I just bought a salvaged (wrecked) 2004 Mini Cooper S with 24,000 miles. You can barely call it wrecked. It basically has some denting and scratching down the side. I have been messing around on the inside of the car until I can get it to my shop (about 150 miles away) on Saturday to start working on the body. I tried to change the display on the tach to show something other than the outside temp but it won't change. It has the button on the top of the light controls and I called the dealership that originally sold it and verified that it had the Premium Package which included the on-board computer. I've tried and tried to change the display but it just keeps displaying the temp. I even tried changing the display on the speedo by pressing the button above it on the left but it won't do anything. I reset the ECU by doing to trip reset button hold thing but that didn't seem to fix the computer problem. I'm new to Minis so any help would be greatly appreciated. Here's a few pics so that you can see the current condition of the car.

 

Sad, but I can barely remember how to change the display on my old MINI and its only been gone 5 months. I wonder if it has something to do with the battery? Given the super low miles on the car, that's probably the original battery and assuming that it sat there a couple of months untouched - that might be pretty hard on the battery.

 

Not all MINI's have the OCB function. Depends on what packages your MINI has. On my 2006 I ordered all of my options ala carte & did not have the OBC. What I had was as you describe speed & temp. It was $200 for the OBC & to me that was too much dough. Later I found how one could get the MINI programmed to get all the OBC functions. My dealer did it for me gratis.

 

I checked with the dealership that sold the car originally and they confirmed that it had the premium package which includes the OBC. I wonder if I will just need to take it in to the dealer and have them reprogram it? But shouldn't it at least do something, like show the speed? And shouldn't the display on the speedo change when I hit the button for it?

 

The car externally does not look to bad....but I know of a few folks that have totaled MINI's that look no worse.....
If you can't change the display, then the body control module (BCM) or the engine computer, or the wiring harness, or the connections could be suspect...any or all.....time to tear stuff apart and look...
If they did total it with that little external damage...I hope you looked at the sub-frames....it sounds like you are driving it a bit..so I guess it goes straight...look for odd tire wear..a MINI can take a huge amount of damage and externally look OK...heck, they can be rolled, and not even break a window...
Good Luck...maybe you got a deal.

 

We checked the car over pretty well before we bought it. It had the upper trailing arm on the right rear replaced before we got it. The right front control arm was slightly bent, but still drivable for a test drive. We've got a replacement control arm. What does the BCM do? The car has a DSC switch but when I press it I don't notice any lights on the dash or anything. Not sure if there should be any for it or not. I'm going to go take a video to show you all what it does and maybe you'll see something. Hopefully it's something as simple as a connector that got jostle'd loose but who knows.

 

Just a thought. The temp sender lives behind the front bumper cover. It could be damaged rendering the OBC inoperative. It is also possible that somehow sometime the OBC was shut off when the car was hooked to the mother ships computer for service. That has happened to me a time or two with other settings on my car.

EDIT.... Even without the OBC it should show speed & temp. Alternate between the two.

Your MINI looks like an easy fix. You'll have a very nice one with not a lot of work.

 

Good to hear you checked it out....
The DSC light on the speedo should turn yellow when the switch is flipped..since you are essentially dis-arming the system. If you don't see any changes...it is possible the switches got jostled...but if the OBC is also not changing, I'd look at the wiring....(maybe a simple fix to the harness or clips). Do all the lights come on when the car is stated?...This is a Bulb check of sorts...then they go out....if they test without faults...
The bcm runs basically everything but the engine....the MINI has lots of electronics, and 2 data buses...it sounds like one of the busses (a wiring harness...it acts as a on car network) is unplugged or cut, ot the BCM is damaged. (don't quote me...it may be fine, but if it get replaced, the dealer must reprogram a new one with all the options....

 

Do you know where the BCM is located? Is it the module beside the airbox? I looked for the ambient air temp sensor but I couldn't find it. The car does seem to display the correct temp though, so I'm not sure if that would rule out that sensor or not. It'd probably be worth a check if I could find it.

 

The computer next to the airbox is the engine computer....
the Temp sensor is located under the bumper cover, clipped to one of the screens near the center...
The BCM (I think) is in the passenger side footwell....in the passenger compartment....not 100% about the location...it is not serviceable, so I never had to pull it out or look for it!

 

Ok. Created some videos. I just remembered something else that might be related. It's my understanding that you should be able to roll down the windows remotely using the key and roll them up by putting the key in the door and holding it turned. It doesn't do either of those things. Also, it has the backup sensors on the rear bumper. I just tried backing it up to within 1 foot of hitting a building and didn't hear any sort of warnings.

