14x11 - 2004 Mini Cooper S MC40

[bunniefuu]

The MINI Cooper S MC40 is a
supercharged 40th anniversary

tribute to a Monte
Carlo-winning British icon.

That is stupidly fast!

Released in 2004, only a
thousand of these cars were

ever produced, but our MINI
has reached a crossroad.

With the clock pushing 100,000 miles,
its best days could be in its rear view.

If the supercharger was to go on this, how
much do you reckon it is to replace one?

I hope that with some
elbow grease and a touch of

optimism, Ant and I can return
this modern classics luster.

Big bang means big power.

And make a MINI profit along the way.

Now today, I'm out in
Northern California and

I'm chasing down a
proper little British icon.

The name of this car has
been synonymous with

the British language since the early 1960s,
since Twiggy was wearing a MINI skirt.

It was 1964 that a young man
called Paddy Hopkirk took a MINI

Cooper S and he went and terrorised
the World Rally Championship.

Forty years later, MINI
is now owned by BMW.

BMW decided to celebrate that
success by introducing a very special car.

They only made a thousand of them
and it's called the MINI Cooper S MC40.

MC, Monte Carlo and 40
to celebrate those 40 years.

I've owned MINIs over the years.
I learnt to drive in the original MINI.

So to find an MC40 here in Northern California
is a real treat for somebody like me.

Danny, the guy that's got the
car, is asking just $6,000 for it.

That's around £4,500.

But there is a reason for that.

He's currently got


Now I've seen them advertised with
less miles for around $10,000, $12,000.

If we can buy it cheap,
do the jobs right, me

and Ant will be happy
to make a MINI profit

just as long as we can get
around on this cracking MC40.

You must be Daniel.

Yes, sir. You must be Mike.

I am, sir.

Very nice to meet you, Daniel.

Yeah, definitely.

And here she is, a little slice of England.

Very nice.

This is my MINI name, Jumbo.

You call it Jumbo?

Yep, that's his name.

Is it okay to open up the boot?

Yeah, definitely.

Shame the little badge is faded away.

Opens up nice and easy.

Nothing clean on the inside as well.

Yeah.

Nice and square.

Yeah.

Any accidents?

Nope.

That's good.

I can't believe how low it's sitting.

Yeah, it's got lowering Springs.

It does?

It gives it a little bit
stiffer suspension.

All the trims there, which is all good.

Can we get under... Oh, hold on.

These aren't original, are they?

These are aftermarket headlamps.

Yeah, those are projector lenses.

It has a little bit better light spread.

Can we get under the bonnet?

Yes, sir.

Well, it certainly looks well cared for.

What the hell is that?

It's an aftermarket intake.

I got the car like that.

I didn't replace anything.

What is it with people?

Keep taking the originality away from
these cars and putting all this stuff on.

But it looks good.

I mean, there's no signs
of any oil leaks at all.

So this has got the supercharger.

Correct.

I like the fact it's got two
little spot lamps as well.

That's nice to see.

And it's all square across the front.

Yeah, it's all right, isn't it?

Nice little thing.

Isn't there a fog lamp
that's missing down here?

Yeah, things happen.

Okay.

Now, the thing that sets this car
apart from all the other Minis out there,

because the MC40, which makes
this car special, one of only a thousand,

would have had graphics and stickers on it.

But did you delete them,
or was that how you got it?

I think they were magnets that I never
received when I purchased the car.

Yeah?

Yeah.

Right.

Inside, we have got some
MC40 stuff, which is good.

We've got MC40 carpets.

Yep.

Gear lever, which is nice.

That nice little six-speed gearbox.

It's got the carbon fiber dash,
which comes with this model.

Correct.

That's a bit of a shame.

Yeah, the headliner is losing its luster.

Can I get the key?

Yeah, sure thing.

That all fires up.

Everything works.

It's done 95,000 miles,

so it's getting around to that big,
humongous 100,000-mile service.

Have you done it?

I have not.
It hasn't crossed the threshold.

Okay.

Well, listen, I'm sat in it.

I've got the keys in my hand.

Is there any chance I
can take it for a test drive?

Let's do it.

Super.

Might be long.

All right.

That is stupidly fast.

I'm often asked, what is my favorite car?

