My MINI started with the fan running after removing the key from the ignition issue.

Then I saw the temperature gauge creeping up while idiling at a light, this promptly went down when I started rolling again.

SO I checked by coolant reservoir and it was completely empty. I haven't noticed any obvious signs of leaking, but I will be looking more carefully now.

I know that I shouldn't drive the car until I get more coolant in it...

My questions to all that are reading this are:

1. Should I refill the reservoir with coolant and just wait and see if I can find the source of the leak?

or

2. Should I fill the reservoir and get to my dealer ASAP? (as this could be a bigger problem?)

Any other suggestions are welcome...

Thanks!

 

Well you need to get more coolant in it ASAP. I recommend using Zerex G-05 to top it off. Then watch the level closely. If you don't see any obvious leaks from the tank or on the ground you should be ok till you can get to the dealer.

 

weird double post........

 

I am currently having the same issue. I did a search here and found that I am not the only one with this issue. I did fill my coolant reservior and called my local dealer and schedule an appt for May 17th. This morning I had a bigger puddle of coolant under my mini, so now he is going in this saturday.

I had one of my techs look at it and apparently the coolant is leaking from the thermostat housing.

If I were you, which it feels like I am , I would call and set an appt and get your mini fixed ASAP.

 

The first answer is: Yes, refill the reservoir.

The real question is: Where is the coolant going, and how quickly is it going there?

There are lots of places it could be going and some are worse/more expensive than others. A cheap one I had happen once was: The hose between the radiator and the coolant tank had cracked a tiny bit where it attached to the reservoir. Coolant would leak out of the crack when the radiatior got hot and pushed coolant into the hose/reservoir, but then it would suck air in when it cooled. Over time the process slowly lost enough coolant to let the engine begin to run hot at stops and in heavy traffic. The fix was to cut an inch off the hose and reattach it to the reservoir.

The moral of the story is you have to find where it's going and some places you can look for yourself, but many/most will require a dealer's help. A slow leak gives you a little time to look for yourself before going to the dealer should you be inclined to do so.

Good luck!

 

Most likely it's leaking from the thermostat housing. It's a common problem and an easy fix. I got Mini roadside assistance to tow it to the dealer-no charge.

 

MC 03
hi, I posted in another thread, but I also have a leak. I suspect that I've had it for a while and just thought that the fluid was coming from an overflow mechanism.

My tempeture was creeping up a little bit. I checked the oil and it was downa quart, so I thought that might be it. But it wasn't.

A couple of days ago, after a short drive, the fan was running loud and long after I parked. The coolent was above Min, but not by much. Next day, the gauge went to hot and the red light went on.

my mechanic says I need a new radiator and water pump. He showed me the crack and where the fluid was leaking. He said he suspected that the water pump needed to be replaced because the water was hot on one side and cold on the other side of the radiator. I have no reason to suspect the mecanic, but a crack in the radiator valve and a faulty water pump in a 5 year old car? Really? $1300 P/L for radiator, pump, and thermostat.

So much else has gone wrong, that I wouldn't be surprised. z
I should also mention that I hit a divider/curb type thing fairly hard about 1 1/2 years ago that bent the right control arm. I don't thing it was the right angle to clip the radiator, but there is a potential there.

 

First off, anytime your engine gets that hot you are risking doing damage to your head. Hopefully that is not the case, but if you have gotten your engine hot, and then have a mysterious disappearance of your coolant, check your oil. If it does not look right, maybe 'muddy' brownish or even foamy looking, then you have coolant in your oil, either via your head gasket or head its self. If you don't get it fixed, the coolant will wash your bearings and cause further damage to your engines internals.

When your engine warms up, it opens the thermostat. The water then circulates through your radiator, cooling it. That cooled coolant then enters your engine (via a radiator hose) and circulates, taking heat out of your engine. The then warmed up coolant from your engine enters into the other side of the radiator to repeat the process, hence your one hose going to the radiator will be warmer than the other one. If the temperature difference is really radical, then you may have a water pump not working up to snuff, or even a thermostat that is not functioning properly.

