So... I broke my leg almost 7 weeks ago and haven't been in the car since. my girlfriend is driving it and today it was cold out.. and no heat. the yellow overheat light came on briefly she said. sounds like a possible thermostat. i checked and added some coolant.

another question is where to take it, I live in Pittsburgh.

 

Was it low on coolant? I know that on most cars if your running hot and have no heat it's usually very low on coolant.

 

it turned out a little low.. I feel totally helpless with this car. I have a wrangler and have had it apart and put it back together. i look at this thing and cringe. I'm assuming the thermostat housing or water pump is leaking.

 

It would really help if you told us what MINI you have.

 

Have you checked to see if your water pump is under recall? Give the last 7 digits of your VIN to your MINI dealer service advisor. The recall was for a fire risk, but maybe yours has failed and is under recall.

 

the car is a 2007 S. 72k or so.. i just moved here so it'll be my first call to the dealer.

 

If its an R56 2007 S Hardtop ( Gen 2 ).

I would check that thermostat housing located on the driver side, sometimes it leaks on the transmission and pools the coolant (thus you cant see anything on the ground ). When its leaking and the coolant is low enough it will not circulate enough coolant to the heater core, thus no heat.

#6 In the diagram below Thermostat Replacement Kit Part # 11537534521KT


http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/11537534521/



Here is the how to link for the thermostat housings replacement if you choose to tackle it.

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



And.


Another place to look for leaks is on the main water pup on the passenger side.

Check the water pump for very small leaks right at the seal and on the plastic housing, mine had a very small drip at first that was just residue , then a week later it was a small puddle, the water pump is on the right side ( passenger ) closest to the wheel. The original pumps have the plastic housing that tends to leak.

If its leaking on or near the transmission on the driver side its the thermostat.

Water pump sets in the back corner of the engine on the passenger side.





Here is what the water pump look like , look for leaks around it.


http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/11518604888/



There is a pic of the engine without the water pump installed if that helps. There is a water pipe behind it also that seals into the housing. Check that also, could be leaking near the water pump side.



Here is the water pipe that mounts between the water pump and the thermostat housing. Can leak at the connection to the water pump.

11537589713 Water Pipe

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/11537589713/



and the clip x 1 for the connection at the thermostat to water pipe. 11537548652

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/11537548652/



The aux (small ) water pump is located on the front near the transmission on the driver side and you can hear it working after the , there was a recall on there so some years and you can call MINI to check on that. Also to see if there is a leak.



#1 in the diagram Additional Water Pump Part# 11537630368


http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/11537630368/




Last but not least check the Coolant expansion tank, its towards the front of the engine. On the bottom of the tank there is a connection and near that connection hairline cracks can develop and when the tank heats up it slowly leaks coolant.

Coolant Expansion Tank Part # 17137823626
http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/17137823626/




And here is the MINI Coolant that is Blue in color. Its concentrated, so it will have to be mixed with distilled water 50/50.


http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/82140031133/ES196253/




If you need anything else , lets us know and hope that helps what to look for.

Thanks

 

wow.. thanks for the comprehensive response! I've got an appointment next week to take it in to an independent that was recomended from this site. The owner(I believe) has an R53.

The coolant was topped off again this AM and the heat is now working. I'd love to dig into this myself but the lack of mobility will preclude that and right now it just needs to be fixed.

 

Look at the first picture from ECS, the brown piece is an electrical connector. Right next to it is a hex headed bleeder valve. If you are not adding coolant, but still are getting an overheating light, there is a good chance that the engine may need to be bled. I realize that you have limited mobility, but if you can prop yourself so that you can look down the driver side of the engine, with a good flashlight, you will see the hex bleeder. Loosen it 2-3 turns with the engine running until no more air comes out, and you should be good. Just keep some coolant in the surge tank, and you should not have any issues until your appt.

Mike

 

this happened in a different car i owned - turned out to be the thermostat. good luck

 

i'll check out the bleeder screw tomorrow. in typical fashion right before i broke my leg the radiator in my jeep started to leak.. so 2 cars with coolant problems. the jeep is easy to work on though

 

Since you are in PA I personally recommend HELIX in Philly, very knowledgable guys

 

thanks for the recommend... wrong side of the state. Schades in Irwin was recommended to me and i'll report out my experience and findings.

 

You are welcome z85rado . Good luck, Let us know how it goes.

