It warmed all the way up to 30* today so I started on the MINI thermostat project, it's amazingly difficult to get to all the hoses, clips and sensor wires to release and remove them. They use the spring style hose clamps and while I have the special clamp remover tool even that doesn't work in some spots on a couple of the hoses. I'm probably removing more than I absolutely have to but for the first time doing this (and hopefully the last!) better to err on the conservative side. While I was in there I took the top off the air cleaner to get more room to get to stuff and found the last time I replaced the air filter was in 2017, with 66K on the car - which was informative for a few reasons - I've only driven 33K in the last 5 years in this car (99K now), and a mouse or something has gotten into the air cleaner. He didn't build a nest but did enjoy the peace and quiet while snacking on some pin nuts. I may have to screen over the air inlet just above the bumper to keep him out.....
Who ever designed those spring clamps is evil! I have a a tool to get them off too but they are still a pain!
Especially when there are 7 of them attached to one part, and in close proximity to each other! Soooo close, but no joy.....the big end with the o-ring on it fits into a plastic pipe, and I cannot get it out - so I'm letting it "soak" for tonight, tomorrow when I'm rested I'll give it another go. The issue is I don't want to damage or break that plastic pipe, I figure changing that is practically an engine out job! I'm kidding, but I'll bet it goes into the back of the water pump housing which I can't even see right now!
I salute you Minidave. That job is a real bustard. So much plastic in todays cars & it doesn't age well. I farmed it out to our local MINI guru's at Best Motor Werks. It wasn't cheap, but to me it was worth every penny I paid. You were very lucky Mr. Mouse didn't chew on the wiring. Yes a screen over the intake is a good idea. Also behind the battery is access to the inside of your car. Screen that one too.
Well, I got it out at last - not without a real fight! Now all I have to do is get the new one in - back to it tomorrow.....
Managed to get the old one out and the new one bolted in, now I just need to hook up everything I had to remove so I can fill it up and run it. It's in the 50's today so I can run it with the door open once I get it all buttoned up. Getting the pipe back together wasn't nearly as difficult as taking it apart, but just maneuvering the new thermostat into place was a real bugger. I also picked up a new air filter - only $21 at the dealership but I was there.....and it was there..... The whole job will be about $200 in parts but I know I would have spent three times that in labor alone had I let the dealership do it. I love my little magnetic puck lights, only problem using them on the MINI is everything under the hood seems to be either plastic or aluminum!
Never fails, does it? I got everything buttoned up, last thing to do is install the big rubber boot between the turbo and the air cleaner and it rips. Old heat hardened rubber just tore apart right where it attaches to the turbo. It won't run without it but I was able to jam it up against the turbo with a big screwdriver so I could get it started and start bleeding the air out of the system. The local dealer didn't have it and said no other dealer in the whole country did either, I found them all over the interwebz and I have one coming (probably for 1/2 the cost from the dealer) but it won't ship till Monday and could take a week to get here. Close up of where the end broke off and the piece that broke off the end of the tube.... The good news - it runs and doesn't leak - so far!
I clean my engines at least once a year. It really is an easy job. If you let it go the job becomes much harder. Just my 2 cents.... Not surprising that hose broke. Being next to a cherry red hot turbo is going to do that. I know it's a pain in the arse you didn't want to have to deal with Dave. This is so much better than it failing while on a road trip.
Good for you guys......this car is first and foremost a car - so it gets maintained properly, oil changes, brakes, filters etc. and washed plenty, but other than that.....well, like I said - it's a car, not a showpiece.
Oh the joys of working on modern cars...... So, I ordered the new air intake boot and it came in today and it looks perfect. I'll have to switch over a couple of fittings but it will work and was about 1/3 what the dealer wanted. Of course they and every other dealer in the US had them on backorder..... However............ After I got it running again and in the process of getting the air bubbles worked out, I noticed it was pissing water all over the floor again, this time from the passenger side of the engine! It got really cold (low single digits) so I just had to let it set for a while, today we're in the 30's so I warmed up the shop and started trying to figure out where the hell the water was coming from - all the while I had a bad feeling......and I was right. In trying to get the thermostat out of the crosspipe, I pulled the pipe out of the back of the water pump, it was easy enough to push it back in and as I installed the thermostat I could just see that it was all in place. However, when it was pulled out of the back of the water pump, unbeknownst to me, it had peeled the o-ring off the end of the pipe - when I shoved it back in place it had no o-ring, and the water pissed out when it ran. To repair it requires removing the thermostat again, so I can pull that pipe out and re-install the o-ring. You can't see any of this when you're putting it together, and I only know that's what happened because I found the o-ring today lying loose on the engine. Jeez louise! I tried to buy a new o-ring from the dealer, they don't stock it, BUT they do carry the cross pipe which has the new o-ring on it - the o-ring itself is $4, the plastic pipe is $90! I went ahead and bought the pipe, just in case. The old o-ring looks and feels fine, but the wife pointed out - do I want to do the job a third time if I reuse it and it fails? So, I'm in the process of tearing it all back apart again, but hopefully this time it will all be good to go. I'm leaving next Thursday for Texas, so I need to drive it and make sure all is good before I head out on that long of a trip. In this pic, right where there is a bright spot from the flashlight you can just see the curve of the o-ring, where I found it today. Second pic is where it goes on the crosspipe, third is the new pipe
I'll always add a smear of plumbers silicone grease to the O-ring so the ring doesn't roll out on a dry surface when it's pushed back in....
Yes, I use silicone grease on all sorts of stuff - for example, it really makes getting tight radiator hoses back on or off again when needed. It also is a good thing to keep water out of electrical connections. Good stuff, I've been using it since the early 70's.....
I've always used that type stuff too. It was referred to as wiener slip. Sure does help on those tight insertions.
Well, as it turns out I needed the $90 pipe after all as the end was broken off, which is why the 0-ring came out.....apparently this is a common problem - the plastic gets old and brittle and breaks. There are a number of You Tube vids showing replacement of this pipe for the exact reasons mine broke. Of course, you can find this pipe all over the interwebz for $23-25 shipped! This pic is everything I've had to remove so far......I may have to take the intake manifold off in order to see if the broken pieces of the end of the pipe are still in the opening on the water pump, and to fish those out before I can put it all back together.