I pushed my clutch to the floor this evening and decided to stay there. I have a 2006 MCS with 24,315 miles on it. I haven't been hard on the clutch by any means and I haven't noticed any warning signs that it was about to go. Luckily I was still in a restaurant parking lot instead of the middle of nowhere since it took nearly three hours for the tow truck to arrive after I called MINI roadside assistance.

Any ideas on what might have caused this?

 

It my not be the clutch ...maybe a broken clutch return spring?

 

I had that exact same problem in my 99 Miata and it was a bad seal on the clutch slave cylinder. The part was only $40 at Napa and it was an easy fix.

 

It's been a common problem for the clutch slave cylinder to fail and the pedal to stay on the floor.

 

Is there a DIY Write up on it?

 

^+1 Slave Cylinder, easily replaced under warranty, happened to me at 25k

 

Chris,
No help on the problem, but where did MINI Roadside take your car, Global or Nashville? Also let me know if there is anything I can do to help.
Jeff

 

I agree clutch slave cylinder internal leak (no fluid on ground).

 

Let us know what the resolution was... and good luck

 

MINI Roadside towed it to Global in ATL since it was the closest dealer. I received a call from a service advisor @ Global this morning. He asked me what was wrong with the car. I guess MINI roadside doesn't pass the info on to the dealer. You'd think a clutch pedal on the floor and the shifter stuck in neutral would be a dead giveaway.

The service advisor also asked if there's anything else that's wrong with the car. I told him that it runs like total crap the first 10 minutes after I start it (same with the wife's car). He asked me what kind of gas I use and I told him Exxon or BP/Amoco 93 octane. Apparently those fuels aren't on MINI's recommended fuel list. WTH? It's not like I'm filling up with Walmart or Raceway 87 octane.

I let you all know the outcome once I hear back from the dealer.

 

It was a faulty slave cylinder. Thanks for all the input!

 

NAM is a crazy site - anytime I have an issue and come on here to ask about it -- it turns out someone else has just asked the same question.

Just tonight, my wife called me from the mall: car is stuck in neutral (she blamed the short shift kit 'cause she hates it). I went out there and found that the clutch pedal was "stuck to the floor". I pulled it up, and the car ran normal, so I was able to get it home -- but I guess I'll have the cylinder looked at. I'm still under warranty -- I just hope they don't give me a hard time about the short shift kit (though I realize they're unrelated).

 

Yeah, I got the lecture about my "after-market" parts, but I told the service advisor they had nothing to do with the slave cylinder crapping out after 24K miles. I just hope my wife's automatic doesn't decide to implode because it's been shifting pretty rough lately.

 

Chris,
Next time you might want to take Zipper to MINI of Nashville. They are more mod friendly. The most I have gotten from the is "oh, you have a couple of non-OEM parts on there".
Not sure what they would do if push came to shove, but I run out of warranty in December anyway.