My favorite ever car is a 1964
Mini Cooper S, the year I was born.

And this is a faithful
recreation of what

that car must have
felt like back in the day.

The steering is so precise.

The handling is so go-kart-like.

But it's when you mash your foot down in
the carpet and the supercharger spins up

and this thing just
goes, whoa, off it goes.

That's when you know you're
in a car that has absolutely

captured the essence of
the original Mini Cooper S.

Incredible.

This is a good little car.

It's just let down in a couple of areas.

The suspension is stiff in this car.

It has been lowered.

The purists might want it
put back to how it should be.

The trim, the bits of headliner,
all of this stuff all have to be done.

It has got to have that major service.

And it will cost BMW money.

So Dan is asking currently $6,000

I'd get it for around
$5,000, about 4,000 pounds.

Then this is a little bargain.

And I know there could be a
little future in it for me and Anne.

Well, so how was it?

Unbelievable.

I mean, great roads,
great car, really good time.

Cool.

I absolutely love it.

But it's the big ticket
items that are worrying me.

I'm never going to be able to sell it.

At 95,000 miles about,

the engine having that major service and
the supercharger having that major service.

And being that it's a BMW at heart,

it's expensive for parts.

Yeah, a little bit.

You wanted $6,000?

Correct.

$5,000 I think is the right money for it.

Well, it is one in a thousand.

So let's go with five and a half.

Ordinarily, I'd sort of hold out
my hand and do a deal with you.

But it's just the price of parts.

I'll do it for 5,250.

Can we do that?



Hold out your hand.

You got yourself a deal.

And I've just bought myself an MC40.

Thank you.

Yeah, no worries.

Good deal.

There you have it.

$5,300 or around 4,100 pounds does
buy me a 2004 Mini Cooper S MC40.

A proper little car.

And I'm going to get back
to the workshop very quickly.

Ah, how cool is that, eh?

That's a Mini Cooper.

Yes.

I like it.

A nice little slice of England
right here in California.

That is cool, and I like the colour combos.

Chilly red, right?

White roof.

These are MC40 wheels, aren't they?

Yeah, which means?

It's an MC40.

It is an MC40.

How cool is that?

Is it?

They only made a thousand of these.

Really?

And we got one, yeah.

Shouldn't have decals on the side.

It should do.

Somebody took them off.

But we can put those back on.

Oh, this is proper.

It's got the right seats, carbon dash.

It's a shame.

It is a shame.

The headliner on these cars
is a bit of a common problem,

and it's not an easy job to do,
so we're going to have to do that.

What's the drive like?

Well, being it only weighs 2,600 pounds and
it's got 163 horsepower under the bonnet,

it's like a little go-kart.

It is a pocket rocket.

Yeah, it's really good.

Open the bonnet.

Look at the way this opens up.

Easy access.

So you can work on that.

On the face of it, it doesn't look too bad,

so what's the problem?

It's done 95,000 miles.

Oh.

So do you know what
happens in 5,000 miles time?

It's 100,000.

Yes.

Right.

Which means?

It's the big service, the expensive one.

I only give $5,300 for it.

That's about 4,000 pounds.

This is a cheap car, but it's only cheap
because I've got you to save it, this car,

because if I was to take
this to a BMW dealer,

the service on this car would
be $1,500, 1,200 pounds.

But wait a minute, if I'm not mistaken,

at 100,000 miles, the
supercharger's a problem.

And if the supercharger was to go on
this and it can do it around 100,000 miles,

how much do you
reckon it is to replace one?

$500.

Try again.

$600.

Try it really again.

$1,000.

Now you're even wrong there.

It costs 4.5 grand for a new unit and
about 1,500 for a remanufactured one.

That's just for the part,
that's not even fitting.

But that's what you're here for.

You're just going to service it.

I got it.

Okay? Good.

You know, this is a car that is there

to pay homage to Paddy Hopkirk in 1964.

when he took on the world and
conquered it in that original little Mini.

And this car will live on for another


We're just at the point
where we can save it.

Yeah, it's good.

Do you know what's really strange is that

you're old enough to have
seen this car be a classic twice.

That's just cruel, isn't it?

Now, Mike says the car drives really well,

but, and there is a big but,

it's just about to close in on its


In fact, it's the point
where some owners decide

to sell their car because
they don't want to

shell out big money
to keep it on the road.

