On Saturday morning I was driving on a highway at about 60/65 mph in the rain. I heard a warning tone and looked down. The DSC-Off warning light was lit and so was the Brake light. At first I wasn't sure if it was just a dashlight malfunction or if DSC had really turned itself off. A little extra gas on the exit ramp answered that question. The DSC had definitely turned itself off. I have no idea what the brake light was all about.

I pulled over, turned the engine off and on, and all was well again. Has this happened to anyone else? Under the wrong circumstances, the DSC turning itself off could be quite an event!

 

yes it has happened to me, could be a brake sensor going bad or some water interuping the current flow to the sensors

 

This has happened to me before. I sometimes like to save my clutch in moveing traffic and shift 2nd-3rd-4th and back without the clutch. Once I missed the fourth gear rpm by a little bit and got a tad bit of grind (maybe a tenth of a sec as the stick bounced back into my hand). The brake light went on yellow and DSC button was lit. I pushed in the clutch and put it in 3rd and it all reset.

 

Thanks. I'll see if it happens again.

 

dont go trying to make it happen now :P

 

Yes, I just picked up a MCS about a week ago.
First drive of any real length and this happened on a slightly bumpy road.

Adding it to the list of little things the dealer will need to address...

 

Two things, check your brake fluid level and check the wear on the brake pads.

How many miles are on the MINI.

When I was tracking the MINI this combo of lights would lock on as I stressed the brakes. Found it to be a low fluid situation.

All was well, just the computer trying to save my butt.

 

The car is only 2 years old with less than 12,000 miles. I do track the car occasionally, but I know the pads are good. I'll check the fluid level. Thanks.

 

UPDATE. The DSC system turned itself off more and more frequently but I could not identify any pattern. It was entirely random. I took it in to the dealer. It was in for three days and here's the story:

There is a sensor inside the steering column that tells the DSC system which way the steering wheel is pointed. When that sensor goes bad, or appears to not be relaying accurate data, the DSC basically shuts itself down.

That certainly makes sense. With bad data, you could be driving in a straight line while the DSC system thinks you're about to spin out and applies braking.

I hope this helps anyone who runs across a similar problem.

 

I meant: "... appears to be relaying inaccurate data..."