Hey guys, I don't post much, but I do a lot of searching. As you have either heard or experienced, we have been pounded with snow on the East Coast. Today, I decided to dig out both of my cars. While I dug out My other car, I let the mini run while it sat. Eventually, I moved it to find a puddle of liquid on the floor. It looks like oil to me (hard to tell in the snow/slush, but it had that "rainbow" look to it). I Checked the dip stick and it was about half way full. The car isn't burning oil, therefore it has to be leaking somewhere.

Any ideas on where to start looking? Are there common places that leak oil on these cars? I'm hoping that I didn't tighten the oil filter properly during it's last oil change, but I doubt it. It's a 2004 Cooper S.

 

If it's got a rainbow look to it, it's either oil or power steering fluid. Check the level in your PS tank, located next to your coolant tank. remove the cap and you'll find a dipstick incorporated into the underside of the cap. The level should be between the two lines on the cap. Even if the level seems okay, you might still be leaking from lines that connect the PS tank to the pump, either at the res, or the pump. Take a flashlight and try to follow the rubber (insulated with aluminum wrap from the tank to the pump. Is it wet?