Hey,

Took my mini for a drive up a hill today and at the top i could smell a burning so i decided to pull over and check it out and there was steam pouring out of the spout just under the radiator cap.

The temp gauge was at half but i waited a while to let it cool down and the steam to go away and drove it back home and it was fine.

Just wondering whether this was normal, it was like 32 deg here in adelaide and i was going up ansteys hill for anyone local?

Should i have an overflow bottle attached to the little spout that the steam was coming from?

Thanks all, i have only just got my mini and have very limited mechanical experiance.

Cheers

Steve

No, that's definitely not normal. Good thing you stopped & did the right thing letting it cool down as it seems your temp gauge isn't working too reliably.

An overflow tank will not stop it overheating like that, probably a good idea to flush out the cooling system.

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Too many cars, and too little time.

is this a relatively easy thing to do?
if so, hows it done?

thanks

My last mini engine had the radiator flushed at every service as i no to well how a mini dislikes hot days..
I no in melbourne my machanic has a machine that does it.
it somehow forces water back and forward to remove any crap in the system.
I had it done every service but then after a while i just did it my self.
I cant remember if i removed the bottom hose or top hose ??
think it was the top hose from radiator and put the end of the hose conected to the water sorce inside that and removed the radiator cap and just ran water threw it...
my last water pump had a thred inside it so i could just screw a hose conector right onto it...and click the hose right on....
i havent touched a mini radiator in 3 years so my memory could be a little wrong so wait for others for suggestions .

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started a new project...there goes all my free time....

Steam is not a good sign at all. It means your motor is getting too hot and is boiling off the water that it needs to stay cool. Running a motor this hot is not a good idea, it could result in a blown head gasket, cracked head or worse.

Before you continue to drive your car you need to fix the temp gauge as it is reading faulty. It may be the gauge or it may be the sender. What sort of gauge is it? electric or mechanical?

To truly flush the system you must also flush inside the water jackets/galleries.
In order to do this, I remove the top and bottom hoses from the radiator and let it drain, i then remove the thermostat. From here I use a hose to flush inside both the motor and the radiator backwards and forwards until the water runs pretty clean. I then reassemble everything including a new thermostat or one that I have tested on the stove. I then run some radiator cleaner through it as per the instructions on the bottle (normally for about a week) i then drain all the water again and replace with the coolant of my choice.

If you would like to read more on the cooling system (inadequate system) of a mini, there is a grate article in this months edition of The Mini Experience. It explains how the system works, why it has a limited cooling capacity and gives some tips as to how to run your system to its full potential.

Ryan

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Ryan Filippi
Minis In The Gong
[email protected]
www.minisinthegong.com.au

Have you changed anything recently? if not was this the first hot day youve driven the mini in a while?

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Enjoy Chris

No not the town...

How long is it since you...checked the coolant level? It could just have been low when you started out and got hot on the big hill

It is not uncommon to lose some coolant each hot day when you come to halt after a run (unless you have an expansion tank).

Check all your engine and hoses for a possible leak as well

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"Show me the Mini!"

ive never checked it, ive had the car for a week, that was really the first hot day ive drivin my mini in, i shall check when i get home

get thee to a mechanic and have everything checked...........

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did I tell you that I won a trophy?

Always worth starting summer with fresh coolant in th system.

Also, in a mini (or any car without an overflow system) the radiator will lose a small amount of coolant each week. You should check it when cold ecery week & top it up as required. If you don't, the cooling system won't be as effective & can overheat when pushed - perhaps this is all that happened with yours?

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Too many cars, and too little time.

i think it may just be that i pushed it to hard on a hot day, i will get it flushed anyway.

okay so here it goes again

i tried to get the top cap off of the radiator to check the coolant etc

turns out now i cant even get it off, tried a couple of different people and it seems to be way tooooo tight

what do i do
any ideas on what i could use to get it off?

any tool you use to get it off will either destroy the cap, or tear the top off the radiator

take it to a mechanic - or someone who can sort it out without leaving you stranded with no radiator

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did I tell you that I won a trophy?

Are you able to rock the radiator cap from side to side? Usually the spring underneath will allow that sort of movement.

With regards to your overheating problem, I was wondering about the radiator cap. If the cap is not right, the pressure in the system won't be right. Inadequate pressure means lower boiling point for your coolant.

If you've only just got the car, I'd be changing the coolant & oil and giving everything the once over. Might as well grease your nipples too while you're at it.

the cap has no movement, doesnt feel like theres much of a spring at all in the way that it doesnt allow you to push the cap down to turn it at all
as if its stuck all the way down and just needs to be twisted open but theres NO movement at all