So I bought myself a 2007 MCS a little over 10 months ago. Have put about 11,000 relatively trouble-free miles on it since (Bought it at 59K, currently at 70K).

The issue I am having is that the clutch engagement point is nearing the very end of the pedal travel, (no slippage yet) which is typically the sign of a worn clutch that needs replacement, and I hear, from reading the forums, 70K is actually a good amount of mileage to get out of the OEM units.

The conundrum that I face is that I have a service record from the previous owner detailing a clutch and flywheel replacement not 13,000 miles ago (!) by a reputable local shop, leading me to believe (and hope) that the clutch does not need replacement and there are other issues at play here.

Granted, it is my first manual transmission car and I haven't been gentle on it, but nothing that would warrant a clutch failure after 13,000 miles, in my opinion.


Any ideas? I'm kind of at a loss here, and I do intend to bring the car down to another shop for a diagnosis in about a week or so, but any input would help.

 

Unless the clutch is actually slipping in the higher gears I wouldn't get too worried about it. And what do you mean by the "end of the pedal travel"? Is that when the pedal is all the way up or all the way to the floor?

However, the clutches in these don't seem to hold up well to abuse so if it's your first manual transmission car it's possible you've put a lot more wear on it in 13k miles than the average person.

 

End of pedal travel in this case is all the way up from the floor, sorry.

 

If you consider getting a new clutch save some money and but something that will last a while longer, JMTC sells a SM flywheel and clutch components that can handle much more abuse than the stock clutch, you should have seen my clutch and flywheel 1000 miles ago. It looked bad, flywheel surface was cracked as in the metal in the flywheel had seen heat treatment or hot spots.

 

I strongly suggest having the fluid changed before worrying further about it, cleared up that issue in mine for under $150 - the brake fluid is part of the job too.

 

Any updates on this? My 2007 MCS engages at the very end of the pedal travel as well, but it just had a new clutch installed . From other posts, it seems air in the hydraulic system would make the clutch pedal engage closer to the floor, so I don't see how a fluid change would fix that.

 

You should feel pressure the moment you move the clutch pedal but just a tiny bit, before replacing my clutch and flywheel the first half inch seemed like there was no pressure being applied. You also must consider what condition your clutches hydraulics system, one directly behind the pedal and the one mounted to you transmission.

 

Hmm, what do you mean by pressure? The RPM's don't drop one bit (and of course the car doesnt move) until the clutch pedal is almost all the way out, then its a pretty drastic change - car stutters. It's pretty hard to modulate. My previous cars were a 2005 STi and a 2010 Legacy GT (both were 6 speeds) and both had much different clutch feel. I've not driven any other mini's to compare the clutch to.

 

What you describe sound normal, my clutch pedal engages the same as yours, not sure what you mean by, "car stutters" it all depends on how you shift into gears. There's a some skill required for smooth engagement.

 

True - I've only been driving it 3 days, but the clutch pedal engagement surprised me. It's like 90% of the pedal travel does nothing, and then the last 10% has to be managed smoothly.

 

Yep that sound about right, I wish it engaged sooner. It sure gives you excellent control when feathering the clutch.

 

Alright, thanks for the replies man. Now to track down the knocking noise at idle, heh.

 

If your referring to the dieseling sound it's perfectly normal, it will always sound like a diesel engine at idle. I hear it has to do with the highly pressurized fuel that causes it. If not could you take a video of the sound.

 

Should not sound like diesel lol. Maybe throw out bearing? I just had mine replaced

 

It's nothing new to the R56 Mini cooper S's, it's a well known fact that when idling these MCS's can have a diesel like sound at idle because the fuel in under very high pressure.

 

Glad my JCW doesn't sound like this. Thanks for the info / correction...with all of the reading and research I have done I have never come across this commonly known issue

 

reviving an old post. I just dropped my 2011 MCS for service today and I'm having the same issue. The service advisor tried to tell me that this is indicative of a worn clutch. My MCS only has 40k miles on it... I'm hard pressed to believe this.

There is an issue with a squeal when I'm in stop/go traffic as well when I release clutch... Any additional input on this would be helpful.

 

As the OP of this thread, I did end up replacing the brake fluid and bleeding the brakes, and while that did not cure what I perceived to be the issue, the clutch still engages and moves the car about just fine, so I have elected not to worry about it until I start seeing some serious slippage with the clutch pedal fully out.
The pedal travel just seems "weird", but I am not in the mood to fix what isn't broken.

40K miles does seem rather low, but it is possible the clutch disc has been worn down. Do you know if the driver(s) of the vehicle are experienced with manual transmissions? Is the clutch slipping in normal driving?

 

Clutch doesn't seem to slip. There is a squeal in first gear during the disengage and the pedal travels far too much. Compared to the F56 loaner they gave me... It's a world of difference in the travel of the pedal. The F56 is more traditional feel of the pedal with respect to the travel. Comparing to my two R53s and the F56... the pedal feel is more traditional.

We shall see what the dealer says... Thank you for the feedback.

 

in my feeble opinion (i have done the clutch twice) The first time i replaced the clutch was my fault since it is my first manual. The second time was a throwout bearing failure. I replaced everything since i was there. The clutch on my car has ALWAYS seemed to have a high friction point. Burger tuning made a clutch bushing for 10$ that i put in that eliminates alot of the dead space travel. I love it, and my buddy just put one in and loves it. I will leave the link below.

http://burgertuning.com/clutch_stop_mini_cooper.html

 

One of the first thing I did to my R56s and it made the engagement point feel proper.

 

How did you do that? With the bushing mention in the above post?

 

^^Click on Chappybmodes link above.

 

Awesome. Thank you. This looks like exactly what I was looking for. I read through their install instructions and it seems very simple.

I pick up my R56 from the dealer today so I'll see if the adjustments they made will make it any better... If not, I will install this!

 

Best $10 I spent on my mini. I used all 3 spacers, some people prefer just 2. it just cuts out all the extra clutch peddle travel after the engagement/disengagement point. takes 5 minutes to install. worth it.