Oil Leak

Just discovered a small leak on the passenger side of the engine compartment. I does not seem to be more than a few drops when it sits overnight from the drive home. However, some of the frame / suspension members are coated with a light film of fluid and dirt.

I cannot locate the source of the leak. I cannot jack the car up to get a good look under it, so visability is limited. I am not even sure whether it is engine oil, transmission oil, brake fluid or what. Checked all fluids and they looked good.

Has anyone experienced a leak like this? I am going to call my service department tomorrow to ask them. Problem is they are two and 3/4 hours away from me. Not a very extensive dealer network yet.

[Xrayman]

I just noticed an oil leak on my 2 day old car. How did your problem work out? What was the cause and was the fix simple?

[rayasp]

IT COULD WELL BE THAT YOU HAVE THE SAME FAULT ON YOUR CAR WHICH I HAD ON MY BRAND NEW MINI- A LEAKING POWER STEERING PUMP,IF SO A BRAND NEW UNIT FITTED UNDER WARRANTY IS THE ONLY CURE.

[Xrayman]

Rayasp,
The fluid is bright red and clearly not motor oil or brake fluid. Was this the color of your fluid leak?

[rayasp]

AS FAR AS I CAN RECALL THE FLUID FROM THE POWER STEERING PUMP WAS NOT RED IN COLOUR-MY LEAK HAD THE SAME DETAILS AS FRAIL HAS DESCRIBED.
HOPE THIS IS OF SOME HELP,
RAYASP.

It's just a small leak. More of a seep really. Took the car to a lube shop and had it up on a rack. Certainly didn't change the oil or touch anything that only the highly trained MINI mechanics are trained and qualified to deal with. Pardon the sarcasm.

It appears to be an oil pan gasket that didn't seat quite right. I will put dye in it before I take it in for servicing so the MINI guys can find the actual source. So far I am monitoring the leak and the fluid levels. Nothing appears to be alarming.

Just completed a 600 mile trip and none of the fluids seemed to have gone down. At this point I am not too worried about it. Really, if the car did this the rest of it's life, I wouldn't care much about it. It would take something much worse than this to get my MINI away from me.

[Xrayman]

The red fluid leaking from my CVT is transmission fluid. I will take it in tomorrow for repair although this will be the first Mini the dealership has worked on since the service is being performed in the adjacent BMW dealership and the MINI dealership service is not yet running.

I'm doubtful this will be easily solved.