However, there is another option.

You can roll up your sleeves, get your
hands dirty and do the service yourself.

The reason why this service
is so expensive is obvious.

Loads of parts, around $900 worth,

and up to $1,500 all
in if you go to a dealer.

The key is to not look
at this as one massive

job, but rather a
series of smaller jobs.

Make a list and tackle them one at a time.

Starting with...
..draining the fluids.

Mike has brought in a 2004 Mini Cooper
MC40, one of only 1,000 ever produced,

but with 95,000 miles on the clock,

it faces an uncertain
future and will be hard to

sell on at a profit without
some serious work.

The first thing we need to do is the
dreaded but essential 100,000-mile service,

starting with draining the oil.

Now, what's interesting is that the
MC40 sump plug has this wire attached to it

and that's because the MC40
is fitted with an extra Gauge

telling the driver the
temperature of the oil.

Now, the standard Mini doesn't have that.

It makes this kind of fancy.

I'm draining the oil into a catch basin.

This way, I can recycle it later.

While I'm underneath, I'm
going to tackle the O2 sensor,

which is just a little clip at the front
and then the main bit right on the exhaust.

Now, the O2 sensor
takes a reading of the

exhaust gases and tells
that reading to the ECU.

The ECU then regulates the fuel and air
mixture so that the engine runs perfectly.

If you have a faulty O2 sensor,

your engine's not going to run efficiently.

Now, I'm tackling the coolant
service by loosening and

removing the splash shield to
get to the lower coolant hose.

Next, I want to tackle the water pump,

but to get to the water pump,
I've got to remove the radiator,

and to get to the radiator,
I've got to remove the bumper.

The bumper comes off in just six bolts

and the front crash structure in just four.

This front piece here, this is the
condenser for the air conditioning.

Now, in our car, it works,

so it's not going to be part
of the 100,000-mile service,

so I can safely tuck it away
because it's on flexible hoses

and focus on getting the
radiator support bracket out.

After loosening the radiator support
and taking off the upper coolant hose,

the radiator and bracket
come off together in one piece.

Now, I can focus on the
car's overall cooling system.

I'm removing the intake
plenum to get to the water pump.

The water pump's held
in by just three bolts.

The water pump's sole
job is to circulate coolant

around the engine to
regulate the temperature,

and it does it by means of a little
fan that's driven by the engine itself.

The reason that's part of the 100,000-mile
service is because if that goes wrong,

you're going to cause
lasting damage to the engine,

and for $140, that's about 110 pounds,

it's a small price to pay.

I reckon I've spent about five hours,
and I'm about halfway through the service.

This air filter assembly is an aftermarket
part, so I want to get rid of it.

Plus, I need it out of the way anyway

to get to the thermostat.

A thermostat controls coolant
flow throughout the engine,

and since it's constantly
opening and closing,

it's quite common for
an older thermostat to fail.

A new one will provide peace of mind
down the road that the Mini won't overheat.

The last thing I'm going
to do on the cooling system

is fit a new header tank cap,

and that's because inside here is a
pressurized spring, which over time weakens.

A new cap is going
to keep that pressure

within the system and
help protect the engine.

And that is as far as I'm going to
go with the whole cooling system.

I'm not going to do the radiator
or the hoses at this stage.

The engine bay is compact,

so keeping the radiator and hoses off

gives me easier access
for the rest of the jobs.

Now I can get on with the oil change,

which includes swapping
in a fresh oil filter,

and I'm replacing the
rubber O-ring to avoid leaks.

A 36mm nut secures it.

Next up, the ignition system.

That means removing the old coil
pack and HT leads from the engine.

I've deliberately left all the HT leads
attached to the coil pack for a reason,

and that's because the HT
leads come in different sizes.

It keeps it all nice and
tidy in the engine bay.

So all I need to do now
is copy the old to the new.

I've saved myself a lot of messing around.

Now it's just a case of bolting it back on.

Next, the spark plugs.

Old spark plugs can seize to a cylinder
head, causing expensive headaches.

So I'm going to put in a new set.

A 14mm magnetic spark plug
socket makes installing them a snap.

It's time to bolt the
new ignition coil in place,

along with attaching the new HT leads in
exactly the same position as the old ones.

