEM and having access to BMW trade parts club i went down the route of a genuine MINI battery, I could have had a Duracell 5 year warranty for less money or even a Varta battery for slightly more than the MINI one, however brand snobery got the better of me so i went genuine.
The original battery was manufactured by Exide, the new one Banner. I should have gone with Varta but hey ho to late now. Besides when you lift the battery cover it does say BMW genuine .... cost was £119 plus VAT.
The battery will need coding but i'll get that done at work tomorrow.
Next was Vanos solenoid, its the original and when trying to investigate the non working AC a few days ago there was a fault code in there for the Vanos, my el cheapo scanner at home never picked it up and neither did it pick up something for battery voltage. Again, badge snob kicked in so a genuine one was purchased from MINI, cost £69 plus VAT. For those looking to make a saving just by a Delphi one, it won't say BMW but its cheaper.
Fitting is simple, a torx drive at the bottom twist and then gently prise it out, don't prise behind it as its a machined surface but you need just enough force to pop it out of the hole, suction and an o'ring is fighting against you.
With those things off the list next up is a service, again genuine. I have the parts and that will get done in the next few weeks. It does very little mileage so it gets a cabin filter, plugs and oil every year.
Next fault to try and resolve is the AC, the low speed fan doesn't kick in. Fuses are ok so its likely the fan unit itself.
Next was the battery, its the original AGM battery so coming up to 8 years old, stop start hasn't worked for around 4 years which truth be told has never bothered me. So being a fan of all things OEM and having access to BMW trade parts club i went down the route of a genuine MINI battery, I could have had a Duracell 5 year warranty for less money or even a Varta battery for slightly more than the MINI one, however brand snobery got the better of me so i went genuine.
The original battery was manufactured by Exide, the new one Banner. I should have gone with Varta but hey ho to late now. Besides when you lift the battery cover it does say BMW genuine .... cost was £119 plus VAT.
The battery will need coding but i'll get that done at work tomorrow.
Next was Vanos solenoid, its the original and when trying to investigate the non working AC a few days ago there was a fault code in there for the Vanos, my el cheapo scanner at home never picked it up and neither did it pick up something for battery voltage. Again, badge snob kicked in so a genuine one was purchased from MINI, cost £69 plus VAT. For those looking to make a saving just by a Delphi one, it won't say BMW but its cheaper.
Fitting is simple, a torx drive at the bottom twist and then gently prise it out, don't prise behind it as its a machined surface but you need just enough force to pop it out of the hole, suction and an o'ring is fighting against you.
With those things off the list next up is a service, again genuine. I have the parts and that will get done in the next few weeks. It does very little mileage so it gets a cabin filter, plugs and oil every year.
Next fault to try and resolve is the AC, the low speed fan doesn't kick in. Fuses are ok so its likely the fan unit itself.
Changed the oil and filter plus air filter. I was also able to get the R58 up on a ramp and was horrified at the level of rust on the subframes, exhaust hangers and suspension components. Really thin paint on all the parts so slapped a couple of coats of Waxoyl on everything. I didn't get any pictures other than the air filter but this is 20k miles 3 years old and absolutely clogged. The oil filter was a Purflex and had been fitted by a main dealer. It's got another Purflux now and I intend to change the oil and filter again in 6k miles.
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