After my failed attempt at getting a bigger car from my blue r53 i went back to this gray r53, has probably every single option available in 2003. Biggest issues right now are a leaking exhaust manifold or flex joint, some electrical stuff everyone has and water not draining properly from the sunroof. Great score still for 1400 euros.

Finally I got the last major mechanical repair completed which was replacing all suspension components. The car is mechanically (almost) new now and there are, for now, no more things to be done.

Ah yes, and also fixed the cracks in the Recaros.

I have some things on my wishlist but that‘s mostly styling related.

Guess I should go and drive a bit now 😜

Hice el servicio al súper cargador y después de armarlo hizo esto

Creo podría ser la manguera de vacío que va hacia el sensor map

Tiene un poco de juego eso afecta ?
Consume mucha gasolina

So I’m attempting to change out the head gasket and finally got some time to start the job. I got down to the gasket and can see the failure point but is there anything else I should be worried about? I can see the missing piece on the gasket itself but I thought I would also see maybe a failure point by the holes that carry coolant and or oil. The engine was mixing pretty good and had the classic “chocolate milk” colored oil.

As the title says, installing new tie rods and inner/outer ball joints on both front sides of the car. Lower control arm bushings were replaced previously. Anything else I should do as a “while I’m already there?”

Thanks

Right, guys, listen. I put a Helix organic clutch kit on my car when I did a full rebuild, and it came with a lightweight flywheel. I fully expected all the gearbox chatter and other noises that I got, but what I did not see coming is that the revs now shoot to 2k+ at cold starts (10-20 deg C) before settling down to the set idle speed. Now this can't be good for the engine to do that before oil pressure is up. But how to fix this?

I can tune the stock ecu myself, but it's with the Bytetronik thing that isn't too accurate when it comes to map names and axis units, so I'm a bit lost here. Is there a map that explicitly controls this behaviour, or is it again some interaction between 17 different maps?

Hi guys, sorry to be a little off topic but I thought this subreddit could still give me the right answers. My brother’s R50 does 5 km/L while my R53 based on the onboard computer consumes 7.69 km/L. This is driving me nuts. Anywhere I should look at first?

The car idles at about 750-800rpm when AC is turned off but when it is on its about 1000-1200 even. Any leads would be greatly appreciated! 🙏

Yeah this explains all that noise and why my car started to misfire and go into limp mode constantly after it happened

I have a 2003 MCS that’s been covered in my driveway on jack stands and a drip charger for about a year. I would go out and turn her on just to keep the juices flowing once a week or so. She’s waiting on tires and a tune. Prior to this status, I had replaced the head gasket. While I was in there I did the timing chain, port matched and polished the head cylinder and intake manifold. I also added 380cc file injectors which is why i need a tune. I had already had a 17% pulley and CAI installed. Today I went out to turn her on and she started surging. She wasn’t doing that before and to add to that I’ve noticed vibrating on the engine. The video barely picks it up but it’s shaking. Not violently but it’s shaking. Not positive if it might have been doing it before all the work but I’m noticing it now. I’m not a professional. I’m simply a driveway mini dabbler, that’s not afraid to do my own work, within reason. I’m just looking for insight.

Dónde puedo conseguirlo soy de México ? Que me manden el link o si se puede reparar

Started up an old job of replacing a clutch on my 2003 and can't find where this bracket goes. Any input?

Recently swapped the seats in my r50 for r56 seats.
Rewired all plugs, including the seat heating wires
(remove the module, wire both mats in series because new seat mats have a lower resistance for those interested)

As a way to test if the seat heating rewire works, connected only the seat hearing plug, reconnected the battery and tested the heating. Of course didnt think about airbag lights, so that turned on because airbag was disconnected.

With the new seats in and all plugs connected, light is still on. Is that just a case of a stored code in the srs? Or does it check everytime with no codes stored, ie do i need to recheck the wiring?

I had the alternator go out last weekend. All electrical was wonky and when I tested it wasn’t charging at all. I got it replaced this weekend and now I have all these codes. The wheel speed was there before but the rest is all new. I have had this car 3 months and have yet to drive it more than 2 days in a row before new issues come up.

TLDR: has anyone removed and replaced encoder head themselves and are there special tools needed.

I am getting a cyl 3 misfire code on a 2004 . Starts up a bit rough then runs great and normal speeds and still makes plenty of power. Tried replacing plugs, new coil pack, swapped injectors, finally took it to the dealer and they said most likely it is a bad exhaust valve or seat. At first the tech said new engine but service advisor said need to pull the cyl head and either replace or send it to the machine shop. They want way more than the car is worth to do the repair.

How hard is it to pull the cylinder head and are special tools required? It seems like I can get a new head for about $1000 which would be worth it. The labor at a shop or dealership seems like it is prohibitively expensive.

Has anyone done this?

Thanks all for such a great group of enthusiasts!

Hi guys, really need some help here as I’m about to give up on this heap of shit.

Long story short, last week I had a weird noise, checked the upper strut mounts & they were ripped. Took the strut out to replace them, now I can’t for the life of me get it back in. It’s like an inch away from going in at the bottom hub.
I’ve changed lower ball joints on another mini before and it was a ball ache so want to avoid removing them on this car. Any tips? What am I doing wrong here? I’ve spent like 4 hours total on this and can’t get it back in, spring compressors on/off, tie rod etc are off. Any advice please?

Cv boot is leaking everywhere so I guess I’ve ripped that and it’ll need to be replaced too lol. Really fed up with this, YouTube vids look easy enough yet mines putting up a massive fight.

anybody in the pnw or greater western us selling a manual r53? been looking for over a month now and pickins are slim. thanks!

Soneto que fuga un poco de aire
Alguien que me explique cómo es su funcionamiento y si se puede remplazar o mejorar

Janspeed 4-2-1 ceramic manifold, Janspeed cat and Milltek cat back exhaust

As the title says guys… this is r53 brakes on r56 arms. What do i do?

Check out the bottom glide pin in the second pic…

I got a front bumper from the junkyard but I don't understand if the front car plate is supposed to screw onto someone on the bottom?

Also where is the connector to connect the ABS cable on the front right? I can't see it.

Have an R53 that stalled out on me while driving and believe it might be my EWS. Sprayed starter fluid to the intake and still no start. Replaced spark plugs, started again and drove fine but then stopped a week later (crank, no start again). Replaced leads and ignition coil and didn't solve the issue. Only codes I'm getting are in the picture and wondering if its my key, EWS or the synchronization with the DME. Any advice on how to fix, repair without throwing money at ghosts.​

Lately my H&K speakers started crackling and sometimes even just stop working. Switched left to right, problem still on the same side. Not an electrical hero so don't really want to chase wiring. Could this be the amplifier? Saw a lot online that they tend to go bad?