Before I install a new fuel filter,
I'm just going to open up the fuel cap.

This will release any pressure that
may have built up in the fuel tank.

It's better to be safe than sorry.

To reach the fuel
filter, I need to lift the

rear seat cushion and
expose the access panel.

Five 10mm bolts hold the cover in place.

I'm pulling the engine
filter housing up carefully.

There are tubes
connected to the bottom of

the housing, so I don't
want to yank too hard.

The replacement fuel filter comes
with a fresh gasket and O-ring,

which slide into place.

The new filter slips in
and the whole system

goes back together,
just as it came apart.

I'm moving on to the cabin air filter,

which keeps dust, pollen and
contaminants out of the cabin vents.

Oh, grim.

Nice.

Result!
Cabin filter and fuel filter are done.

I feel really satisfied
because, yes, it has

taken all day and it's
loads of little steps,

but ultimately, I've tackled
each job using simple tools

that would exist in most toolboxes.

You will notice that
I've left three things off,

the coolant, the hoses
and the serpentine belt,

and that's quite deliberate.

I've left those off for a reason.

The heartbeat of this Mini lies
right here in the supercharger.

We've taken a 2004 MINI Cooper
MC40 with over 95,000 miles.

I've already put in a full day of
work on the 100,000 mile service,

but there's another important
bit of maintenance due

to make sure this car keeps
running for a long time into the future.

The heartbeat of this MINI lies
right here in the supercharger.

It's what gives this MINI its
pep and unique engine sound.

And what a lot of MINI owners don't realise

is that it's important to
keep this bit of kit maintained,

because if you don't and it goes wrong,

it's going to be expensive.

To reach the supercharger,

I first have to remove the intercooler.

Now that's out the way,

I'm using a serpentine
belt tool to remove the belt

that connects the supercharger
to the air compressor,

alternator and crankshaft pulley.

More on this belt in a moment.

The dipstick tube is in the
way, so that's got to come off too.

Unbolting the alternator and
wiring harness comes next.

Then I can reach the bolts that secure
the supercharger housing and remove them.

In some respects, a supercharger
is really similar to a turbo

in that they both force oxygen
into an engine to give it more power.

Now, one of the main differences

is that a supercharger
is powered by a belt from

the engine, so that if
the engine's running,

the supercharger is also always running,

whereas a turbo is powered
by the exhaust gases

and there can be a slight
delay before you get that power.

With a supercharger, that power is instant.

Superchargers can trace their heritage

way back to the 1840s,
which makes them pretty

old, but also very
established technology.

And this works by rotating a
central shaft on a belt driven

by the engine, and on the
central shaft are two rotors.

Those rotors are perfectly shaped so that
they draw in oxygen via this access here.

It then spins up really quickly,

much faster than the engine itself,
forcing more oxygen into the tiny space.

It exits via this shroud,

and at this stage it's now really hot.

It then goes via the
intercooler to cool it down.

Now the air is cold and rich with oxygen,

and it's that that gets
forced into the engine,

and when it meets
the fuel that ignites,

it makes a big bang, and of
course, big bang means big power.

While I've got the
supercharger on the bench,

I'm taking some time
to tidy up the grime

that's accumulated over the
last 95 or so thousand miles.

Removing debris that can
cause hot spots to form on

an engine and its components
will extend their lives.

Also, buyers will see that the
supercharger has been well maintained.

Now the engineering principles
behind a supercharger are

actually quite simple, and
because of that, they're bulletproof.

So it's all about that magic number,

that hundred thousand miles,
and it's just about to meet that.

So for that service, I just
need to do one simple thing,

change the oil.

And the oil goes in two locations.

Here at the front there's a little plug,

and that front section
holds around 100 milliliters,

and then there's a second
plug here at the back

that holds a little bit
less, around 25 milliliters.

I'm gonna tackle the front one first.

What I've done is I've
prearranged a little cup here.

The black line there
represents 100 milliliters.

So I'll be interested to see
how much oil has been lost.

It actually looks quite clean.

I reckon that's it.

There's about just over half left.

Yeah, 100,000 miles has used some oil.

The reason this needs oil is because
inside this casing here are some gears,

and it's those gears
that mount the two rotors.

