I bought an automatic R56 last week

it has 600 miles on it and i've pushed it a couple of times but not too often.

somtimes but not always at exactly 3000 RPM u can hear a buzz and then it goes away... the buzz is in the dash and is slightly annoying, does nay one else experience this? I was somewhat worried i blew a gasket or the turbo or something by pushing the car too hard during break in period.

also do most peoples engines make a fair bit of noise when sitting at a light? i do thing its a noisier engine then i'm used to but i've always driven V6's previously.. its sorta like what a v6 would sound like before its warmed up? kinda of clickity

Thoughts?
Thanks!!

 

Clicking sounds at idle -- fuel injectors, normal noise.

 

I thought MINI's were known for their buzz's, rattle's, and clank's... I've got a whole 300 miles on my MCS and already hear a few "speed-dependent" noises... I just hear them and grin as I accelerate through them.

Mark

 

The buzz in the dash sounds like something is loose and vibrates at a specific harmonic. I'd point it out to the dealer.

The ticking at idle is just the direct injection system. Normal noise.

 

Just hope your new MCS does not have issues like we have with our new MCSs.
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...d.php?t=121761

 

I've only got around 2500 miles on my R56S and I too hear a noise. Its like a turbo "groan"(?) when I accelerate in, say, 4th gear from a lower speed without shifting up. Not really a bad noise, but something I haven't heard before in a car. This is my first turbo charged car though. Anyway, I hear it consistanly in always the same rpm range, so I am to assume this is normal.

 

Hey Spurvis, Just got my car last week. Driving very conservatively during break-in and to keep mpg good. I get a funny whining, almost chirping, sound from the engine if I accelerate in a higher gear from a lower speed and rpms araound 2000. Is the answer I should be shifting higher? A friend noticed it as well, so its not just me. I've driven MT for a long time and it's not like the bucking you get sometimes when you should be shifting down. Any thoughts folks??

 

[FONT=Verdana]Boys and Girls, there are many, many opinions about breaking in a new motor. Most of them agree that high loads at low RPM's are not good - much worse then letting an engine spin up into the power band even if it briefly over runs the RPM's you're not supposed to exceed during break in.

If you're in the higher gears at 2000 RPM you're at too low an RPM to accelerate from - especially with a new engine, especially with a turbo.

I believe you should drive a new engine with some moderate gusto. Don't wail on it and wind it out under full acceleration and don't baby it around at minimum RPMs. Drive it spiritedly and use the gearbox to manage the RPMs.[/FONT]

My $.02.

 

Sounds like very good advice. I'll try it. Hope nothing is screwed up -- only 450 miles on the clock. If you don't mind my asking, at what rpms do you shift?

Thanks in advance.

 

Maybe I've been too afraid to "wind up" the rev band as I wanted to break in the engine properly. I'll take that advice and try to avoid "loading" the engine in higher gears. I'm guessing with over 2500 miles I can start to explore what this engine can really do. Watch out people!

 

You're fine at only 450 miles and at 2500 it will be "broken in" - although things inside the engine will continue to get acquainted and fully wear in up to about 10,000 miles - gas mileage may go up during this period also as that happens.

I would shift between 3k and 5k, particularly in the upper gears. 1st to 2nd can be around 3k or slightly less.

One of the things that is critical during the first 1k miles is establishing good sealing between the piston rings and the cylinder walls. The cylinders are honed with a crosshatch pattern at manufacture that provides a surface for the rings to wear against and seal tightly. Establishing a good seal with the rings before the honing is worn smooth is essential for optimum engine operation during its service life. One thing that aids this process is to occasionally use engine braking - running it up to 4k to 5k RPMs and then taking your foot fully off the gas and letting the engine slow the car back down to 2k RPMs, say as you go between stop lights on a short block or something. This reverse pressure on the rings is useful in helping them seal tightly.

A couple of things more if I'm not overstepping my bounds in this thread....

The engine is build stoutly to endure the rigors of super or turbo charging. That being said the boosting capability can heavily load bearings if applied at low RPMs, particularly the turbo charger as it can spin up independently of the engine RPM (unlike the supercharger which is driven by the engine and it's speed is constantly relative to RPM and only boosts intake manifold pressures after ~3k). This is more critical during break in - to not boost loads at low RPMs.

I believe you'd want to hold off on giving the engine a lot of throttle and getting a boost from the turbo until the engine was spun up a bit - maybe 3k or better, particularly in 4th or higher gears. The load on bearings is actually better managed by the engine in it's power band - roughly 3k to 6k RPMs for higher gears and ~2k to 6k for 1st and 2nd for the Mini. Too slow and high loads are not managed as smoothly by the engine, too fast and things are stressed by approaching the physical limits of the design and material.

Make no mistake - the engine will clearly operate outside these parameters of 3k to 6k RPM - but it is closer to the lower and upper operating parameters for this engine above and below that, and outside optimum operating conditions for most driving conditions.

HTH!

 

Wow interesting! I've also been breaking my car in and been shift at lower engine speeds so as not to stress it out. In fact, I'm often driving around in 6th gear when not on the highway. Sounds like I should be shifting at higher rpms so as not to stress the engine with the turbo kicking in at lower engine speeds on 4th-6th gears.

evillarry, for what it's worth, my car behaves exactly like yours down to the buzzing noises if I'm trying to accelerate in too high of a gear.

 

FYI, Took mine in. The chirping noise I heard is definitely out of the ordinary. The entire gearbox will be replaced in a couple weeks under warranty.

 

evillarry, the buzzing noise in my car is coming from the plastic around the center speedo. Try pushing forward pressure on it when you hear it next and see if it stops. I'll ask the dealer about this.