****************ISSUE RESOLVED**************

I have a 2003 MINI that wouldn't start this morning. All that would happen is a very loud clicking sound and flashing of the electronic accessories. But it didn't even seem to be trying to turn the engine over. After consulting with family members, we decided the problem was the battery, so we installed a new battery. After installing the new battery, we tried to start the car and got the same result. We thought that maybe the leads weren't screwed down tight enough, so we tightened them down and tried starting the car again and it started up just fine.

I was able to drive the car just fine, but discovered that the dash lights that are supposed to illuminate when the headlights are on (tachometer numbers, speedometer numbers) don't light up, and neither does the turn signal indicator in the center of the tachometer. In addition, the climate control system is completely dead—no fans, no defrost, no heat, no AC. The sunroof won't open either. The radio is still working, as are the rear-view mirror controls, the headlights, the windshield wipers, and probably the seat heaters. The footwell lamps are working, but I don't think the hazard lights are operating properly. Also, the car would not lock. When I pushed the lock button on the key, the car would lock and immediately unlock again.

I thought perhaps that all the trying to turn the car on when the battery was either dead or not properly connected had burnt some fuses, so I checked them all under the dash and under the hood and they all seemed fine. While I was pulling each one out and putting it back in, the hazard lights began to flash and wouldn't turn off (I've since discovered that this happens when I remove the F27 fuse—weird). In the end, to prevent them draining the battery, we disconnected the battery and reconnected it. The lights went off and didn't resume flashing when we reconnected the battery. Also, the car is now able to be locked.

None of the controls for the climate control, the dashboard dimmer or the turn signal indicator work right now, although the turn signals themselves do work, as do the headlights, including the high beam. Another things that's weird now is that the lights in the buttons on the steering wheel stay on for a bit after I've shut the car off and taken the key out, and the sunroof still doesn't open.

Does anyone have any idea what's going on here and what we can do to fix it? I'm really hoping one of the controllers or buses hasn't gone south because I understand those are very expensive to replace. Is there a way to reset everything besides just disconnecting the battery, like rebooting all the computer systems? I have reset the computer that you control with the mode selection button, but it didn't make any of the broken functions come back.

All of these weird things are very disconcerting. The MINI is my only car and I need it to be back to normal as soon as possible. It's not particularly safe to be driving around in the winter with no heat or defrost.

 

One of the problems may be your alternator is either going bad or the alt belt is slipping and not charging up the battery. You can get it tested for free at most Auto Zones.

You might want to bring some jumper cables just in case you get stuck.

But not sure, if that alone is the cause of your other electronic issues other than a possible short somewhere.

 

The battery was clearly in need of replacing because I have had the car for three years and never changed it before and it was leaking all around the negative contact. We put a brand new battery in this morning before all the electronics went awry, so I doubt that the alternator is to blame. There hasn't been enough time for a faulty alternator to allow the brand new battery to run down, yet the things are not working despite the fuses all being okay and many of the accessories working fine.

 

Double check your grounds....
Since the electronics are screwy, it might be a good idea to disconnect the battery for a few moments, then reconnect it...
And it goes without saying you observed the correct polarity right...the terminals are reversed on a mini... So a special battery, or simply turning the battery 180 degrees are needed to make the cables connect right, ++, --.

 

You already have correct polarity. Don't change it! Otherwise the car wouldn't have started and the electronics would have gone even more bananas and probably damaged.

Try a more complete reset of the electronics by disconnecting the battery for at least 20 minutes. This allows residual charge in the electronics to discharge.

 

I know we have the battery installed and connected correctly. I will try disconnecting it again completely for at least 20 minutes and see if that makes any difference. I did an ECU reset today, but it didn't make any difference.

**** UPDATE ****
I did as suggested and disconnected the battery for half an hour and reconnected it and now... EVERYTHING WORKS! Thanks so much! Consider this issue closed.

 

Thanks for posting your final result. I'm having the same issue with a new battery installed. Will do the same when I get home from work. Cheers

 

Did the reset. Things are working perfectly now. Thanks