Okay, here's the story, as long as it is. Off and on I get brief interruptions in power on my 2005 Mini Cooper hardtop. I would describe as a flicker power surge. All the dash lights go off for a split second then come back on. This all happens for just a brief second. In that time the gages, a/c, power steering, and lights cut out.

This car has just 60,000 miles on it. This happens sometime within a mile of leaving the house, and sometimes after dozens of miles. Sometimes on rough roads, and sometimes at a stand still.

I first brought it to my local dealer. After reading the codes, and having no clear idea, the suggestion was to replace the battery and alternator. The battery is a three-year old Optima yellow top. Aside from one time, the car has been able to restart without issues.

The dealer feels that the yellow top puts out more power than the original battery, and has since conditioned the alternator to the point it is incorrectly operating. It sounds a bit odd, especially as it took three years since replacing the battery before this started to happen.

As getting at the alternator requires major work and dollars, I figured a second opinion would be good.

I went to an independent Mini repair shop in OC, CA. Their suggestion after looking at the fault codes and many other Minis was that it most likely was the ignition. Far less money than the alternator.

After replacing that the car worked fine…for a week. Now the same issues come up on a random basis, but still just last for just a second.

Does anyone have any ideas what could be going on? I don’t want to do the hunt and peck method of replacing every single part on the car until the right one is found. Or, is there any good mechanics in the area or electricians in the area that are worth recommending?

Thanks much