This forum is always full of so many horror stories about everything that goes wrong with the R56 MCS.
Just wondering if there is anyone out there like myself who has had a good run with their MCS?
So far I'm at 60k miles and no expensive fixes other than regular maintenance (Hopefully I'm not jinxing myself lol).

 

I know a lady near here that has over 400,000 on her 07. I think it has only been in the shop a couple times for minor items. She has now bought two more and passed the 07 on to her son.

Nik

 

I have had trouble with mine. Timing chain replaced in 2012. Engine is now ruined. Car just stop working with no warning. They said my vacuum pump failed which caused the timing chain to break. They also said I had low oil so they won;t cover. Hiring a lawyer. I have 60,000 miles.

The service manager also told me there is no low oil light. My engine light never went on. I was getting ready to enter the highway when it just stopped working at the light.

So my question to the forum is - How do I know the timing chain did not cause the vacuum pump to fail. Service Manager is telling me that is not possible. The low oil caused the vacuum pump to fail which caused the time chain to break.

I need some expert opinions here. My car has been at MINI since last Wednesday and we are not even close to getting it fixed or resolved. I was also not there to see them take it apart. The car was with them from Wed to Friday but they were too busy. I heard from service manager on Friday. Prior to that I had it at an independent shop and he felt it was the timing chain. When he talked to mini they said no problem sounds like the timing chain get it over here and we will fix it.

 

The answer is a resounding yes. My 2008 R56 has 50K miles on it when I sold it (bought a 2012 R56 JCW). No major problems and the minor problems were fixed at the dealer for no charge. Two recalls during that time - tail pipe shortening and timing chain/ turbo oil line mods done by the dealer.

There is a thread on here where a similar question was asked a couple of years ago and the vast majority of folks who responded had no issues. Think about it for a minute. If you have no problems you typically browse this site rather than post, unless you are an enthusiast who is looking to do mods. So the number of post with complaints will always outnumber the post that say "I'm happy and everything works".

I heavily modified my 2008 and had maybe 10 track days and an untold number of autoX days on it. It ran great and looked great, but I also took good care of it. Changed oil every 5K miles, flush brake fluid a couple of time, flushed radiator fluid a couple of times, changed brake pads and rotors, cleaned air filters, etc., on my own.

My wife had a 2007 R50 which she traded in at 45K for a 2012 R60. I did the oil and filer changes on those cars and they ran (run) great without issue (and without being especially well cared for).

So make it +4 for me in the no problems category.
Cheers,
Greg

 

My mother's '09 MCS 6 speed just hit 75k, with no major problems, just regular maintenance performed by yours truly.

The timing chain tensioner bolt did back out on her, but luckily it did so in a Target parking lot, and she had the car towed home without running it more than 10 seconds on low oil. Once I torqued that bolt to spec and refilled with oil, no issues and the car is running great ever since.

 

I was one of those people too ! I loved my mini and told everyone. But since I bought it, I have had in the shop at least once or twice a year. When it was under warranty I didn't worry thought it was a odd, but then when major stuff started happening before normal maintenance I got concerned and started investigating.

My thermostat had to be replaced at 53,000 miles. Clylinder head cover at 50,000. The timing chain was replaced in 2012. Never ran normal after that. Had misfires four months after I owned it.

Was it the shop a couple times cause it rattled and they said there was nothing wrong with it.

Now my engine is shot. $10,000 to fix is what they quoted me. Also, was told I am suppose to check the oil after every gas fill. I bought the maintenance package. When it was in there in April, 2014 no one said anything about low oil or did they change it.

 

My 08 is currently at 60k with just the turbo oil lines replaced. They started leaking at about 50k. It burns oil right now but that is my own fault. Ran it too lean while tuning my Stage 3 tune and it detonated very hard. Ever since that it burns oil so I most likely broke the piston ring when it did that.

 

Glad to see that there are people out there who have had a good run so far!

 

I have only had the timing chain components replaced under the campaign, thermostat housing, walnut blast intake valves (at 47K) and valve cover. I just installed a metal version of the water pump (Mini changed from plastic to metal pumps) even though the older pump was made from plastic and was alright, wanted peace of mind.

You running low on oil caused the vacuum pump to seize up therefore seizing up the camshaft and timing chain, valves collide with pistons. There is no low oil light, only low oil pressure, you're supposed to use that dipstick that came with the car. You can be dangerously low on oil and still have good oil pressure. There are TONS of people with the exact same experience as you, it's common nowadays in this forum. Don't assume some check engine light is going to save your bacon, the N14 engines are notorious for consuming oil at a rate of 1.5 quarts every 1000-1500 miles. It seems like some people learn this after it's too late, if I got a dollar everytime I hear of a thread like this I could quit my day job.


