Hello all. There's a question I've wondered about for two years. A search pulled up nothing pertinent...

Does anyone know why the MINI's temperature gauge "BINGS" and flashes at 37 degrees F? My old SAAB used to have a similar behavior but it was at 32 degrees F to warn you that the roads could be icing. What natural process starts at 37 that I need to be warned about ?

Thanks -- Kathryn

 

Hi, Kathryn! That bing is the black ice warning. No worries...it's normal! And welcome to NAM!


Clover

 

We got "binged" after we picked up our car Friday night. My wife was driving and thought she'd done something wrong .

 

Yes it's the ice warning bing.

 

Nah, it's a warning to tell you that it's cold enough to where you'll be hearing a LOT more rattles, buzzes, squeaks, etc. from all the cheap interior plastics Jimbo

 

Great attitude, Jimbo! I think the interior plastics are pretty good for real, authentic plastic!


Clover

 

I can think of a few but that depends on ones health

 

37 is a great age! I remember it well!


Clover

 

Do you "bing" when you get there??? I hadn't heard of this before.

Nik

 

Baby, I still bing....with INCREDIBLE gusto and with AMAZING frequency! However, living in L.A., I have YET to hear Wanda bing!


Clover

 

yah on the surface the plastics are good, it's just where/how they fit together and friction points develop that's the problem.

And while EFR is in the shop getting a (imagine small bubble-wrap popping) dash rattle diagnosed, Im in a CB/CB cabrio Cooper loaner, and it has a dag-nasty plastic-fueled rattle coming from the back rear quarter.

Loaner only has 636 miles OTC. Jimbo

 

Black ice doesn't wait til 32ºF. The bing is a great safety feature warning you to ease off on the twisties and hold off on doing the corners at speed. Here we bing at 3 (ºC) and being above the 49th Parallel we can bing any month of the year

 

I always read it as Graham's way of telling me he thought it was too cold to motor.

 

I've been in '02s that don't have a single rattle! I had a VICIOUS dash rattle which was remedied by dash-removal, and installation of a special washer that was a known cure. Unfortunately, the dealerships only do the fixes when people whine enough!


Clover

 

You are so obscene - I love it

 

Seems like I've heard the bing way too much lately

 

Sorry, I haven't ever heard my MINI "bing".
I'd be lucky to get down to 60 degrees.
We have no way to test our MINI's "bing".

I could drive into a refrigerator container I guess.
Hey, I don't have a good coat. Short pants don't cut it for the "bing" test.

Where is the temperature sensor on the MINI? Inside or outside?
If I find it, can I put ice on it?

 

Thanks for the reply... (and for the welcome, though it's more a welcome back) but why 37 degrees, why not 35?

I think too much.

 

37 was the number of the Mini that won Monte Carlo, correct? at least part of the reg. #

 

The sensor is just behind the front cowl,drivers side.
When the temp. gets to 37F the road surface can start to ice,may not seem slippery on foot,but conditions can start to ice,wind moving over the surface of the road,and I'm sure somebody can explain this better than me,but the road can be more slick at 35F than 25F.Also frost can come onto the surface of the road as temps. go upMy temp guage has been flashing for months,and acually binged the other day as the temp dropped from 38F to 37.
Like you warm weather folks,I don't hear the bing much in the winter,as it only bings as it drops through 37F

 

yup lotsie you're in perpetual Bing right now until the big melt at least my dog Hosehead thinks so....

 

Well thats great news,tell Hosehead that I like his forcast,cuase tradition tells me that -30 should happen again.At least once

 

There's another "black ice warning" thread out there somewhere with a fine scientific explanation for why you can get black ice at 37 degrees even though 32 is the freezing point. At least I think that was the point of the post... I must admit that chemistry was never my strong suit.

 

All I know is that at -10F and lower,the roads are pretty dry here.I hate temps. around freezing.

 

Just out of curiosity, how did you search? I typed in "37 degrees" in the search box and got a couple of dozen relevant hits. This question has been asked what seems like a thousand times.