Hey everyone,

I need your help and opinion. I live in Vegas summer here is 70-80 degree F. I bought a mini cooper 2008 non-s hardtop, i recently changed its oil to our mini dealership. However, upon inspecting they found out problems on leaking, and they're asking me 870$ to repair it. And also they also advice me to let it done as much as possible because of summer time.

I just want to know if summer will give me problem on water pump leaks and coolant? And if the price is reasonable?

Thank you everyone.

 

Those prices don't look out of line if they're dealer parts.

Get a quote from an independent shop. You can also do it yourself if you have any mechanical experience. Check YouTube and Pelican Parts for how-to videos.

 

We do have some great step by step articles that can help you tackle the job yourself, like ColoCoug said. If you have the right tools for the job it should only take your time, money for parts and keep more money in your pocket. If you aren't comfortable with it, an indy shop may cost you less. Can search for one using this site here: http://www.minirepairshops.com/

Water pump http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/..._pg1.htm#item1
Coolant http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/..._pg1.htm#item0 50/50 with distilled water

 

I just replaced the pump on my 2010 Clubman S. I took my time with it doing it in stages over a long weekend. I did the take apart portion on one day, left it for a day to think about how to approach the reinstall and then put it back together.

There are several how-to's and videos out on youtube that will give you a good idea how to tackle it. I referred to Pelican's how-to pretty heavily with their excellent pictures of all the different steps.

If you have the time and inclination, you can save yourself $500 - 600 by DIY'ing and in the process, get to know your machine a bit better.

 

Hey guys sorry for late response. And i do appreciate all your replies.

However i dont have absolute knowledge on cars tho this is my first car, recently bought it 3 months ago.

Even working as a part time job, i cant bring it to the service right away. That being said, can i just still use the car knowing its leaking? From home to work and vice versa, its 10-20 miles a day, with 80-100 degree Fahrenheit?

And does it pop out of my car computer on my dash if it is really low or need of immediate repair?

Im still saving a bit to bring it on service. It will take me about a month or two.

Thanks for the concern everyone.

 

You'll want to keep an eye on your coolant level. Keep it topped off or you'll run the chance of overheating. Make sure you're adding in the correct mixture of 50/50 MINI blue coolant with distilled water. I highly recommend you call a MINI independent shop in your area to get a quote for the repair. You'd be surprised how much you can save from not going to the dealer. This might also enable you to bring the car in sooner for the repair.

 

Agreed. You only have to slip up ONCE and you can fry your engine. You can probably nurse it along, but if I had to do that here's what I'd do:

1) Carry a gallon of pre-mixed distilled water and antifreeze at all times.
2) Check the coolant level daily and top it off every AM when the engine is cold, before I leave the house.
3) If I ever see a Hot light flash, turn off the ignition NOW, pull over, let it cool off and then re-fill.
4) If the rate of coolant loss increases, have it fixed immediately.