I had my chain tensioner replaced a couple of weeks ago. I didn't really have a problem, but with 88,000+ on the clock, a pending move to another state, and a slight increase in noise that a few people said they could differentiate from the normal direct injection "knock," I decided it would better done now.

The dealer mechanics said the reason we lasted so long without trouble was because of regular oil changes--more often than BMW's standards. They told me the cars that had troubles early on often presented for oil changes with only a quart or two in the system. Some of those cars came in with serious engine damage, too. Sacrilege!

Honestly, I think this is a case where being older (62), and experienced with more demanding cars helps. "Back in the day" we changed oil every 3,000 miles, along with constant fiddling with other things--points, carbs, and the like. Now that there are synthetics, you don't have to do stuff as often (and points & carbs no longer exist!), but I've never believed in a 15,000 mile service interval. And I think younger owners of all marques are so used to thinking of cars as reliable appliances that they just aren't in tune what they need for long life. It helps that we plan on keeping our cars for long periods--the BMW 325i I owned before getting my MINI was 13 years old, with 190,000 miles when we sold it--still reliable. It was regularly seen in the parking lot where my husband worked (sold to a fellow employee), until hubby retired. It's probably still there.

 

Good morning,

You can add my name to the list, i just called my mini dealer in Canada (mini Ottawa east) to book an appointment to get my car looked at. the cars idle is quite unstable. this all started recently when the temperature was below 20(Celsius)

The service adviser told me they would have to get a diagnostic done on the car and if the hpfp is defective it should be covered by the extended warranty mini issued for the US and also Canada.

The car gave me a code in the summer time P0442(minor evap leak?) if i remember and it stopped coming back once it began to get cold. this morning the car gave me a different code P1638 (throttle valve position control; throttle stuck temporarily) once i tried turning the car off and then starting it again.

I will keep you guys updated on my situation, it should be going in Thursday next week.

I uploaded a video of my car acting up on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htfTZ...ature=youtu.be

 

Mine was a Code 2773: combustion misfire cylinder 1. Treatment options were a) replace fuel pump under warranty or b) remove carbon.

Dealer Service invoice: Remove intake manifold and decarbonize valves with special tool for the bargain price of $625. Yes, I run a gas additive though the tank every 4-5 weeks and only use high octane.

 

THANK YOU for posting that video, bOv1n!

My car is doing this; it's at a mechanic and throwning throttle faults. Ugh. Sounds expensive. I'll go back and reread this thread more closely to get an idea of cost.

I have a 2009 MCS

 

Yeah I just had mine done about two months ago. Mine was having a hard time idling upon cold start and my fuel mileage went through the floor. I also got the flashing check engine light. MINI replaced it at no charge and warrants that specific part for 120K miles not sure about km. I'm sure just a straight conversion though. Get it done soon if you can you'll get your car back to life HAHA.....good luck.

 

So the dealership called me back, apparently there is something wrong with my intake manifold and they need to replace it with a new version of it and do a carbon clean up... they also noticed the oil line going to the turbo is leaking and will have to replace that. all that work will cost me $1591 w/tx... lets just hope that all is well after this.

 

I heard from the shop today (not a MINI dealer, but a local place that works on MINIs and can read the codes, etc) and they said it's the coolant sensor. Hm. In another few months, I'll have replaced all of the car's components. HAHHAAH! Okay, so not really, but that's how it's beginning to feel...

 

my HPFP was replaced under warranty at around 3k miles.

 

FYI, the Turbo oil feed line is prone to leaking. The OEM replacement will probably leak again based on what I read. I'm getting mine replaced at Detroit Tuned in a few weeks. The dealer wanted $2100 to replace both the feed and return lines and a Valve Gasket. $600 at DetroitTuned.

 

I blew a turbo when the bearings overheated due to inadequate oil. They should at least check the play in the impellers of the turbo, which isn't hard.

 

Mini Ottawa east charged me $596.23 for the feed pipe replacement. they also added a little heat shield it says here to prevent the oil from hardening and cause oil starvation to the turbo... i asked them if any damage was done if it was leaking badly, they said it was just starting and this was preventive measures so that it would not damage the turbo and everything is ok now. While i was returning home i noticed the car is making some weird noise on take offs like a clunking sounds. taking it back on Monday.

They also replaced the intake manifold for my idling problem. this is what it says on the work order: codes set for throttle body, suspect high moisture content in oil being sent to throttle via pcv system and icing up causing throttle plate to freeze up. remove and replace complete intake manifold with new updated design with multiports for pcv. manifold was 355$ labor is 4 hours to a total of $835.38.

got to love winter!


*** UPDATE ***

The noise was an AC hose hitting then engine because it was loose. They just reattached it properly and all is well now. I think my engine sounds better now with this new intake manifold but that might be psychological.