Where is the crack your mechanic pointed out? Is it on the pump its self, or is it on the radiator? What does he suggest you replace...all of it? If you have him replace parts you should get him to give you the failed parts back.

Another part that seems to fail prematurely on that era of car is the overflow tank itself. They start weeping around the seam. I purchased a brand new one (BMW made) for about 32.00, which included shipping. It took about 5 minutes to change out.

I hope you all can figure out where your coolant is going, and that it is not any thing more than a hose. Just try not to get your engine in the hot range............

 

Hey Moody, Thanks for your reply. The best I can tell, the crack was was in a plastic piece that connects the radiator to the hose. Excuse my lack of terminalogy here, is it a fitting? The shop ran a pressure test, but I didn't see the results.

 

oh, 1 more thing, he said that the whole radiator needs to be replaced. When I asked why, he explained why they don't make auto parts lke they used to. I didn't really get a much more substantial answer than that.
as for the water pump, the reason he gave me for replacing that seemed based on his experience with water coolers on BMWs and similiar cars, That they are made of plastic and the impellers often crack and stop rotating.

 

Thanks everybody for the replies.

I just picked up some coolant (from the dealer). I'll be looking for possible sources of leaks.

 

FYI, this is MINI safe too (and you can usually find it at your local auto parts/NAPA store): http://www.valvoline.com/pages/produ...asp?product=10

 

Update on my overheating/lack of coolant.
I took her in for a 2nd opinion. The 2nd mechanic, took her for a test drive and did a pressure check. He couldn't detect any loss of fluid or see an actual leak although he did see some traces of fluid.
He ran the car for a while and it didn't overheat.
He didn't have enough evidance to change the radiator or water pump.

He said watch the temp and check the fluid levels and charged me $35.
Much better than $1300!

 

This guy sounds a little sketchy to me. Is he a parts changer or a mechanic?
The feeling I get from your description of the conversation is that from his experience (with BMWs), whenever they overheat, you have to replace the waterpump and the radiator.(?) I'm not too comfortable with that kind of blanket statement. Is there somewhere else you can take it that you trust -recommendations by friends, co-workers, etc?
-skip-

 

If your coolant gets low - like from a leaking overflow tank - it is possible to get air trapped in the system because there's a high spot in the top rad' hose routing. When you top off, you may need to also bleed the system via the bleed screw there. On the non-S there's supposed to be another on the heater hose under the battery tray.

 

I'm having basically the same problem and didn't want to start another thread on same subject. I'm not a mechanic so I can't fix myself. This seems to be a common problem. I have 02 mcs with 64K on it. My real question is can this be fixed by an independent garage that advertises MINI work (German specialists BMW, Porsche, MINI) I have never been there with my Mini or should I take to the BMW dealer and spend more $ presumeably. My car seemed to overhead very quickly in some stopped traffic. I also noticed the AC was not blowing reallly cold. I thought "Oh...sh..., I'm not going to make it to work." The temp guage was pegged on hot. But as soon as I got moving it "instantly" temp came back down and the AC was cold again. I didn't think an engine would "cool" off that quick. It took probably 3 seconds for the guage to return to normal. The resevoir was empy and I topped it off. However, same thing happened again on Friday. (The same blasted place for backed up traffic here in Atlanta...) So it this a problem for the dealer or could I feel confident that a reputable independent garage would be familiar with this problem? Any ideas? and Thanks.

 

Has anyone ever noticed a *small* amount of coolant loss over time? After about one year/22,000 miles, I noticed that my overflow tank was a little low (it took about 6-8 ounces of distilled water to bring the level back up to full). In the 11,000 miles since then, the level hasn't budged.

I never had any overheating problems or anything like that, and I don't see any evidence of leaks anywhere under the hood.

