I came home tonight and discovered that under my MINI there is a puddle of OIL!!!. Not much but a small puddle. I am assuming its LEAKING OIL?? No warning lights have come on..... Is it safe to drive to the dealer (my work) in the morning? PLEASE HELP!!

 

That really sucks. I would have it flatbed transported to the dealer.
Good luck, let us all know what the problem is.


His, Chile red all over
Hers, EB UJ on top

 

That's a tough call. Although you probably only live about twenty minutes from Westchester MINI, that ride can seem like forever when there is a potential problem. Maybe you can take a look in the AM when there is more light to better diagnosis the problem & go for a short ride to see if you feel comfortable driving to work. Sorry I couldn't be of much help, but I am not that mechanically inclined.

 

..... Is it safe to drive to the dealer (my work) in the morning? PLEASE HELP!!

If you told me once, you told me a thousand times.
Your a State trooper!!

Jim

 

Yeah well my trooper station is right next to the dealership.

 

One question - which will you regret more:

1) needlessly calling Roadside Assistance, or
2) driving it to the dealer yourself and making it worse?


I think you know what you should do...

 

Roadside assistance is never needless when you are being cautious.

Utilize Roadside assistance at every opportunity, if you are not a mechanic, don't RISK it.

 

How about checking the oil and seeing if you are losing oil?

 

>>I came home tonight and discovered that under my MINI there is a puddle of OIL!!!. Not much but a small puddle. I am assuming its LEAKING OIL?? No warning lights have come on..... Is it safe to drive to the dealer (my work) in the morning? PLEASE HELP!!


I wouldn't. You have FREE roadside assistance. Call a number and they pick it up. What else could be easier beside the car doing the calling itself.

If you call the number and it turns out to be nothing the most that it will cost you is a little pride. If you DRIVE it and it's serious you've got to tell them that there was a spot/puddle under the car. If the engine is damaged you may have just bought yourself a new engine.

"You saw oil under your car and you drove it anyway even though you have free roadside assistance and you WORK for a Mini Dealer????"

Pretty strong argument.

Call the number.

I never screw around with oil. It's not washer fluid, it's THE most critical component of your whole car. Even if the oil light isn't on.

Motor on, (with lubrication)

-Jim

 

And are you sure it is oil leaking? My MINI can leave a puddle of water from the AC unit when there is high humidity.

If you check the oil and it is ok, then go ahead and drive the short drive to work/dealership and they can check it on the lift.

 

>>And are you sure it is oil leaking? My MINI can leave a puddle of water from the AC unit when there is high humidity.
>>
>>If you check the oil and it is ok, then go ahead and drive the short drive to work/dealership and they can check it on the lift.
>>
>>

Its def oil.

 

Step 1: Carefully remove all badges.
Step 2: Mail badges ti MINIUSA.
Step 3: Look in mirror.
Step 4: Realize you are Numbskull.

 

First of all, as the owner of several old English vehicles, oil leaks are normal. As the owner of a new MCS, it's w-a-y too early for it to be leaking. :smile:

It doesn't take much oil to make it appear to be a large leak so... as others have suggested.... check your oil and see if you have a problem. If not, move the car and check what's on the ground. Check the bushes around your parking area to see if your friends are playing a joke on you. Then, assuming you're still nervous, call the assist hotline.

 

I agree to have it flat bed transported. Don't risk making a problem worse, and the possibility of the additional damage note being covered under warranty due to you driving it.

 

>>Step 1: Carefully remove all badges.
>>Step 2: Mail badges ti MINIUSA.
>>Step 3: Look in mirror.
>>Step 4: Realize you are Numbskull.


wicked!
stovepipe is killing me tonight! hehehe

ant...check your oil level!
if it's down a lot, add some and drive to your dealership!
c'mon man!
who did you say you worked for again?

 

Make sure it's YOUR CAR leaking the oil. Many times I have come back to a puddle under my vehicle and found it to have been there previously.

Check ALL fluid levels, especially power steering. Many have complained about steering leaks.

Look for oil spread on the frame, underbody or under the hood

Start the car and watch underneath for leaks. Let it idle for a while and check back.

If not leaking, take a spin around the block and repeat. If nothing then, you should be safe for the dealer run, just check occasionally.

I would call roadside if it is leaking and you cant find the source. Let the warranty do all the work.

 

>>Check the bushes around your parking area to see if your friends are playing a joke on you.

Sorry ants me and the guys put the oil there, we were just playin!

But really I'd call roadside assistance for that.

 

>>I came home tonight and discovered that under my MINI there is a puddle of OIL!!!. Not much but a small puddle. I am assuming its LEAKING OIL?? No warning lights have come on..... Is it safe to drive to the dealer (my work) in the morning? PLEASE HELP!!


Ants, is it definitely ENGINE oil or could it be Gearbox (I'm not familiar with your car is it a CVT or manual gearbox)?

Personally, I'd check everything and if I couldn't find a low oil level, I'd make the drive (keep in mind that roadside assistance won't be there forever and you might have to make the same judgement call a few years from now).

However, you DO have the roadside assitance now, so if you're nervous, use it.

And, of course, I'm probably writing this after you've already made your decision. So, please just let us know how it turns out.

Good luck,

Kev

 

1) Mop up the oil, and see if more appears. I could have been from something else on that spot, like another car, lawn mower, weed eater, etc.
2) Check your fluid levels, and top off if necessary.
3) Did you recently add oil to your car? Could some of it have spilled onto the engine? This need not have occured at the same spot, as oil takes its own time to run down the block and drip.
4) If all appears normal, take a quart or two with you and drive to the dealership. If all is not normal, call for a tow.

 

I recently had the oil changed at the dealer, so that may have something to do with it. Anyway my oil level was full this morning, so I drove it in. Its in the shop now. Maybe a bad O ring?