I have an '09 Justa Cooper and suddenly it doesn't like the first start of the day. It'll crank 2-5 times before the engine finally slowly starts. After this, it's totally fine. All of the power is present, fuel economy is still excellent, the naturally aspirated engine still sounds throaty and beautiful, and even if I shut it off and let it get cold again it'll still start up just fine for the rest of the day.

While cranking, there's an obvious smell of unburnt fuel from the exhaust so I'm changing the spark plugs today to see if that does it.

I couldn't find any information on this, as anything I've found is only relevant to the MCS. The Justa doesn't have direct injection according to the Wikipedia page on the naturally aspirated version of the engine, so carbon buildup shouldn't be an issue.

 

Does it still have the original battery? First thing I'd look at.

 

It has an OEM battery, but I bought the car last year so I have no idea if it's original. The previous owners took immaculate care of it, so I'd be surprised if it was the original.

Good idea though, if the spark plugs don't do the trick I'll look into the battery next.

 

About the right age for a bad battery....most batteries last 4-6 years, sometimes longer with light use otlr garage storage preventing big temp swings, or if a trickle charger is used in periods of low use...
Hard starting in the cold makes sense...
Before spending $$, I would drive it to a auto parts store, and have the battery checked...
Free in most cases...bet voltage is a bit low....maybe an open cell, but since the car still can be cranked for a bit, bet the ampage/capacity is OK.....still junk.
If you have a multimeter you can check the voltage, car off after it sits a few minutes....bet it is only 10.5 or so volts...a good 12v battery should read 13.5 or so...if below 12 or maybe 11.5 it is on the way out...
Some r56 gen2 cars must have the battery "regerstered" meaning the computer told the capacity and age reset, cause the computer calculates if auto start (enabled or not) could be used.....a few tricks to tell if YOUR car needs the battery "regerstered", other folks should chime in.

 

So, I think that *may* have been the problem, which may be a huge understatement. I have no mechanical knowledge of how my MINI was still running.

The old spark plugs had gaps at least twice as large as the new plugs (same model) and here's the ridiculous part: cylinder 3's spark plug had come loose. I popped open cylinder 3's spark plug well and unlike the other 3 shiny wells, this one was totally pitch black. It's coated in black crap, burnt fuel no doubt, and I have no idea how the coil pack wasn't melted or somehow damaged.

After I got all of that replaced (and cylinder 3's coil pack wiped off) it started up better than it ever has before. We'll see how it does after sitting through the night, but I have high hopes.

 

maybe the black crap was a small oil leak where the o ring is sealing the spark plug well from the valve cover ? check it again in a week or so to see if it's black again...just a thought

 

Cylinder 4's plug had a dab of oil on it (no burnt crap), but it didn't appear to be recent as I'd expect Royal Purple to be quite a bit darker. I will have to check it though definitely.

 

Well, here's yet another related post that I'd like to chime in on. I've posted a similar echo on a few other forum threads today, but this is exactly what I'm going through now.
Mine is an 08 'Justa' or straight Cooper, N12 engine and for the first time ever, it's not starting easily in super cold weather. It has a new battery which cranks it over quite rapidly, but to little avail. It may crank 30 to 60 seconds, maybe longer before barely catching on. Back in the heated garage, it's like the good old days.
I just saw another thread suggesting that a faulty thermostat sensor could fool the car into not starting. Maybe I'll replace my plugs early too, just to see if anything's up in there.
I'm hoping someone will see this and have an idea.
If your car is cranking over fast it's not your battery at fault. I'm on my third battery now and it is strong, fortunately.

 

Followup-
I had my plugs changed at 70,000 miles, although not officially due until 100,000 by the manual, and it fixed it. The long suspenseful cranking ended and I'm back to easy starting.
It costs over $200 to swap plug these days! I'm good for another 70 k now, at least.

 

Not sure it it's the same for both, but the Intake Manifold can ice up and cut power to the car I haven't replaced mine yet....but here is the OEM part. Known issue. I wish MINI would cover as it could be a safety issue.

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/Site...old/ES1875402/