So I took my car to a local garage for inspection. The guy calls me & says my left front turn signal is out. Further research showed the housing was bad & it would need to be replaced. He said that's $535 for the housing and he would need to take it to a Mini dealer to have them re-initialize the electrics or some BS. That would be another $170 for that. He also mentioned this housing controls all of the lights on the car so it has to be replaced cuz other lights will go on the car eventually.

Is this at all accurate? Quite frankly, I am sick & tired of all of these repairs that need to be made on my car. Furthermore, none of them are cheap. Since I'm trying to purchase my first home, I have decided to sell/trade in my Mini. If I'm getting a new home, I'm going to need something with more cargo space. And I'm going to need something more reliable and less expensive to have fixed.

It sucks cuz I really like the car. I just can't afford all of these pricey repair bills. So if anyone's interested, I'm selling my Mini. It's an 03 non-S with 64000 miles. It's an auto with a lot of options.

So does the diagnosis to fix the car sound at all accurate? Thanks in advance.

 

I'm guessing you have xenon headlights? If so then yes, that is pretty much what it costs. However used housings go one sale here in the marketplace all the time for considerably less.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ct/4616/cat/22
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ct/4386/cat/22

 

... but on first gen cars, the Xenons have nothing to do with the turn signals...

You need a better description from your mechanic of EXACTLY what parts he thinks are faulty. "Turn Signal Housing" might be what he said... but it doesn't make any sense at the price he quoted. Nor do the comments about programming. He MIGHT be talking about the Body Control Module which controls all lighting on the car... but that has nothing to do with the turn signal housing...

 

Sounds like a bit of "shady mechanic syndrome" to me. I don't see how a turn signal being out could be caused by a faulty housing...unless it was so damaged that the light couldn't be held in anymore and it just bounces around. You can get a replacement aftermarket turn signal pair from Moss Mini with angel eyes for $89....done. By the way, on your car, the turn signals are in the bumper...not the headlight.

If you do need a bigger car...clubman!

 

I cracked the lens on the left front turn signal on my 02 S and replaced the entire housing. Part was something like $30 from the dealer (I was surprised how little it was...expected more) and the replacement took me under an hour; I seem to recall I had to pull the entire bumper cover to get at it but that's quite easy. Then release the two bulbs and remove 3 screws.... no reprogramming....nothing special here.

your 'mechanic' senses "fish on the line"

I still have the box - part number 63 13 7 165 861