Two weeks ago I took my car to a track day at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham. I was supposed to get 2 hours of track time on Saturday and another 2 hours on Sunday. On the 4th lap of my very first session, while in the middle of a hairpin curve, warning messages popped up saying the car was overheating. Because I was in a low speed curve I was able to get to the side of the track quickly and shut the engine off. After being towed back to the pits I realized that I had developed a massive leak that dumped most of my coolant out. After looking at it with some of the guys from Eurospec LLC (who happened to be next to me in the pits) we determined it was the heat management module (i.e. fancy new overly complicated thermostat). Apparently they seem to break after about 40k miles and they replace a LOT of them in their shop.

Since the Mini dealerships don't keep that part in stock my weekend of racing was done, I had essentially paid $650 for 3 1/2 laps and a "free" t-shirt. I was also 250 miles from home with an undrivable car. I was VERY upset. Luckily my stepdad had a car trailer and only lived an hour away. He got my car and took it to his house. Then I got the joy of telling my wife she needs to make the 500 mile round trip to come get me, because "I broke my car".

The following weekend, with new part in hand, I drove 3 hours to my moms house. After installing the part and refilling the coolant, I took it for a short drive. Temperature looked good, but when I parked it I saw a slow drip from the bottom of the car. After jacking it up and wiggling hoses I found that one of the coolant lines to the transmission cooler had a hole from rubbing against the fan shroud. While off or idling the hole just barely dripped because it was mostly sealed by pressing against the shroud, but when I revved the engine it would spray. Of course the Mini dealership doesn't stock that part either, so a couple more days of waiting before I can finish the job.

Morale of the story, anyone with an F56 should take a couple of minutes to check the transmission coolant lines and make sure they are not rubbing against the fan shroud. That way you can replace them at a place a time that is convenient, not 3 hours from your house after wrecking an expensive weekend you've been planning for months.

I want to sincerely thank the guys from Eurospec LLC even though it turned out not to be the heat management module, I can't fault anyone for a trackside diagnosis, with limited equipment. They took time out of prepping their cars and their track session to help out a complete stranger. They offered advice, lent me tools and even offered to let me ride along during their sessions, since my car was out of commission. They are located in Louisville Tennessee, and if I didn't live 7 hours from there they would get all of my business. If you live in that area use them and give your business to some really good people.

 

Boy, that sucks on your experience at Barber, that is such a phenomenal track. It is amazing how the littlest things can ruin a nice track day experience, but glad you found out the root cause and fixed it, even if it wasn't the initial diagnosis. Now you can go ahead and plan a 2nd outing there. I was fortunate enough to not break my SVO on that track twice now, considering it is ~700 miles from home. Here is one of my on track videos if anyone wants to see the track: