What shops are there in the brisbane area for getting mini bits? For example service items.

Im concerned i wont be able to get MPI spec oil filters there though. Or MPI spec coolant (has to be OAT).

cheers all

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Used to have 2000 Cooper Classic Sport 500, No 338, currently miniless

Repco or the like should be able to get you any of the standard service items like oil and filters, however it is sometimes cheaper and easier to get items from a specialist.

I used to be able to go into my local parts place and pick up filters over the counter. Now I have to order them in and they have to wait till they reach the minimum Ryco order quantity (about $1000) before they can place their order.

So now I just order them from Karcraft and they arrive the next day. I order a few at a time and get some other consumables to fill up the package to save postage.

On a side note, I think you'll find that OAT coolants (the orange ones) are only used to extend the time between fluid replacement, used by rover to attempt to keep up with the service intervals of much more modern engines.

The standard cheap green stuff is supposed to be replaced every two years and the OAT is supposed to be a bit longer. It is still a cast iron block not alloy and so I wouldn't worry too much about the coolant type if I were you. Some of the stingy members here run straight water...

.. and more often than not, it's orange water

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Simon

The adventures of an owner builder in the Tallarook Ranges

cool, thanks for the info so far, ive bookmarked karcraft now also.

Re the OAT, theres some discussion about this on the 500 register forums and also on minifinity some time back will need to take another look, i seem to remember something about corrosion between the mixed types so a bloody good flush is needed or the system silts up.... dont quote me on that, will need to do some more reading.

MPIs take a different filter than the older style minis so i hope some places can get those in, service time isnt for a while yet though i dont think (must check my book)

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Used to have 2000 Cooper Classic Sport 500, No 338, currently miniless

Get catalogues from Karcraft and Mini King so that you can see what is readily available.
Karcrafts catalogue is really just a price list and it gets updated fairly regularly.
I have been dealing with Greg at Karcraft and John at Mini King for 27 years and they are both great.

There's truth in this.
ARE (link below) used to have a pile of pages dealing with the nasties in a cooling system, and a big problem was that coolants were reacting with each other and the glycols were turning to jelly. Once they deposited on hot surfaces, or were allowed to dry out they turn to calcium like deposits which insulate the water from the jacket the build up is attached to.

So the story is, buy a known coolant. Flush out the system including overflow tanks of as much coolant as you can (I like to fill/empty/refill a couple of times to dilute it down) and then refill your system. All this is avoidable if you use the same coolant each time, so I stick to a known brand like Castrol or similar. It's easy to pick the same bottle in two years time that way.

http://www.are.com.au/feat/techtalk/techtalk.htm

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SooperDooperMiniCooperExpertEngineering

All garage work involves equal measures of enthusiasm, ingenuity and a fair degree of irresponsibility.