So I will provide a little background before I get into what happened to my car today...

Last summer (June) my 2006 MINI r53 lost a coolant hose on pikes peak in Colorado. I had no other option but to drive the car down the mountain in 80+ degree weather and the car overheated. I pulled over when I got to the bottom of the mountain (30+ min later) and had it towed to a BMW dealer for repairs. The dealer found the hose that was damaged, replaced the hose, and added all the BMW/MINI fluid needed for the coolant system. I drove the car back to Kansas from Colorado with no issues.

Fast forward to about 4-5 months later and I was driving around town when I began to overheat again and noticed my MINI dropped all of its coolant on the ground. I then had the car towed to a repair shop in town and I ordered the coolants refresh kit from ECS and had them install it. The tech said the water pump was bad but I had the water pump, thermostat, housing, coolant, and expansion tank all replaced to give myself some insurance.

Since then I hadn't had any issues with the coolant system that I knew of except for the occasional starting issue, engine code (cam sensor), and after a long 2+ hour drive the car would have starting issues as well. I picked up a cam sensor but never got around to installing it.

NOW TODAY: I was driving to an appt at the VA hospital about 2 hours from my house when I got to a stop light 5 min from my appt and noticed my engine smoking. It was raining hard outside so I shook it off as being the heat and rain colliding. About 1 min later I noticed the temp light on my dash blinking and the smoking getting worse. My fan kicked out and my car was officially overheating. Being that I was in the middle of the highway and only 2 min from the hospital I continued to drive the car and parked when I arrived I opened the hood to notice the coolant expansion tank had once again overflowed through the cap and was completely empty. I had the car towed to the local MINI dealer (10 miles away luckily) and recieved a loaner car (thank god). My question is after reading all the posts with this similar issues is: did I blow a head gasket, crack the head, or even worse blow the engine? Someone please help??

I am honestly on the last straw with this car and don't think I can afford much more into it as it just hit 136k today.. What can I do?

 

Driving a car that's overheated even a couple miles is a big no no. It's very possible your car is in trouble.

 

Yea..when I told my dad about it after I got an ear full from him as well It was either that or the first time be stuck on top of a mountain and the second time cause an accident on the highway.

Do you think its beyond repair?

 

I'm guessing the headgasket....
About $2000 if the head is in good shape...
Possible the prior overheating warped the head or deck...maybe started the failure...
If you are lucky, they will do a compression check, find that good, and maybe decide the cooling system had a bubble in it...that CAN cause overheating....likewise, maybe a leaky thermostat or radiator left you low on coolant....
Worse case might be a cracked head caused your issues....
If the dealer just says...new motor...ask what diagnosing they did..a 5 minute test like a compression test can tell you if it might be worth taking the head off too look....
Good luck....

 

I was thinking the head gasket too because I had all of those other things already replaced. And a bubble in the hoses would have cause this issue earlier wouldn't it have?

The dealer says they will diagnose it for free and then if a pressure test on the head or any "further" diagnoses is needed it'll be 69.99. So we will see when they look at it tmrw.

If it is the head gasket what all needs to be replaced? And if its the crack in the head am I totally screwed? Lastly when is enough enough to keep throwing money at this car?

 

Replacing the head gasket isn't too terrible if you have an Indy do it. If it's more than a head gasket that would be a shame. Considering your also having transmission issues it might be time for a trade in. Have you checked your oil to see if any coolant made its way in?

 

Yea my dad and my girl both think I should have traded it a while ago but I just love the car too much this is the last straw through.

No I didn't check the oil, but I will have the dealer do that and the compression test tmrw and see what they say. If theres coolant in the oil its the head right?

Should I try to trade it in or fix it and sell it privately. And either way I would have to fix it to trade it in wouldn't I?

 

Well you could trade it in and let them the dealer deal with it.

 

Yea I guess thats a possibility. But I don't have the money to buy a new car so I would be screwed lol. I didn't even know the dealers would take cars as trade that are basically useless haha

 

Depends on if they are aware of the cars issues when trading...

 

I guess thats true...hopefully I find out a little more about my MINI today

 

Did you check your oil?

Is the dipstick white?

 

I've bought cars in this state before. Expect $1700-$2000 for a non-running mini. Essentially parts value. The dealer is a very expensive place to get engine work done. Get an estimate from a good Indy before throwing in the towel.

 

Yikes, thats not good. :(

Smoke / coolant from the exhaust when it was running ?

 

Thanks for all the help guys. The dealer called today and stated that it was a torn radiator hose again that caused the overheating they want 450 to fix the hose and then "they can test and pressure test further" I told them not to do anything with it and I am honestly at a loss as of what to do at this point. For one it is stuck at a dealer 2 hours away so I have to have it towed. Then I don't have the money to fix it so looks like I am going to just part it out or sell it as is..

 

That's a bummer. Hopefully you can figure something out.

 

Thanks I am heartbroken honestly. I loved this car and had a lot invested into it. My dad thinks I should tow it home and rebuild it on my own.

 

A radiator hose is maybe $20. It's too bad you don't have anyone else to help you out.

If the dealer says it's just a hose why do you think it's blown up??

 

The radiator hose is what cause the overheating in the first place, but since I was on the highway and couldn't get off the road for over 10min it overheated for too long and melted the plastics inside. Also the tailpipe, engine compartment, and even the heating vents inside the car were shooting white smoke all over

 

I'd at least get the oil checked and the compression test.

 

Oil is milky and frothy. And the compression test cant be completed until after the radiator hose is fixed and I am going to do that myself so at this point ill just have it towed to my town first and do the repairs and troubleshooting on my own.

 

I typed a bunch of stuff before you said the oil is white...

 

You need a head gasket at the least, sorry man :(

 

Happy to help if you decide to fix it. You'll learn something for sure!

 

Thanks all! I appreciate all the help everyone on here has given so far.

Talking it over with my father I decided to have it towed to my home town from the shop (2hrs) then let it sit for a month until I can save the money to have us fix it on our own. With my cousin who is a mechanic. I can't justify even paying 69.00 an hour to have them troubleshoot it.. Now to get it towed.