I bought a 2003 Mini for my GF to drive when she's up here in the great white north. The previous owner stated it had a bad starter. With the key in the ignition and turned to start (or on) everything works, but the car would not turn over. I noticed that the key will not lock or unlock the doors but the back hatch does lock and unlock and the park lights light up when the button on the key is pressed.
I replaced the starter tonight, and upon trying to start the car....nothing. I still had the heat shield off of the starter so I jumped the solenoid to the starter with the key on. The car fired immediately and ran/drove great...... with the exception of a thump in the passenger CV joint (that will be a separate thread....lol).
I checked the battery in the key and the voltage checked out fine. I'm thinking there was nothing wrong with the starter, and I actually have an issue with the theft deterrent system?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Allan

 

Yikes!! I have no idea how to rotate the photo. My apologies for any headaches!!

 

I tried resetting the ECU as suggested in my intro. It made no difference to the issue. Turn the key, starter doesn't engage. Jump the starter with the key on, car starts fine and runs great. Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

Allan

 

Are you sure the ignition switch actually works as advertised?

 

How would I check that? The car chimes when the key is held near the ignition so I'm assuming it's not the theft protection.

Thanks in advance.

 

I have an R56 so I'm not familiar with your ignition switch. My car has no key, just a fob that you insert into the dash to turn things on and then a push button to actually energize the starter. I assume you have a key that first turns things on in the first position and when you continue to turn it to the spring loaded position, it engages the starter. If the switch is defective it will not complete the circuit to energize the solenoid and engage the starter. If you had a wiring diagram of that switch you could troubleshoot it with an ohmmeter/voltmeter and also verify the wiring is good to the solenoid. Good luck.

 

I will check when I get home on where it is, but have you checked the starter relay?Could both door lock actuators be bad? You could check voltage at the plug in the door.

 

A bit of an update. It was actually a bad clutch sensor. Car starts fine now.
Still have the issue with the inability to lock and unlock doors. How do I check the actuators?

Thanks in advance.

Allan