My Service Engine Soon light came on and stays on. I scanned the ECU, and it is throwing a code for an O2 Sensor circuit (P0136). I have just under 30,000 miles on the car (an 03 MC). I have a service appt. this Friday, and just wonder if I am safe to drive it until then. I've heard of the dreaded "limp home mode" and don't want to get stranded on the PA turnpike!

I'm a new (used) Mini owner, so I'm new to the nuances of this car.

Thanks,

Dave

 

ive been getting P0136 on occasion after getting v42. dealer
checked out my 02 sensor, but nothing's wrong with it. i got about
1.5k miles since v42... just SES, no other issues. car runs like a
champ.

im patiently waiting for the next revision hoping it would cure it....

 

I drove for 4-5 days with a P0131 code (low voltage in the front O2 sensor heater circuit), with no problems. Ran fine the whole time.

 

Thanks for the reassurance. As of start-up this morning, the service light is out . I haven't had a chance yet to see if the code is still stored.

Dave

 

I've had the SES light come on twice now after visits to the gas station. Each time, the light went out after opening and re-closing the gas cap. (Not immediately, but after a day or so...)

_Dave_

 

My SES light came on last night after making a few stops. I have about ¾ of a tank of fuel. Could the fuel cap have caused the light to come on? Also I noticed the coolant is low, can that cause the light to come on? What coolant should I use (any brand or is the MINI picky)? I am going to get the code read tonight.

 

low coolant won't turn on any lights. unlike BMW's mini's don't have a coolant level sensor. a gas cap can turn on the light. most of the time the dme will detect a minor leak in the gas tank. which can be casued by a number of things but mostly it is a cap not tight enough. or even dirt on the cap not making a good seal. also if you refill your car with it running it will most likely turn on the light then the dme detects a major leak. also if your o2 sensor has been checke dor replaced and the light still comes on there has been issues with the DME internally. pretty much only if the fault is always present it is most likely the dme there is a transistor that will stick and casue the fault to be currently present all the time even though there is no fault. then the dealer should replace the DME. however there has been issues with actual O2 sensors going bad. also sometimes the MAP sensor will go bad and throw a code for the O2 sensor.

 

Just to follow up, the after-cat O2 sensor was determined to be bad when I took it for service. Sometimes codes are telling the truth I guess!

BTW, I was also told to begin running regular gas to minimize the fluctuating idle (apparently a side-effect of the latest software upgrade). Anyone else have experience with this? Will I suffer a drop in performance? MPG?

Dave

 

Did you get that part about running regular gas in writing???

Try it, I dare ya!!! (on running reg unl. gas)

I would not use anything other than premium, I'll even use race gas every other week without experiencing any fluctuating idle.

If the grade of gas is causing this issue after the Dealer ECU upgrade, don't worry cuz another software version will be out soon from them I'm sure.

 

I swear that if you sneeze hard the "service engine soon" light will come on.