Cosmoline dripping from bonnet
 

I have cosmoline dripping from the bonnet onto the front bumper and from the side scuttles onto the black plastic wheel arch. This stuff is pretty nasty and hard to clean up. :sad:

Anyone else?

the only 2 good uses for WD40 are removing road tar from your car and removing cosmolene from parts, in the aviation industry, we still get parts coated in cosmolene

the wd40 will not hurt the paint, but it will remove the wax, so a rewax will be in order

whatever your choice of soap will remove the wd40 residue

wd40 is basically kerosene + a propellant

wd40 was develped for the military to displace water from electrical wiring and moving parts, it is not considered a lubricant

wd = water displaceing, 40 = the 40th formulation tried

scott

I just had my first incident with it yesterday...my car is a year old (I've owned it for 2 months) and just saw some dripping from the corner of the bonnet, right near the side scuttles, and onto the wheel arches.

Obviously my car is not a CM, but it's strange that we both have cars that aren't brand new that have this issue all of the sudden.

Hot weather. It melts.

I was warned.

I went after mine with Goof-Off, which worked, but then I noticed why it was there: the hood bolts coated with it were body painted, but with chipped paint from assembly. So: they're trying to stop rust. I cleaned up the excess, and I'll do the rest once I get some touch up paint for the bolts.

Yup, I've got it too, running down the front bumper next to the headlights. :/

Even though I don't have a Countryman, I thought that I might chime in. Back when my car was new in '09 a lot of people had the black plastic pieces replaced because of the cosmoline. I never did and, frankly, I can't even tell that it ever dripped down onto the plastic and it leaked out for two summers. Someone else might have a different opinion but I'd personally hold off and see if it fades over time before doing anything drastic. It really did continue to leak out for two summers straight in Texas so for those of y'all that have slightly older cars that are just now doing it or are doing it again, it could be because last summer wasn't hot enough and your car is out in the sun more and/or getting hotter this year than before. It's annoying but it does eventually go away.

yup, i have it at the corner next to the scuttles too.

After 15 years of BMW's, I've had the stuff under the hood of several cars but I've never had it leak on the outer bodywork.

Thanks for the WD 40 tip BMWR606. I owe the CM a good detail over the next week or so, hopefully the stuff will come off. If not I'll let the dealer figure out how to get the stuff off during the first MINI subsidized oil change.

The cosmoline came off the bumper with a little polish and wax. This was not a full detail, I just cleaned the inside of the car really well and tried to remove the sticky stuff from the outside. I have vinyl cleaner in the other garage. I'll try that on the wheel arches when I get back there and do the full detail.

just washed the countryman today and noticed some streaks going down the front too :sad:

Same here, wheel well area

Is it greenish goo?

Mine is yellow goo. And yes, after a year of being OK mine is dripping again down the driver's side black fender flair. I caught it in time to remove this time, but I'm now away for 2 weeks with the car parked outside. I stuffed the holes where it is leaking from under the hood with paper towels while I'm gone...we'll see how that works. Had the same fender flair replaced under warranty last summer after if was marred. I'll have it (them) replaced again if I need to. This is ridiculous for any modern car.

I had the same problem with my 09 JCW (back when it was new) and had to have the wheel arches replaced. But haven't seen it return with my 11 CMS or my Roadster. As hot as it's been, I'm sure it would have appeared by now.

MsBrit:cool:

YUP, same here and what a mess, in the texas heat no wonder! I use acresolve type cleaner and I had already put a good wax on it first, but I do rewax the area where I use it again. I hope it stops soon, its almost a daily cleanup for me, 2 months so far!

did you just have it replaced because it was marred where you cleaned it? I just use a back to black conditioner on all the plastic and you cant tell at all. I also used clear silicone to plug areas around the grill to try to prevent more leaking......I do anything to avoid the dealer.....

I used a bit of brake cleaner to get it off the hood and fenders...then I followed up with Aerospace 303 protectant on the fenders....that stuff lasts for weeks on there and looks great.

Yes, the cosmoline "bit" into the plastic and then the cleaner the dealer used further marred the plastic. I could disguise it with a variety of products, but am unwilling to do that for a car that was brand new that I paid cash for.

Your dealer can submit the replacement of the wheel arches as a warranty issue. Once the cosmoline drips onto the arches it will leave a mark. Wait until the end of the hot weather and have them replaced.

