Hi Everyone,

First post here. I apologize if this is in the wrong section. I have a 2011 Countryman S All4 manual trans that has been leaking coolant when parked on a steep incline. I figured it was the thermostat so I set out to replace it. I did some searching here and realized it had what I believed to be the newer thermostat with the adapter harness, but I still had the older temperature switch in the 90 degree elbow. I replaced the thermostat, adapter harness and coolant pipe (the one that runs from the thermostat to the water pump) just to be on the safe side. I realized in the middle of all of this that the leak was coming from the temp switch in the elbow. The mini dealer had to order the new upper radiator hose (the one without the elbow), so I put the car back together since I needed it for work. I was able to bleed the system with no issues and it has been running fine. A few small drops when parked on an incline again, but it is clear that it is from the elbow. Fast forward to today, I finally got time to install the new radiator hose. I pulled the old one off, unplugged the sensor and put the new one on. I bleed the system again and went for a drive with no issues. when I got back I noticed my fan was running on high for about 10 minutes after shutting the car down; its in the mid 30s here today. Then upon the next start up I got a CEL with P0118. I have tried re-bleeding the system several times with no luck. Can anyone confirm I used the correct parts? Also, the old temp sensor plug is unplugged and free floating in the engine bay. Is this how it is supposed to be, or have I messed something up with the adapter harness? Thanks in advance.

Parts Installed:

• Thermostat Housing W/ Thermostat Kit
• Thermostat Adapter
• Updated Upper Radiator Hose Seen Here (purchased from mini)

Do I just need to keep bleeding the system, or is something else going on here?

 

You need to use the adapter harness and plug into the new sensor in the thermostat. You can't have any plugs left unplugged.

 

The adapter harness does plug into the new thermostat. I will post pictures later. The only portion that is unplugged is the old temp sensor. If I recall correctly, the adapter does not plug into the old sensor harness?

pictures to follow shortly

 

hopefully this picture is helpful I plugged the d sensor back in for reference

 

Looks like you have either the wrong adapter harness or 2 different adapter harnesses plugged in. There should be no plugs just left hanging. The correct adapter harness will connect to the engine harness and the two connectors on the thermostat.

 

Yup that was it. Hopefully this helps the next person who has the new thermostat but the old radiator hose. Apparently you can have both harnesses connected without a CEL? Either way, took the old harness out and left the new one in, and it was good to go.