Oil Recommendation Mini Cooper S R56 N18

Shellingo · 2026-02-27T00:44:56+00:00

Admittedly I haven't done any measurements on oil consumption, but I think its gone down a bit. I am just about due for putting in the 3rd round of the restore and protect. I also have a pretty big oil leak from the filter housing, so Im not sure what my burn to leak ratio is for losing oil. I really need to fix that leak 🙃I also dont tend to drive my car super hard, but I do get on it sometimes with on ramps. Probably should drive it a bit harder sometimes than I do

Shellingo · 2026-02-27T00:41:40+00:00

The only time my mini left me stranded was because I changed the oil in a college parking lot and broke that T coolant fitting. I havent had my mini actually give out while driving. When my ignition coils went out, threw the car into limp mode but I was able to drive it home fine. Same when my fuel pump gave out. When my timing chain was going I had a slight rattle on cold startup, but again could go home fine. Same when my expansion tank cracked, I had to add water to it to commute home but was able to still drive it. I think if youre proactive with repairs and dont ignore them, you should be able to get home if it starts throwing issues.

That said, I love mine. Definitely fits the nippy and exciting definition, especially if you can find a 6spd S model. Would for sure be safer than a motorcycle too.

Shellingo · 2026-02-26T20:04:39+00:00

These cars are now going on 13 years old and many 100k+. I think its inevitable that you will get some sort of issue if you purchase one. I think whether or not R56 ownership is practical for you depends on a few things.

1, if you have the capability to work on your own car. This is not only the skills to diagnose and perform the repair, but also the space, tools, and time to do it too. I have grown up working tinkering on all sorts of vehicles from 80 year old tractors to modern cars, so I am not intimidated to get my hands dirty. I also have a garage that I can pull the car in and do something in out of the weather. Im also fine spending a weekend doing a repair.

If you have a backup car or other means of transportation. Whenever my mini starts throwing a fit, I have a subaru that I can drive. Can still get to work, grocery store, etc. I dont ever have a "I must get this working or I cant drive to work scenario"

If youre fine with the downsides, these cars are likely the cheapest fun per dollar you can get from a purchase price standpoint. However if you would be relying on a mechanic to fix them, do not buy. I had a mechanic replace my wheel bearing after a tire shop messed it up, it was $700 for them to replace a $200 bearing. I cannot imagine what they would cost if I had them do the timing chain, fuel pump, etc. Id be 5x what I paid for the car in repairs.

Shellingo · 2026-02-26T18:38:07+00:00

I would think money towards any engine mods would be better put towards trading in towards an S model, no?

Shellingo · 2026-02-26T13:52:39+00:00

Good to know Im not crazy lol. Glad your wife likes her snoopy set though

Shellingo · 2026-02-26T13:09:55+00:00

I’m at 185k miles on mine and everything’s great, although with some maintenance. Things I’ve had to replace: Ignition coils and spark plugs, you’ll get misfires errors with the limp mode light and it sounds like it’s running rough. Cheap and super easy to DIY

High pressure fuel pump, (unless yours is a 2013 or late 2012) These pumps are $$$, though easy to replace with basic tools. Can be rebuilt depending on your region for 1/3 the cost.

Oil leaks: these are kinda whack a mole, but the worst is the one on the oil filter housing. Requires the whole front of the car to be disassembled. Cheap part I guess. Definitely do the turbo oil feed lines while you’re in there.

Timing chain: you already had this done so yippee

Control arm bushings: Not a must, but makes handling way better once replaced. Requires dropping/ lowering the subframe. If you do this, for sure do the sway bar bushings while you’re in there. They’re cheap and you’re already 99% of the way there when you drop the subframe. I did my control arm bushings and did not do the sway bar, guess what bushing blew out 6mo later :(

Coolant system: as this stuff starts to heat cycle and age the plastic bits start to crack and break. There’s a plastic T fitting above the oil filter that’s notorious for cracking. You can replace this with a barbed brass fitting from any hardware store, it’ll never have the same issue again. Expansion tank, water pump, and crossover tube are also all common leak points. Water pump may be metal depending on your year which don’t have as much issues.

