So my water pump was leaking coolant so I took it to the dealership. I found out there was this lawsuit settlement about the water pump leaking so they agreed to fix it for free.http://www.minicoopersettlement.com


However they then told me there is another leak on the thermostat. I know nothing about mechanics but does anyone had similar issue? Is the thermostat leak related to the water pump somehow? or could it be possible that the settlement include the thermostat? Thanks!

 

The thermostat is a crap design and thus fails about every 40k miles (if you're lucky), it could've been due to the water pump leak being fixed, but they're also much more common to leak than the water pump.

When you fix one leak in the cooling system the next weakest point will usually show a failure, we've had customers in for either a water pump or thermostat and the next month they're back because the other is now leaking.

The thermostat settlement was awhile ago, you probably won't get much out of that, but you can check classactionlawsuit.com or topclassaction.com to see if you are eligible.

 

Thanks a lot for the information! Could you please give more information about the thermostat settlement? All settlement I can find is timing chain and water pump, but not the thermostat. Any link would be greatly appreciated!

 

Unfortunately, it's a plastic component that you will definitely see fail on the R56. Big thread on NAM about it failing here: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...t-housing.html. I don't think you'll have much luck with the dealer on this one.

You can see what is required for the replacement here: http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarti...eplacement.htm. You'll also probably want to inspect and replace your water pipe as that is a common plastic failure component as well. Let me know if you have any questions.