When you need to swap out engines on a Mini Cooper, you might be surprised to learn that the whole front of the car needs to be removed. The front clip as it's called, is removed to gain favorable access to the engine and all accessories such as the air conditioning compressor, power steering pump, alternator and other pulleys. This gives you a clear view of the entire engine bay.
Once the front clip is off, we remove the belts, hoses, and all fuel lines, a/c lines and air box. The engine will be pulled out straight away from the body. Once we have it out and rested on our movable bench, we begin to dissect it. That means, we're taking off all of the parts that get swapped over to the new (used in this case) one. MINI Parts like spark plug wires, manifolds, pumps, alternators and other pieces necessary to get the engine back in running condition.
After its finally set up, it's re-installed just about the same way it came out. But before we do, we inspect the entire engine compartment to make sure that no other issues that could cause a potential issue, be addressed now while everything is exposed. This saves an incredible amount of money because access to the repair is easier and there for you save on labor costs. Items like clutches, belts, hoses, motor mounts, radiators or even steering racks, we'll make the suggestion and let the customer decide.
After the inspection ee carefully set the engine in place, re-assemble all the wiring, hoses, pumps and accessories and then re-attach the front end clip, we'll fire up the engine and make final adjustment. A complete road test is performed along with a front end alignment to make sure everything is all lined up the right way.
MINI service in Wilmington is available at Buckley's Auto Care.