Yes, it was covered under warranty. What a hassle to bring this car to the dealer to get the same things fixed over and over and over again. For me this refers to 1) cosmoline, 2) clutch squeaking/clicking, 3) driver's side window noise on autodown, 4) lower grill trim that won't stay in place. I'm now on at least my 3rd trip to the dealer to get each of these fixed and never once during my ownership have I received a survey from MINI regarding my service satisfaction.

Ha! ive been to the dealer maybe 5-6 times...I always get those survey things in my cup holder....and there's free gum @ the sales office. free i say!

So that is what that is oozing out. I have it coming out of the bonnet near the side scuttles. Just noticed it today.

Mike

Mini knows they've got a problem with cosmoline
 

Noticed it yesterday while detailing my Coupe. I did go at it with a good-quality carnauba-based wax, and, with some effort, it came off. I called my local dealer today and got the cosmoline story - too much splodged (technical term) between bonnet parts... Kind of like a Jammie Dodger, but only different. He mentioned that Mini-BMW will to a one-time replacement of any damaged parts... so I'll wait and try to make it acceptable looking until the heat of summer passes. If I can get it acceptably clean, I'll skip the replacement parts... Too many "fixes" (on other cars I've had) have resulted in other issues. Besides this, the car has been fantastic; only issue is that it's the daily driver for my wife. :sad:

when I take my CM through a car wash, the plastic molding that is over each of the wheel wells has spots on it afterwards, is this the same thing? This happened on my 06 Mini as well, but I never got around to figuring out what was causing these "wax spots" to appear on the plastic wheel well moldings after taking it through a car wash.

Help!
 

So it was 104-105 here in Texas last week and just noticed, what I know now, is cosmoline running down from the front on each side of the grill from the headlight.

What is the best way to clean this up? I tried wax, goo gone, nothing.:impatient:

On the paint, mine came off with polish + elbow grease, followed by a coat of wax. On the plastic trim parts, it is still visible, and it has been since July. I will have the dealer deal with it when I take it in for my first pre-paid oil change in a month or so.

Hey FredoinSF,

Thanks for the response, may I ask what type of polish you used?

I don't remember where I did this so it's one of two (I must be getting old...)
If I did this in SF it would have been Griot's garage polish 2 or polish 3.
If I did this in Reno it would have been Meguiar's.

Any polish should do, it was not that hard to remove. If you've applied Goo gone or a polish without a wax in it, make sure you wax the paint afterwards.

If it has "bit" into the plastic, the cosmoline will come off, but the "scar" will remain. You can disguise it with dressing, but it is marred for life. Mine were replaced under warranty at the dealer. I now "stuff" the holes between the innner and outer panels of the hood with paper towel when it is hot.

I had the same issue and was able to remove the cosmoline with a little elbow grease and some dawn dish soap.

I ended up taking my '12 Countryman back to the dealer and they ended up replacing all the plastic trim around the car due to the cosmoline. I was told the shop "got into the car" to remove as much of it as they can. THey had my car almost a full week, which was a bummer (the loaner was a hardtop Non S). I'm a bit confused why they wouldn't be more careful w/ this stuff either after receiving it off the boat or at least before you take it home.

Isopropyl alcohol works great of getting this stuff off. No scrubbing required.

This was on the fender arches on my "Brand New" Countryman I purchased last week. The dealer didn't know and didn't care what it was. Once I got it home, a lot of rubbing with Goo-Gone got 90% of it off....

This stuff has leaked out and is causing the full wrap of paint protection film on my hood to cease sticking on the inside where it's wrapped. I have cleaned the area, and applied some silver vinyl to hold down the damaged bits, but still, it's pretty much ruined a perfect wrap job.

Had the trim replaced four months and one week after the nasty stuff started dripping. Lucky for me my CM has been ultra reliable so it's just now getting done.

Can this be used on the black (plastic?) wheel arches?

Try this:

http://www.autogeek.net/prima-cosmonot.html


Attachment 78094

Thanks! Though my hesitation is I don't know it's cosmo dripping. My drip is right below the side scuttles, see pic. It could be the glue maybe?

Any suggestions on what I should use please?

That is DEFINITELY cosmoline!!! Look across your front bumper as well, you may find it seeping out from the corners of the grill. Take a q-tip and dab a little. Does it look a little yellow? That's cosmo. Pop your hood. You may find some leaking out of drain holes under the hood too.

Quick update - I was in at the dealer to get my JCW exhaust kit installed and mentioned the drip. The MA immediately identified the problem and said he'll get it cleaned up. And they did! Looks spotless now. Thanks for the advice on here :)