hot water tank insulation from home depot or similar might be what you're looking for, it's cheap, basically bubblewrap with tinfoil on either side or any of the other pipe insulation products.
eg.
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?actio...V15&lpage=none
$2.86
or
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?actio...B/6&lpage=none
$1.33

sure Mini USA ought to fix it for you, but sometimes you just have to suck it up & find you inner handy-man.

 

So. Florida - May '07 build MCS - no heat issues

 

I wish you all luck with this problem, I havent noticed it yet since I only have the heat on for a bit b/c its about 50 degrees in NYC for the past week or so

 

No hot feet for me in California.

 

The foam wouldn't fit but that tape would. Anything would help for those experiencing this. I wonder what the factors are. If this is a design in all cars, why is not prevalent in all responses here? Must be some other factor like what temp the heater controls are set to, etc, not just outside air temp and engine temp.

I need to pick up a thermal IR to check mine. I've noticed heat on my feet there but nothing uncomfortable. I haven't driven the car in heat higher than about 85-90 degrees though.

 

There's a chance it might be the difference between those equipped with auto-ac versus manual-ac, or it could just be a fitment issue with the heater pipes being closer/further from the panel. There really shouldn't be much radiant heat making it past the panel unless the piping is making contact, then the foil/bubblewrap combo would work the bet.
It's true that most modern cars have hot coolant travelling through the heater core at all times & the hvac controls just move the blend doors.
Obviously the hot foot's a (unique) downside, but on the upside, it's a lot less likely to develop coolant leaks.

If your foot's really getting cooked, I can't see that as being normal, we've done a few roadtrips in our manual-ac r56 mcs, several hours of driving at a time & no hot-foot.

If you can't handle applying a bit of insulation, call your MA & get scheduled in as a waiter, bring it in hot so they can see the problem and/or specifically ask them to insulate the pipes down there.

Every car has some design issues, but are you really actually looking for a solution or just looking for an out because you have buyers remorse ?

 

Ordinary aluminum foil is amazing at reflecting heat (Stick some tin foil in your oven at 375 for 20 minutes, you will be able to pick it up afterwards, cool to the touch). You can buy self stick foil that they use for protecting lines in engine bays at most automotive stores. This may help if applied as a backing to the panel back. Wrap the lines in something to absorb heat. Foil will just reflect it back and could damage the lines.

 

Absolutely weird. I have a week THREE build (delivered 2/21/07), and have never had a problem with heat. We need a/c most of the year--Houston is hot and humid (great combo, BTW)--and I wear sandals almost all the time except our short winter. FWIW, I have auto air. Also, I haven't noticed any particularly hot temps when the heat is on in winter. I usually set it for 78 then.

When autocrossing (just about every month of the year, except maybe August), I use the center stack to brace my right leg while cornering. Even then I've never had problems.

File a complaint with the gov, and also see what MINI USA will do for you. Maybe there was a problem with yours when it was on the assembly line (or with a bunch of them?). I don't believe it's a design flaw. Too many negatives on this thread, from all through the build months...

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Summer is coming.

P.S. Don't ever stand too close to the tailpipes (S) when you're unloading the boot. They make nice rings on your legs. It's called the MINI brand.

 

this is a phenomina when allowed manufacturing variances all "stack" in one direction. If you have 10 parts that go together, and there's an allowed variance of 0.010" per part, USUALLY the random variation in how the tolerances stack result in pretty small total variance. But every now and then, all 10 can stack one way, with a total variance of 0.100" There's lots of math you can throw at this to find the probability that this will occure for large populations with a normal distribution of parts variance, but you don't need to dig this deep to understand the effect.

For what it's worth, this isn't that rare an issue. My first job out of grad school I worked on a product that was about 16" long where the tolerance stack (prior to some re-design) was over 1/2" (lots and lots of small parts).

When you have a statistically significant percentage of a large population that show some sort of anomoly, it is usually a combination of tolerance stacking, and non-random variance in parts tolerance that combine to make a non-universal problem out of parts that all meet spec.

