Yeah, the guy i am going to supposedly really knows his stuff. He was a certified tech at a local mini dealer, then started his own shop. I think it's best at this point to see what he says before jumping deeper into it. Appreciate your insight!

 

oh ya. if hes a mini tech go for it. they go to a specialized program just for minis, no other cars! ive had really good experiences with mini of orlando here in FL; they are the only techs who have ever touched my cars naughty parts (except for me!). lol

 

So here we go.... Mechanic said the sunroof leak SOAKED the carpets and thus the wiring harness has massive corrosion. He cut the harness apart and it attempting to soak in a solution to dissolve the corrosion and restore conductivity, then will put it back in to assess the damage it caused.... Really, really regretting this deal. I will post as things progress but he is supposed to send me pictures of the corrosion. I will post them on here for your review.

Edit, Add Pictures:

 

Those sunroofs drain tubes can really cause some serious problems. But at least you got that fixed. Now that your mechanic is cleaning/soaking your connections. I will bet once they get them cleaned up things will begin to work for you. Don't feel bad. I think even given the problems you are currently having I think its still a good car. This isn't uncommon at all with the sunroofs leaking.(drain tubes coming apart). Lets just hope nothing is damaged to the point of needing replacing. Ive seen pics of your MINI..Looks sharp! I will keep my fingers crossed for you.. Good luck!

 

EEEEeeeeeeek. We feel your pain. It looks like you have your car with someone who knows his stuff. Hopefully he gets it clean for you.

Keep us posted.

///Rich

 

That sunroof must have been leaking for sometime.. Ive never seen corrosion that bad before... Good luck hope it turns out well for you.

 

Thanks Guys, I have high hopes also. We'll see what happens next week. The symptoms lead me to believe the harness is corroded but still good and the problems are coming from a possibly bad BC1, brake light diode, Etc.

 

+1 they must have been leaking for some time with that amount. Do you have any pins missing or completely corroded off? If so you will need some wiring and change out the pins.

Good Luck , I hope you can get things back to normal.

 

Thank you. I haven't seen it since he ripped it apart so I've been sitting on pins and needles all weekend waiting to hear the result of the soaking/decorrosion efforts. It appears all pins are in tact from the pictures but I'm sure he'll offer insight once the harness is cleaned up/ I'll keep this thread up to date as things progress.

 

i would most def follow up with ebay with regards to these issues. seller has to disclose all such issues when selling items on ebay (including cars). its very likely you will be reimbursed for the cost of the repairs.... and hopefully you gave the guy who sold to you a shitty review! lol

 

I have contacted the seller and they've essentially told me to pounds sand, they've never had any issues with the car and the corrosion happened in transit (must've been in transit for months! lol). I expected that but did hurt to try. I am in contact with eBay's VPP (Vehicle protection plan) as the vehicle was covered against, frame, title, engine and body damage. It's electrical so we'll see if it's covered. Trying to save as much as i can here but it seems my mechanic has a donor car for the portion of the harness that is messed up. I will be tearing apart the interior myself to dry out the carpets and save some coin.

I digress, after cleaning the connectors, he found several wires that were screwed beyond repair. Said he'd charge me a couple hundred to swap sections of it out (with the donor harness); after seeing pictures of mine post cleaning, i told him to run with it. He hooked up to the diagnostic port and can't even get power; there are several fried connections on the harness so he's not surprised and said swapping the connectors should solve most of the issues. Fingers are crossed!

EDIT: Adding post cleaning pictures

 

well its fairly obvious that kind of corrosion doesnt build up in a day, or even a week; that is clearly at least a months worth of CONTINUAL water damage. send those pics to ebay to help your case. this guy is obviously pulling a fast one, so stop him cold!

 

You sure this wasn't a flood-damaged car?

 

Title is clear, carfax and autocheck are clear, Illinois hasn't had any floods to my knowledge but someone who lives there will likely forget more than I'll ever know about their climate. I have no idea if it's flood damaged but given the driver floorboard is the only area of the car with wiring damage and wet sub-floor, it seems to be a classic case of disconnected sunroof drain left unfixed for far too long. It does have an aftermarket windshield too but ran it through a high pressure car wash and it didn't leak so all seems well there.

 

High hopes! Just got these pictures, tach is up!!

 

Let the modding begin!

Got a deal on a Remus I couldn't refuse. Paid $575 shipped for it so that's what I'll be running:

 

Sweet deal man