 

it is the thermostat.. part is about 100. quoting me 224 for labor. about 400 out the door with coolant and whatnot. none of his suppliers have the part in stock though.

 

You probably don't want to wait too long. Turn him on to ECS Tuning.

Mike

 

Starting about two weeks ago, my wife's MINI began to exhibit the same problem. It would begin blowing cool air at idle, and eventually at all engine speeds. This was easily mitigated by adding coolant, but... it was just a band-aid. There's obviously a leak somewhere in the cooling system.

In addition, we've had an OBD code for several months indicating an issue with a thermostat sensor.
After going through nearly a full gallon of coolant over this two week period (leak seemed to be getting progressively worse), I ordered the full "Cooling System Refresh Kit" from ECS Tuning (http://www.ecstuning.com/ES2587106/)

I haven't isolated the source of this coolant leak, but I'm fairly certain a full "refresh" of these parts will fix things. (07 MCS still has its original plastic-housed water pump, I believe)

I'm using the following for reference:

Water Pump (Couldn't find a good vid on YouTube for the R56)
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...acement-2.html
Instructions & plenty of comments w/ additional info

Thermostat Housing
GREAT little "mechanic's view" step-by step video

 

make sure when you replace the thermostat that you recognize the bleed valve. It is the upper component in the first pic on post #7. You need to bleed the system after filling and while the car is running.

Have fun,
Mike

 

Actually, reading through this thread again... I might have missed something.

The only component I don't have from this "refresh kit" is the auxiliary/Additional Water Pump: http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/Site...368/ES2498868/


My question - how likely is this to be the culprit?

I'd hate to do all this work, spending $400+ on parts, then still have leaking from a $30 part! I'm especially worried hearing there's a recall on it - points to it being prone to faults.

I'll look more into where it's leaking. I may end up having to wait on one more part...

 

The best way to check for the leak is with a flashlight. If you haven't changed the thermostat yet, plan on it. Look down the driver side of the engine near the air intake tube. If you see any liquid on top of the transmission housing (it has a waffle pattern of ribs on it that trap the fluid), it is the thermostat.

If you have coolant on the floor near the passenger front tire, it is the water pump.

Also check the coolant reservoir. Remove the screw holding it to the radiator support, and look at the bottom of the tank. Any blue/green residue would indicate a leak. Mine was cracked.

I haven't read anything about the aux water pump leaking, or heater core leaks.

Mike

 

Thanks for the response, mbwicz.

I've found my headlamp (bought for camping) particularly useful through all my dismantling / investigating. I am focusing on the thermostat right now, since things seem pretty dry on the passenger side. There is definitely liquid pooling over the [manual] transmission, especially after pulling all the hoses to disconnect my old "Jarvik 7" housing.

Here's a pic from last night, after removing the old thermostat:


I removed my old coolant overflow tank as part of this process, so I'll probably replace it with the new one just to have new plastic in there. The old one seemed fine, but it's easily replaced at this point.

The water pump, however... may have to wait. My wife needs her car tomorrow.

 

+1

"The best way to check for the leak is with a flashlight. If you haven't changed the thermostat yet, plan on it. Look down the driver side of the engine near the air intake tube. If you see any liquid on top of the transmission housing (it has a waffle pattern of ribs on it that trap the fluid), it is the thermostat.

If you have coolant on the floor near the passenger front tire, it is the water pump.

Also check the coolant reservoir. Remove the screw holding it to the radiator support, and look at the bottom of the tank. Any blue/green residue would indicate a leak. Mine was cracked.

I haven't read anything about the aux water pump leaking, or heater core leaks."


On the Aux pump, have not seen too many leak



Most people had this part replaced under MINI recall on this earlier design part. You might want to check the part number on it or ask your dealership ( w Vin ) , if it has been replaced, they can look it up.

Good luck and hope you get things fixed.

 

This is all helpful and applies to my situation. One question in your post... you say

"The aux (small ) water pump is located on the front near the transmission on the driver side and you can hear it working after the , there was a recall on there so some years and you can call MINI to check on that. Also to see if there is a leak."

What did you mean to say? Hear it working after the.. after the...

Thanks for your help!

 

Yep, welcome. When you shut the car off for long runs or its warm outside you will hear the little aux water pump run for a little while. Its located below the turbo on the driver side near the oil filter housing.

 

Awesome thanks.