Hey guys...

I noticed that the engine heat melted some sort of grease that getting all over the front bumper and the inner fenders. It looks like its coming from crevasses in the bonnet.

Has anyone had this issue?

 

If it's yellowish semi-hardened goo it's called cosmoline, a protective coating applied to the MINI for transit. It's removed as part of the delivery center prep, but it seems there's always some in the various body seams, and heat will enable it to soften and leak out. Try to clean as much as you can in the nooks and crannies, but if it leaks out onto any body panels and causes stains you can't remove, it should be covered as a warranty issue. I would search the forums for "cosmoline", there are probably tips on getting it off the car.

 

Luckily, I haven't had any of this on the clearcoat, but there was a fair bit in the nooks and crannies under the hood. I used some GooGone from and it came off in a snap.

 

Thanks guys...


Is GooGone safe on the clearcoat / wheels?


I guess I'll be going to the dealer this week. Some ended up running down the front bumper and if I have to put my nail into it to remove it, then might as well the dealer deal with it.

 

After a week of owning my MCS I noticed the cosmoline drip from under the hood on to the front bumper.The dealership cleaned it off and mentioned that it is there for rust protection and some excess may drip initially but afterwards none.

As far as using Goo Gone probably best to apply a little bit of wax on the area after you use it.

 

JCR... Did it come off the bumper easily?

I'm just afraid of doing it myself and then having it mess up the paint.

 

Yep Cosmoline it is. I still have some sporadic dripping coming out from the nose of My Clubman.

 

I had a "weepy Clubman" this weekend with the cosmoline dripping from the sides of the bonnet onto the black plastic fenders. I guess 96 degree days will do it!

 

ClubmanS - it's probably just allergies.

 

Yes it wiped off fairly easily and then they just put a bit of Meguiar's spray wax over the spots and buffed the area.You won't mess up the paint being that it seems the cosmoline drip is fairly common on the MC's.Just follow up with a bit of spray wax afterwards.

 

I've got this too. Had some on my '06 MC, and my dealership dealt with it very quickly. This Clubman has a lot more - front grills, hood area where it connects to the body...running down on to the black plastic and coming out of my front wipers.

I am awaiting word from several phone calls. I can't get it off the invisishield on the front bumper.

Never had it this bad before.

 

Some quite interesting facts about Cosmoline:

Its most common use is in the storage and preservation of firearms.

Previously, cosmoline was used to preserve other items. Objects the size of entire vehicles could be preserved for future use with cosmoline.

During World War II, US Coast Artillerymen (serving the huge coastal artillery batteries) were known as "Cosmoliners" because they were tasked with the near constant cosmoline application ("greasing down") of the guns.

During Pacific island campaigns in World War II, the United States Marines sang a song about Cosmoline. Adapting the popular big-band tune "Tangerine," they would sing "Cosmoline...keeps my rifle clean."

Due to its gelatinous nature, Cosmoline can be difficult to remove completely from firearms and, as such, is being extensively replaced with vacuum-pack mylar.

 

Perhaps MINI will start using mylar - we can only hope.

Appreciate the historic links , even if I find the stuff disturbing.

 

Wow! Interesting bit of history there! I had some coming from the seams on the passenger side where the black fender material is. I used Aerospace protectant to take it off. I got the stuff at "Boaters World". They use it to protect all kinds of plastic on boats and it brings back the black of the plastic nicely too. Much better than back to black by Maguires.

 

The cosmoline on my 07 Cooper S dripped onto both of my inner fenders and stained them. The dealership said that this is common and they will replace the fenders under warranty. The dealership also said that many R56 models were overloaded with cosmoline and they were handling it on a case by case situation. They said to bring back my Cooper in August.

 

breedlove, any particular reasoning behind bringing back your car to them in August? This August? Or are you telling us about what happened last year to your MCSa?

I've put in several calls and have not heard back from my SA, which is both unusual and a bit disheartening. I hate to be a "pita" but I guess I'll have to be.

P.S. Just want to add that in my opinion if you have a brand new car, you should not have to deal with removing this stuff yourself - especially when it's not just in one little place and continues happening.

 

I Thought I had an oil leak but now I believe it's just Cosmoline well I still don't know what it is. It's dripping under the passanger side part of the engine bay all the way to the ground and leaving a little puddle everywhere I park. The car is going in on Wed but when I touched the substance it feels and smells like oil so I have no idea whats happening. My question is did anyone else have it drip all the way to the ground and leave little puddles.

 

WD40

 

Bigjoeki, you're in Rhode Island and you're having a cosmoline drip now. in these temperatures? I'm surprised because once it turns this cold, that stuff is usually pretty solid. Of course, we'd rather have it be a cosmoline drip than something more important.

Here's what my SA used to get the cosmoline stain off the black plastic on my front wheel wells: http://valvoline-uk.com/index.asp?pa...eca5e0b1a8b32d Xtra Duty made by Valvoline. It worked wonderfully and I managed to get my hands on a can.

(When I took delivery of this '09 Clubman the first thing I did was open the hood (at home) and clean off any cosmoline that I could see - around bolts, in crevices, etc. Which I like to think has helped this time around.)

 

I don't think it's cosmoline anymore i'm pretty sure it's an Oil Leak.

 

Yours for sure sounds like an oil leak. Keep an eye on the oil level.

 

Yeah I have been keeping my eye on the Oil Levels and by looking at the dipstick it doesn't seem like i have a leak. Anyways the car is going in on Wed so we will now then whats up.