PLEASE HELP! Just bought 02 with probs

[Blue02]

I just bought a 2002 Mini Cooper S with 31k miles on it. The engine oil was low and I added 1 quart of 5w30 mobile 1 full synthetic and filled the tank with 91 octane fuel - that is the only thing I've done. It had sat for some time before I drove it.

The next morning after I bought it, it started but would not rev over 2k rpm and isn't driveable. It hesitates and sounds like it is missing on 1 or more cylinders. Check engine light is on, as well as a light at bottom of speedometer that I can't remember - maybe ML or EL or something like that. We did have a rain storm with very high winds that night and as i opened the hood, some water was inside it - indicating maybe the engine got wet? (I had a VW GTI that had micro cracks in the plug wires that couldn't be seen, it would run like this after a rainstorm)
The engine and sc sound ok (no grinding or any mechanically weird noises coming from the engine bay other than the rough idle.

Some thoughts I had were: bad wires/something wet... or maybe bad gas or fuel filter

I had to leave town so my new mini is sitting there dead in my driveway and buyer's remorse has set in completely.

Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I'm in Utah, just north of SLC.

Thanks,

Jason
*Dead* Electric Blue 2002 Mini Cooper S

[ALD0]

I'm not very mechanical with things like that but hope you get it sorted

[JAMIE1131]

Good news is the check engine light and EML light are on! that would suggest to me its something electrical and nothing major mechanical to be too worried about. If you can get the car to an Autozone they should be able to plug into a diagnostic connector and tell you what fault code is showing, when you get it post back on here.

[Blue02]

Great info thank you! There is an autozone about 3 miles from my house.

If I can't find a code reader for MINI locally, then maybe I'll try to get the car over to Autozone.

[Blue02]

UPDATE: Came home after the car has sat for 3 days untouched. Fired it up and it idles smooth and drives fine! Check engine light is still on but the EML light is not and it is definitely not missing on any cylinders now.

Has this happened to anyone?

[85NIXMIN]

Woarh that's weird...

[DaFlake]

Quote: Originally Posted by Blue02 (original)

UPDATE: Came home after the car has sat for 3 days untouched. Fired it up and it idles smooth and drives fine! Check engine light is still on but the EML light is not and it is definitely not missing on any cylinders now.

Has this happened to anyone?

Someone posted a while ago with the same type of issue and found out that it needed a software update. Might be worth going to the dealer to ask.

[British SD]

It could be anything but since you said it had sat put for a while, my wild wild guess is the guy had removed the flat battery to charge it up and when reconnected, it resets the ECU etc and needed to be driven a bit to get the setting calibrated again. But its just a guess and something that the dealer can read the code and give you more info on.

[rothbury]

Quote: Originally Posted by Blue02 (original)

UPDATE: Came home after the car has sat for 3 days untouched. Fired it up and it idles smooth and drives fine! Check engine light is still on but the EML light is not and it is definitely not missing on any cylinders now.

Has this happened to anyone?

Yes indeed sounds very much like my problem!
Type in "potentiometer" on the forum thread search and read
the posts of mine and Tim Crichton and Tara and Paul.
Best of luck