My 2003 JCW S started making some weird noises about 3 months ago especially when the temp was below 50 degrees....mostly sounded like a throw out bearing going south but went away after the car warmed up..anyway I didn't really take this very seriously becasue it seemed an intermittent problem.

However, week before last my gas gauge stopped working and since my extended warranty expires in December of this year I decided to take it in for the repair and while I was there I discussed the "throw out bearing noise thng" noise with the service advisor...to make a long story short , I had a warped flywheel and the whle thing was paid for under warranty !!! While they were in there I paid for a new clutch ( parts only) ...now everything is as it should be. Seems that there is a silent recall on 2002- 2005 Mini's with defective flywheels that warp easily..word to the wise, if this is a problem you think you have then get to the dealer asap especially if you are under warranty. BTW, the cost outside of warranty not including the clutch would have been $1860 labor plus $700 for the flywheel.

 

Is this really an unannounced recall or just a service bulletin?

 

Well, not totally sure....but I believe the service guy used the term "silent recall"

 

i had my clutch, flywheel and throwout bearing replaced underwarranty on my '03. It was making a noise at idle from the throw-out bearing!

 

It's a technical service bulletin. I had mine done about a month ago. They went ahead and replaced the clutch as well (13k miles). The service writer said they are not supposed to do the work unless there is an actual complaint about the noise.

 

How strange - I took my MCS in for the same two problems as you - I had simultaneous fuel gauge failure (sensor #2) and the dreaded flywheel failure - both replaced under warranty with roughly 20,000 miles.

 

My SA at Mini of Towson told me that my 04 was out of warranty & therefore not qualified for the free replacement. I feel more than slightly ripped off by MINI. Unfortunately they engineered a part (flywheel) that doesn't function properly. IMHO it should be replaced warranty or no warranty, it's manufacturing that causes the problem.

 

You might try to negotiate directly with Mini USA

 

Mine was doing the same thing and they replaced the clutch under warranty at about 45k miles. Now at 56k miles (out of warranty) it's starting to happen again! Is the replacement part just another of the same with the same problems, or is my luck just terrible? Anyone else had this happen twice?

 

i just posted a whole new thread about an odd sound and i was referred to this post.... but the sounds don't seem the same...?

no squealing, no whirring - start the car, start driving, and ONLY IN THE MORNINGS does it do this - a rattle, like a loose bolt would make, then stops at about 5 miles, and doesn't make the sound again for the rest of the day.

the only connection i can make is maybe condensation somewhere near the shocks.

so, did that sound like your sounds?

 

i had that. my throw out bearing and flywheel were shot. replaced under warranty on my 45k 06mcs. same sounds you are describing. Best description i came up with was a chatter... you can hear it better if you're parked next to a wall when it does it. (drive through) gl

 

do you think that driving conditions would have anything to do with it
I have an early build 2006 9/05 i think and it makes a tapping randomly thru out the day sometimes it wont sometimes i will alot. unless the clutch is hooked up and moving or pushed to the floor.
would shifting it at redline in first and it breaking the tires loose have anything to do with this.
it just breaks the tires loose easy i wasent sure if that could do it.
or if im valid under the replace it clause

 

Kimi - the sounds you describe are identical to my failed-and-since-replaced flywheel. Does the sound change when you press the clutch pedal?

Silversmoke - driving habits can contribute to flywheel failure, but then again they fail rather easily on their own. The driving style you describe is hard on a lot of components... basically everything that drives the car. I'd watch out for driveline components such as driveshafts and differential with that kind of driving - not that Minis have common failures there, but FWD cars in general do when you throw that kind of abuse at them. Also, watch the motor mounts. They are probably already shot. Motor mounts in transverse-mount applications have the added responsibility of coping with reacting to driveline torque.

