Hello all,

I have some findings and questions.

1- My car is an N16B16a Mini One 98hp R56. Coolant temperatures reach 103-105°C even on highway 6th gear cruise. During the cruise, it occasionally drops to 90°C but then rises back again. The ambient temp is around 15°C. It might be normal, but I actually want it to at least open the thermostat less. My upper grill is pretty much blocked as design. Would it make sense to open up some airways into it with a Dremel tool? Some Mini grill types are unobstructed as I see. If you people did something to let more fresh air in or warm air out, what did you do? Also, during highway cruises, how much warmer are your inlet temps compared to ambient temp?
2- I have some amount of vacuum (I think not excessive) on the oil cap. How does this vacuum really happen? I took off the PCV to check the membrane (While doing so, broke one of the 4 clip tabs but I think it closed back ok afterward), membrane, and the spring looked normal to me. Is this vacuum an issue? But anyway, since N16 is a port injection engine, it does not have carbon build-up problems I guess.
3- I also have an aluminum oil catch can laying around. But since there is a vacuum under the valve cover, would an oil catch can still work under these conditions? I guess, not?
4- I am new to the gasoline world, previously using CRDI vehicle, at what rpm do you cruise on a Mini, what is advised for the engine health and/or fuel economy? On my diesel car, it was advised to drive over 2000rpm to increase burning efficiency and create a less particulate burden on DPF.

Thank you, kind regards,

Ömur