I took delivery of my March build 03 MCS in early April. The temperature readings on the tach were always within a couple of degress of local establishments, which made me smile. At the end of May I hit a dear and did quite a bit of damage to the front end of my car. I have had my car back now for several weeks and have noticed that the temperature readins on the tach now are significantly different than what others are reading around me.

1.) Is this a problem I should be concerned with?
2.) Is there something I can do, or does the car need to go to the dealer?

Thank you for your input.

 

Poor dear.
Bring it to the dealer.

 

After the fact, but.............
Living in a rural area and having hit more than my share of deer, I recommend Deer Alert whistles for your bumper. They may be just a good-luck charm, but my body-shop guy says he's never seen a crashed car come in with them on it. And the chrome versions look good on the bumper.

 

The outside temp sensor is located behind the lower mesh grille on the left side of the car. It's a small black probe. If your grille or bumper was repaired or replaced and this sensor was damaged (either from the accident or during repairs), you will get bad readings. Also, if the sensor was not put back in place after the repair you will also get the wrong readings.

More than likely it's a simple repair either way. Look to see if the sensor is where it should be. If it's not, and your readings are significantly higher than before, it's probably dangling near the radiator and needs to be put back in place. If you can peek under the bonnet of another MINI, look at how it's set up. If the sensor is damaged, you will have to contact those who did the repairs and tell them they missed a part.

 

....speaking of sensors...aren't airbag sensors behind the bumper?
I hope they didn't miss those.

 

Any ideas weather the sensor is strictly informational or if it is actually used by the computer for normal operation?

 

If an airbag sensor was disconnected or omitted, you'd have the airbag warning light on. The MINI does not have the impact sensors in the bumper, instead they are in other areas around the passenger compartment. Unlike older airbag setups that used sensors in the bumpers, modern ones like the MINI has are positioned in and around the passenger compartment for more accurate control of the system. Think of it this way: If you are hit in front by a higher vehicle which overrides the bumper, and the sensors are located there, it will not be an accurate reading. Instead, the sensors in the passenger compartment are able to gauge the forces how they affect the occupants more directly.


If memory serves, the engine computer is responsible for taking the reading and it's passed on to the onboard computer for your information. I don't think this is used by the engine management system for fuel delivery, instead the air temperature is taken inside the intake tract where it's more critical (and hotter).

 

Greatbear,
So when my '02 was in the body shop and they told me there was a delay because they forgot to order the sensors for the airbags that are behind the bumper...they were yankin' my chain??

 

If the sensor is not plugged in it reads Negative 40 I think. It does not effect to running or performance of the car. I found this out when I changed my bumpers.

 

I have an '03, and as far as I know, there arent any sensors in the bumper. I read this somewhere, plus, unless I overlooked a wiring harness going there, I see nothing going into the bumper area as far as wiring harnesses. Everything there is dealing with the lights or the temp sensor. On an '02, the inertia sensors for the front end are in the cowl area near the hood hinges, in '03, I believe they were moved inside the passenger compartment.

Unless I have gotten the wrong info (maybe others can chime in here) there are no airbag sensors in the '02 bumpers either. Since I have not had the bumper off an '02 MC I can't say for certain. Then again, I havent had the bumper off my '03 either, but I have installed the factory foglamps and had the back side of the bumper exposed to install the lights and run the wiring. A wiring harness comes into the end of the bumper on each side, there it runs to the turn and running lights, horn and side marker lights, the horns, and on the left side, the temp sensor in the lower grille.

Being that technical info for the MINIs is next to impossible to find outside the dealer network, I have to go it alone, or surf forums such as these for info.

Was the body shop an independent outfit, or was it part of the Mini dealership? If it's the former, there is a chance they either mistook the temp sensor for an airbag component or they could be pulling your leg. I'll let someone else here say for certain what gives with '02 air bag sensors.

 

BTW, thanks for the replies everyone. I will take a look for the sensor as soon as the rain stops. Left side = driver side? (USA)

The shop was not an actual dealer, but a BMW certified body shop.

 

Yep, left side as if you are sitting in the car (US driver's side).

 

>>After the fact, but.............
>>Living in a rural area and having hit more than my share of deer, I recommend Deer Alert whistles for your bumper. They may be just a good-luck charm, but my body-shop guy says he's never seen a crashed car come in with them on it. And the chrome versions look good on the bumper.

That's because the impact with the dear knocked them off!!

(oops, sorry - back on topic...)