Hi Everyone,
I'm new to this forum and would appreciate any help you may be able to offer. I have a 2004 mini with 94k miles on it. Recently it went through a deep puddle, hydrolocked and seized the motor. Does anyone know who, besides the dealer, would be able to fix this problem? Can the motor be repaired or does the engine need to be replaced? Does anayone besides mini sell remanufactured motors or is it recommended getting one from a salvage yard? How many more miles can I realistically expect to get out of this car. It has a CVT automatic transmission and I fear spending too much on repairing the car would be foolish since the transmissions cost so much. Any advice would be appreciated.

PS - Aside from te motor issue the car is in immaculate condition.

 

Yikes... sorry to hear this...

Where are you located? That can make a difference.

Repair vs. replace for the motor would depend on the degree of damage... and on whether you have any local independent shops who do this kind of work on MINIs.

The CVT is a concern... some folks are getting good life out of them... but you're right, new engine + new CVT = way more than the car is worth....

 

contact chadtoolio

former dealer tech in SC that started his own shop. He's down in Charleston and saw lots of hydrolocked motors and knows what to do. good luck.

 

Thanks. I'm on Long Island, NY.

 

I had a similar issue with an Isuzu back in college. After I paid 3k to rebuild the engine I found out a new engine would have been almost half that. Just make sure that it's less to repair then the replace.

 

Hi,
Thanks everyone for your reply. I was wondering what kind of mileage / life people can expect out of their mini's? I had 94k miles on my 2004 mini before the engine hydrolocked and now requires replacement. That being said, had this not happened what kind of mileage could one reasonably expect on a mini cooper with an automatic transmission. I had 250k on my toyota corolla before a had to give her up. 300k on an AMC Hornet (believe it or not!) and 175k on my Mitsubishi. What is the history with mini's? I have found them very expensive to maintain with pretty dumb engineering gaffes. The power steering pump needed replacement, the power steering pump fan replaced twice, the catalytic converter collapsed internally requiring replacement, brakes and rotors replaced twice, run flat tires repaced twice. Just one thing after another, with all of them being expensive. Now the motor and of course just around the corner I'd expect the transmission will follow. No doubt this is one of the cutest cars on the road (which is why my wife is so attached to it, and whynit has such a cult following) but she just drives it and is not the one maintaining it. My question is really, how good of a car is it? I'd like to hear from you all. Thanks.

 

If I was you I'd pick up a used engine from a salvage with a 6-speed and do the swap. I put 158k on my '05 MCS in 2 years and sold it running strong.

 

Try this thread?

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...h-mileage.html

 

How deep of a puddle did you go through to ingest enough water for a hydro-lock?

 

Considering the intake is above the bumper and front grill that must have been a pretty deep puddle.