I don't know if this is a oil line or what. but its loose(yellow arrow). it feels like I could almost pull it out. there was some oil right around where it goes in(red arrow), but I just cleaned that off. as you can see theres a little oil below that hex bolt.

I bought the car used about 6 months ago and the oil below the hex bolt has looked the same(as in I don't think it has leaked). the oil on the line where it goes in I don't know if thats new or not. but I looked on the line more and no sign of oil running down it. perhaps parts were replaced before I bought it and this oil is just left over. since I cleaned it I'll be able to tell in the coming days if oil shows up.

could anyone tell me if theirs is loose?

 

It should not be loose whatsoever. About time you looked into changing it out if this is truly the case. I highly recommend the oil line feed upgrade from Detroit Tuned.

 

Gabe,
This is a known issue with MINI. The fitting is swedged onto the line, and relies on an o-ring to seal against an oil leak. Over time, due to the line heating and cooling, the o-ring dries out, and a leak starts. Once there is oil there, the leak will not heal itself. If not fixed (by replacing the line), the leak will get worse and potentially smoke, starve the turbo of oil, or start a fire.
The fix is to replace the line. There are threads here on how to do it. The job is straightforward, but involved. Getting the heat shields off and back on is the worst part. There are other things that should also be done at the same time, if you are going to do this (oil filter housing gaskets, oil cooler gaskets, turbo drain line).
I bought my parts from Detroit Tuned, but ECS and Way Motor Works also have kits.

Have fun,
Mike

 

thanks guys. How is that line so loose? it seems like oil would be pouring out? do you think it just needs tightening? I have a powertrain warranty with $250 deductible so I guess I'll take advantage of that.

 

If it's the line itself and not the hollow bolt that's loose, there is no tightening you can do at this point. The part is $55 from DT and takes several hours to install. If you can DIY, you'll save yourself a bit. Just a thought.

 

Okay. Here's the deal. The part that leaks oil is the banjo bolt which has (had) rubber o rings and gets brittle over numerous heat cycles and not the tube which does move (or it did on my 08). How do I know this you ask. With only a few miles (shortly after delivery) I questioned one of the techs about this loose pipe, he got a new part (actually two) to show me that this was the case with them all. Yup, sure enough my oil line began to leak at the bolt portion 60k miles later, was changed and replaced with brass washers and not the rubber o rings. Done at dealer.... So far so good.

 

The above is all very true. The O-rings just cook them self to death then to leaking. MINI has quietly put out a install a heat shield to every car that comes in campaign, in warranty or not. We have several way to fix it with our Detroit Tuned Turbo Oil Line once and for all, but the most popular is the Basic Kit with a close second being the Super Kit for the cars that really have a lot of leaks. Let us know how we can help. You can find a how-to here.

 

The line is what has the o rings, not the banjo bolt. The bolt is a single piece of metal.

 

I second this statement.