Slightly dramatic - Went to start the mini after the Georgia flood/tornadoes this past weekend and I get nothing,.... no dash lights, no starter, just lock/unlock. Light bulb moment follows and I checked the battery.

NOTE to self - don't park Mini, or any other car, at the edge of the roof line when it rains. Water comes off the roof there with fire hydrant quantity and force. Lived here for 10 years think I would have figured it out by now.

Sure enough, whole well is Flooded. Long Story short, the 200 amp fuse inside the little box near the positive terminal flooded, shorted and blew.

Looked it up in REALOEM (61126922465) and, you guessed it, Mini doesn't sell just the fuse they want to sell the box asssembly with positive lead attached at the now fairly reasonable price of $113 from FCP EURO.


Bear in mind this fuse is not part of the BST device, that's in the battery positive cable itself. I apparently dodged that bullet, this didn't also blow.


Wellll, the fuse inside that box is clearly marked as a MEGA 200 amp from Littlefuse.


so I ended up getting a replacement from NAPA ($7.00). Balkamp product, part #BK 7821140
Amazon sells them too.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Oreily does too: http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/de...itemDetailTab_

Courtesy of Pelican Parts


So here's my little DIY.
WARNING - MAKE SURE the water level is lower than the terminals - if not get it that way before proceeding - Use Turkey baster or manual oil pump. ALSO, PUT on some EYE protection, That water is nasty stuff.
1. Pull NEGATIVE lead from battery FIRST. Ensure it cant touch battery terminal
2. Do same for positive lead.
3. Pull the screw and nut that lock down the battery clamp - 8mm for both
4. Pull battery. Put it on a smart charger to make sure its still good.
5. Get rest of water out
6. Open up the little box next to positive lead
7. Use 10mm socket to remove the three nuts inside.
8. Disconnect the large Positive leads from the inside of the box.
9. disconnect and remove the small cable on the side of the box.
10 Remove BOX by pulling straight up.
11. Dry everything with paper towels and hair dryer. NOTE: Be kind and clean the grease off your hands first. You'll thank yourself later when your spouse dries her hair and didn't notice you took her hairdryer into the garage.
12. Spray all the connections down with a electrical contact cleaner.
13. Reassemble, make sure you put Positive battery lead cover back on, & cross fingers everything still works.

My Car fired right up. Ended up with DSC and TPMS lights on. I'm presuming they will go out once TPMS resets itself. IIRC that takes a couple miles.

 

Glad you got your car working again.

To reduce the chance of flood issues, check your sunroof drains to make sure they are connected. They often come loose and drain into the car. The one that causes the most problems is the passenger side front drain. If loose, the water usually gets into the Body Control Module for the car and all kinds of things go wrong. It's also expensive if it shorts out and you need to buy a new one. Most people use a zip tie or hose clamp to secure the drain tubes as they are just slipped on from the factory.

For the battery well flood issue, check the rear sunroof drains, the third brake light seal, and the hatch handle seal as the water usually comes through one of these areas.

 

Another tip; the battery well is coated with some kind of rubber like material. Under the battery the well has a plugged (by the coating) hole that can be relieved so the water can drain out over the exhaust to prevent the well becoming a water reservoir.

 

Yeah, I had to poke the hole out on mine. Still gotta figure out where the leak is from.

 

When you disconnected the small cable from the fuse box, did your airbag light come one? I changed out my positive cable, and when I disconnected from the box. My airbag light came on, and I haven't been able to clear it.

 

Nope, what are you using to clear it?

 

I'm using a Creator c110

 

What does the reader say when you "read codes" for the srs system? I have the same reader by the way. It should clear the code if there isn't something physically wrong still.

 

The code says 0B Battery, Positive Terminal Isolation 1.

 

Check all of your connections really well. I've been reading a tiny bit of corrosion in the little plug for the srs can cause it to freak out due to to much resistance.

 

ok i'll go and disconnect and clean the cables this weekend

 

Thanks for this.You totally saved my ***!

 

Hello Bruce,
I had the same issue with the battery compartment flooding. I need to get a whole new box and cable like the image you posted. you mentioned $113 at FCP EURO. i searched but could not find the part. would you know the name of the part? I searched "Fuse module with B+ wire but nothing was found. Do you know if the part goes by another name? thanks!

 

Hello Bruce
Nevermind i was able to find it elsewhere. thanks for your post