 

it doesn't have any relation to the clutch at all - it's just a jiggle kind of sound. i wish i could upload a soundbite the only relation this sound has is a squeaking loose spring kinda sound when i hit a bump in the road.

my last car had a rusty shock absorber on the driver side front wheel and when you went over any kind of little bump and it would squeak like an old spring will squeak and creak. and it happened EVERYTIME i drove that car.

that is more like the sound than anything else, except the time i left a wrench under the hood and it jiggled around for a week before i found it.

this noise ONLY happens when the car hits a bump and only for the first few miles of the first drive in the morning - midday, it doesn't make that sound even if it is the first time i've started the car. only between 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. - i am NOT kidding.

it's not a squeal like i thought flywheels made and it is 100% related to bumps i hit in the road. there is no relation to the clutch engaged or not; and no relation to start-up.

i turn on the car, no sound; i start driving, no sound; i hit a bump and the loose-wrench-squeaky shock sound starts when i hit little bumps on that side of the car until it stops just a few miles later.

just curious - but why would a flywheel have any of that sound related to it? there is no pattern to it whatsoever. and i did have a car that the flywheel went bad on and that sound to me was more like metal clanging with some force against the inside of the car and a squeal went with it.

i told my boyfriend you guys think it is a flywheel and he said he doesn't think it sounds like a flywheel - he says it sounds like the hood isn't latched down completely - except that's not it either.

anyway - thanks for your insight. i may be being stubborn, but i don't think it is a flywheel - the other things/sounds that go with a flywheel going bad, or being warped, don't seem to be the same sounds i am describing - or trying to describe

if my mechanic says flywheel, you guys win WHAT you win, i have no idea

THANK YOU!!!!

 

i've tried the listening to my car as i drive over a bridge, next to a wall or anything - it's not a sound i can hear that way - as best as i can tell, it can only be heard inside the car, under the dash near the wheel well.

i'm saying the same thing over and over, but i'm having a hard time trying to describe it.

it only happens when i hit bumps, and only early in the morning.

i had a flywheel go out on me once (long ago) and it sounded like a consistent little clanging coming from under the hood. this sound comes straight from the wheel well - or near it. when i first heard it, i thought the dashboard was squeaking, but that's not it.

anyway - i'll have someone look at it. everyone seems to think flywheel - so i'll go have it looked at. but it just doesn't seem like a flywheel going bad would have anything to do with a rusty-spring-sounding thing when i hit a bump in the road. :(

 

it RATTLES - that's the word i've been looking for - no squeak or squeal - a rattle.

of course that probably doesn't change the prognosis :(

 

Kimi, I suspect you have rubber bushings either in the control arms or trailing arms (if the sound is in the rear), or sway bars that are causing the noise you describe. Since it happens only in the early mornings, my guess is that the cooler temps and perhaps condensation affect the culprit part. Have the mechanic check all suspension related bushings, my bet's on one of them being bad.

To the topic, I just had my flywheel, clutch, throwout bearing, basically everything from the engine crank to the tranny input shaft replaced, including the slave cylinder and shifter cables. The tech wanted no part left that could cause the noise I mentioned (same as others described, a clatter in neutral that went away when pressing the clutch in). Originally I was responsible for the clutch replacement (43k miles), but since the rest of the repairs were so extensive, they included the clutch in the warranty service. Excellent service imo.

But now I worry, Istara mentioned that at 56K miles it's doing it again. Since my car was a demo model, the warranty actually runs out at 55k miles, so it's possible it may happen while still under warranty. One good thing is that all repairs, warranty or not, are guaranteed for one year, labor included (top replacements are two years). Since I put roughly 25k on the car a year, I should still be warranteed on this item until 68k miles... hopefully that will be good enough.

 

Under dash near the wheel well, that sounds more like a sway bar bushing to me... also could be the sway bar bracket may be loose or damaged. Easy for the mechanic to check it out and replace.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Daniel

 

i am a constant worrier - and since i bought the car used (2002 MC) no warranty left. i can yell and pitch a fit like the best of 'em, though however, bushings don't sound as serious/expensive and now that you say it, that sounds more like it from what i know of bushings and their housings....

thanks for your input!!!! i'm going to schedule lil chrissy (i'll get a pic soon) for a check-up.

 

Same happened to me, but when i had to purchase oem flywheel it was like 350 not 700

 

Its just the car wants to break the tires loose putting it into second quickly and i was worried that it damaged the car.
i dont think that the motormounts areshot theres no indication of that.
I just dont know what to do to keep the tires from wanting to break loose when you accelerate hard.

 

Buy better tires?
Get a diff?

or the solution that costs significantly less...
use less throttle.