does anyone know if the under 36k miles or 3 years warrenty covers if you need to have your A/C recharged and filled back up ? my front mesh grill hasnt been on for about 2 weeks now and im hoping while driving i havent put a hole in the radiator some how with road debris or something but regardless my air blows hot ...would they cover that ?

 

You still haven't put the grill on? Did you get the nuts and washers?

 

lol i assume you read my aero grill post a few weeks back ....nah ive been lazy and havent gotten around to it

 

Yup, and I sent you the part numbers beacuse the dealer couldn't find them

 

sweet sh*t i remember that i bookmarked that very usefull page ...thanks lots for that one

 

If they find that you holed the radiator and have no grill, your probably hosed. If the car is whole and there's a problem, there's a much better chance for warranty coverage.

But now you know why the grills are there. Even race cars run something in front of the radiator. One little pin hole, and your done.

This is an area where you shouldn't be lazy.

But I guess you know that now.

Matt

 

damn that blows....how much would a radiator cost anyhow ?

 

I think it's called Mazda_ recyclers, that dismantles Minis and sells stuff off. Check there.

Classic Auto Campus gives nam members a discount.

Some racers have removed thier systems. I see whole A/C systems come up for sale every now and then.

But don't worry just yet. Put the car together, and see what Mini says.

Matt

 

Actually what you’d need is the condenser, not the radiator.

 

how much do condensers run ?....are the installs easy ? could it be a diy ?

 

it exchanges heat but also has a phase change.....

Matt

ps, for part prices, call Classic Auto!

 

yeah im really hoping its not the condensor im hoping it needs a refrigerant refill .....anyone know how durable these mini condensors are ?.....are they prone to problems or is it likely that ill just need a refill because the condensors are durable as are all other mini parts ( lol )

 

Unless you took a major hit, I thinking you just need a charge. It looks kind of like the system needs charging. The condenser looks kind of like the radiator, but smaller and it sit in front of the radiator.

 

awesome....yeah a little schooling from my fellow motorheads told me what im talking about is the condensor and yeah i was hoping the system needed charging because with all the mods i have slated a a/c fix was the last thing i needed.

 

where did the freon/oil go? IT had to excape somewhere, and if you don't fix that, it will excape again. FWIW, on my 02, my AC was fine until I opened the system to remove the whole radiator support assembly. Modern A/C units shouldn't need recharges ever, as it's a sealed unit. If it does, you have a leak. If it's a slow leak, a recharge may last a while, and may be cheaper to just charge it up every 12-18 months than to actually find the leak and fix it.

Matt

 

would the leak come from the condensor or from the tubes ?.....where could a leak occur im recharging my mini tonite in hopes it works ....if not i have a service appt. next friday which i hopppppppppeeee they find something that can be covered under the factory warrenty if not i may be riding with the windows down till next spring

 

there are refridgerant sniffers that can located the leak for you. Expect to pay some $ for the work. Then when you know what's bad, keep in touch with the auto dismantlers till the part you want shows up.

Matt

 

yeah i tried to refill the system myself last nigiht with some R-134 refrigerant and im not sure if i did it correctly i did it for about a second as the pressure gauge on the can was freaking me out with the high pressure danger field lol ...i did read on the can and i was very confused about high and low pressure valves ? the valve i connected the refrigerant to was right in from of the intake since i connected the can to it and the gauge said high pressure ....would that of been the high pressure valve ?...is there another valve at the bottom of the engine bay or somewhere else that would be the low pressure valve that i would need to connect the refill can to ?anyone know the procedure on how to refill

 

if you find out how to recharge your unit, please let us know how you
did it.

 

I really suggest that if you're going to work on your car, to get a manual. I'm not trying to be mean here, but one way to surely screw things up is to act without knowledge, as this is surely the most expensive route in the long run to do any repair. (I know, that's how I got so wise, I learned from tons and tons of mistakes). On the S, both high and low pressure sides are right next to each other by the driver side headlight. Don't know on the Cooper.

Matt

 

AC service valves are different sizes. The high pressure side is larger than the low pressure. If you are showing high pressure, then perhaps your system is not discharged, but you have a problem somewhere else.

 

k then i was high on freon then im assuming because i attached the valve to the correct valve then ....but since the freon is not low accoring to the gauge reading then im assuming the issue may be something bigger like a motor .

 

or a connector. The AC pump has a cluched pulley. That's how it disengages when you're not using the AC. if you run 12 volts through the clutch, you should be able to see if it's engaging or not. When you put your A/C on, do you get a flashing green LED?

Use a voltmeter to see if you're getting the right voltages to the compressor as you turn on and off the system. If not, it's the electronics... If yes, it's in the clutch or the compressor. Ususally faulty compressors make a racket....

and when you're done with that, GO GET A SERVICE MANUAL!!!!!

Matt

ps, lots of us guys and gals will give you free help just for the asking, but really, self-eduacation is where good work starts. The books aren't too much money, and if you really want to work on your cars, we'd all be much happier if you got the book, you can still ask questions but I personally don't hae much fun looking up bolt torques or whatever. And if you want to do your work well, these are little details you'll need to know.....

 

Dude, Don't take this the wrong way. You're under warranty right? As I understand it from your first post. Go buy some nuts and washers for your grill. Put the old grill back on. Take it to the dealership before you do something to put it out of warranty. Have them fix the hot air problem. Then put the new aero grill on. If you need help putting it on there is a DCMM breakfast at Sterling on Sept 15. I'm sure one of us will help you put the grill on, if we have tools available or if you bring the correct ones. You're DCMM, right? Even if not, I'm pretty sure if you ask someone politely they would be willing to lend a hand. The upper grill is a pretty easy job.

I would help but I'll be out of town.

 

yeah i def got the grille on last night ...it was a breeze i think when i took the old slat girll off the flange nuts got warped somehow because they wouldnt thread on tightly....regardless i bought new ones at MOS and then put the grill on in about 2 mins. i was kind of embarassed with myself that i gave this grille more credit than it deserves lol but yeah i have a service appt next friday but i also have someone at a toyota delaer that said they would charge it up and see it for me ...if i did that would mini void the warentee on it since an outside dealer worked on it ?....