Just bought an '07 MCS manual and been chasing a P2188 code and rough idle, limp mode, etc. that the dealer morons can't figure out. I picked up an ELM 327 reader and am using Torque on an old android phone to scan/reset the P2188. I noticed that the coolant temp seems excessively high when driving, around 220. It drops down to 195 after idling for a while, has good heat and no other cooling system symptoms besides what torque is telling me. Is torque accurate? What temps are other people seeing using this program? Sure would be nice to have a temp gauge...

 

220 is normal operating temp for the r56. I test drove a car I fixed at the shop with my snap-on scanner pulling live data it reported 220 as well. How many miles are on your car

 

It has 95,000 on it. So far I've replaced a leaky valve cover gasket, replaced a leaking turbo oil line with one I pieced together at Summit racing, and run a bottle of techron through it. The timing chain is quiet and tight, and the guides looked good with the valve cover off. The light isn't coming on anymore but sometimes the P2188 will show as pending and the car still accelerates like it has a miss and/or goes into limp mode. If I clear the pending codes (even if there are none) it will come out of limp mode...

 

Temps seem normal IMO.

P2188 System too rich at idle, bank 1

 

You also might need a walnut blasting.

 

Was going to try to seafoam thru the rear PVC next. What gets walnut blasted? Cylinder head? Valves?

 

The valves. This is a known issue that can cause lots of issues.

 

Specifically, the intake ports and the back side of the valves. The part that's in the combustion chamber does not get touched.

 

A little late to the party, but another data point about operating temp.

Just finished a 2300+ mile road trip in my 2012 MCS with Garmin EcoRoute OBD thingy xmitting to my nuvi. Consistently 225 most of the time the whole way.

I have no issues, runs fine, 33mpg, etc.

FWIW.

 

My JCW runs 225.

 

Thanks for all the info on the temp, at least there's something to put my mind at ease. As far as the carbon on the valves that makes sense and is obviously a problem with the R56s. I got to thinking about the car that I replaced with the mini, a Jetta TDI. Although a diesel, it was also direct injected, had a crappy pcv system that put oil into the intake, and had an even crappier egr system that clogged the intakes badly before the ULSD fuel became mandatory a few years ago. Since using ULSD fuel, and turning down the EGR in the ECU, it hasn't clogged up again and has almost 300k on it. Does anyone think that the detergents in the diesel oil makes a difference? I was already thinking of using the same Rotella T6 that I used in the Jetta from seeing how dirty the inside of the valve cover is compared to my ancient VW and now with this carbon buildup I'm totally leaning that direction. Has anyone had luck using this or another diesel type motor oil?