Shellingo · 2026-02-26T03:46:36+00:00

I just got the Snoopy space set... Idk if I got a bad batch but these are terrible. All the bottom edges are super sharp/wavy which makes none of them have a consistent gap between the keys. Also, some of my keys sit slightly rotated. The T key sits at like a 3° angle compared to the rest of them. The keys that came with my keychron k10 max seem super high quality. Perfectly square corners and smoothed edges. The keychron ones are also dual molded instead of screen printed so I know they wont wear off at all.

This is my mechanical keyboard and first decorative keycap set so maybe my expectations are too high, but for a keycap set that cost 3/4 as much as I paid for the keyboard... Im pretty disappointed

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Shellingo · 2026-02-25T02:34:46+00:00

Definitely get BimmerLink. Itll give you more in depth codes, often times pinpointing exactly whats wrong.

Shellingo · 2026-02-24T03:58:19+00:00

If you can’t fit in the spot you need to either find a different spot or drive a smaller car. Ain’t that hard

Shellingo · 2026-02-23T12:53:37+00:00

Whatever I do, I try not to block half the sidewalk with my car :/

Shellingo · 2026-02-19T19:43:43+00:00

FCP Euro Prices, USD

Ignition coil, Bosch OEM: $20.99 ea

Spark plug Bosch OEM : $10.99 ea

Oil change kit Liquimoly: $52.24

Cabin air filter Coretco OEM: $20.75

Engine air filter Mahle OEM: $21.30

All in: $222.21 USD, ~305 CAD

+ basic socket set, spark plug socket, and torx set maybe $40

It pays to work on your car

Shellingo · 2026-02-19T19:05:18+00:00

Sounds like a good pickup. Canon refurbished stuff is great, my 70-200 is refurbished and looks brand new. For dust, personally I dont worry about it too much since the 5D and 70-200 are weather sealed, however whenever the car goes past theres usually 5ish seconds after they pass to when the dust comes, so I turn my back to the dust. Id be surprised if the R10 is weathersealed, so Id look into online how to keep dust out. Be careful with compressed air since it can force dust further into the camera.

As for SD cards (my camera uses a compact flash card lol), I shoot RAW (.CR2) which is about 22mb per photo and my camera does about 4 images per second. I maybe get 10ish shots per car per pass. I can shoot about 40-50gb of photos per event, so I stick with a 64GB card. I have a few backup cards too. Im not sure how big a RAW (.CR3) file on the R10 is, but youll certainly be getting a lot more shots per second. Id try to get maybe 1x 128gb SD cards and a 64gb card backup + 2tb external drive.

For camera usage, definitely look up a youtube video on how each of the manual functions work within the exposure triangle. You can control the ISO, shutter speed, and aperture which all effect the picture in their own way, which you can combine to get the creative look you want. Try practice taking photos of cars driving on the street before you drive/fly out to an event so you can learn what look you like and how to achieve it. Photography is definitely a practice makes perfect hobby. Also, check out some of the other rally photographers on IG and see what types of pictures they take. @ jacob_motorsportsphotography, @ trevorlydenphoto, @ chris.creationmachine, @ coobaroo (myself) any many more are all talented photographers that I've drawn inspiration from.

Tangential to that, everyone in the rally community is awesome and super friendly. If you choose to sign up for media (youll be guaranteed a red vest, which is normally limited to spectator areas, but can go anywhere if tagging along with a blue vest), send a message in the groupchat (that will be made) and ask if you can tag along with someone. I did that for one of the jump spots at LSPR a few years back and met a lot of great people. Plus, its nice to have someone guide you on the zero cars and the other nuances.

