The 3 bleed valves on Cooper/One:
In the radiator top hose (left).
In coolant pipe at the right hand front corner of the cylinder head near thermostat housing/filler cap.
The 3rd heater hose bleed valve is beneath the battery tray.

(Cooper S owners should note the MCS does not have the 3rd heater hose bleed valve like the One and Cooper have beneath battery tray and their battery is in boot/trunk!).

Yes filler cap in your photo is correct place to fill from.
"The pressure/filler cap for the cooling system on the Cooper/One is not on the expansion bottle, that is only a flip-off cap. The pressure/filler cap is at the gearbox end of the engine, between the cam cover and the air filter intake hose. It has (or should have) a yellow warning sticker about not opening when hot. It is sometimes difficult to open as it has the spring for pressuring the system, press it down and rotate anti clockwise. Fill the coolant here, then top up the expansion tank to the correct level. Turn the heater control to hot and run the engine, topping up the coolant as it circulates and the air comes out. Open the bleed valves and let the air out until coolant flows, then close the valves. When you're happy that the system is bled, turn off the engine and put filler cap back on. Make sure the level in the expansion bottle is correct."

 

I can't find the second you you mentioned.
I even found a picture of it from North American Motoring .com
but I can't find where it is.
Would you be so kind to point it out on the picture?

The 3 bleed valves on Cooper/One:
In the radiator top hose (left).
In coolant pipe at the right hand front corner of the cylinder head coming from thermostat housing/filler cap.
The 3rd heater hose bleed valve is beneath the battery tray.

(Cooper S owners should note the MCS does not have the 3rd heater hose bleed valve like the One and Cooper have beneath battery tray and their battery is in boot/trunk!).

 

I am taking a look at the right hand front corner of the cylinder head,
see if I can find it...

 

I think I found it. Exact like the one in the second picture.
Thanks for the direction. Otherwise I would not be able to find it.
But it is impossible to reach. What tool do I need to reach it?

 

I am going to Autozone now. Hope they will find a correct tool for me.
mab01uk, if you have any suggestion plz let me know. I will be checking the forum on the go.

 

I was able to remove the plastic cover that is in the way.
Now I can get to it with a long nut driver.
I will try 8mm first. Hope they are not using 5/16" for minis sold in the US.

 

Now after bleeding with temp at max and fan at low, put everything back. I can't start the engine.

Battery seems to be working, lights are one. But I saw a "Ep" on the panel, meaning error?

when I try to start I just hear knocking under the hood, not just clicking, but louder. Like every half second.

What can I do to fix this? If I can't find a fix for this, I　might need to take it to the garage...Darn. And my wife is going to kill me...

 

Bleeding the cooling system should have no effect on engine starting.........
See below is your battery fully charged?

I am guessing you have a CVT auto transmission?

Seen this quote below on the CVT part of Mini2 forum for the EP error code:

"When your Mini “goes into Limp Mode” your CVT is fine, don’t buy a new one. It probably is a weak battery that trips the default codes. That is what the EP warning in place of the “D” “SD” or “1’ on the instrument panel means (End of Program = EP) ."

 

Battery seems to be fine. I can still move the windows.
I have a CVT. I will check the connections to the CVT.

 

I am no expert on CVT but many Mini2 posts (see links below) seem to relate sudden CVT 'EP' (Emergency Program?) error codes to battery voltage problems. I suggest you charge or replace your battery especially if more than 5-7 years old or at least have it tested. Modern cars like the Mini with many electronic modules controlling things like power steering, cvt functions, etc, need a battery in top condition to maintain power. Running your heater fans, etc while bleeding may have perhaps discharged an already weak battery.....despite it still being able to power windows, etc.

http://www.mini2.com/forum/first-generation-faults-fixes/186817-mini-cooper-cvt-problem-solved.html

http://www.mini2.com/forum/first-generation-cvt-automatic/166304-cvt-problems.html

 

mab01uk, I think you are right. The code went away. The clicking (knocking went away), the display went away, the window won't move anymore, door locks are weaker. All signs show a weaker and weaker battery.
I am taking a battery charger/starter to jump start it.
Will update.
It the battery if the cause, then it is probably the time to get a new one then? It is seven years old.

 

mab01uk is so right. It was because the seven year old battery went wrong during the bleeding. What made it difficult to diagnose was that the battery did not die, so I could still see lights and words the panel, windows were moving, radio was working. It made me think the battery was ok. But, like mab01uk said, the battery need to be much stronger to start the car, and my battery was obviously not. I put in a new Interstate battery.

I can't thank mab01uk enough. It is people like you who make the forum so valuable to Mini owners.

One side question, what is the pipe connect to the battery for? The outlet on the Interstate was at a different place and my mechanics had to add an extension pipe.

 

The small pipe is just to allow the battery to breathe or vent any excess gas to outside the car when fitted in an enclosed space.

Glad your Mini is back to normal, the original battery at 7 years old would definitely have been near the end of its useful working life.

How are your original problems now since bleeding?
ie. engine overheat and no heat in cabin.

 

Hi Guys, I have the same problem ....bleeding coolant after servicing at BMW. Can I get some suggestion what I should do?

It started with engine overheat, BMW want to charge me $1500(AUD) for a new thermostat to fix it I refuse and took the MINI back.....now the car is running normally with no overheating but the coolant is bleeding slowly (lose about 200ml every night) and so I keep topping it up at the reservoir daily.

Any suggestion what I can do to stop the bleeding? anyway I can stop these BMW guys from ripping me off?