Hi,
I'm a newbie to NAM and now that it's starting to get cold in NC my wifes MCS is not heating well. Even with the controls on "Hi" and "recirculate" the air is barely warm. The engine seems to heat quickly and the temp gage is at "halfway" after only a few minutes. Any ideas on what to look at? Any help is appreciated!!

 

Bet the geater core is plugged with rust/scale....
Mini does NOT use long life coolant...it needs to be replaced every 24-36 months to prevent rust...and gen1 cars have an iron block.....

 

PS
Unless the car has the pretty rare "chrono pack" option with real guages in the middle, and the speedo and tach over the steering wheel, the middle just means normal operating temp...nothing specfic..it can go from middle to overheat in a few seconds....or cold to middle the same way...
The heater core should likly be replaced...i would do the thermostat too...and flush it...then refill with fresh coolant...and hope corrosion did not destrot anything else...like the headgasket.

 

Thanks for the info. I guess now is a good time to flush the system anyway. Is the heater core a pain to get to?

 

Thermostat has failed, mine went at about 80k

 

From what I understand the heater core is a bear to do. Start with the easy stuff first. Flush the coolant & make sure to burp out all the air. Still cold, check the thermostat, it is likely stuck open.

 

I agree....start with the easy stuff. That's my plan. Thanks for the help!