Because they're moving so fast,
they need constantly lubricating.

And to do that, there is
specialist supercharger oil

that happens to come in a
handy 100 milliliter bottle,

which means all I've gotta
do is put all of that in there.

Easy.

I'm measuring out exactly


to refill the second
part of the supercharger.

And that's the supercharger service done.

I'm bolting the supercharger back
in the car along with the alternator.

The wiring simply plugs back in.

The intercooler goes
on exactly as it came off,

with eight bolts.

Now that the supercharger is sorted,

I can go back to finish up the final
three steps of the 100,000 mile service.

Reinstalling the radiator support bracket,

air conditioning
condenser, and front bumper

is a simple matter of
securing just 12 bolts.

And while I'm here, I'll install a set

of brand new fog lights
to replace the missing one.

It's just plug and play.

Finally, I'm bolting the bumper
cover back in place and adding


with 4.8 quarts of motor oil.

That's the 100,000 mile service done.

Time to get on with
the rest of the project.

Our MC40 originally came with decals
modeled on the famous 1964 Monte Carlo car.

Unfortunately, our car lost
its decals along the way,

but I do have a solution,
and that's why I'm here.

This is John, otherwise known as Sticky,

and this man, hopefully, is
going to make him up for me.

Absolutely.

How are we getting on?

Good, good. We're just finishing up
right here, just sizing up the last decal.



That was his registration number, 33 EJB.

And obviously, you've got that 40
years to celebrate the 40th anniversary.

So now you've got them in the
computer, what happens next?

We'll go to the printer.

Right, let's start printing.

What can this print up to?



Wow, fantastic.

It is basically a larger
version of your desktop printer,

but it uses a solvent-based
ink instead of water-based.

Solvent-based ink dries faster,

which makes the process
even more efficient.

Could I buy one domestically?

So you've got 20 grand, you're all set.

It's a lot of money.

So we're coming into the laminator here.

This is my son Ian, he's going
to help us out with the laminator.

Ian, how are you?

I'm doing great, how are you?

Nice to see a young man
taking an interest in this job.

These heavy-duty hydraulic cylinders.

use uniform pressure and 425 degree heat

to provide a bond that's even more
durable than the original MC40 decals.

How are we looking
then, Ian, is it all done?

Perfect.

Right, so what's next?

We'll take it over to the cutter now
and it'll contour cut all the decals.

Love it.

So you're saying this is
a computerized cutter?

It is.

In the olden days it would have been
a pair of scissors, yeah, and a ruler.

Ah, an exacto knife.

I used to hand cut this stuff
when I first started, believe it or not.

So that's got a little optic camera in it.

It's going around and finding all
these little marks on this piece of paper.

That's right, that's right.

It's really clever, isn't it?

Isn't that neat?

Using the graphic as a guide,

this machine cuts a decal to
within one-tenth of a millimeter.

So let's cut all that out.

Now over to the bench.

Yes, sir.

So after we've contoured cut them,

we come in here and you'll see
we've got the nice clean... There you go.

That is fantastic.

So we'll just rough cut these out
to get rid of all that excess material.

and now we're ready to mount
these to the magnet material.

So this is that magnet material.

That looks heavy.

It is.

It is really just like
vinyl, but it's... So

this is like what you
get for your refrigerator.

You pull it out for me, isn't it?

Absolutely.

And what, you just lay
this one and cut it out?

That's it.

The decals adhesive sticks permanently
to the magnetic backing and will complete

the car's original tribute to
the 1964 Monte Carlo winner.

And what you're looking for here
is to squeeze out any bubbles or...

Right, I want to go with

overlapping strokes like this.

Wonderful.

I've ended up with a
fantastic UK number plate.

These three stickers,

which are all present and
correct, and these two brilliant.

magnetised door stickers.

How much does all this cost?

$200.

You're kidding.

I'll take your hand.

God, I feel like it's Christmas.

Thank you so much.

Can't wait to get these
back to the workshop,

see what Amp thinks.

Right, see you later.

Mike's gone and got new dampers
and Springs for all four corners.

The fronts, however,
are disassembled.

I'm going to have to put these together.

Mike wants to return this rare.

MC40 suspension to factory specs, so
I need to bring it to the ride height of.




With the wheels off, I can
access the strut assemblies.

