So I started to drive my cooper more now, I haven't drove it in about a year, I did start it up every few days, so I noticed the other day when I was driving my car that the fan kept coming on that it never did that before, I checked at night and the reserve tank was empty. I called my local dealer and the service guy said because of my year (2007) I didn't need to do a coolant flush and just to add distiller water in there to verify if there is a leak. While my car was in the garage there was never any kind of leak, has this happened to anyone? Is it ok just to fill the tank with distiller water just to see if there is any leaks? Should I flush the coolant? Advises?

 

Sounds like either a thermostat housing leak and coolant is pool on the transmission or a slow coolant leak under the expansion tank . Fill it up and check for these locations :

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...8-no-heat.html





#ecs #thermostat #coolant

 

Thanks ecs! Saw u had the cheapest coolant. Will be ordering from u this week b

 

Forgot to ask. Ecs can I use distiller water as advised by mini?

 

You are welcome.

Yes, distilled water only, its ok to top off a little or fill up a little, it will mix through a little. . When you mix the new bottle of Genuine MINI Coolant it will get mixed 50 / 50 with distilled water, so in the end you have 2 gal of mixed coolant.

 

if you have a 7 and the thermostat housing has never been replaced I'd bet a donut that your problem is there

the leak tends to be small and the fluid lands on the top of the hot block and just cooks off .... so you may never see a puddle under the car. But every time you drive it, some more coolant cooks off . . . a good reason to get in the habit of check all fluid levels once a month!

Mine was around $330 to have replaced from 'not the dealer'

The part alone was $180 when I had it done.

 

This sucks. It is a 2007 and I have less than 40k miles.

 

You can try to ask the MINI dealership for a "goodwill" since you are under 50,000 miles but over on years for warranty . They might do it.

 

but being an 07 with 40K they will say you need your valves cleaned.

 

I had my last service done sometime last year before warranty ended.

 

Might as well do the original plastic water pump while your at it, the new pump is aluminum.

 

So, filled it up with distiller water last night, drive it today in the afternoon, and now it's empty. So what part do I need and someone have the part number?

 

in all honesty we're guessing here

you need to verify where the leak is

highly probably it is the thermostat or the water pump but I would verify b4 buying parts . . .

but if you're REALLY low, everything you put in the expansion tank could have just been sucked into the block and radiator ....

fill it again, go for a drive and get everything up to temp Then get under the bonnet and look at the thermostat area. If your leak is there you should see signs of it being wet - as well as residue of cooked off coolant . .

the thermostat housing part number is 11537534521 according to my invoice

 

tip: You can remove the intake duct (and still run the engine) to get a better view of the thermostat housing region.

Also, Another prime spot for a leak is the hose connection on the bottom of the overflow tank. That can get dislodged while changing the oil.

just to cover the bases, if you don't readily find a leek look in the oil, and look for steam (more than usual) in the exhaust.

 

Thanks a bunch guys. I'm gonna try that tiday

 

And remember...
Your car might have been lower on coolant than just the tank...
So it might take 2 or 3 top offs to finish filling the system to catch up to the full level....
Dried coolant usually leaves a bit of a tinted cust behind...a bit like dried salt...
Look around...might be minor...might be big...just don't order parts cause part A "usually" leaks...

 

I filled it completely with distiller water the other day and the same night it was competition empty. Should I now fill it with half coolant half water? Or just plain distiller water? I'll look near the tank tonight to see if I can see any salt like crust anywhere.

 

My thought would be if the coolant got so low, you need to fill the reservoir more than once, you have a leak that will need fixing. Probably meaning a component replacement - i.e coolant draining. Use distilled water for now

 

just use distilled water until you get it fixed. (unless of course you neee freeze protection)

 

I tried taking a pic but I think I see some anti freeze crust, it's right below the hose wrapping

 

Ok, so I took another pic after I filled it with distiller water and I found a leak in the pic. Now I'm not sure if the tube got loose or moved a little when I was flipping the expansion tank sideways to look inside or not. What do you think?

 

If that was the source of all your coolant loss then you would have evidence all over the place underneath it. I find it very strange that you have never found any water puddles on the ground or puddling in the engine bay somewhere. Since you're only using distilled water after it leaks there's no blue residue left under the engine bay to track where the leak is coming from, big disadvantage in my book. Distilled water is to clean after it burns up on hoses and other parts.

 

You should have a gallon or more of coolant mix in the system......
IMO just start using a 50% mix...
With most repairs, you drain coolant to the level needed, then refil with fresh...
And coolant provides not only antifreeze protection, but better boilover protection than water, anti corrosion protection, and WATERPUMP lube.....
A bit less than 50%-50% may actually be OK in your area, so I am sure you should be fine unless you drive to some extreme areas, and even then, when the repair is done, the fresh coolant will freshen stuff up....
Two coolant tanks worth of leakage should make for a decent amount of crust... Keep looking...
My guess...if you don't know what too look for,or the leak is not obvious, it is likely you should get some help...

 

I would start by cleaning the garage floor (or driveway, at least make sure it is dry). Turn off the A/C (it generates water under the center of the car). I'm assuming that the car is cold. If you have the right coolant, fill the coolant reservoir with coolant (since you put in 2 fills with water). If you don't have the right coolant yet, just fill with distilled water. Use a funnel and make sure that you don't leak any when filling. Leave the cap off.


Start the car, and watch the level of the coolant tank. If it drains quickly, add more to fill the tank. you should fill it to the seam on the tank (the joint between the upper half and lower half). After a minute of idling, assuming that the coolant level is stable, put the cap on and let the car run and warmup.


Get a good flashlight, and look under the car and in the engine compartment for anything wet. If you get a puddle on the ground near the front passenger side wheel, that is the water pump.


The thermostat is located to the right (when facing the engine) of the valve cover. use the flashlight to look around that area. Blue crusty stuff (or wetness) would indicate that the thermostat is bad. The transmission is right there, and there is a waffle pattern on top of the transmission. This waffle pattern tends to trap coolant and prevent it from dripping down to the ground.


After 4 or 5 minutes the car should be fully warm. Look around and under the car for any signs of a leak. Be careful not to reach near the radiator, the fan can start even with the engine not running.


Let us know what you find. Good luck.


Mike

 

to the above post ... putting some clean dry cardboard down accomplishes the same thing and is sometimes easier

.......

I hope we're not overly fixated on one possible cause .... Seems like there is a bunch of fluid going somewhere and not ending up as a puddle under the car.

I hate to ask this, but what does your oil look like? Any trace of 'milkiness'? How about the "wet" side of the oil filler cap? Anything that resembles mayonnaise there????