So I always noticed the loud fan would run for 5 minutes or so after driving home from work in the warmer months. Now it seems to just do it all the time. This morning after driving all highway to work (38 deg F outside) I went through Burger King drive thru and it came on while the car was still running... The temp gauge never goes above the middle though.

Should I be worried here?

 

Step one
Check your coolant level.
Step 2
Post more info on car...year, s, non s etc.

 

Step 3
Does the heater seem to work ok?

ab

 

Oh my I feel like an idiot now... Went to lunch and checked my coolant tank it was empty... :(

Filled it to between the min and max line and it seems better. I will take notice to see about the fan but it didn't come on after lunch when I drove about 10 miles and its 58 F out.

Honestly I haven't checked the coolant level in quite some time. Shame on me.


PS: Car is a '03 S with 99,000 miles.

 

It may take 3 or 4 fillings in the next few weeks to refil the system and get the air out....keep an eye on it...
Also when the level more or less stablizes, look around for the reason it is low...
The tank on the s tends to leak around the seam, and the thermostat tends to leak.

 

Thanks for the advice. I will definitely check on it for the next couple of weeks.

 

i've noticed when idle or in park my fan sometimes gets REAL loud (randomly tho - some connection to use of the a/c). Pretty frustrating because you'd think my small 4 cyl. car would be pretty quiet when sitting, but it seems to be louder than most. My engine seems to be pretty loud also but that's a separate story all together. Any ideas or is this just MINI? Only MINI i've owned so I'm still quite new to the scene.

 

You seem to have a 2nd Gen car by your signature. This is a 1st Gen forums and as such many of these people may not be able to answer your questions as there are big differences between the engine sounds of a Gen 1 and a Gen two car. In fact there are big differences between the Gen 2 N14 and N18 engines.

If you head over to the Gen 2 section i am sure people can help you out with any noise questions you have.

 

ooh crap, thanks sorry bout that, just saw the subject when checkin around the "new posts" of all forums.

 

Thermostat housing failures occur quite a lot in the R53s. I just had to swap mine out last month in between dyno runs :P. It's pretty easy to spot. If yours is bad the will be a small pool of coolant on the tranny or on the housing itself.

 

the coolant tank leak is VERY common and may be harder to spot. If the tank leaks from the front, that's easy to spot. From the back . . .

first look for residue of boiled off coolant on the heat shield under the tank. Feel around to the back of the tank for dried residue. This picture is a tank I took off a GEN1 last year - this was the third tank going in this car (owner decided to get a stainless tank and never worry again!) you are looking at the back side, the front was clean. We had no idea the tank was leaking until a) noticed the coolant was low and b) reached around to the back, feeling the seam all the way around.


The tank is a very easy item to replace, one holding nut, and two small hose clamps (replace with simple screw type and save yourself aggravation) I usually remove the coil pack to give more access - a good time to check and clean the connections there . . .

 

Nice thanks Capt!! Do you have a good source for a stainless tank if I decide to replace? I am all about upgrades if something is going to fail over and over.

 

MiniMania has an alloy header tank (same as the coolant bottle) for an R56 but it's not cheap, $229.95. Don't know about your year, haven't looked, just remembered seeing the one for the R56. Worth a try.
If mine ever goes I'll probably get one. Already had to replace my thermostat and housing, och! $450. Caught me at a bad time so I had dealer replace it. At least it has a 2 year warranty.

 

The stainless header tank is made by Forge - only one I've seen anyway - and the best price I've see was from Titan Motorsports of Orlando



their price today is $159 plus shipping

note if you go to the page, don't bother trying to enter MINI as make cuz they don't list it as an option (I dunno why); rather go to 'shop by brand' and select forge and MINI will come up as an option. This is a replacement coolant header tank for a GEN-1 S (does NOT fit a GEN-1 Justa)

MiniMania has one (also appears to be by Forge) for any GEN2


I have not heard of a problem with GEN2 tanks leaking - mine hasn't. The GEN1-S problem has been known for a long time; I've replaced several. Once the problem surfaced MINI said they released a new and improved tank. All I've seen looked just like the one that came in my early 02-S, and every one failed at the same place - that middle seam.

 

Just as an FYI, the high-speed fan circuit is pretty loud on R53s, so don't sweat the noise when that circuit does kick on correctly as needed.

 

True for a r53....the poster was looking for info on his 2009....

 

I have a 2005 MCS with a similar problem. I noticed coolant leaking from the cap just 30 min ago and I'm guessing that is where my issues is coming from. I will also hear the fans kick on while at a stand still such as a drive thru or traffic light, and the needle on my temp gauge will stand straight up. But as soon as I start to drive the needle goes back to normal and the fans turn off. While standing still also, my heater doesn't work. This is all during normal driving in 50 degree F weather in Georgia and Alabama.

I'm paying a visit to Way at Way Motor Works tomorrow morning for a new CAI. I'm going to talk to him about this also and just get some more advice and opinions. Always good talking to him, I seem to learn a lot.