There are no stupid questions......just the people who ask them.

I just bought my 04 MC and even though we are in the midst of beautiful 70 degree weather here in NE Ohio (home of the worst weather in the USA and the worst professional sports in the world) I often have to turn my air on.


In order to prevent the prethora of helpful (sarcasm) suggestions I have gotten to some other questions:

I do not have my recirculation closed.

I do have my vents open.

I am not interested in leaving the sunroof and windows down.

I do not wish to read a three page post on how to drive so as not to "think" I am stuffy. But thanks anyway!

Is it possible that the micorfilter is clogged?

Anybody have this experience?

Thanks.......sorry for the sarcasm......no I'm not!

 

I'm not sure if we share the same problem, but, when I turn on my A/C, a not so pleasent smell comes out with the cool air.

 

All you need is a chill pill <<ducking now >>

 

Now that's funny!

 

There are stupid answers and even stupider people. Yes I said it and this unfortunately is both.

I would say check your filter. I don't have this very often but when I do I just drop the top of my MC. Oh, you do have a convertible right. On brisk mornings I turn my heater on with the vents set to bi-level. Plus I wear a cap. It really is more fun than a car should be.

 

i get that bad smell too. i thought that something could have died in there, but it could also be mold someone told me

 

Glad you got the humor in it. You sounded a little jaded. I can see why though.
Hey, It's been in the low to mid 70's here in Northern Va too. I drive a Subaru Legacy Sedan and I have to open my windows.
I got auto ac in the suby, and it seems like I can't get good fresh air venting either.

 

Fortunately, the cabin filter in a MINI is VERY easy to check. It's under/behind the glove box and is held in place by clips.

Can be checked or changed in about 2 minutes - tops!

 

Well........don't know if this is "the" answer but I removed the filter and it was a mess......clogged I'm sure.

Now.....where do Iget a new one ASAP? Even if it's a cheap one for now!

 

...and right at the top of this page (at the time I was looking at it) is the banner ad for Classic Auto Campus. 20% discount for NAM members on OEM parts.

Their shipping is pretty quick. Otherwise, your local dealer.

 

but you have to check to make sure that the system is actually responding to what you're asking. When you go into recirc, a baffle moves so that you don't get the cowl air.... It sounds like this is where your problem is. I'm looking at the bentley manual, and it's controlled by a servomotor. You have to take out the glove box to get to it, but that's not tough..... So I'd check

1) Does the servo make any noise when you put it in recirc?
2) Is the servo connector loose?
3) If you take out the servo, can you move the baffle by hand and fix the problem?

If yes to #3, then you have to see if the signal is getting to the servo, it probably is and then swappping that part will make all well.

A couple other things to check. Look under the hood at the cowl areas and make sure the path into the unit isn't covered with crap.

The manual and automatic systems are a bit different, but the idea is the same. For a look at what the systems look like, you can hunt down the parts at REALOEM.com if you don't have a manual.

Matt

ps, sounds like you found your answer. Excellent! All while I was typing....

 

Sounds like you watched the Browns game on Sunday also... :impatient

 

Just a thought for those with odor problems......and I would wait until you get the go-ahead from some long time experts here before you do this.........but?

When I had the filter out I ran the blower fan and noticed a huge suction into the filter area.......thus.......if you would spray minor amounts of fabreeze into the intake while the fan is on it could possibly help your odor problems.

Don't do this without expert authorization!

You could also put an ozone machine in the car and allow it to run while the fan is on and recirculate the ozonated air!

 

Any new car that I have been in where people use AC with recirc all the time for max cold and never use the natural vents, their is a buildup of water and bacteria that is horrendous. Takes a long time to dry out. As far as filters go, filters are strange things. Filters take out crap from the air initially, and then they concentrate crap after that. Ever see an old movie with an ether mask? it's a filter that concentrates the poison. MUHAHAHAHHA! yeah
well, it's true. I would replace it 2x a year around Long island as all those particulates build up and then moisture would to. Lil bacteria dancing and singing Madonna's Holiday song.

 

Off topic for a minute.

What is the most inept sports city in the world? Cleveland Ohio!

Trivia......how many professional sports games have been played by Cleveland teams (Cavs, Indians, and Stains) since the city won a world championship?

The answer........over 11,000........no wonder Cleveland sports fans are wacko!

 

haha thats an awesome tidbit of info. 10,000 games watched for nothing won! wow.

Think of the red sox.... they just about hit 14,000 (if my calcs are correct) before they won a championship! that's just one team.. at least they are exciting to watch however!.

Back to topic....

 

Hmm...my current commuter has that not-so-great smell when you turn on the a/c. I wouldn't even know where to look to fix it though.

I just go through a LOT of Wonder Wafers. Ha.

 

I know that feeling. My old Ford van used to stink of old crayons when I turned on the rear heater fan. As I bought the van used and found old "kid-related" stuff in all sorts of places, I figured it was crayons. Turns out it was actually normal and is due to the cheap plastic the conversion company used for the air ducts.

 

keep your shoes on (?)

 

 

My car is also really stuffy I think! Now that the weather is cooler, the air coming in tends to be cool enough. But it's always warmer than it is outside, and when it's in the 70's, it's not cool at all and very unpleasant. I never had this problem on my lo-tech Passat! Most curious. The Cooper, however, has AC that actually works, however, so, at least there's that.

 

If I drive with the A/C on, I almost always get a headache. So I went out and cked my filter after reading this thread. It was clogged with black junk. Looked like mold and every weed known to man was plastered there. I'm replacing it tomorrow. Thanks for the info, I would have never thought about the filter.

 

There is a spray that you can buy at an auto parts store(Autozone) that you spray liberally into the intake vents and also into the the out vents...this kills mold and mildew....specifically meant for this problem.....the dealers have something like this too, but stronger...if under warranty still, this may be covered(I think)

 

I have no doubt that is a portion of the issue, but I'd also check the boot, as that is where the air out vent is when the re0cic is open, if that is blocked you may be loosing some of the fresh air effect as inter cabin air pressure builds up you eventually loose the effect of the fresh air. Just a hypothesis.

I think MyMINI might carry them (they seem to have all the other OEM filters)