So my Super Cooper was garaged for few months since it broke down on the freeway.
Finally I got some time to take the head off and as expected, I see a piece broke off from the piston on Cyl#2
The broken piston caused scoring on the cylinder#2 walls as well. wanted to get some advise/opinion from you guys to see what my options are?

Car was making around 200 whp with few mods and a tune. With the damage, would a rebuild possible at all? The other options in mind are getting a used engine with ~ 60k miles for around $2000 or buy one of the performance engines from RMW, WMW etc witch is going to cost around $7500

 

That cylinder wall is the only real problem with a rebuild, and I'm guessing (there's no way to know for sure without good measuring) that it's too far gone. You can only go + 1.0mm over on Pistons and + .5 is really the "recommended" size for longevity.

It really depends on you and what you want.

If you were happy with 200 - 250 WHP range, then rebuilt stock or used is the way to go. It's well documented that, that HP range, is good for over 200k on a decently taken care of stock bottom end, so save your money for the required "go fast" bolt on parts, to make that happen.

If you want more, then open your wallet, and performance motor build it is.

 

Hi BlwnAway

Thank you for the reply and suggestions. I appreciate it
This car was my daily driver. It was indeed fun to drive and 200whp was plentiful for a daily beater. However, what happened to the piston worries me. So, I was more inclined to go to a rebuild with reinforced components and a Big Valve head. I was wondering if there is any significant cost/performance difference between a rebuild Vs a ready to go performance engine from RMW/WMW etc. With all the money and time invested in the car, I don't mind spending a bit more into it than shopping for another car

 

The advantage of a crate motor is synchronized race-ready components built by professionals. However, if all you're wanting is to get back to 200hp, you can get that from a used S motor with just a few mods for a lot less than $7,500.

 

For that damage it for sure looks like you'll need a complete engine.
We have a brand new JCW crate engine ready to go for a good price.
https://www.waymotorworks.com/john-c...53-engine.html

 

Make sure to only run premium fuel, as regular can cause this type of burn through.
I think a rebuild or replacement is in order!

 

You can get a crate JCW long block from the dealer for about 3500$ and it comes with 1yr unlimited mile warranty

 

Thank you all for the excellent suggestions. This forum is invaluable. I am so glad I posted it in here.

Wayne, I was using only premium fuel from the top tier retailers. Ever since I did all the mods and tune, I had a feeling that the engine kind of runs on steroids. It definitely makes a lot of power, but always felt like something was going to break, especially when I go on WOT occasionally. For instance, cylinder #2 spark plug shot out once. I had a shop do a time-sert to fix that. Then the header broke. Now the pistons. Not sure if this incident has anything to do with the time-sert, specifically any debris from the threading. Somehow this engine likes Cylinder#2 for some reason!

The JCW engine suggestion looks really interesting. Does anyone know if the JCW engine block is any better than the regular S block? I know the Cylinder head is different for the JCW, but not sure if the pistons, connecting rods, crankshaft etc are reinforced on the JCW compared to the regular S engine?

 

You have to take the engine out anyway. Take it to a machine shop and have it checked. If it can’t be bored out they might be able to sleeve it if that’s possible with these engines.

 

The block and bottom end internals are the same between the JCW and non-JCW engines, just the cylinder head and injectors are different in the engines themselves.

 

But the non S (Justa) have cast crank and rods! it would not be a good choice as a replacement block!

 

The only difference in the regular S and the JCW Long Block is that the JCW head has port work on the exhaust side of the head. BUT the big advance is there no difference in price, and if you spring for a set of JCW injectors when installing the engine you can go have the dealer put the 210 HP tune on the car.

 

Hi Guys , I found a used engine for my car with less that 100k miles

does these cylinder compression numbers look good ? I wonder how far these number goes on the R53 for a brand new engine. Also a difference of 5 to 10 between the cylinders acceptable ?

Cyl 1 160
Cyl 2 150
Cyl 3 155
Cyl 4 160

 

I believe 160 is normal. Approx. 6% or less difference in 2 and 3. I'd say that's a pretty good used motor given that everything else is kosher.

 

Thanks for the quick reply!

 

How many miles were on your motor when it gave up?

Also if you are up for the task, at my local Pull-A-Part I believe you can pull an entire 4 cylinder engine with accessories for under $250. The prices may vary where you live but I am definitely considering picking up an entire engine when I have more space for one. Seems like a great price for what you get!

Good luck with the swap!

 

Hi! Thanks for the reply and encouragement
Around 125k when the motor failed. Unfortunately, the engine I was looking for has been sold before I could pull the trigger, so I am back in the market

Are you talking about Junk yard motors?I live in Southern California. There are lot of junk yards here. Buying small parts here and there is fine, but it becomes a total gamble when buying engine, transmission etc. Can't trust their mileage reporting, no test data etc

 

Yes I was talking about junk yard motors. I understand about the mileage concerns. Maybe for a good core to tear down and rebuild at home the junk yard route would be worthwhile, but for a drop in ready to go motor it may not be the best option.

I have not bought anything from here but it may be worth investigating a bit more since it seems like they have a few engines for sale: https://www.allmagautoparts.com/coll...ini-cooper/r53

 

The compression is fine. Your testing method needs to be precise, if you need an exact number. 20 lbs difference between cylinders is fine.

 

The melted piston is caused in most cases by a lean mixture on full throttle.It is possible that the moded software of your car may be wrong.Still using it you have the chance to melt a piston again.I can help you ,if you have the mod file to take a look on your sw mod.I can tell you if is a good mod or not.Many tuners make the mistake of reducing the values of spark advance on base spark map without properly changing the amount of fuel injected, result, lean mixture and melted pistons.

 

This is an excellent point to discuss: who tuned your car?

Edit: I see RMW in your sig. I guess that's that, as it's not allowed to debate the quality of that company's products around here from what it seems.

 

Hi, Sorry for the late reply. been very busy last few days. Your absolutely right. If I have time, I will definitely go in the rebuild route. Actually, I wanted to rebuild the engine just like Modmini did it in his video, but I for now drop in ready is all I can afford, time wise

Thanks for the link! I think I have seen those engine elsewhere, not sure ebay or car-part.com. I like the way they test engine. Not many shops do that

 

Thank you! Now I know what to look for when searching for engine

 

Hi adriancl and veedubpat

Excellent point!. However, I don't want to blame the tuner in this case for these reasons:
1) Tuner warned me of a lean condition at WOT, He recommended replacing the fuel pump and filer and I did. The car ran fine for years. I drove at least 60k + miles with the tune with no problem (well, except a cylinder#2 spark plug shoot out which is not too rare on the R53)
2) a few month before the engine failure, car had a bunch of issues: EML light CEL etc related to throttle body vacuum line etc. while troubleshooting I found the vacuum line to the fuel pressure regulator came off from the intake manifold . That is another suspect for the lean condition at WOT. I am not sure if it was like that when the tuning was done years ago. I fixed the vacuum line issue and all went well for few weeks
3) the last issue was my own creation! I cleaned the Alta air filter and oiled it. A bit too much oil than what the R53 likes. That caused the oil to get into the pre-cat and melted it, causing an exhaust block and subsequently limiting the revs below 5k rpm. I was so frustrated with the power loss and it took a while for me to find out what actually was the culprit. I was so happy after fixing the pre-cat issue; took it for a ride to see if the car can do 7500 rpm under load and it did, but I went too long on the WOT either 3rd of 4th gear on an uphill and here I am.

So the real question is, with a perfect tune, can this motor handle WOT with load for prolonged time?

 

It can, but I would use a set of forged pistons and better rods!!