HI , this is my first post . I have recently bought a 2002 mini cooper launch edition with 58000 kms on it . The car seemed to drive great and looked fantastic for a 2002 (brand new ) ! After 1 week of gentle driving , I heard a grinding noise from under the hood (garbage disposal with a fork in it ) and the clutch seemed to slip but I couldnt be sure as I stopped accelerating as soon as I heard the sound . I could only repeat this sound while accelerating quickly . I found I as able to drive the car gently( low rpm) with out hearing any sound , so I started to head to my mechanic but slowly I lost all forward momentum . Not 1 gear 1-5 would work . I could also put the car into all 5 gears while the car was running without any kind of grind noise or anything . I put it in reverse and it moved a couple feet and was gone aswell ! I have taken to be serviced at a transmission shop . They cant tell me for sure what has happened without checking the clutch and tranny > any ideas ? has anyone ever heard of this happening ? I am praying it is not gearbox . I just bought this car (private sale )1 week ago and negotiated a price based on a car that runs !!! I havent even made 1 payment on this car yet and have 5 years to go ! After reading some posts on this forum , i am really scared to own a mini .why couldnt I have had an engine fire instead !!!! please if anyone has any ideas or suggestions please let me know . We have been looking at minis and been dreaming about driving one of our own for years , now we have one and we are dreaming about the day we will drive it again !
what say you folks should I keep it or will it continue to disapoint me ?CLUTCH OR GEARBOX CAST YOUR VOTES AND PLEASE ANY ADVICE WILL BE APPRECIATED !

 

sorry folks when I said I could shift through all the gears 1-5 without any grinding ( after loosing forward momentum) , I was talking about the car running ,clutch out and going through all 5 gears . i could put it any gear without using the clutch (still didnt move) while the car ran !! tranny ? release bearing ? clutch ? help!

 

I can't help with the diagnosis but I will offer my hope that your technician is able to identify and fix the problem quickly. I'm sorry that your MINI experience is starting out so badly. Keep us posted...

 

May want to read up on the Midlands gearbox.

 

Can't stress enough the importance of a pre-car inspection by a certified mechanic.

 

I hope the news isn't too grim.

As for getting an uneasy feeling when you read all these messages on NAM, don't do that; there are usually more gripes than praises on most car message boards. When people's cars are running excellently, they're out motoring in them, not online telling everyone how wonderfully their car is running! You hear from the guy who bent a wheel in a pothole, or the guy who blew his engine while racing, etc.

Anyway, I wish you good luck, and encourage you to not lose your faith in the MINI. You don't know if the previous owner learned how to drive a manual on that car. Maybe they totally thrashed the tranny, and it was showing signs of failure, so they decided to sell it quickly. That's what it sounds like to me... My guess is that your tranny or clutch is gone.

 

Sounds like a flywheel to me. It transfers the power from a center hub attached to the crank out to the friction surface of the clutch. These are similar symptoms to an AT with a bad flex plate (non-mini sorts of AT's). If the flywheel shears between the mounting flange to the crank and friction surface the sound can be awful and you won't have much luck transmitting engine power to the tranny but you would be able to shift without the clutch. 58,000 kms is something under 40k miles, is there a transferable warranty with the car? Good luck and keep us posted.

 

Could be the shifter cable. The early ones had a problem with a cable retaining clip at the transmission popping off. If thats it, MINI has an upgraded replacement part, it will be a simple fix.

 

Of the flywheel vs. cable possibilities, I'd go with the cable idea. First, because I really hope for you that that is all it is. Second, if it was the flywheel, I think the noise would have been occurring for a while and you would have felt something "wrong" in the shifting and/or drivetrain. The cable disengaging, however, would cause the initial "fork in a garbage disposal" sound and cause you to loose all shifting ability. A broken flywheel, on the other hand, would more likely cause a seize-up. Good luck!

 

THANX FOR ALL THE REPLYS TO MY POST . YOUR OPINIONS ,EXPERIENCE AND SUGGESTIONS ARE ALL APPRECIATED ! I would love it to be the cable but it was in gear when I lost momentum , so if it was shifter cable wouldnt it be stuck in the gear it broke in ? Im definately not a mechanic just trying to reason out certain problems based on how it occured . The tranny shifted beautiful even after the first time I heard the sound . the loss of forward momentum was very quick . It occuered in less than 5km of driving after I heard the sound . no abuse from me . It only was present in 1rst gear under load (3000 rpm ) and started to make the sound in 2nd just before I lost my forward drive . I was told by 4 different tranny guys it sounded like clutch but after reading the gearbox reviews and issues , i am not to optomistic .
Its a little ironic that I spent all weekend cleaning and polishing my mini like a teenager out in my driveway with great pride , neighbors coming over checking it out , lots of wows ,lots of people commenting on what a beautiful car it was ! I must of been smiling just alittle to wide because someone felt I needed to be taken down a notch ! towtruck in the drive way twice in the first week ,im sure they are really impressed now !

