Had a "rotational" rattle that built quickly over about 300 miles (50K on the odometer), took it in ... the dreaded supercharger replacement because the waterpump impeller is breaking up (and taking the supercharger drive gear with it). See this thread for similar situation details;

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=74674

Any DCMM'ers been through this yet? I have the extended service warranty, so Mini of Sterling is out seeing if it's covered in this case.

Regardless of who pays for it, I'm gonna take the oppurtunity to slap a 15% reduction pulley on the new one. The way I look at it, turn a sad into a smile somehow.

Anyway, just curious if anyone else has been through this.

- Jim

 

My 2004 MCS s/c failed at approximately 16K; replaced under warranty, also at Sterling.

Insist that they show you the s/c once they remove it, before they send it back to MINI, and take pictures if you can of the damage. In particular, try to determine whether the problem was caused by loss of lubricant.

 

An unmodified supercharger might *not* be covered by the extended warranty?

 

Just heard from Mini of Sterling ... I have the extended Service Warranty, not the extended Driveline Warranty. Therefore, yes it's not covered.

 

Here's hoping that they install the upgraded teflon coated supercharger from the 05/06 models.

 

Meh. Time to upgrade to the M7 Supercharger then.

 

I saw a SC that needed replacement because it had 100k miles on it. It had pretty much seized up. But 100k is the expected lifetime of the SC so it was to be expected. Just stick with the factory SC.

 

Yeah, I understand and "expect" a SC replacment (regardless of condition) at 100k with a MCS (R53) under Mini recommended maintenance.

Sadly, I'm only half-way there and I have a SC waterpump/aux gear failure. Stuff happens. I'm not bitter about it. It's a mechanical device (the car). In the scheme of things ... bigger things can break in life and not be replaced.

The M7 upgrade looks like a stock SC with extra material added outside (for stiffness) and ported on the inside. Interesting concept.

I'm gonna stick with stock at this time, and reset the ticker for hopefully 100k additional miles before that SC fails.

 

I have a 2003 MCS supercharger failure with 70K Mi. The replacement is $1850 + $400 labor. Pretty expensive little toy to maintain. The SC shaft wobbled in their shot bearings. The teflon coating was scraped off the rotors and a little oil was left in the housing. My mechanic gets $60/hr vs $120/hr dealer rates. He says the failure is due to a speedup pulley and non stock belt. I wonder what's next? What does BMW say about this? I like the car and have added a continental kit spare tire.

 

WOW 1.5 year old thread brought back from the dead

 

Yeah, boy talk about the wayback machine. Anyway, my SC failure (oil gone from the SC gearbox) was not due to overspin due to reduction pulley. It's a "common" in the sense of seen often enough to be noted condition. The oil in the chamber that contains the SC gear drive is a fixed amount at manufacture in a sealed chamber. Go figure, engineering design choices.

- Jim

 

So that means that I'm at 88 K and will suffer a failure in no time????

 

Dang i have not heard about this in a good long while I knock on wood as i write this i got 163k on my S/C still sings when i get on it and hope to keep it that way as a consider a 12% pully

 

As posted, no it doesn't "mean" your SC gear will implode @ 70k. It's just common enough condition to be a known situation.

Advice? I know nobody asked for advice, but here it goes ... if you are planning on keeping a early build (pre 2004) MCS for long term (greater than 150k miles) it makes sense to consider picking up a spare SC assembly.

Wait, did I just say that? I don't have a spare and I already lost my original! The point is the SC isn't going to get cheaper and as you keep the car longer ... I'd be more comfortable with a spare built up SC at hand.

Am I being too **** about that? Maybe, but I keep spare pads, rotors, wiper blades and wiper rubber around. Why? They are consumables and require regular replacement in the long life of a vehicle. I plan for their replacement and don't scramble when they need to be replaced at times when I may not have the luxury of dollars/time to deal with them.

Yes, I keep vehicles around for a long time. I don't think I've ever replaced a vehicle with less than 175k miles on the ticker. Much the less something special like a R53 Mini Cooper. Note that resale to someone interested in a vehicle is easier when you have complete service records and spares to go with it. "See, here is the proof that I took good care of this car, now you can too." It also helps with the negotiations on asking price, it raises the confidence of the buyer in the perceived value of the car.

Concerning a MCS I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that until I replaced the cat-back exhaust with a Milltek, I also kept around a pair of rear exhaust hangers for my MCS. Another known "early replacement" stock part issue.

- Jim