PlayPlay Posted November 24, 2009 Report Posted November 24, 2009 A coworker of mine recently asked me if I had heard about any issues with R56's just dying out right. His R56 died while driving on the highway and could not be revived. Apparently, his service advisor told him that the problem was with the timing chain and that there is currently a recall on them. Luckily for him, they are replacing his entire engine. I did a bit of research on NAM and apparently the timing chain has been a problematic item, mainly due to it making the car sound like a diesel with a cold engine. I do not own an R56, so can't personally comment, but thought it might be useful information to you new gen owners.
LV2CRNR Posted November 24, 2009 Report Posted November 24, 2009 I wonder if it's for JCW's too? 2009 MINI Clubman Factory JCW CR/B Helix BOV, DDM CAI, Helix STS, 35% tint, Black R113 wheels, eibach pro kit, 8000K 55w HID's. 2006 MINI Cooper S PS/B 176 fwhp/ 165 fwtq SOLD 2004 Pontiac GTO BLK 389 rwhp / 454 rwtq SOLD [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
Krut Posted November 24, 2009 Report Posted November 24, 2009 yes.. mine suffered through diesel knock and three cam tensioner chains until MINI finally got it right.
T&CMCSa Posted November 25, 2009 Report Posted November 25, 2009 yes.. mine suffered through diesel knock and three cam tensioner chains until MINI finally got it right. But, is there a recall or does MINI just fix it when the owner complains? [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
wolf617 Posted November 26, 2009 Report Posted November 26, 2009 I just got mine back from Rose.While I was there getting my new non-melted key re-programmed, I mentioned the problem and they diagnosed the chain problem. [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
MiniPol Posted November 26, 2009 Report Posted November 26, 2009 And it was a pleasure seeing you at MoT Bill ! Did Rose mention anything about a recall to you though ? [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
e30r56 Posted November 26, 2009 Report Posted November 26, 2009 As far as i know, it isn't a full blown recall yet, as recalls are usually a safety problem, not a purely mechanical failure. I need to get this done on my r56. [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
wolf617 Posted November 26, 2009 Report Posted November 26, 2009 More like an answer to the customer's complaint than a recall. [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
PlayPlay Posted November 26, 2009 Author Report Posted November 26, 2009 My friend said that the person used the word "recall". But, if you all haven't gotten an offical letter from MINI, then maybe it isn't.
Da Coup Posted November 26, 2009 Report Posted November 26, 2009 I noticed mine doing it around 4k ago..... Interesting Info' http://www.motoringfile.com/2008/02/20/r56-mcs-engines-cold-start-issue-exposed/ Terry (aka TonkaJr)
Mach V Dan Posted December 9, 2009 Report Posted December 9, 2009 It's not a recall, since the company (and NHTSA) do not at this time consider it a safety issue. But if your car has certain symptoms, MINI will repair it for free. Mine had a loud diesel-sounding clatter at startup that got progressively worse. I took it in and MINI replaced every part of the timing chain system, no charge. No more noises! --Dan Mach V FastMINI.net
T&CMCSa Posted December 10, 2009 Report Posted December 10, 2009 And this is what the bill looks like. Just had the Clubman done yesterday: [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
mashadwell Posted December 13, 2009 Report Posted December 13, 2009 Just had my timing chain and all associated parts replaced at Mini of Annapolis because of the diesel sound.. They're great.:congrats:
Da Coup Posted December 13, 2009 Report Posted December 13, 2009 Mine goes in Tuesday for the same issue, I read the most recent repair ends in a -13....Yikes How long were you w/o the Mini on the repair? Loaner? Terry (aka TonkaJr)
T&CMCSa Posted December 13, 2009 Report Posted December 13, 2009 How long were you w/o the Mini on the repair? Loaner? Mine was done same day but I did not pick it up until the following day so that they could do a cold start on it in the morning to make sure everything was okay. [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
cameroon Posted December 14, 2009 Report Posted December 14, 2009 This would be the rattle associated with cold weather, or a different issue? 'Cause I recently joined the "it's cold outside, the engine has a nasty rattle for the first mile" club. [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
Iflyga Posted December 14, 2009 Report Posted December 14, 2009 'Cause I recently joined the "it's cold outside, the engine has a nasty rattle for the first mile" club. Me as well. If temp is above 50 degrees F, there is no diesel rattle. Below that, lots of stares. "Skylar" -2009 JCW Hard Top. See my Mondo-Minis page for more.
LV2CRNR Posted December 15, 2009 Report Posted December 15, 2009 This would be the rattle associated with cold weather, or a different issue? 'Cause I recently joined the "it's cold outside, the engine has a nasty rattle for the first mile" club. Me as well. If temp is above 50 degrees F, there is no diesel rattle. Below that, lots of stares. Same here on my clubman. 2009 MINI Clubman Factory JCW CR/B Helix BOV, DDM CAI, Helix STS, 35% tint, Black R113 wheels, eibach pro kit, 8000K 55w HID's. 2006 MINI Cooper S PS/B 176 fwhp/ 165 fwtq SOLD 2004 Pontiac GTO BLK 389 rwhp / 454 rwtq SOLD [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
ZugZugMcD Posted December 15, 2009 Report Posted December 15, 2009 And here I thought it was just me ole bones rattlin' on these cold days... 2009 MINI Cooper S Clubman
Mach V Dan Posted December 15, 2009 Report Posted December 15, 2009 This would be the rattle associated with cold weather, or a different issue? 'Cause I recently joined the "it's cold outside, the engine has a nasty rattle for the first mile" club. Mine started out that way, but got to where it would ALWAYS do it. --Dan Mach V FastMINI.net
e30r56 Posted December 18, 2009 Report Posted December 18, 2009 One easy way to duplicate it is to start it once for ~10-20 seconds, then shut it off and let it sit for a few minutes, then start it back up. It should sound quite loud. Anyway, mine's at pmoa getting it replaced. [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
tvrgeek Posted February 23, 2010 Report Posted February 23, 2010 How many miles before this symptom starts? I have about 9000 on my 2009 and so far, OK. Hard to believe it is not "safety" As one having a car die completely in the middle of the beltway, I can attest it is life threatening. Worse as I was driving a Morgan.
cameroon Posted February 23, 2010 Report Posted February 23, 2010 How many miles before this symptom starts? I have about 9000 on my 2009 and so far, OK. Hard to believe it is not "safety" As one having a car die completely in the middle of the beltway, I can attest it is life threatening. Worse as I was driving a Morgan. I don't know that there's a specific mileage that it can start at. I'm somewhere around 16k and it started happening once the temps went down. So that was probably around 14k or 15k. Was just in for the "once a year" service and they wanted to see if the oil change made it go away... yeah... no. So another item on the to-do list [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
tvrgeek Posted February 23, 2010 Report Posted February 23, 2010 Hmm. lost a post. Anyway, mine seems fine now at about 9000 miles. About when do these symptoms crop up? I did change to Amzoil at 2K and changed again at 5K.
cameroon Posted March 2, 2010 Report Posted March 2, 2010 Went in to Mini of Alexandria today for the cold start rattle and they replaced the Chain Tensioner per SIM 11-02-07 (see this post from NAM if you want to read the PDF: http://www.northamericanmotoring.com/forums/2955958-post1449.html) and we'll see how it goes. As part of the fix, they measure part of the Timing Chain Tensioner, and if the measurement is less than 68mm they only replace the tensioner (part# 11-31-7-597-895). If it's 68mm or greater, you get all the parts that T&CMCSa posted. [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]