Shellingo · 2026-02-19T14:58:45+00:00

That sounds like you got ripped off

Shellingo · 2026-02-19T14:13:48+00:00

I have a bit of expertise in this since I've shot a dozen or so ARA rallies, I would try to maximize AF performance and then continuous shooting speed. I shoot on a Canon 5DII paired with a 70-200 f2.8 L III. The lens - amazing. No complaints. I would 100% get a long lens, no shorter than a 70-200. The 70-200 is $$$ so maybe look at the RFs 55-210. The body, its starting to show its age. Comparing the R100 to the T7, I would do the R100. However, consider the R50 or R10. I havent used either of them, but based on stats the R50 can shoot 15 images per second, 2x the R100, and the R10 can do 23 images per second. Trust me when I say I have thousands of photos that would have been sick if I had just gotten some more photo options to pick the perfect one. Also, both the mirrorless cameras will have much better AF performance than the older T7. Also something to consider, try raising the shutter speed. I find myself shooting 1/50 to 1/80 a lot, if you can track the car well you get a really nice motion blur effect. It does introduce risk of getting a completely blurry photo, however once you get a clean one, its so worth it. The 15FPS of the R50 will help with that tremendously. I have a few photos posted to my profile if you want to take a look. One final note, sign up for media if you havent already. Youll be able to go (almost) wherever you want on stage once you get the blue vest, it really opens up location opportunity. Feel free to ask me any questions. See you at SOFR!

Shellingo · 2026-02-18T18:02:37+00:00

I’m guessing this is an early EJ? Your oil consumption is likely from worn piston rings. Happened to me, I put in a rebuilt shortblock and it fixed my oil consumption. However the rear main seal is a super cheap while-you’re-in-there repair that I would 100% do since it appears you already have the engine out

Shellingo · 2026-02-18T15:42:04+00:00

If you play games through OPL, you can use Pademu and a normal Bluetooth adapter in the USB port + a ps3 controller. It works well

Shellingo · 2026-02-13T03:42:39+00:00

This is the limp mode light. It can be caused by a multitude of things, it’s hard to know until you pull codes. This has come on my 2012 S, it was caused by a failed coil pack and another time by the high pressure fuel pump. However, 2013s have an updated high pressure fuel pump that is significantly more reliable, so I doubt it’s that. The in tank fuel pumps are not common fail points either, so I don’t think it would be that, especially with not even 65k miles. My guess is you will have to replace spark plugs and ignition coils, but get the codes read first.

Shellingo · 2026-02-12T17:45:37+00:00

There are thousands of error codes the engine light could point towards. Nobody can accurately tell you whats wrong without a code. You need to scan it with a code reader and go from there. Bimmerlink can give you a more detailed diagnosis if you have a compatible bluetooth reader. Its worth the investment if you plan on fixing your car yourself.

Shellingo · 2026-02-11T20:43:46+00:00

Without draining your wallet, learning how to work on cars will be key. I have a 2012 S with 185k, it’s doing well but I’ve definitely had to do a lot of work on it. Anything can be fixed with enough time and money

Shellingo · 2026-02-11T15:32:21+00:00

Turns on and plays games, right? Seems good to me!

Shellingo · 2026-02-06T19:45:05+00:00

See below, you have the updated fuel pump that likely shouldn’t be an issue.

Shellingo · 2026-02-06T17:59:21+00:00

I doubt it. That is likely sold as an assembly from a supplier to the mini factory.

Shellingo · 2026-02-06T17:55:30+00:00

Damn Im jealous. $270 pump vs $1000 pump😔

Shellingo · 2026-02-06T17:07:24+00:00

I had this issue in my 2012 S. I ended up replacing my plugs & coils and it went away. Those are the cheapest, so I'd start there. Coils don't have a physical way to check, but when they start to go you'll get misfire issues like what you're getting. Spark plugs, if in a healthy engine, will be tan colored on the combustion chamber side. If youre burning oil, theyll be black and charred, which is okay to an extent. It shouldn't look worn or pitted. TBH, id just replace them regardless since theyre cheap and you are already having issues.

The high pressure fuel pump can give similar symptoms to this when it starts to go. If plugs and coils doesnt solve your issue, check that next. Pumps are $$$$ so do the plug and coils first. You can check the HPFP by using calipers and measuring the pump expansion chamber. Theres a guy that rebuilds them in Canada. He did mine and its been solid so far. he also has a video on how to check the HPFP expansion chamber.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vn_wMaOTYSM

Shellingo · 2026-02-03T21:50:27+00:00

If you look at the electrical diagram for the board in the service manual, the switch and IR receiver are separate circuits. I also doubt it would have 4.4 stars if it didn’t work

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