I'm pushing aside the
brakes and ABS sensor

lines and disconnecting
the sway bar link,

then loosening the bottom strut bolt.

Raising the bonnet reveals

the upper strut mounts.

This is the strut assembly and it's
made up of two key components.

The middle bit, the black
bit, that's the damper,

that's responsible for
absorbing the downward

movement and releasing
the car back up slowly.

And then the green bit, the spring,

that's responsible for the
rebound and also the ride height.

And it's this spring that's
been replaced on our car.

Now for our car,

Mike's gone and got new dampers
and Springs for all four corners.

And on the back,

it's going to be really simple
because they come pre-assembled.

I can just bolt these in.

However, the set that Mike
got for the front is disassembled.

And to put these together

safely, I need to
compress the spring.

And to do that, I'm
going to need these,

a set of spring compressors.

These new Springs are key in
bumping up the mini suspension.

They will provide a stock look
and also a more comfortable ride.

A lower spring isolator goes
on first, followed by a dust boot,

bump stop,

and the coil spring itself.

I'm making sure
it's properly seated.

The upper isolator goes on next,
then a washer and upper mount plate.

I'm tightening it all
together and removing

the spring compressor.

Spring compressors are a cool
bit of kit and are inexpensive to buy.

Great to add to any workshop.

That was straightforward.

It only took a couple of
minutes to put it together.

And to get it into the car is the
reverse of taking this one out.

A torque wrench

helps me tighten the lower strut bolt to
the recommended spec of 60 foot-pounds.

Before I put the
wheel back on the car,

it's important to
understand the three basic

principles of front-end
suspension geometry.

And that is camber,

the wheel either
leans in or leans out.

Caster, where the ball joint on the bottom
is in a different position than the top,

either pushing it
forward or backwards.

And tow,

where the wheel does this.

Now on the Mini,

the suspension geometry
is fixed other than tow.

And you can change
that by winding the track

rod ends on the steering
rack either in or out.

When they changed the ride height
of the car putting shorter Springs on,

it actually changed
the camber angle.

It leaned the wheel in.

And you can see the inside of the
tire is worn far greater than the outside.

Now they could have
overcome that by putting a shim

plate up here and put the
camber angle back upright.

But some people want that aggressive
cambered look with the wheels angled in.

Plus they feel that it
makes the car handle better.

I put this car back to stock by
putting in the standard uprights.

And it's going to change that
camber angle back from here to here.

Which is great, because it's
not only going to look original,

it's going to save the new
owner loads of money in tires.

I'm temporarily reinstalling.

the old tires so I can check the
ride height after the job is done.

I'll put new tires on later.

That's the front's done.

Now I want to do the rears.

Getting the brake lines out the way is the
first step in unbolting the rear struts.

I'm using a long
extension on my ratchet to

reach the two upper
bolts in the rear well.

The new rear strut assembly
goes in just as the old one came out.

Goodbye lowered suspension.

Hello proper height.

That was pretty easy.

And there you have it.

The ride height is higher.

That will settle when
the car is driven.

All I need to do now is get four
new tires, plus my advice is simple.

If you mess around
with suspension,

take it to a professional
business and get it laser aligned.

So what's next?

It's a bit of a two-man job.

I quite like watching you work.

It's not my first rodeo cowboy.

We've bought a 2004

Mini MC40

that due to its high mileage
was at a risk of going into decline.

But we're returning it back to original
Nick in the hopes of finding a new home

at the right price.

This car is getting
a new headliner.

And in preparation,

I'm removing the interior trim.

I'm also disconnecting the battery to
avoid triggering the roof curtain airbags

when I pop off
the pillar covers.

Aha!

Perfect timing.

How are you?

Yeah, good.

Look at that, you
got the headliner out.

That's good timing because I've
just got your replacement cloth.

Oh, it's a bit darker.

It is a little bit darker.

I thought it would
suit the car a lot better.

Yeah, I like it.

It's cool, isn't it?

And I got these.

These are the stickers that should
have been on the car when I bought it.

They're the 40th anniversary stickers.

Nice, I like it.

The original registration
number and Paddy Hopkirk's card.

Nice.

And some magnetized
door stickers as well.

So you can put the
numbers on or take them off.

It's up to you.

