The dealer says that the thermostat needs to be replaced because the car is losing coolant (Cost $450). Also there is oil leak from the gasket valve cover and he wants to replace those along with the spark plugs (Cost $350).

Both need to be done urgently according to them. He says thermostat is a known issue. Do you think these are urgent fixes? I just dont have that kind of money right now and am wondering if I can get by for a while before getting these fixed.

Thank you.

 

The spark plugs are easy takes 15 minutes yourself. I suspect the valve cover gasket is easy too but have not needed one yet. I have read the thermostat is not that hard, but, not that hard is relative.

 

What harm can be caused by not replacing the valve gasket cover?

 

Thermostat is urgent. Your car will over heat and a heat gasket replacement is not cheap(try in the neighborhood of around $4k). Valve cover gasket is not an urgent issue but it will need to be done.

 

Is there a way for me to monitor the temperature to make sure that the engine is not over heating? There is still coolant in the tank and its not completely empty.

 

The losing coolant part is serious...probably can't wait (long).

Do you have any DIY skills? This post:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...hermostat.html

made it seem fairly straightforward to swap the thermostat. $111 part, $30-40 of coolant to refill, and an hour's time. $150 instead of $450.

Side note: I keep hoping there'll be an aftermarket solution to this plastic MINI/BMW part...probably too small a volume for an independent to tool up for it. I was thinking an alloy casting with a replaceable thermostat might be a swell idea. Maybe that's old school; I worked in the auto parts industry many years ago, and it wasn't unusual then (and still isn't, is it?) to have aftermarket suppliers devise improved parts over OEM.

 

Valve gasket, if damaged, will produce an oil leak. Normally, you need not replace this, but it's recommended in all documentation when the header is off, to replace it. Since yours is leaking oil, replace it. Depending on your car, the cost of the gasket is around $50. Labor should be no more than an hour, maybe two if you're stretching it.

Monitoring temperature would require you to have a steering column gauge, pillar gauge, console gauge or an ODBII reader (or various other readers) to attach and read the temperature. Those can range from $50 to a couple hundred depending on what you get.

For the leaking coolant, the thermostat shouldn't cost you more than maybe $50 and about 30 minutes work. If one of the tubes are also leaking, then it's more. If it's the radiator, then ok, that's a cost.

You're being way overcharged for the parts and labor.

 

Are you saying even after this repair, I should expect the thermostat to fail after a few years again???

 

your thermostat is urgent, pay to have it done. our mini's thermo is hard to get to let the pros do it.

 

spark plugs are easy-order the parts from mini mainia,special socket needed. about $200 good luck

 

In most cars, the thermostat is a "wear item" but they usually last a long(ish) time. [Skip all the next cooling system 101 if you need to, I don't mean to be pedantic]. The thermostat resides in the engine coolant stream; it's there to [basically] keep coolant in the engine until it's sufficiently warmed to need to flow through the radiator. That lets the engine / its oil / your heater warm up faster, improves emissions, blah blah. So it's a working part, being bathed in water/antifreeze its whole life, and after a few years (usually) they'll fail due to the bi-metal spring giving out (it's flexing cold/hot every time you drive) or more often, getting stuck due to "crap" in your coolant that accumulates between system flushes. The trouble signs are usually a) you begin freezing your tookus off in winter (thermostat stuck open, the engine never warms up), or b) your car overheats (stuck closed, the coolant isn't allowed to flow through the radiator like it needs to, once the engine is warm, so it just continues to heat-heat-overheat).

In these 2nd Gen MINIs, the thermostat isn't replaceable by itself; it's contained in this elaborate plastic valve / hose junction piece. I've been reading this forum since November '11, and there is a startling (to me) number of thermostat replacements due to the plastic housing leaking as well as failures of the related thermal sensor. A search of the 2nd Gen forums for "thermostat problem" finds 89 threads, for example. And the issue (generally) isn't that the thermostat is wearing out / getting stuck, but the housing itself is developing a leak after "a while".

So, I guess yes...a replacement won't necessarily last the life of the car, however long that might be. You can extend the thermostat's life with good cooling system maintenance (flush/fill as called for, etc.) but nothing I've read points out specific things you can do to keep the housing from developing a leak. Others may have more insight, who've handled failed ones. I'm strictly a spectator at this point.

But I plan to be informed on how to change out one of these...$450 for a thermostat replacement is too much for me.

 

Found someone that will do the thermostat for $350 so I guess I will be doing it tomorrow. $200 labor!

 

Thermostats tend to fail after a few years. On my 06, I had it replaced 4 times before they redesigned it. I guess there were enough issues with them failing that they fixed the design or materials used. I wouldn't mess around on waiting to get it fixed.

I haven't heard as much on the newer gen having issues. A Temp Gauge is still one of my first mods to my Coupe after going through what I did on my 06. I still can't get over that they don't have them. (Many threads on this one already)

 

My thermostat went on my 2011 MCS after 9k

 

there plastic!!! no body would be talking about this if they were aluminum like the engine

 

Wow, that's messed up. I was just reading through the how to replace, and the time it would take just to get to that housing. I need to research a little more on that housing. At least the parts are not that bad ($50 for thermo, and $50 for that housing).

 

It can be changed yourself. Just did mine. Its difficult, but if you take your time and take breaks when you feel like you're going to rip your hair out, you'll be ok. And you'll be about $375 richer.

 

The problem is not the thermostat itself. It is the housing. Leave it to BMW in their infinite wisdom makes their thermostat housing out of plastic. Well being a part attached to the engine going under a lot of heat exchange it tends to wear out and crack across the seem. My 93 BMW was the same way and an aftermarket company finally made one out of aluminum to correct the issue. Our time is coming when we will have this fix. Also typically you replace the thermostat at the same time because it would be foolish not to replace it while you are in their and it possibly fails and you have to go back in there and fix it again.

 

there's a bleed valve to bleed the air out out of the system. its time consuming and a pain in the ***

 

Parts itself are more like $150. $100 for thermostat and $50 for the coolant as you need 2 gallons.

I still need to fix the gasket valve cover and change the spark plugs. Those I will do on my own.

Do you guys know of any other known issues with the 2nd Gen Mini's? I was reading on NAM and they were saying that the water pump is another culprit.

 

While I don't know any other specific, I can comment on the water pump. We had two fail in the first year of ownership (covered under warranty thankfully). If you hear a plasticy whine from the front leftish side, that's most likely it failing.

 

What happens when the motor pump fails? Do you know how much that costs?