How Do I Know if My Mini Cooper’s Head Gasket is Blown?
Blowing a head gasket in your car is never an enjoyable experience. If you drive a Mini Cooper, the repairs can be complicated and the issues can even sometimes extend to other parts of your car. While this might seem like a catastrophe, the best thing to do is to stay calm and contact a professional car mechanic.
If you are driving and think you have a blown head gasket, it is best to pull over at the next safe location or park your car at home until towing it to a trusted mechanic’s garage. For those Mini Cooper drivers facing blown head gaskets and other mechanical issues in the greater Tewksbury, New Jersey area, Oldwick Village Garage is here for all of your vehicle repair needs. To learn more about how to know whether your Mini Cooper has blown a head gasket, continue reading below.
The Importance of Your Head Gasket
Your car’s head gasket is one of the most important parts of your Mini Cooper. Made with the purpose of sealing the firing pressure of your cylinder, your head gasket also does the following:
- prevents coolant and a/c leaks
- keeps the fluids in your car from mixing together and combusting
- keeps engine oil from dripping out of your car or leaking under your hood
- keeps your car’s cylinders clean and functioning properly
- helps your engine run smoothly
How Does Your Head Gasket Work?
Your head gasket’s purpose is also to keep your car’s coolant, A/C fluid, and oil from mixing together. The head gasket is the metal part placed firmly in between the engine block of your vehicle and the head of the cylinder. The job of your vehicle’s head gasket is to seal in your car’s main process of the internal combustion. Sealing in this combustion is essentially what helps to get your engine started and to keep your car running. So if this important component is broken, it can lead to trouble for your engine and other systems.
Important Signs of a Blown Head Gasket
In order to know if your Mini Cooper has a blown head gasket, there are a few important signs to note. If you think that your car’s head gasket might be blown, the best course of action is to stop driving. Driving your car with a blown head gasket can result in irreplaceable damage to both your cylinders and your engine.
The most obvious symptoms of a blown head gasket are when:
- there is thick white smoke with a burning smell coming out of your car’s tailpipe
- there is white or gray smoke coming out from under the hood of your car
- you smell burning inside the cabin of your car
- you hear a bubbling sound coming from your radiator
- your air conditioning and/or heat stop functioning properly
- the coolant reservoir is making strange bubbling and gurgling noises
- your car is experiencing loss of coolant without having any noticeable leaks
- your oil has become white or milky in appearance
- your engine is overheating, stalling, or starting slowly
- there are leaks of oil or fluid when parked for only short amounts of time
- you hear a strange rumbling sound when driving at high speeds
Oldwick Village Garage Can Help
At Oldwick Village Garage in Tewksbury, NJ, we can help with all your Mini Cooper repair needs. We pride ourselves in providing the best service for 
both European and Exotic cars. Our ability to fix anything from vintage vehicles to modern high-end luxury models sets us apart from the rest. If you feel that your head gasket may be in need of repair, please do not hesitate to contact us. Trust your instincts and speak to one of our technicians today.
We have a library of factory service manuals and individual factory diagnostic computers for Porsche, Mercedes, BMW, Mini Cooper, Volkswagen, Audi, Bentley, Rolls Royce, Jaguar, and Range Rovers. This allows us to be equipped and ready for any type of vehicle repair.
Specializing in engine block repair and transmission renewal, our customer-first attitude will leave you feeling safe and secure in your Mini Cooper vehicle. Call us today or visit our website to schedule your vehicle’s head gasket repair or regular maintenance service.