 

No, if it was the cable, the effect would be like going into neutral, exactly like you describe it. Even if it is something else with the clutch, it still is better than if it was the tranny.

 

thanx , hope your right ! Is it easy to check ? Its at the mechanic right now and I dont want them to get in to deep before checking it first !

 

If they he/she is a good mechanic, it should be the first thing checked. Wouldn't hurt to ask. May make them believe you know something about the situation, too.

 

STILL NO WORD FROM MECHANIC, THIS WAITING IS KILLING ME . WHATS BROKE ? AM I GOING TO BE BROKE ?

 

Not to be cynical. But what if the prior owner heard a noise or something, took it in, they knew the gearbox was dying... "I'd better sell it quick" Lots of people dump their used cars when the start having problems.

I vote for the gearbox (sorry...)

 

After this happened, were you able to move the shifter? If so, how did it feel?

 

Clutch, flywheel or tranny...it'll still cost you roughly $1000 for the labor to open it up...

 

i'll take clutch for 1000.00 alex.

 

WELL , my worst fears have been realized ! The clutch has wear but is fine. They say its in the gear box ! Is there any thing they can rebuild in the gear box or do I have to buy a new one ? The guy is a transmission specialist (his first mini though) . Could he rebuild the gear box or should I buy the refurb from BMW ? Ive heard they arent any better than the one that crapped out at 58000km . Can anyone recomend a place in canada that may have a good replacement gearbox ? they have one @ the wrecker for $2000 cdn but it has more kms than mine had ! I was quoted $1000 for the clutch replacement who knows how much more this will cost me ! any recomendations for the rebuild gearbox ,flywheel and clutch ? should I do all 3 while he s in there ? and what should I replace them with . thanx again to all that have offered their opinions and advice . I really want to love this car but its been a bad first week ! my junk 86 nissan pulsar still hasnt dropped a clutch or tranny and its got over 300000kms . it doesnt have the chick appeal but neither does my empty wallet !

 

There have been many stories like this one before, and despite hopes that it was just the splines on an axle or something, it has almost invariably been the gearbox. This thread from last year summarizes what many here feel about the Midlands. There has been some talk about the difficulties in changing to the 6-sp or newer 5-sp Getrag (and some recent reports of Midlands being changed out for 5-sp Getrags under warranty), but there is some controversy over the 5-sp Getrag's reliability too.

BMW may consider the Midlands to be a consumable item like the coolant bottle in the MCS or the power windows and power steering fan in all MINIs, and thus just the price of admission, but I'd investigate the possibility of a swap to the stronger 6-sp.

 

So sorry. Midlands have bit a few folks around here. I'd see if you can do 5sp Getrag myself. You don't want a known POS being put back in there. I've heard of a couple 5sp Midland->Getrag replacements done by MINI, so I'm thinking that there can't be too much to it.

Additional labor for gearbox won't be much more than flywheel/clutch. DEFINITELY do clutch and flywheel while you're in there. Won't be much more. Most of the cost will be labor getting it apart+gearbox. Think of it this way-suppose next year the clutch goes. Then it's 1000+parts. You already have it apart. You'd be crazy not to do all three at the same time.

Sorry again. (I'm thinking maybe the former owner had some idea it was coming and dumped it...)

 

THE GEARBOX IS BROKEN. The input shaft [the shaft that the clutch rotates on] is internally broken. unfortunately this is quite common for 2002 and 2003 vehicles. The clutch may need to be replaced if you have been driving on this transmission for more than a week or so. Sorry for the horrible information.....

 

thanx for the help and advice but Mini doesnt offer any getrag replacements and cant wait for the mini mania uprated. The only thing I can do is buy another midland as the transmission shop wants it out of their shop . Its taking up a 2 bays . how long do these replacement midlands generally last ?I know the is a 2 year unlimited mileage warranty with it .Tranny 2750 + 500 core , install price to be determined , clutch install including parts 1000 .This has been the most expensive used car I ever bought ! All in less than 1 weeks driving ! Is there an extended warranty you can buy from MINI . I bought private but Im just wondering if they offer an exteneded warranty , this could be an expensive car to keep running . the car is beautiful .fantastic shape with very low kms for the year , maybe my problems will be over now that the tranny has been done . new tranny every 58000km ouch . Anybody have any predictions on what the next problem with my mini will be ?

 

there have been cars w/ the getrag tranny swapped in. that's probably the best idea. i heard the problem w/ the midlands was that the lubricant seals freeze when it gets cold, resulting in a dry and then blown tranny, etc. etc. for an '02 you probably can't buy extended warranty from mini anymore; you may be able to purchase extended warranty from aftermarket insurance companies tho i dunno how good those are...

tranny problems are well-documented in the MC's and THE thing to watch out for. other than that, there shouldn't many other big issues. after the tranny is done, you might want to take it to a bmw/mini mechanic for an inspection just to address any other issues specific to your car just to be sure and safe

sorry about your tranny problem. good luck!

 

There's a thread about power steering pump wiring causing engine fires-you might want to read that

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