Vacuum pump seized > camshaft stops turning > timing chain stops turning > valve collide with pistons. Time for a new engine. Your story is all too familiar, there was this guy at my local Mini dealer that had complained about his engine sounding unusually loud. Upon further inspection he only had 2 quarts of oil in his oil pan, his engine wasn't going to last long! His thread is somewhere in this forum. I check my oil every other gas up to keep and eye out and monitor oil levels, when it reaches the middle mark I add half a quart.

 

did you check your oil level before? i'm assuming it's at mini of st louis?

 

When I first got the car, I didn't know about the oil consumption, and before I realized it, my oil had gotten DANGEROUSLY low! Luckily nothing bad came of it.

 

I have also read the vacuum pump should have been recalled with the timing chain. How long should vacuum pumps last? What are the symptoms prior to it going out?

I just can't believe I would have not gotten any warning lights or it acting funny before it just shut off.

I was also never told it burns oil after a certain number of miles. Surely something was going on with it to burn oil like that. It was at the shop in April and nothing was said about the oil nor did they change it. I was never told to check my oil that often either. When I got an oil change it never stated on the invoice that my oil was long.

So something changed in how my car was running for it to start burning oil and I was also not at the shop when they took the car apart. An independent service company said they did not notice the car low on oil.

So when a timing chain fails when it is running what does the car do?

Also, this maintenance package I paid $1500 is a joke, since it sound like I would be replacing oil in the car every other time I fill up.

 

It says on page 119 of your manual, " The engine oil consumption is dependent on driving style and driving conditions." "Check the engine oil level regularly, e.g. when refueling." You haven't even read your manual it seems or you would know this, it's your car, do not rely on some else to tell you that you're low on oil. I don't trust any mechanic no matter their qualifications, their human and they make mistakes. I only trust myself.

 

My 2010 was a tank in my humble opinion, I was naive and didnt take the best care of her. I neglected oil changes, and at one point was so low I had to have it towed. I dont even know what the problem was to this day but I believe it was the timing chain or tension thing... all I know is I was basically out of oil. Car still survived, I ended up selling at 55K for something else. I now have a 2013 S again.

 

Own a 2008 MCS, now at 55k (started with 39k when I bought it) with no major problems. Tensioner and water pump were replaced per service bulletin before I bought and I have been doing oil changes every 5k miles. However, I just did an oil change and only extracted 2qts which left me very nervous...I'm going to be more vigilant about checking the oil level from now on.

 

My 2010 MCS has 21,000 miles (pretty low miles, I know) but I've had zero issues. The battery died, but only after a normal lifespan and MINI gave me another one under warranty, so no worries there. I do change the oil every 5,000 miles just as cheap insurance. Overall, I have no complaints!

 

Holy Cow MINI person, that's roughly 57,000 miles a year for 7 years in a row. That is some serious motoring!!!

 

I also learned the hard way about the checking the oil level and adding oil regularly. It's easy to do once you get into the regular habit. I do think a low oil light on these cars would have been helpful, since most other cars I have owned did have that and it seems like kind of a basic feature to have in a car that seems to require an unusual amount of oil to be added. That being said, aside from some self-imposed problems related to low oil and the typical recalls people talk about here, I have really not had any major issues with mine and it's running great after 7 years and 90K+ miles. I would keep it a couple more years if I could, but my growing family has convinced me to go larger.

 

Besides the recalls and campaigns, all I've had to have done is the carbon cleaning around 50K. I replaced the brakes and the thermostat.


Bought it new in '07 and still love it, but as others have said... you've got to take care of it. OIL is the big thing. I check the level about once a week and change the oil and filter at 5K intervals.

 

And a heat gauge and boost gauge! When I first got it, I couldn't believe they wouldn't put a heat gauge on a turbocharged car! Glad to hear you had such a good run though

 

2010 S HB with 35,000 miles. No issues other then the recalls. I am OCD when it comes to checking oil regularly with changes every 8,000 miles done at the dealer. FYI - I am on my 3rd Mini, 2002 Justa HB, 2004 S HB, and the current 2010 S HB.

 

Even in cars that have a low oil "idiot" light, by the time it comes on, the car is already dangerously low on lubrication. Unfortunately I think the only way to be safe is to manually check it--in our MCS, the tick gets louder when it's thirsty, which helps prompt the oil level check.

The oil consumption is still pretty high for the miles (75k); I had an M3 that at 175k burned far less oil. I'm not ruling out the need to replace the turbo in the next 25k.

I hate the lack of oil temperature gauges in modern cars, more than water temp. And factory boost gauges are typically inaccurate.

 

My 07 MSC with 65,000 miles has been very reliable. I keep up with all regular maintenance, and the only issue I have had to date is the mechanical water pump - which was replaced under warranty. So far, timing chain shows no slack, HPFP was replaced under recall (never experienced issues with the original), and that is genuinely it.

 

Nice!

 

So much is based on two things...
HOW the car is driven....
And a bit of luck....
Drive it like you stole it 100% of the time...the bill will come due...you can have fun...that's the point...but do it all/most of the time....and it goes from spirited to abuse....
This all assumes regular and proper upkeep....