Hello All, been lurking on the forums for quite sometime and haven't had the need to post anything until now.

So last week I drove my 2012 cooper s home from work parked it and continued my day. next morning I get in it and attempt to start it annnnnd nothing. lights on the dash come up and acting as it should but wont crank just cycles between off and ignition power. I had a similar issue that is almost identical to this last year that turned out to be a faulty starter and had thought that since i didnt buy OEM that maybe the starter had crapped out again. So I throw a new starter on and to my surprise it did not change anything. So my next thought was "well maybe the clutch switch isn't registering so went ahead and replaced that as well. still not wanting to crank and just cycles through ignition power. So I busted out my code reader and the only code I have is for the ambient temp sensor (thats been on for the last two years) so there isn't any new faults being set. my next option at this point as far as quick fixes go is checking all ground points in the engine bay and see what i can come up with. Now I have had my CAS changed about two years ago prior to these events so I wouldnt think it would go out this soon.

So long story short I am completely lost as far as figuring out why this car wont start (wont even try cranking) ive checked all fuses and even sanded some light corrosion off the battery terminals. I am trying to stay positive and hope that my dme hasn't crapped out since thats the only other thing i can think of that would just go out like a switch.

If anyone has had similar issues please help a fella out as my last resort involves an uncomfortable amount of gasoline. Thank you in advance - Wes

 

Did you check the battery and the voltage at the starter while trying to start the car?

Is your code reader BMW/Mini compatible (i.e.: does it report readings from all ECU's)?

Finally: check the engine's ground connections, especially the one at the top front of the engine (the other, near the right hand side engine mount, is unlikely to break):

 

Have not checked voltage while starting as im a one man show unfortunately. the top ground thats the one that sits on the valve cover correct?

 

Yes.

(Are you seeing the two pictures I added to my post?)

 

yeah I printed them out thank you so much!

 

UPDATE* checked all my grounds and still no start. tonight im going to jump the starter and see if it starts that way. Does this vehicle have a starter relay by chance?

 

Definitely a Mini noob here, but I literally experienced this today.

I replaced my timing chain and had a no crank when done. The engine gets all of its ground from the woven strap connected to the right hand engine mount. It's bolted in place with a 13mm bolt and nut.

It's possible that it looks good but is corroded through.