My 2009 MINI Cooper S (24K Miles) seems to have developed a corrosion issue at the Turbo.

Wondering if you all can take a look and let me know if this is normal for cars driven in the Northeast with road salt and others products they throw on the roads during the winter. Looking for some input pre-dealer in case they say it's good when its not.

Here's the pics...

Closer...


Normal or abnormal?

If you have a similar condition, please let me know.

If you don't and drive the same type of MINI, in the same conditions, with different results, please add pictures.

I have:
2009 MCS
25K miles
Driven in one winter - Western NY
Now in CT

Thanks in advance!

 

I have seen this before... The turbo and manifold are cast Iron so they do rust even if your in the Northwest like me. That is some heavy corrosion though.

 

Nothing like that here in salty warm Hawaii... That looks bad!

 

Its normal for the rust to appear but the oxidation in the lines is pretty obnoxious looking

 

I live in the Northeast. My car was originally from the Boston area, and now resides in central MA. There is NO rust on any of my lines. There are some mineral deposits, but no rust.

 

Looking at the corrosion on the plated tube and the alloy cold side, something quite caustic has been there. If it was just the pipe, one could say bad plate, but all around. Has anyone used caustic engine cleaners under there? It looks like a 10 year old car.

 

looks like its concentrated on the area that is towards the front so harsh salts and solvents maybe?

 

It can only be from road salt/calcium from western ny. The only I used to clean my engine is a wet cloth and maybe some plastic protectant on the air box, intake hose, bulkhead and grill.

The car is only a year old so with no leaks so I have no engine degreasing to do.

Have an appointment Monday with the dealer. I sent them the same pics above and so far they say it's a combination of heat and elements. Normal they say, I say not. My girl's 2006 equinox has zero corrosion driven on the same roads.

 

rust on the cast iron of the turbo, but not on any lines. That's the worst I've ever seen.

 

Ya I must say it is pretty serious... probably the most serious I have seen... Maybe the Alaska cars are close

 

home remedy could be to brush with a brass or steel brush lightly sand and then coat the lines. If your under warranty take it in because the rust has gotten past the coating on the lines and will eat them away if not taken care of.

 

+1.

OP, I am in NE as well and I have this too but to a lesser degree. It seems to be salt from winter driving. Sand and coat is the best protection.

My Mini dealer says it is wear and tear and not under warranty.

 

The only "normal" rust is on the turbine housing. You have spots of corrosion on the cooling pipes and the compressor side. You probably got a blast of salt spray through the hood vent at some point and eventually it ate through the thin protective coatings.

 

Zink phosphate for the lines. 'One-step" or "rust converter". Don't get any on the turbo as it will cook off and be quite nasty.

 

That is normal on the cast iron housing. But you have a somewhat unusual amount on that hardline. It almost looks like that section of the line was never coated with whatever they plate it with (zinc?). As long as it does not rust through (and that could take decades), it's not a problem.

What is that hardline for? Oil feed?

 

Probably something that does not work but is "green". It would have been cad, but that does not meet ROHS.

 

Mine was similar to the pics posted, maybe worse. I used some naval jelly on the hard pipes and then painted them with some black high temp paint as I was worried that it could eventually penetrate the pipe. Mine was due to a bad winter here in Germany (the German towns were almost out of salt last year from it being so bad)

 

worth a thousand words, ok maybe 25 or so.

 

 

Thanks everyone for your responses...
No dice from the dealer on the rust. Says it's normal, but we'll keep an eye on it.

However I need to do a follow-up on here to close this thread out.

I need to give a huge thumbs up to NEW COUNTRY MINI in Hartford, CT

I took the car in for the rust on the turbo, and they said they would take a look at it... anything else they ask?

I mentioned the engine seems to have gotten a little louder, not really rattling, but a louder than usual ticking. Also mentioned that the hood scoop seems to be starting to warp, and let them know I read this was pretty common. Again, they said they would take a look at it and let me know.

After a couple of emails (great communication from them) they tell me they are going to go ahead and replace the timing chain, tensioner, slide rail, guide rails and whatever else is involved due to the 1mm off the length is from allowable. They also told me they would be ordering me a new hood scoop and heat shield for the turbo. All under warranty! I didn't even know MINI made a heat shield, but it's on order and should be in tomorrow.

I'm still a little concerned about the rust, but i am so absolutely pleased with the customer service and attention to detail that New Country MINI gave me. No questions asked about the hood scoop and timing chain.

They have definitely made the customer happy!!

Here's to you New Country , and especially Marissa who exchanged more than 5 emails with me throughout the day regarding my service.

 

It's probably from that liquid stuff "brine" they spray the roads with before the ice storm comes. That stuff is really bad. Getting ANY fitting off that cast iron section is going to be an issue and if you are deciding to change it .... do it soon!!

Bob

 

I noticed my 5month old clubman is starting to rust on the same spot. not as bad as pictures above but I bet pretty soon it will be getting worse. So is there a way to prevent rusting after I sand light rust away? is there a product that can be applied?

Jay.

 

I have about 40,000 miles on my R56 S and have a little corrosion on the plumbing. I live around Detroit so I see my share of salt in the winter. I would force MINI to replace those lines before 50,000 miles since yours look REALLY bad. I know MINI says that the rust is normal, but a severe case like you have is unacceptable.

 

That is bad, you could replace them with steal breaded lines. This makes me want to get my turbo painted with some high temp paint!