Hey guys. I'm having some problems with my mini. I took it to two shops and was told two different things. The second shop insisted I contact my insurance company bc it was clearly caused by salt water. One morning I woke up and she wouldn't start. I had her towed to the closest repair place who said I needed a new starter and electrical components. My bill was almost $900. They charged me 3.8 units of labor at $342 for replacing the starter assembly. They charged me 2 units of labor for extracting bolts on the exhaust manifold.

The second shop I took it to was wondering why the previous place didn't inform me of the other damages which they said were bad auxiliary fan, ac compressor needing replacement, rusted brake lines and shifter cables that were seizing up. All suspension components and brake components rusted. They also told me if I didn't get the fan fixed it would cause the ac compressor to go out, which would in turn possibly blow the engine.

I called my insurance company to come out and take a look and he has questions for both garages for stuff he said he didn't understand.

Now my question is this-do o really need to have all of those things fixed in order to save my engine? My dad (a retired mechanic) said we could get the fan and fix it ourselves and he would buy the transmission cables and take it to a place o trust to get them repaired.

So if I just replace the fan and cables, and not use the AC, is my car going to blow up? Ive also been advised not to drive the car until it's fixed because i am risking overheating the engine and causing major damage.

Thanks for any responses that may help me. I have no idea what to do.

 

No & No
Fix it yourself.

 

So...where is the flood damage? Sounds like road salt....usually the body rusts from the inside out, the car is filled with mold, and electrical connections corrode and fail with a flood car....I hear no statements from the shops of it being a food car, just salt water, aka, ROAD SALT.
It sounds like typical used car that is 10 years old and has been through lots of winters.
Handbrake/ebrakecables rust....yup....
PS fan/aux fans fail from grit...yup...bolts rust, starters fail...yup.
It's about a 5 minute job, Litterly that change the ps/aux cooling fan..two screws, and a plug.
Other items are harder, but it the price you pay for avoiding new car costs.
Relax...car ownership can be a bit scary, but it sounds like you have family that can provide advice.

 

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-solution.html

In addition to the power steering fan that zippy mentioned, there's also the cooling fan problem.

You can drive your car safely but they are right that you could possibly overheat the engine if the fan isn't working at all. The Mini fan has a low speed and a high speed. Usually just the low speed goes out but sometimes the high speed does too. If the car is moving it won't overheat but if you idle for too long without the fan working it will definitely get too hot. They are correct that eventually the ac compressor will die without the fan blowing on it. Your dad can easily fix the fan, and they are only about $70

If your car shifts fine I wouldn't be very concerned about the shifter cables.

Like zippy said, salt makes everything rust under the car. You didn't mention what state you are in but in Wisconsin they salt the hell out of everything with just a forecast lol.
The rust doesn't mean everything is going to fall apart, that will take a very long time. The biggest problem with salt and rust is it makes taking parts off a pain in the you know what.