Also, I've been considering getting one of these. http://www.ot-2.com Do you think it would tell me what's going on that would be causing the problem? I would just take it to the local auto parts store and have them scan it but it is still considered salvage so I don't have registration for it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOPU8UPNn-s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X49ijlq99rg

 

I called the "local" (70 miles away right now, 150 miles away from my shop) dealership and they told me that if I could get it there they would hook it up to their computer and run a diagnosis but it will cost $212 (2 hours labor). I can buy a used BCM online for about $100. If I knew that was the problem and that the used BCM would fix it I'd just do that, but I don't know. I've been burned by dealership from other car companies before so I'm hesitant to go to a dealership, although Mini may be different.

I did find, remove, and inspect the BCM for physical damage but it looked good. I hooked it back up hoping that it would magically start working but no luck.

 

Did you get any paperwork with the car or find anything inside that had the previous owner's name? If you could get in contact with them and get a copy of the estimate from the insurance company, that would be a great place to start.

My 2006 didn't roll the windows up/down using the remote, however I could put the key in the door turn it to the left (hold it) and roll the windows down; turn the key to the right (hold it) and roll the windows up.

My JCW also had the backup sensors which never failed. I'd look to see if they have been unplugged. Sometimes insurance adjusters take these cars apart investigating unseen damage and don't always put them back together properly (or at all). I guess you'd have to remove the rear bumper cover to do that, so I'd try to track down any unplugged wires, check fuses, relays, etc. Its not at all uncommon for fuses to blow during a light collision.

 

The back-up sensor shares the fuse with the Power steering cooling fan...so if it does not beep..it just might not be getting power.
The windows opening is a standard thing to program....BUT the keys do not have to be programmed that way....it is optional....
Any many BMW shops should be able to get into the BCM (I think...the computers, etc are all similar to BMW, including the connectors)...call and ask...some have the tools and computers....they could tell you, perhaps locally if it checks out.
Just remember, you must program the used BCM to match the factory options on the car. So one more thing to consider...It could be wiring, etc...I would look around for obvious problems....and the ins adj list would be very useful......

 

Some good news. The problem with the backup sensor was the fuse. I checked both fuse boxes and found that the one that ZippyNH was talking about was bad. I replaced it and now the parking sensor works and the remote window roll down and door key window roll up thing works. The OBC still doesn't work though. I'm still trying to figure out why.

I spoke with my local BMW dealership and they can't work on the electronics on the Mini but there's a shop here in town that can. I called them and they are much more reasonably priced ($89 per hour labor). The only problem is they are booked about a week or two in advance and I'm taking the Mini back to my shop about 150 miles away to fix the body work in two days. Hopefully when I get it fixed and they come to inspect it they won't have any problems with the BCM not working correctly.

I tried calling the previous owner but couldn't get through. I think I found them on facebook so I sent them a message.

 

Any luck?

 

Good news (for now at least)!!! I found a guide for adding an OBC switch to a car that didn't have it from the factory. I figured that I'd follow it and see if maybe there was a wiring problem with the stalk button. Well, there wasn't. BUT as I was taking apart the speedo to check the wiring I noticed that someone had spilled coke (cola, soda, pop, whatever) on it. That may even be why they ended up totaling the car instead of just fixing it since the body repairs are only costing me about $600 doing the work myself. I cleaned the PC board and casing for the speedo and the OBC is working now. The board actually wasn't too bad. I've cleaned a lot of electronics (worked at an independently owned Radio Shack for 7 years) and I'm really surprised it even affected it. I took it out for a short drive after I fixed the OBC and noticed that the DSC was also working. After about a quarter of a mile it stopped though. It seemed to coincide with the TPMS warning coming on so I guess that if it thinks you have a low tire it won't let you mess with the DSC.

So, lessons learned:
The hardware that runs the OBC is located on the Speedometer
The DSC only works if the TPMS is in normal condition

Also, on a side note, my state may be issuing me a clean title for the car (fingers crossed) which will add about $3000 to the value of the car. That'll mean that I'll have about $9000 in a $16000 car and that would be awesome. No intention of selling it for a long time but it'd be good to have that if I ever do.

Thanks for everyone's help!

 

Gotta ask, how do you plan on doing that? If its a BIG secret, PM it to me. I've done this for YEARS now and I've heard stories of people getting it done but have never confirmed it. Either way, it won't 'erase' the car's history which will still be associated with the VIN and able to be pulled via CARFAX, Autocheck, etc.