 

Bayley,
I'm not a total gearhead or anything, but in my opinion, it's possible to get an independent shop that provides just as good if not better service for 1/2 the price. BUt, then again, I wasn't too happy with the service that I got from MiniSF.

 

It's not possible for the engine to heat up and cool off that quickly, but you can get wild gauge fluctuations like that if you're low enough on coolant that the temperature gauge sender is no longer immersed in coolant, then you start moving again and the sender gets re-immersed.

This was actually the cause of quite a few engine fires in the later MGBs that had electrically-operated chokes for the carburetor. The problem was that the sensor for the choke was mounted high in the engine and would get uncovered if you let the coolant get even a little bit low. The sequence went like this:

1) Let the coolant get a little low so that the sender is uncovered and thinks the engine is "cold".
2) The automatic choke turns on and excessively richens the fuel/air mixture to the engine because it thinks the engine is always cold
3) All the extra fuel being pumped through the engine causes the exhaust manifold to glow cherry-red.
4) The manifold heat bakes the seals in the carburetor (which is located about six inches above the exhaust manifold
5) The carburetor starts to leak raw fuel onto the red-hot exhaust manifold
6) Flaming MGB....

 

Fluid level low when cold and then rises when warm?
When is the ideal time to check coolaant?
This morning I checked my coolant level 1st thing, the level in the reservoir was very low, below "min". I freaked and topped it up to "max" (only a couple of cups).
After driving for about 30 minutes, I checked my reservoir and it was WAY above max.
So I bought a turkey baster at the 99c store because I figured it would be the easiest way to take fluid out.

 

Don't do it!!! The coolant WILL expand and that's why the Max fill line is only half way up the resevouir bottle. When the engine is hot the bottle will be above the max full line - as the engine cools ti will pull the coolant back into the system.

 

Smart advice. Seriously think before you go dumping extra coolant in your tank.

 

Very good advice here regarding the cooling system.

I would find a reputable mechanic you trust. The guy that wants to replace all your pieces parts, is not, IMHO, a true mechanic. He is a parts changer, who is looking at anyones lack of knowledge to line the insides of his wallet. The second guy you took it to, the one who did a complete check of the system, he is probably more of the kind of person you want to find. Someone who is willing to take the time to do an honest job, and charge a very nominal fee. A lot of shops charge an outrageous flat rate, but many of their mechanics are willing to work on cars after hours or on weekends. Their rates are usually much lower, and they are more willing to spend a little more time, and perhaps broaden your mechanical knowledge while they are at it.
You can spend more money and take your car to a dealer, but any shop that specializes in foreign cars (or any mechanic who knowledgeable) should be able to work on your MINI. Ask around in your area. People in the NAMily are more than willing to share information, including the names of their mechanics.
As far as a small amount of coolant loss ScottRiqui noticed previously,( but not in some time), I really wouldnt worry too much about it. When my overflow tank started the 'weeping thing' it did it around that pesky seam across the back. I noticed a small amount of coolant loss, and then held steady for quite awhile, until the weepy area moved slowly around the circumference of the tank. I lost very little coolant, and I think what happened, is that it somehow sealed itself, and I only lost a little more when the crack in the tank expanded. I really think little things like that can sometimes work themselves out, and that the 'normal' auto owner never notices until things go really bad, and parts need to be replaced. I think that for the most part, MINI owners notice every little change in their cars, and immediatley start watching those little changes... it seems to be a hightened sense of awareness about their cars. I know I notice everything about my car, moreso than the last few ones I have had. I think that is why you noticed your coolant, and is definately why you know right where the level is sitting at now. Ask the average Joe where their coolant level is, and I be that most people will want to know how to check it!!!

 

Well it's official, I do have a leak...

I wasn't sure at first cuz I didn't see any signs of a leak. But I guess I wasn't looking for one until I noticed my empty coolant tank.

So I had some cardboard under the car after refilling the tank and this morning there was a wet spot. I can't find the source.

Might be time to make an appointment with my dealer.

 

Krapow, what year?