So what have you
done to the car?

Right, I know you were worried
about that 100,000 mile service.

Yep.

It's done.

That car will run for
thousands of miles more.

Perfect.

Did you do the supercharge?

Done.

You serviced it?

Yep.

Plus, look down the side.

Yeah, I can see that the car's
popped up in the air ever so slightly.

Yep, it's now
standard ride height.

That is great.

Right, so what's next?

Well, actually, I've got this out
and it's a bit of a two-man job.

So you want me to help?

Yes.

So if you take
that and that off,

and I'll go and get some masks.

Cool.

It's amazing how
non-adhesive it is now.

It's just the glue's
gone, hasn't it?

It's lost all of its stickiness.

It just comes off too easy.

Now, this is going to be a mess.

I think the best thing to do
is to use this to rub it down.

and get rid of that.

I quite like watching you work.

Not my first rodeo cowboy.

All right, now let's fold
the headliner material

onto itself and just
do one half at a time.

The spraying, I'll
leave you to do.

Now we're cooking on gas.

This automotive adhesive is
meant for heavyweight material.

A spray g*n dispenses a controlled,
even layer so we can be sure

the headliner will stay
put for years to come.

The best way to smooth out the material
is by hand, but make sure they're clean.

As the light grey material
will show every Mark.

Now we can cut the excess
fabric and reinstall the trim.

Hey, look at that.

That's not bad at all, is it?

Actually, we've done a brilliant
job this afternoon, haven't we?

All you've got to do is fit this, get
those stickers on, and we're almost there.

Perfect.

Thanks for your help.

Good luck.

It's absolutely transformed
the interior of this car.

It looks brand new again.

It's a little bit
grubby in areas.

These pillars are dirty.

So I'm going to give
it a bit of a clean up

and then get on with
transforming the outside.

This ultra-rare 2004.

Mini Cooper S MC40.

comes with 163.

supercharged horses and a
silky smooth six-speed gearbox,

making it fast

and fun to drive.

But this car had me
at hello because of its

tribute to British racing
legend Paddy Hopkirk,

the Monte Carlo rally
champ from 1964.

The Mini came in cheap
because it had 95,000 miles on it.

and an expensive
service on the horizon.

It's been messed about with.

It's a little bit tatty,

isn't it?

And saved us big but by doing


with special attention

paid to the Mini's party piece,

its supercharger.

The heartbeat of this
Mini lies right here.

The car got new suspension
bits and I obtained replica

decals along with a refreshed
headliner and stock headlights.

So what's this
little Mini cost us?

I bought the car for $5,300.

The replacement parts for the


Servicing the
supercharger cost $100.

We spent $200 on a set
of authentic MC40 decals.

Factory spec struts
and Springs cost $375.

Refreshing the
headliner was another 40,

headlamps tacked on another 500,

and new tires were $475.

This gives us a total
outlay of 7,890 bucks,

or around 5,700 pounds.

And it took 23 man
hours to complete.

After crunching the numbers,

I reckon there's some room to
pull a profit out of this little motor.

But first, we need to
take it for one last spin.

laughs.

You are such a child!

Well, you've got to
have some fun, ain't you?

I mean, look at this for a
spot to come and drive the car.

Do you recognize it?

I recognize this.

Do you want to see it gone
in 60 seconds and grease?

So you do have a
bit of Hollywood clout.

Yeah, of course I do.

Yeah, and I recognize
it because of the modern

version of the Italian
job with a red Mini.

They did, they drove the same car
as this on this very stretch of coal,

but we're quite
privileged to be here.

The car looks amazing.

You've done such a good job.

I wanted it as original as possible,
and the little touches that you've done

like replacing the fog
lamp and putting the original

headlamps in have
really given the car a lift.

What do you think of the vinyls?

I love the vinyls.

It was nice getting them
made, but now seeing

them on the car, it's
made such a difference.

And you did it yourself,
which saved us big bucks.

The fact that they can peel off as well
because they're magnetized on the door

is a really nice touch, and it signifies
that this car is a special edition.

I like the fact you've even
done a little badge at the back.

Good detail.

What, you think I'd restore a
car and leave a tatty badge on it?

No, I don't.

Listen, can we, uh,

stop talking and... Yeah,
go and have some fun.

