Ya I didn't see that photo the first dozen times I checked this thread out. Well looking at it you can tell it wasn't with the turbo cause it isn't burned up. No telling what it could be then. I you like to know for sure what the investigation comes up with.

 

I don't have the ANSWER, but I do have some clues to add....

Didn't MINI change to direct injection in 2007? A regular carburator runs around 5 pounds of fuel pressure. Port Fuel Injection (the kind of fuel injection that has been around since the early 80s or so) runs around 43 pounds of fuel pressure. In my Saturn Sky which also has direct fuel injection, it runs 450 psi at idle, and up to 2,250 psi at wide-open throttle. That is insane amounts of pressure. Fuel injectors and their seals, along with all the fuel line fittings have to withstand this. With the smoke from the fire being reported as "white"......

Again, I have NO knowledge about this, but wanted to toss this information out there for others to discuss.

Best of luck to all.

 

They might have changed to direct injection but the first gen is still fuel injected, but still a possibility of rings going bad.

 

According to the NHTSA investigation the defect might be with the auxiliary water pump.

http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/acms/do...romPublic=true

 

Thanks for the link! That's certainly interesting to see what the DOT asked BMW/MINI for regarding the investigation. Quite a bit of work for them to do just to gather the data together let alone perform all the necessary organizational work.

EDIT: Someone posted a bunch of the complaints about fire damages on MINI's over in this thread and its an interesting read!

 

After reading those posts in that link, the very first thing that should be done by anyone experiencing this is disconnect the battery. That will stop the short circuit and the wires should cool down. Since it is electrical in nature, water is a bad idea. Disconnect the battery and use the fire extinguisher.

 

Wonder what kind of circuit the pump is connected to since shouldn't the point of a fuse stop a short circuit before the damage occurs to the wiring? Seems like there might be a tad of a circuit design issue that could be easily prevented. I'm going to have to investigate!

 

It all depends the design of the circuit. It is possible that there is a design flaw that keeps prevents that circuit from being isolated. The thing with this that is scary, is that you have to disconnect that battery before the flames start, since they are going to be deflected by the hood, and you have to get to that battery that is potentially in harms way. Once battery power is removed from the circuit, the heat will dissapate.

 

Exactly, and the whole point of a fuse is to stop overload conditions which can result in fires just like our breakers in homes (just that breakers may do more like ground fault interruption and can be reset). Seems like the circuits in the R56 are rather undocumented, found a thread about it and reading up as much as I can now. I want to find the circuit and see how many amps the pump uses and see what the circuit is made for. If the gauge of wire is too small for the amperage this can happen.

 

Look at this post giving an introduction on the R56 from some european source. Search for where it mentions the auxillary waterpump. It says that it turns on when the car is shut off to circulate coolant after shutdown. http://www.eurocarblog.com/post/416/...ficial-preview
It says that only the turbo models have it, to avoid the coolant overheating in the turbo.

 

The technology for cooling the turbocharger is equally sophisticated in technical terms, with the twin scroll turbocharger in the new MINI being maintained within the optimum temperature range by a combination of oil and water cooling. An electrical auxiliary pump maintains the coolant circulation process for some time after the engine itself has been switched off in order to avoid the risk of excessive heat building up in the turbocharger subject to extremely high thermal loads.

 

 

Another case of too much technology. It's just going to keep getting worse as all the manufacturers are starting to get all this stuff on their cars. I have 2012 Buick Regal GS on order. It's got things on it that concern me already, like an electronic e-brake. Glad you're okay, and sorry about your car. As others have stated, keep us informed of what the cause was.

 

Interesting... I got rid of my 2011 Regal for the MCS. The push button for the P-brake is a bit different. In all an OK car, Comfortable nice interior, but the GM 4 cyl has not changed. Still has that signature sound to it -hard to describe - but it is still there. If you didn't get the turbo, hills will cause it to tach up there. Here is the disappointing part. My Regal was 31,500- 34 otd.... 4 months and 2000 miles later I was lucky to get 21800 in trade! The BIG3 really knows how to screw up the trade values. Edmunds TMV trade reported 24500.... Not happening and OUCH. But hey, it is only money, and money is like manure,,, It doesn't do any good unless you spread it all around! And yes, I was working 4 MINI dealership... The BIG3 are a great reason why I no longer buy American... Sad to say, I even use to work for GM.... Show me my MINI!!!

 

I ordered the Regal GS. I guess I'm opposite of you. I feel the same way about MINI. I will never again buy a BMW product. My MINI was fun, just not what I would expect for a car to hold up. I'm not too worried about resale value. I hold on to cars for a while. Oh, and GM is about to unleash a new 4 banger. The current Ecotec is old, but it isn't bad. The GS has 270 hp and 295 lb. ft. of torque. Not too bad for a 4 banger. Just wish GM would learn how to shed some weight. Oh, and the GS pulls a .92 lateral G stock. Anyway, good luck with your MINI and goodluck with my Buick.....

I guess back on topic, I'm waiting for an update. I'm curious now.

 

I don't think I'll have any updates for a while, when I spoke to the MINI/BMW NA rep she said they would be sending an engineer to investigate and that it would take at least 3-4 weeks to figure out what happened. I haven't heard from the body shop saying anyone has come to look at the car though.

Oh, and MINI is offering me $2,000 off the purchase of a new MINI for my trouble... sigh :|

 

on top of the car price (current value), right?
or just $2,000 off without on top of the car price (current value)?

 

No, just $2,000 off, car value is something my insurance would be responsible for.

 

$2000 off seems too little....The car is technically under warranty right?

 

Yes, the car was still under factory warranty

 

Hm. Seems to me they might have a LOT of warranty repairs to make on your car. Offering $2000 sounds like they're tipping a dime.

 

Could you prevent this by putting a kill switch that shuts off the battery seeing as it's an electrical issue?

 

Yes and no. You could do that but, you would have to wait around to make sure it didn't do this. So, if you like to sit in your car for upwards of 5 minutes after it shut down then go right ahead. Now if you are like normal people you turn your car off and walk away so, that would not be practical. I look at this way. If my MINI burns to the ground from a fire I will just accept. I would be upset but, I would live with it. I am not doing anything to prevent the issue. because you never know is it going to be your car or the next one.

 

If done as a matter of routine (i.e., every time you shut off the engine) you're likely going to ruin your turbocharger because you'd be disabling the electrical auxiliary pump before the turbo had the opportunity to properly cool. That said, a battery kill switch for use in an emergency or for maintenance purposes can be useful; they're quite common and even required in many racing applications. A bit of overkill for a daily driver though, IMHO.

 

FerRrari,

I think the proper way for you to handle this is to settle with your insurance company. If, in fact, it does turn out to be a manufacturer's defect - which it appears to be - than I'm sure your insurance company will be giving mini a call for their reimbursement. But... at this point, this will be your insurance company's problem, not yours!

At the present time, mini is handling it fairly by offering you a $2,000 reduction in price on another mini. Hopefully, this plus the insurance settlement, you will come out at least even.

Thank you for filing a report with NHSTA. This will help make it safer for all of us mini owners! I would expect a recall notice from mini soon!