Hi,

I'm new to the mini world and am trying to search to find my answers but haven't found what I'm looking for. I'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

A) My girlfriend has an 09 MCS with about 33K miles on it.
B) The front pads seemed to be dusting a lot. In combination with this, the "BRAKE" light on the tach is on (In red), and upon startup the mini cooper on a lift is displayed(also in red) along with a wonderful charm.
I've checked brake fluid (wasn't low, but added more)
I've checked the brake lights (all three lights operate flawlessly)
The car recently had it's rear brakes replaced by a shop, but this light has come on several weeks after that occurred.
The front brakes were checked about 5 weeks ago, and were said to have 50% pad life left.

Any ideas on what this might be? My plan is to order some front pads (Perhaps stoptech streets or HPS) and replace the fronts anyway, but if this isn't going to solve the problem I'd like to know ahead of time.

C) The drivers side front suspension was replaced, and it appears that one of the suspension bolts is continually loosening, causing a clank upon starting in first gear. A shop had replaced the front axle boot because it was torn, and I had them take a look to diagnose, so I'm not sure what bolt it actually is. I'm thinking perhaps just loctite the bolts in place, but has anyone experienced this before? Any other suggestions?

D) Just got this car and I don't know anything about them. I called MINI with the VIN and they say there aren't any open recalls. Are there any preventative maintanence things I should be looking into? Any known issues that are solvable?

Sorry if any of this has been discussed previously, but I am short on time to research, so I would really appreciate any help you might be able to provide

 

A) She's a lucky gal! You are a lucky man too!
B) The brake light is likely due the wear sensor for the front pads has worn through and the tech reset both fronts and rears when he replaced the rear pads OR they didn't replace the rear sensor (or put in a bad one) and reset the rear brakes.

The system uses 2 sensors - 1 front 1 rear that wear with the pads. When you hit the 50%ish mark, a wire in the sensor is cut and the car now knows you have used ~50% of your pads, looks for when the last reset happened and your driving habits and does some math to figure out when you are due for new pads. When you get close to that point, the car puts up the brake symbol on start and turns it off shortly there after. As the car gets more and more concerned, the light stays on longer then styas on all the time, and you get a car on a lift at start up...

-If he reset both fronts and back, and as you reported, the fronts were near 50%, the front sensor may have tripped recently, and the system sees that the last reset was also very recent, so you need new pads NOW according to the car. Dumb math.
-If he failed to replace the rear sensor (or put in a bad one) and reset the rear brakes in the computer, it immediatly sees that the sensor has worn through, and does the math and decides you need new pads now!

This is classic computer "garbage in, garbage out" scenario... Many folk chose to put in a new sensor but zip tie it to the strut so that it never wears, and monitor the brake wear like normal people do with the 'ol Eyeball Mark I

C) Clunks are bad - get that fixed fast!!! As for the use of thread lock, we can't say given none of us know which bolt you are referring to. No matter what, GET IT FIXED FAST!

Tire wear and SAFETY are compromised here.

D) Look up timing chain, carbon build up, vacuum pump failure, High Pressure Fuel Pump (HPFP) failure, sway bar end links, water pump and thermostat housing, turbo oil feed line leakage to name those that pop to mind...

Good luck, and GET THAT CLUNK SORTED!!
E

 

A) Thanks.
B) This sounds possible...I checked the front brakes and they do have decent life left. Can't think of a solution so I'll probably just ignore it for now.

C) So, I believe this is coming from the upper swaybar endlink.... I tightened it a bit and it reduced the clunking... However in less than a day the clunk has come back just as loud as it was before. the bolt didn't seem all that loose, but I gave it another full turn...

Any possible solutions for this?

D) So, from my basic reading. The timing chain needs to be listened (rattle) for, but generally as long as you're extremely vigilant in checking the oil level and replacing it on a 5K mile interval, this shouldn't be an issue. Similar with the vacuum pump.

The HPFP, thermostat, and waterpump... any indications these are going?

 

With suspension work being done, they could have broken the wire on the sensor. Check the driver's side. there is a sensor pushed onto the inside brake pad. The wire should run zip tied up behind the fender lining. See if it is broken.


I believe the HPFP will throw a code when/if it goes bad, but maybe someone it has happened to will chime in.


The water pump and thermostat will start leaking. It might show up in a loss of fluid in the overflow tank before it ever starts making a puddle under the car.


Watch ALL fluid levels closely. Good luck.

 

On the end of the turn signal stalk is a button. By tapping and holding in this button you can access menus on the car (they show up in the display on the tach). There is a service menu, which will show you various things about the car, including expected remaining life of the front and rear brakes. This menu will likely pinpoint the source of the red warning when you start up. If the car has a manual with it, it will describe the icons used in this menu,and how to navigate around. You can search the forums here for instructions on how to reset the brake and oil monitors yourself.

I've had a good experience with EBC red brake pads, less dust than the factory ones and nice grip, even when cold.

Have fun,
Mike

 

I trust it's ok the add this question to this thread. I have an '07 Mini S which has had the front brake pads replaced a month or so ago with Hawk pads. I don't think the wear sensor was replaced since I just supplied a mech with the pads with no instructions (didn't know about the separate sensor). In any event, I think I should do this. Can the sensors be obtained independently?
No. 2, No upon startup I am now getting a RED service light followed by a RED brake fluid light in the tach service screen (not a brake warning light). I assume this is indicating that I need to change the brake fluid? The brake fluid is visible in the top of the tank and looks clean, clear.
Ps I bought this Mini in Oct. 13 with 58k on the speedo. The dealer (Subaru) said they put new rear brake pads on it. I have no clue about the brake fluid, if it was ever repelled, etc. It has been to an official Mini dealer several times for various service things (oil/filter change), recalls (timing chain, turbo water pump, etc.) not previously done and no mention of the brakes was made.

 

They certainly changed the brake fluid when the did the brakes, they just didn't reset the service indicator. You can do it yourself: hold down both of the little buttons on the tach (trip meter and dash light dimmer) until a "secret" menu comes up. Use the turn signal stalk button to scroll down to the brake fluid indicator. Hold stalk button down until something happens. That should reset it. Also, it's OK if they used the old brake pad sensors as long as they didn't go off. You can buy them separately but I don't see why.

 

TheBigNewt,
Thanks for the advice. I'll just reset the light and hope it's all good until my next visit.