Yes.

Go, go, go, go!

Car!

That's quick, isn't it?

It's so far.

This is a car that it feels like you're
wearing rather than sitting there.

I love that.

Now I can bring out
that 163 horsepower,

thanks in part to.

you servicing the supercharger.

Well, a supercharger's a big part
of putting power into this engine.



it's the big one,
it's out the way.

Now this car's going to live
on for another 100,000 miles.

I really love the fact that
you fixed the suspension.

It was really hard before,
but now it just floats along.

It's brilliant.

It feels like a go-kart.

It does feel like a
proper little go-kart.

So on the outside,
the car looks great.

It's obviously an MC40,

and on the inside,

it wasn't that tricky.

Dash was nice,

seats were nice,

carpets were good.

That, though, was wrecked.

Oh, it was horrible.

Look at the differences, mate.

It's made the car inside
feel like new again.

We are in a bit of a
famous Hollywood set.

It would be a shame not
to... I'm already ahead of you.

We are absolutely... Oh!

We are so good at this.

Oh!

We are so good at this.

Tell you what, I was actually worried
about the weight distribution, didn't I?

That has just crawled.

Just like buzzes.

It does.

It sings to you.

I don't know if you know this,

but BMW only gave
one of these cars

to each dealer in America.

That's how special
edition it was.

So if you think about it,


state around America, and
we've got one in California.

It's a good chance
of selling this.

Oh, yeah, it's a rare car.

Who's our buyer?

Oh, well, do you know what?

The original Mini was classless.

You could be the Queen of
England or you could be... A labourer.

A plumber.

A rock star.

It could be anyone, and they
would look good in an original Mini.

And I think BMW have captured
that essence in the modern Mini.

So in other words, we've
got a massive market.

Oh, market for this car is vast,
and I reckon we'll just put it out there

and we're bound to attract
somebody who wants

that special edition
one of 1,000 Minis.

Anyone who sits in this car behind
the steering wheel looks at the headliner,

feels it,

they're going to
want it, aren't they?

So, yes, because of that.

I'm in San Clemente, California at a
get-together for people who own and love Minis

to meet a potential
buyer for our MC40.

I'm proud of our little Mini.

Look at it.

It's the only one
of its kind here.

I've advertised it at $9,900.

That's around 8,000 pounds,

hoping to get a buy,

and it didn't take long before
this young man behind me, Nick,

he gave me a call.

This guy really
likes these Minis.

Let's just hope
he likes that one.

So, Nick, what do you think?

She's very pretty.

Yeah, you like it?

My dad had looked this good
when it was rolling off the line, mate.

Oh, that's very kind of you.

Yeah, me and them put
a lot of effort into this car.

It shows.

Now, we're scratching my
head a little bit here this morning

because you've turned up
in a really cracking-looking.



Why on earth do you
need another one?

My daughter Fiona
just turned 16,

and she's been after
me for the keys to mine.

It might be nice for
us both to have Minis.

Yeah, lovely.

Well, as you know,
this is a very unique car,

and being that it's rare,

there's only 1,000 of them,

it comes at a premium price.

Right.

So I'm asking very
cheeky $9,900 for it.

That's a bit more than I'm
comfortable with, to be honest.

I'd be inclined to pay.

$8,000 for the car.

$8,000 is a very nice offer,

thank you very much.

I thought so.

Yes, and it's a
gentleman's offer,

but it's just not going to be
good enough, Nick, for this car.

I will come down a bit.

I'll let you have
the car for $9,500.

That's a good shout.

Yeah.

How about $8,800?

I want you to have this car.

It is for your daughter.

So why don't we
just do a deal, $9,000,

and it's yours.

All right, Mike.

Yes.

$9,000.

Top man.

You just bought
yourself a cracking Mini.

Well done.

Thank you very much.

What we wanted to
do is pay respect to this,

the 40-year celebration of
that famous Paddy Hopkirk win,

and Ant really nailed it.

Now, the good news is we got an
unexpected profit out of the deal,

just over $1,000.

That's around 800 pounds,

and Nick has got a car
to add to his collection,

and more importantly,

one more to add to
the Mini community.

If you want to see more cars like this
being turned around by me and Ant,

then join us again soon
on Wheel of Dealers.

Ta-la.