Thanks for the moral support and comments :P.

 

Count me in...I had the carbon cleanout with walnut shells done last week but I still had the sputtering. I went to East Bay Mini this morning and the advisor told me the I need a high pressure fuel replacement, and he said it had been replaced before. That means was replaced under warranty when the car had less then 13K on it. What the heck? It gets better, the previous dealer tech had cross threaded one of the mounting holes so now the dealer has to deal with that issue. It appears I will be driving a loaner "Countryman" for a couple of days.

I have until April on my warranty. Hmmm what to do next.

 

Interesting. This has been done twice? How many miles do you have now on your car?

I'd be interested in hearing what brand and grade of fuel you use. I assume you've had to use ethanol exclusively (I now do, too), but I haven't had near the problems so many people have had. The one time I had a serious "miss," and assumed the fuel pump was at fault, it actually turned out to be plugs and a coil, which Hubby was easily able to do himself for $250, including parts and the original diagnostics. We were also advised to have the walnut shell blasting at that time, but we decided to hold off. After all, we could always do it later if the electrical items weren't enough to fix the problem. Turns out, I've had no further problems, and saved over $1000 by not having it done!

I run 93 octane Shell almost exclusively, with an occasional fill of another top-tier 93 fuel when I can't get Shell. No cheap gas ever, and I can't think of a time when I couldn't get 93. I do think it makes a difference. My car has 89,000+ miles on it, and just turned 6 years old. Still have the same fuel pump, too.

Oh, and I regularly put my foot in it. Still get over 30 mpg, so I don't feel to bad about driving in a "spirited" manner.

 

I presently have 30K on the MINI. I purchased it with 13 K on it. I used exclusively Chevron or Shell. Sometimes Union 76. All premium gas. I don't recall seeing 93 octane, more like 91..it is a California thing. Even the advisor said they have had problems with the fuel pump.

 

Yes, the fuel pump is a known trouble-spot, but I was more interested in the fact that you'd had the walnut shell blasting. BMW/MINI is recommending this for missing, as a kind of standard protocol. Based on my own experience and my conversation with the dealer manager, I have to wonder how often it is really necessary.

 

I think it depends what codes show up during the diagnostic. I must have had the code 666 because the advisor said I needed the walnut shell treatment.

 

The stock map is only tuned to take advantage of 91 octane, anything more is just wasted money unless you're tuned specifically for it.

 

My MINI went "pop" the other night on the way to dinner and then started stumbling and reeking of sulfur (had a tailwind). I was only few hundred yards from the meeting place, so continued on. Checked under the hood when I pulled in, but saw no obvious sign of failure.

After dinner, the car was hard to start, strong smell of unburned gasoline coming out the exhaust, and the CEL came on. It ran (rough), so I decided to drive the ten miles back home very carefully (oxymoron?), having to 'heel-and-toe' at every turn/stop to keep the engine running. Used about two gallons of gas to travel the tens miles (no smell of raw gas, just extremely rich mixture).

I'm 5 weeks out of warranty (33K on the odo), and 40 miles from my dealer, but I called them and they said don't drive it, but have it towed. Sure enough, it was the HPFP, and it's covered. I've asked them to reimburse me for the $200 towing charge, and my SA said he'd ask, but probably not. If not, then I'll pursue MINI USA on that point.

 

Good luck

 

My SA just called. Still throwing fault codes and misfiring after HPFP replaced. The car needs the walnut shell treatment because of carbon build-up. Not covered with the HPFP extended warranty. My argument is the car was running fine (and didn't throw any fault codes or misfires two months ago when it was still under full warranty) until the the pump failed, and 10+ miles of gas being dumped into the intake has caused the excessive carbon build-up.

We'll see where this goes.

 

666. That must have been the sulfur I smelled.

 

bought my 08 mcs this past sunday had a cold start issue the very next day got it into the dealer and had multiple misfire codes stored replaced the hpfp and all is well covered by mini...car just turned 42k

 

Well that answers that, there are two fuel pumps in the MCS. I've not yet suffered any performance issues yet, but the fuel pump in my gas tank isn't loud or anything but can be heard in the drivers seat (sounds like little jet engine) with the door open. I can hear the pump located in the gas tank even more when you stick your head on the ground, question is should I hear it at all? Maybe it's on it's way out?

Here's a video recording of the motor sounds, in the beginning you'll hear a high pitched squeal. At 50 seconds into the video you'll hear the motor actually spinning. it almost sounds like a mini Black & Decker vacuum.

 

What am I doing wrong, there's aways two videos of the same! There's something strange about this forum because it doesn't happen at my computer forums, it just doesn't work the same here.

 

I've had the same problem (with videos). Some of the other forums I'm on that use vBulletin don't allow video posting. Maybe this is why (and yet, other users here are able to post them).