2003 cooper manual tranny. Never tracked or driven too hard.
No engine codes.
While at cruising speeds of 70-75mph, the engine is at around 3800 RPM; way higher than usual. This happened practically overnight, it wasn't a gradually worsening problem. I can only guess it's a failed clutch.

I had a jeep that had a similar problem with no codes. It was a bad throttle positioning sensor. Do MINIs have one of these and where is it?

Do you think low tranny fluid could cause it?

Do you think cruising at these RPMs on the highway for 25 miles is going to damage the clutch?

 

If it is the clutch, it means that it is slipping. The first thing you should do is see if you can get it to slip. Try doing a run in 3rd gear from 3k to 6k rpm and see if you can feel it slipping. There is no way that the clutch will simply stay at the wrong rpm in a manual. If it is constantly slipping, you would smell clutch burning all the time. Even if your clutch is slipping really badly, if you let up on the gas while cruising, the rpm will drop to match the engine speed. It will only slip under power.

 

mine did that.
Its not doing it now.
However i do have a stage4 clutch to rep.ace it.

 

Thank you for the responses. The issue showed up yesterday on my commute home. The problem seems to have disappeared today.