MINI newbie time!

Got 2 small questions:

1. Winter here in Ottawa is rough time and I'm going to hide away my MINI in a garage for what hopefully will be just 3 months.
Are there any special precautions I should take? A brief list or a link would be great!

2. My dash read 11/2009 for warranty regular service (bought it April 2009), but when I called the dealership they said it's once a year or 15000 km (I have around 10k right now). I haven't had any issues I wanted looked at so far, but should I be more proactive here? I know the computer is supposed to warn newbies like myself if anything is up for maintenance, but I'd rather do what I can to keep potential problems in check. Anything MINI-specific?

Thanks in advance!

 

What I do when I store my car I do the following:
-Wash and wax the car.
-Fill it with gasoline to avoid water from entering (some people put an octane stabilizer (i don't)).
-Disconnect the battery (some people have a battery charger that maintains the charge of the battery)
-Then i cover up the car with a cover. (Make sure your cover is clean so as not to scratch the paint)
- Check to make sure the fluids are at appropriate levels.
Some people say its better to change the oil before storage and since yours is close maybe its worth doing the service.

 

I would change the oil. Since this is break-in oil, you'll have a lot of metal in it. You don't want that settling out to form a sludge at the bottom of the pan.

I had my battery disconnected for an extended period while I worked on the car. I put an automatic trickle charger on it, even though it was disconnected. Lead-acid batteries will lose charge just sitting for long periods. It has to be an a charger with an automatic turn off, then turn back on when battery charge drops. That is better for long periods than the automatic chargers that simply shut off when initial charge is complete. You want one that comes back on when necessary.

I didn't bother with fuel stabilizer.

 

Your dealer still should be doing something if the car-puter says it is due for some sort of service.

 

Kind of a moot point for Canadian MINIs, there is no free maintenance...

In addition to the list from ellinara, you should up the air pressure to the maximum listed on the tire sidewall, this will prevent flat spotting the tires.

 

Hey coldsong! I'm headed to Ottawa for 4 months to work for RIM starting in January. :( Which means I'm leaving my MINI behind here in Vancouver, so I'm sort of in a similar (but opposite!) situation to you.

Yeah, from what people told me, here's what I'm going to do:
- Vehicle storage insurance
- Disconnect battery, use a maintainer (dealership recommended d/c'ing)
- Inflate tires to maximum (though people say flat spots aren't much of a risk anymore)
- Full gas tank with Stabil added
- Oil has been changed 1,000-1,500 km ago so I won't do that
- Precautions to ward away mice and other small furry animals
- Good wash and wax before storing
- Will probably put it on bricks and not use the parking brake

 

Hey coldsong - -

I live about an hour south of you, on the banks of the St. Lawrence river - - so I hear ya about an Eastern Ontario winter! The worst thing is the tons and tons of salt they throw on the roads instead of plowing the snow.

Good advice here about storing any car over the winter. Wash the car, fill the gas tank, change the oil and filter, check the tire pressure. I do use a fuel stabilizer in my '69 MGB when I put it away for the winter. Does it help? I don't know, but it's cheap and doesn't hurt. Your choice.

Get a decent battery charger - one that has a "float mode" to monitor the battery charge, turns itself off when the battery is fully charged and then back on when the charge drops a bit to keep it topped up (many don't do this, be sure to check that the one you buy can). Here's the kind you need:

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows...B4A%252B2A.jsp

Canadian Tire has lots of them, and I'm sure you know that things go on sale there all the time. I paid about 35 bucks for mine, it had a regular price of about $100.

One more thing - seal up the tail pipe - duct tape works great. Mice love to crawl in there and make a nice winter home. You DON'T want that!

Just a thought - - by storing your MINI, you will save it from the ravages of salt and wintery wear-and-tear. But you'll be missing out on one of the best winter-driving cars I've ever driven (and I've driven in winter a lot). Some steel rims and winter tires combined with all the electronic traction trickery make the MINI an awesome ride on snowy and icy roads. I was really impressed last winter with mine, very secure and a go-anywhere feeling on the road.

I say - - Embrace our crappy winter climate, drive and enjoy your MINI this winter! You won't hurt it, and you'll get 3 or 4 (winter) months more enjoyment out of it every year.

Just my opinion, of course.

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