2011 Mini S Coolant/Oil Leak
 

I'm posting this thread for other Mini owners that may have this problem and what to expect. On Christmas day I went to leave in my other vehicle and noticed a puddle of coolant on the garage floor under my 2011 Mini S. When I returned home, my friend and I put the Mini on the ramps to check it out. I couldn't find any coolant leaking from any hose in the car, but while under the car I could see the coolant coming through the middle of the engine and dripping off the exhaust down pipe, weird. I had no idea what it was. I continued my search under the car I also discovered oil dripping from somewhere as well. This was alarming to me with the car only having 30,000 miles on it. I called the Mini dealer the very next day to get it into service. Also wanted to let you know, no warning lights were ever tripped even when the oil was almost 2qts low, not sure where the oil was going because it wasn't on the garage floor. I have included the paperwork from the dealer, it better describes what was going on and what they replaced. The coolant was leaking from the oil filter housing gasket. The oil was coming from the oil pressure solenoid. It was an extensive repair with many hours of labor. The service writer told me this was an 1800 dollar repair had the vehicle had not been under warrantee.

I have same 2011 MCS auto. It has no leaks. Glad I bought the 100,000 mile extended warranty !!

Mine has a slight oil drip found on my garage floor. It's going to service on the 6th. I was 1.5 qt low. That is not all on my floor so I'm wondering where it's at also.

It probably leaks the entire time you're driving around so you're leaving a little trail of oil everywhere you drive. It probably doesn't leak when the car is turned off because there is no oil pressure.

A heads up to the OP. There are no lights to tell you when your oil is low. The only thing you'll get will be an idiot light when the oil pressure drops super low and at that point it's probably too late. It's more like a "you just bought a new motor" light. Check your oil regularly. :thumbsup:

The oil pressure sending unit leak is well known issue BTW, and has been documented on the forum quite a few times. At 14k miles I noticed a drip behind the engine coming from a wiring harness, i followed it up to the engine block. Determined it was a recall by a mini tech and the entire engine harness and pressure solenoid was replaced under warranty, ECU(DME) was checked to ensure oil didn't short circuit it (per recall procedure protocol). no drips or wetness so far at 30k miles. I haven't heard of the coolant leaking though, interesting.

You shouldn't be so pessimistic. I've seen that light once and have driven the car 40K since in the last year. Let me explain.

I bought the care used from carmax and didn't know anything about the maintenance. I decided that I wanted to do all the minor maintenance myself (oil changes, tire rotation, etc.) so that it would be done 'right' and I'd be more aware of my car. I was very busy when I first picked up the car and opted to let them change the oil the first time.

Our turbo cars are known to burn some oil. The first time I went in, I didn't know that our cars require synthetic oil, and the service guy explained it to me as, "Well if you pay for the synthetic, you don't have to change your oil until 10K. If yo want the regular you should change it at 5K."

Our cars burn non-synthetic a lot faster. Got the light at 4K when I would take service road long 90 degree corners at 40mph. Changed the oil that weekend and pulled 2.5 quarts out. The oil was not burnt.

The second time I bought oil there was a miscommunication and they sold me non-synthetic when I thought I was getting synthetic. I knew the price was too good! Noticed I was getting 29mpg when I normally got 30-31 so did an proactive (what I thought was early) oil change at 6K when had intended to do 8K. The oil smelled burnt, but I pulled out 3-3.5 quarts. It was my mistake because it's my first (truly all mine) car, first time I'd heard of SYNTHETIC oil, I knew I wanted the turbo version, but I didn't know what all that meant at the time...

Ever since I've been doing name brand full synthetic oil changes. Every 6K. No exceptions. I have a LONG commute so I never run into the time intervals. The oil is never burnt and I'm sure I could get more mileage out of it, but I would rather the "cheap insurance." I also do a new OEM filter at every change.

My oil consumption went down to 1 quart/3K and that seems about average here. After getting the craven dipstick, I may have been slightly overfilling though. Still within tolerance, but my oil consumption is probably more like .5-1 quart/3K. I'll know for sure after my next cycle.

My mpg also stayed at 30-32... until I got the WMW upgraded recirc valve and now I get 28-30. Holding the boost better between shifts = burning more fuel, so it's all Kosher.