Hi All,

I took my MINI in for some routine maintenance. My SA informed me that the brake sensor said I was due but it was probably misreading it. She let me know they would probably need to reprogram the car, something to that effect and it would take about 3 hours. Is this normal?

Well, in actuality, I was there 6 hours. Apparently my MINI had an oil leak. According to my service sheet, they found oil leaking under the engine. Here's what worries me. I've never noticed any drippings or a decrease in oil level. Could it have been a slow leak or have I done catastrophic damage to my car already?

Fun part is, brake programming hasn't been finished yet either. I need to make another visit. Definitely going to ask for a loaner this time around. I kinda wish my SA told me about the oil leak issue earlier, ( about 2-3 hours in) so I wouldn't wonder why it was taking 5+ hours to program the car.

The service sheet shows the following:

F** TECHNICIAN NOTED OIL CONTROL SOLENOID LEAKING CAUSE: OIL IS LEAKING UNDER THE ENGINE CAUSED BY A BAD INTERNAL SEALING OF THE OIL PUMP VOLUME CONTROL SOLENOID....

0061844 Install repair kit for solenoid valve wiring
1 11-41-8-609-973 REPAIR KIT FOR WIRE TO SOLEN:11409941
1 07-51-0-017-954 MOTOR OIL SAE 5W-30 LONGLIFE:832511
2 37-10-6-789-678 HEX NUT WIHT FLANGE:379500
1 31-10-6-773-005 HEX NUT WIHT FLANGE:319500
1 31-35-6-757-707 HEX NUT WITH PLATE:319500
2 31-10-6-768-886 HEXAGON NUT WITH COLLAR:319500
1 12-51-8-605-900 CABLE HARNESS INJECTION VALV:121051MO
1 11-53-7-647-751 THERMOSTAT HOUSING WITH THER:115040

1251501 Replacing engine section of wire harness
1153500 Removing and installing or replacing coolant thermostat


21575 OIL IS LEAKING UNDER THE ENGINE CAUSED BY A BAD INTERNAL SEALING OF THE OIL PUMP VOLUME CONTROL SOLENOID.... AS PER SI M11 01 12 CHECKED FOR OIL IN THE SOLENOID CONNECTOR AND ALSO INSIDE THE DME CONNECTORS. FOUND OIL INSIDE THE PLUG TO THE SOLENOID. AS PER NEW BULLETIN REMOVED RIGHT SIDE AXLE. INSTALLED NEW REPAIR HARNESS. ALSO REPLACED THE ENGINE SECTION OF THE HARNESS. NEW HARNESS HAS NEW UPDATED PLUGS FOR THE THERMOSTAT. REMOVED AND REPLACED THERMOSTAT. REASSEMBLED ALL COMPONENTS. ADDED COOLANT AND BLED COOLING SYSTEM. WARMED UP ENGINE AND CHECKED FOR LEAKS ..OK.. NO LEAKS FOUND.

 

I just had our '12 MCS in for service. I mentioned that I've found a couple of very small drips of oil on garage floor. I knew the leak had to be small, I've never had to add oil, is always full. Yep, same solenoid. They replaced the same wiring harness as well. As I understand it, this is very common.

Reprogramming for the brakes? I haven't heard of that one.

 

Going in for my 10k service soon, can't wait! '12 S.

 

Brought my '12 Clubman in a couple of weeks back and they mentioned the same solenoid issue, and will be looking at it along with my annual maintenance next Thursday.

 

Where is this leaky bugger on the engine?

 

I think it's on the back of the engine (toward the firewall). I believe they called it the Oil MAP solenoid. As I recall, they also replaced the thermostat housing just like the OP. Maybe one of the vendors will jump in and supply a diagram?

 

Is this it (part#2) it mounted on the oil pump:



http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...49&hg=11&fg=30

 

Hmmm... false brake wear indicator. Verrry interesting.

 

Thank you for that, it looks like it got updated after 12/2012.

 

My 2012 just a had the same issues. At about 12,000 miles the rear brake maintenance indicator came on. The "repair" was to reset the fault and reload the software. problem solved.

More recently, it was time for my free oil change. When I picked up the car, the work order indicated the oil solenoid leak, replacing the engine wiring and thermostat. I had absolutely no external indication of an oil leak. I would of been PO'ed if I was paying for the work !

 

Were you getting any alerts in the info panel or tachometer?

 

No Alerts, they read my key and it was reporting I was due for brakes. SA told me it's kind of early and probably needs to be reprogrammed.

 

I'm curious, because my older (2009) R55 gave a key-reading at my last service that the rear brakes were about to need replacing. My SA measured them and said they were fine. But when I got the car, I had a Service Interval countdown that went from 7000 to 0 in about 700 miles, resulting in a service warning in the info panel and the BRAKE light illuminating in the tach. SA says it's the 2-stage sensor and normal, even though the car has 5mm of pad left.

I'm still unconvinced.

 

Quick question. Does that leaking solenoid leak affect both the regular MINI as well as the S? I have a 2012 coming close to the mileage limit on the warranty and if it is a problem I'll have it checked. I did have my car in for it's oil change recently and there was no mention of this issue at that time.

Also, my brake indicator for the rears did come on 'early' and was re-programmed as well. I don't know how long it took because I did not wait for the vehicle during that visit.

Thanks.

 

Yes, the leaking solenoid affects the Justa. Mine was done as part of my first scheduled service. I never saw any drips on the floor, nor did my oil level ever drop. But evidently it was leaking.

 

this is old news. the solenoid leak is pretty common and discussed here. new solenoid, o-ring, and engine harness is usually the case unless the oil corrodes the harness and shorts the DME, in which a new dme is needed. i noticed when i had it up on a lift, small drip here and there on the ground, the descending oil solenoid harness was saturated with oil.

from what I've noticed, it's almost all 2011+ S models, countryman, and cooper.

 

Thanks for the heads-up. I have an appointment in April to have mine checked out and I'll report back with any updates as to whether this has affected my 2012 non-S.

 

the leak is quite obvious to spot by looking at the plastic wiring just on top of the oil pan under the car near the passenger side.

 

Thanks. Just did confirm that the leak is there and it's 'accumulating' on the wishbone mount so not making it to the ground. I had to raise the car to get a proper look. I suggest that anyone who has not looked for this do so before warranty expires.

What I find most annoying is that the service was just done. Last of my 'free' services due to my mileage. The drain plug for the oil is right next to where the leak is and the tech or SA did not say a word about this. Are they trying 'not' to do the work, not to mention the right thing? Oh well!

 

Mini not being honest? ..... perish the thought.

 

OK so just got my 2012 Justa back from the dealer. The leak was present and the repair listed part number 11-41-8-609-973 as being replaced. It was part of the "Performed step one of M11 01 12 as per SIM".

Hopefully that's all she needed. I'll keep an eye on things for a while to be sure all is back in order.

 

Here is what my SA emailed me regarding the fix action:

The wire repair kit is what is needed to repair that oil solenoid leak. Solenoid itself does not need to be replaced.

Here is what I asked:

In reading my invoice from the last visit, am I correct in saying only the wire repair kit was installed and the oil control solenoid was not replaced? Is the oil solenoid not the source of the leak?

Any thoughts?
2012 Hardtop S

 

the solenoid doesn't need replacing, the o-ring seal needs to be, usually that is on the parts list. as well as the wiring harness if it was saturated with oil

 

Thanks for clearing that up, I appreciate it!

 

HMMM, my production date is 12/12/12