The front AC power outlet illuminates, but rear (hatch) AC power outlet does not. Puzzled, thinking there was a short, I plugged my Valentine1 into the rear power outlet and it worked. I then pulled the power outlet from its hole and saw there was no bulb connection to the power outlet to begin with. Just an overly picky curiosity. Carry on.

 

well the back one never gets seen...I guess they figured it would be pointless to put a light back there

 

Doesn't the rear one always have power? Wouldn't want to drain the battery.

 

Rear is switched, at least on my 11/06 build R53.

 

Well there is a rear hatch light on the passenger side, so I assume it illuminates the hatch well enough to spot the power outlet on the driver's side.

 

When did they start building R56's?

 

At least you have a rear power outlet.

 

yeah, I was disappointed when I found out that all other MINIs had rear power outlets. Oh well, I still love my 03.

 

I'm confused . Which year(s) didn't have the rear outlet? Did they stop in '03 and then start again? My 02/02 has one...

 

That's pretty much it - the rear power outlet was MIA for the 2003 model, but returned after that.

 

The front AC power outlet illuminates? The orange ring around the outside of the outlet? What year cause my 06 doesn't front or back and I too was thinking "How much would it take to put a bulb behind there?"

 

Front = illuminates
Rear = does not illuminate

 

Front illuminates, as does the rear in my 07/02 build,

 

Thats weird I swear mine doesn't. The orange ring right? Do you have to push in the lighter? Sorry if these are stupid questions.

 

Odd, I just pulled my rear power outlet and there is no bulb nor even a bulb socket.

 

just the front lights up for mine! 09/02 build!

 

yeah right me too. Too early in the morning to tear apart the center console for the front to see if there is a bulb socket or something. But I have had my car from birth and that front never glowed. 06 mcs

 

The front AC power outlet illuminates? The orange ring around the outside of the outlet? What year cause my 06 doesn't front or back and I too was thinking "How much would it take to put a bulb behind there?"


Uh correction: I believe that would DC power outlet

 

my 03 illuminates. yes the front orange ring. it looks cool and rounds out the night time interior.

i think they discontinued the feature in 05 or 06 maybe some type of "safety concern"? don't quote me on the year..

anyhow the bulb socket is still there in all the later MINI's i think but, there is a wire missing and you probably need the bulb. you can get the jumper wire from the dealer for like $3 and from what i've read it's a simple retrofit. there's a thread around here somewhere. not sure about the bulb cost though. but, i would get a couple of extra bulbs. mine burned out and i had to replace it. you can loosen the screws in the front cupholders and it gives you JUST enough room to slide your hand in there to replace the bulb after you remove the down tubes (i was rewiring my aux input so i had it apart anyhow). as far as adding the wire to get it to illuminate- probably have to get that center console off the floor a little higher.

 

Thanks for the good info Whitey. I would have never known that nor do I know anyone else with a mini yet. I'll be looking for the link

 

A-HA! read post # 165-171 here: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...05#post1376205

i was wrong though you need the bulb AND SOCKET = around $3.

 

Both of mine are dark.

 

How about buying a front one and installing it in the rear? Then it would be illuminated - as long as it switches off when the ignition is.

 

You don't even need that much. Just the bulb socket (part #61346915065). It slips directly onto the outlet. Of course you'd need a small amount of wire, maybe some solder and splice into the rear wires to get it to light up as well.

 

I have done this on my early 06 cabrio (9/05 build). My front socket didn't light. MINI removed the socket lighting sometime around mid 2005. The bulb socket (part# 61346915065) does include a bulb.

When MINI removed the lighting, they also removed the lighting wire from the harness. To light the bulb, I did as others have done, run a 2" wire from the lighter + to the bulb socket +. The problem is, my bulb didn't last long (about 8 months). I think it is because the bulb becomes lit at maximum 12V brightness, and it is on all the time whenever the ignition is turned on (not just lit with the dash illumination as it would be in the factory version). Under certain conditions the ring did look a bit odd to be brightly lit up while other lighting in the console and dash weren't lit up. The proper way to light it is how the factory did it -- use the switch illumination line, which is a red/grey stripe wire. It can be tapped from the seat heater switch, or the radio or AC control in the center console. It is a hassle compared to the 2" wire solution, and I haven't done it yet.