Service Reset: 2000-2022 Mini Hardtop Oil Light (R50/R53/R56/F55/F56)

Okay, everybody, so what I’m going to do is want to take you through these quick steps on how to reset the oil service light on Mini Hardtop R50/R53/R56/F55/F56. This will be my first go at it. I did a little research on how to do it.

Please note there are minor variations between the different models, but they should all be roughly the same. So let’s go ahead and get started.

How To Reset Oil Light On Mini R50 (2000-2006)

Started production in late 2000 and uses a 1.6-liter tri-tech engine, the Mini R50 has a top speed of around 112 miles per hour. In this section, I’m going to show you how to reset the oil service light on your Mini R50 (2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006). So here’s the way to reset it:

• With ignition off, we press and hold the TRIP button and then turn the key to position one until we get 51A

• Then what we do is we press it again and hold it like so and then we should get RST to appear
• Now we just let go and press it again and that should reset to the next service

Mini Hardtop R53/R56 Service Light Reset (2006-2013)

This is the second generation of the Mini Hardtop with the code R53/R56 (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013). There is a new method of resetting the oil light compared to the previous version. So the reset can be done as follows:

• Take your key and put it ignition press the START button once
• Now you’ll go ahead and hold the 0,0 button right here until the service item appears 

• From there you can flip through all the different services but for the oil, you’ll just go over to the left stock here and press the BC button to find the Engine Oil

• Once you get there hold it again and it will ask you to reset 
• Finally, hold it one more time and you’re done

Mini F55/F56 Oil Service Reset Guide (2014-2022)

The new Mini’s (2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022) service reminder may be reset in two ways. Please follow the guidelines below based on the trim model of your car.

With Digital Dash

With Analog Dash

• Start by pressing the START ignition button in the center console, which activates the ignition switch and has you up and running in no time
• After that, I’m going to hold down the TRIP button for about six to seven seconds, till we see whether a Reset Possible message appears

• We are now only looking for a menu choice and oil can symbol that corresponds to Engine Oil by pressing the button briefly
• Then I’m going to hold it down again and see whether it asks for a RESET? after we get there
• Hold the button down one more time, and the message “Reset succeeded” will show

A Bit About Engine Oil

I thought I would add a bit of information regarding engine oils as I found it all to be a bit confusing with those numbers and w’s.

Oil has many jobs to do. It doesn’t just lubricate but also takes heat away from the hot spots and then cools in the sump before doing the rounds again. It also helps add a seal around the pistons keeping some pressure on the cylinders. The moving parts in an engine also have slight gaps, and the oil effectively creates a wedge preventing metal against metal contact and thus wear.

So to the numbers on our oil container, which were SAE 5w-30 and the SAE stands for the Society of Automotive Engineers that came up with the rating system.

The 5w is the viscosity of the oil in ‘W’inter as oil becomes thick when cold, making starting the engine difficult with all that drag of viscous oil.

The original A series mini was 20w, but this was fine as the tolerance inside the older engine was bigger.

The 30 represents the viscosity of the oil at an average rated temperature. Again this figure was higher for the original mini, which had a thickness of 50.

In the old days, the oil might have been changed from a winter grade to a summer grade, but this is no longer done as we have multi-grade oils covering both circumstances.

What is the best engine oil for a Mini Cooper?

Not all motor oils are made equal when it comes to caring for your MINI Cooper’s engine. Synthetic oil is necessary for your MINI, as well as other high-end European vehicles. It’s possible to get synthetic lubricants that are specifically designed for your MINI and suggested by the manufacturer themselves.

Specifically, what kind of engine oil should I use in my Mini Cooper? You should go for MINI High-Performance Synthetic 5W-30 Oil since it’s what MINI uses during a regular oil change and is even mentioned with other items for the car.

Some alternative synthetic oils, such as Castrol Syntec European Formula SAW 0W-30, Mobil 1 SAE 0W-40, Pennzoil Platinum EUFULSA 5w30, or Valvoline SynPower SAE 5W-30, are MINI approved if you cannot use the MINI Cooper oil mentioned.

So that’s it from me for today. Feel free to get in touch if you need anything else. I hope to meet you again soon. Goodbye for the time being.