Hope this helps....

Matt

 

Wow I noticed the same thing and I thought it was just me. Have had my MINI a couple of weeks now and noticed that when I drive really hard my feet get hot. Initially, I thought that I was getting really excited because of the way I 've been driving. I wiil pay more attention on the ride home and see how hot it really gets. The insulation ideas sound pretty good.

 

Drove my car really hard the past few days and it got warm at best. Not nearly enough to cause a full thickness burn (3rd degree burn).

Maybe you got a lemon? In order for a car to be deemed a lemon there has to be some malfunction and several attempts made to rectify the problem, at least here in Florida.

Good luck, hope you find some solution.

 

I have an 07 MC and I don't always have this problem, but I have noticed it quite often. Not 138 degrees I'm sure but it's pretty hot. I can wear open sandals without a problem as long as I don't lean my foot on the right side of the foot pedal for more than a few seconds.

I didn't see any real solution here (didn't read every single post). Is there one? Should I bother mentioning it when i go in for service?

 

you got that right, i had a crescent moon on my calf for about 6 mos last year after my leg touched the pipe right after an hour drive on the interstate.. YOWZA

 

Have an 08, never noticed any heat and I drive barefooted at times and I live in Central Florida, 96 deg today. Drove over 800 miles on I-75 & I-10 a few weeks ago and didn't notice any heat problems, however I did use cruise most of the time. I will check the floor area and see if there is a hot spot.

 

I have an '08 as well and have not perceived so much as a warm spot, let alone anything hot enought to burn my foot. I wonder if the offending lines are pliable - i.e., can they be bent away from the footwell or perhaps tied back so they don't transfer as much heat? This would be the kind of safety issue I'd expect MINI to jump all over. A jury awarded some lady $300K from McDonald's for spilling hot coffee on her lap; you'd think MINI would show more concern about the potential for customers to get burned. Modern automobiles should not be able to burn customers' feet under normal usage conditions.

 

http://www.designengineering.com/pro...sp?m=sp&pid=75

A possible solution place it in the instide of the plastic near the foot well.

 

Or maybe, they ran out of heat shields/insulation for a short time on the assembly line.

 

wow, not to call you lame, but as Captain Obvious would say, maybe you should take the time to read the whole thread if it's a real problem

 

I think maybe s/he should buy the 150' roll for $4350 and give some to anyone who has the problem.


Hmmm. Wonder if it would work on the hood scoop problem...

 

I am thinking the real problem right here is the car can get the driver hurt if it really get that hot right next to the foot. I'd say just get your lawyer and file a civil law suit to bmwusa and get your compensation.... that way you get your car and your $$

besides... you can always do your "mod" to make you a happy driver... but bottom line is the car should not have that defect in the first place

 

I drove my Mini in 90+ degree temps for 3+ hours last weekend and this panel was warm but no where close to burning my fingers.

 

If you report this to anyone official, please be aware that a third-degree burn involves destruction of tissue and charring of the skin. (Meaning: your report is not credible.)

I have had no such issue with my early-build 2007 MCS.

 

more that need to learn statistics... Many have had this issue, the fact that one doesn't means nothing other than it's not on all cars.

If it's truly gone on 08 or later, it would be interesting to know if Mini did anything different (parts or assembly) as this surely is a problem on many 07s.

Best path of action is to fix it yourself, if you're on of the unlucky ones. The hassle of forcing MINI/BMW to do anything isn't worth the hassle. The materials are going to be about $20, and it will take an afternoon to fix. Then life will go on.

For those affected, file a complaint with the NTHSA or whomever, and just drive.

Matt

 

Right... Get a lawyer, file a civil law suit, get your compensation.

BMW has lawyers, too. Lots of 'em..

 

right... but the judge wont say who is winning base on who has more lawyers representing oneself if that is true... then how can people win those cases when the brake failed and caused someone's life or the old lady in McDonald that got burnt by hot coffee won her case?