Greetings all! Last month I bought my wife a 2010 MCS and while searching craigslist for some parts for her I found a dirt cheap 2005 MCS that "needs work". I blindly jumped at it and have gone from nothing to a 2 mini family in short order. I am not a mechanic but I am no stranger to pulling motors, heads, cam swaps, etc, I think you get the idea. The minute I got the car home I think I may have worn out google searching all over the web for info on these cars and the issues that they have. Most of the informative bits that I found were all on this forum hence why I am now posting this here.

Now on to the issues with my little problem child:

I was able to get the most recent service record from the dealership and their recommendation (please see attached images). In addition to the info contained in the images I have heard/observed the following:

1) The person I bought it from got the car with 12k miles and commuted on the highway with it until the 186k mile mark where I bought it.

2) Car has never been modded

3) Car starts and runs without an obvious mis and seems to make good power although I haven't pushed it at all.

4) Car will need a water pump (coolant leak) according to the dealer.

5) No visible smoke of any color from hot or cold start, accel, decel, etc.

6) Runs pig rich to the point that your eyes burn if it is in the garage.

7) Service engine light it on solid as opposed to flashing as the previous owner told the dealer.

I thought I had found the problem when I started reading about the carbon buildup issues until I realized that the R53 is not direct injected. I have not been able to get the dealer to return my calls regarding their diagnosis as they only mention compression numbers and made no notes about a leak down test on their report yet somehow they seem to have it narrowed down to exhaust valves (see images).

If you have any experience with a similar issue please chime in or help me decide on a the steps to diagnose this issue. I have planned on picking up a cylinder leak detector and a borescope to help with this. Unfortunately I won't be able to touch the car for a few weeks since I am in the middle of a move so at this point I am trying to get my ducks in a row so that when I have some free time again I will be prepared.

 

I figured I would attach a picture of the offending party:

 

Pull a code? Odb2 readers are cheap..as little as $40..but some auto parts stores loan them....
Till we know the code...it is all guess...but based on what the dealer paperwork says...
looks like a compression test was done...but no leak down....this would confirm a valve issue without removing the head....

 

Thanks Zippy, since the dealer read the codes as P0302, P0303 and P2096 I assumed that this would cover it. I bought the car 3 days after this job was invoiced at the dealer. Do you think I would need to pull them again?

 

Well, cylinder #3 compression is low...110...but sometimes dealers Skip to the most $$$ solution to be sure they get the issue fixed on the first try....the fact it is saying misfire #2 also..150 PSI means I might look more closely before assuming the worst...I would loo at the plugs, and coil, and wires...lets face it..often overlooked...maybe do my own compression check....
the p2096..could be a cause of effect of the misfire I guess...but would still look around.
An another board, there is a guy selling NEW r53 heads for abut $900...seems to have worked at a dealer and has a bunch that have "delivery miles", so assuming they were off cars dealer converted to JCW....Motoring alliance or MA is the site .com, but it can be blocked here...is a shame....very complementary!

 

With those numbers and 186k on it you almost certainly need a valve job. My wife's '03 Cooper needed one ad a lower mileage (just over 100k) so a fellow club member helped me do it. I would advise getting the $75 chain holder/head removal tool on eBay and have a go at it. We had ours rebuilt for way under $900 but we only needed one valve.

Val

 

Thanks Zippy, I'll pull the codes myself and see if anything has changed. I can also try and reset them and see if the same exact codes come back or if they change at all. Thanks for the tip on the heads, I will look into those if/when it comes to that.

Val, good to know thanks. Just curious, what was wrong with the valve that needed replaced and what symptoms did you have that you needed the head rebuilt?

Thanks!

 

Tiny update (I mean tiny) on my issues with this car. I haven't had any time to mess with it so it has basically been parked since I bought it. I spent a few minutes poking around under the hood with a flashlight the other day and found that there is a what appears to be a second crankcase breather line that is connected directly to the intake tube. I am not talking about the PCV that is on the passenger side of the engine as this was on the drivers side. I reconnected it (it was a pain in the behind to get to). Now when I start the car it runs normal for about 10 to 15 seconds and then stumbles for a few seconds, nearly to the point of stalling, and then recovers and runs fine. Any ideas how or if this is related to any of my other issues and are there any ideas why it stumbles now?

Thanks!