Hi Everyone ~ A few days ago, the temperature warning light lit up in amber as I was tooling around in my 2007 CooperS Hatchback. It has 56,000 miles on it. The light went off so I continued on home. Checking the oil level and coolant level when I got home showed very little oil on the dipstick and the coolant was just a little puddle at the bottom of coolant container. I'm a woman and never check my oil...no problems until now and I'm original owner. I topped everything off and coolant disappeared on a 4 mile drive. So had it towed to local repair shop as I live over 50 miles away from Mini dealer (Niello in Sacramento). Mechanic (whom I trust) said it needs a new valve cover as it's basically eating oil. Suggested that perhaps Mini would be willing to replace it as a good will gesture as they've changed the valve cover beginning with 2010 model. Or at the very least cover the labor since the timing chain tensioner needs to be replaced under recall and they are in the same area. The coolant issue is due to the thermostat needing replacement which he will do ($442) including parts, labor and tax. The valve cover is about a $500 repair. Has anyone else gotten Mini to cover this once the car is out of warranty?

 

Sounds to me as all you need is a thermostat for your coolant issues. As far as the oil issue I would say that's normal. 07 MCS notoriously burn oil and require checking every two weeks. MINI states that their vehicles can burn 1 quart of oil every 750 miles and this is within spec.

 

The valve cover is cracked according to my mechanic.

 

We'll in order to have any good will work done you first need to have the vehicle diagnosed at a mini dealer. And after that they look at your loyalty to the dealer. If once your warranty was up u never came back to the dealer for service they may not grant the good will.

 

Advice to anyone who drives a MINI. Learn to open the hood & check the oil & coolant on a regular basis. When a warning light comes on, STOP turn the engine off & investigate. Driving with warning lights on can kill your engine.

As far as good will goes. Take your MINI to the dealer for the timing chain & hope they show you some joy on the valve cover replacement. Good luck hope it works out well.

 

Thanks, everyone!