I was having that cell come on almost all the time. Brought it in and had carbon cleaning done as well as injector cleaning. I also threw in a bottle of Techron afterward for good measure.

A week later and it hasn't been back ...yet.

 

Update:

My intake valves were severely coked up at 31k and I had to have the walnut shell carbon cleaning done. The dealer also applied a software update.

 

I've been suffering from this code as well. I have an OBD reader and using the 'on board monitor' function and looking at the B1S1 oxygen monitor (pre-cat) it seems to show that the oxygen sensor fails test '$84' whatever that is. I've had the connector apart and cleaned it, now the OBD reader no longer says its failed but on both tests '$83' and '$84' it now shows values of 0.00 where previously '$83' was showing a range of figures.

All the while, the P2188 code is being thrown every 50ish miles following a code reset.

Would replacing the sensor be a sensible thing to do - its pretty easy to get at but with my limited knowledge of how the engine / ECU works, is it the case that a faulty pre-cat o2 sensor could cause a 'too rich at idle' situation??

 

What kind of code reader are you using? Precat is the one at the top of the exhaust manifold closest to the engine. IF you are going to replace it, I would highly suggest you buy the OEM one and not an aftermarket one.

 

It's a ProScan V580.

 

FYI, here's an update
Trip 4: They replaced part of the upper i ntake
Trip 5: They kept it for 2 weeks, sent readings back to MINI Usa headquarters, ended up doing a carbon clean. Gave it back the day the warranty was out....

I've had it back a couple of weeks, the light came BACK on today. I'm upset, my wife is livid and sick and tired of this not being fixed...I'm about to just pay someone who knows what they're doing to finally fix it, I'm sick of the dealer not knowing what to do And a note, while she previously had an intake, during all this she's been running the car bone stock...stock intake, filter, everything.

 

sorry to bump an old thread but did you ever finally figure it out? i see there's a valvecover and 1497 reference in this thread (i replaced that yesterday) and a timing chain tensioner reference (getting that recall done wednesday..) and i'm hoping that fixes my wife's 08MCS...

valve cover was audibly cracked and you could hear it whistle after shutting off the car, can't find a working scantool software package that will successfully reset the check engine light to see if these 2 codes are still being thrown :(

 

Just got this code too. I have an Alta FMIC for the last few years, AEM CAI for the last few months, and a CNT catless DP for the last couple months. First time I've seen this. It's a 2007 MCS, manual transmission.

 

Bumping this thread hoping someone has had success with it. After the 9th trip to the dealer my wife's car was finally "fixed" we though, went about 9 months with no return of the code.....but alas, it threw 2188 and 2786 both last night again. Course, the car is out of warranty now as it's 5 years old, 53K miles.

AAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH

 

Bumping this thread as I am experiencing the same codes, rich on idle, lean off idle.

07 CooperS
Manic tune, catless downpipe, K&N filter.

Downpipes been on a year, tune since this past fall. A dyno run with AF ratios showed no problems this winter with the tune. Early spring I had Helix perform a walnut intake clean.

I have replaced the valve cover and cleaned the MAF, a new MAF swapped in read same values as old MAF so we went with old MAF and the errors keep coming back.

Thoughts?

 

I've been battling P2188 as well as P2177 for several months (both prior and after installing NM intake). I've cleaned the MAF twice only to have the codes return and performance suffer even without the CEL.

Took my Clubman to Rennology for a diagnostic and they found the MAF to be reading around 10kph when the expected range is 13-16kph. They also checked my plugs (only 1000 miles old) and found them to be "whiten" which indicates a lean condition.

Going to bite the bullet and replace the MAF per their recommendation and replace the oiled NM filter with a dry AFE to eliminate any chance of contaminating the new MAF. I'll let you know how it goes as they said the ECU needs 5-6 drive cycles to adjust to proper MAF readings.

 

So sad to here that, i am in the same boat as you, keep us informed if you find a solution

 

Rusty tan brown to light gray is considered normal for spark plugs, 100% percent sure they were white?

 

Systemlord- I'm not 100% sure, the old plugs were rusty brown when I changed them. I got the car back yesterday with the new MAF and it is running great. I'll pull a plug this weekend to check.

 

Well it's back again...got the dreaded P2188 last night after almost 2 weeks of great performance. I've noticed this code seems to appear in very hot weather with the AC running.

Thinking of replacing the pre-cat O2 sensor. Any other ideas out there?

 

Why haven't you logged data from your smart phone using Dash Command with an OBD-II adapter and log files to Scan-XL to see what's going on instead of just throwing parts at your Mini?

 

I have a really cheap reader that shows the code and freeze frame data. I haven't had luck finding what the correct/expected value ranges are for those sensors online. Does DashCommand or ScanXL have this sort of information to compare my readings against?

 

I'm not sure about Scan-XL having comparisons to go off of but I'm know there are member's that know what your numbers should be for a given sensor reading and with all the tuner's out there they would know proper sensor values. You must first deal with your OBD-II BT Adapter first, you log everything in DashCommand and email log files to yourself in order to load them to Scan-XL for viewing.

I recommend the OBDLink MX Bluetooth, it's the fastest!

 

Just ordered the OBDLink MX from Amazon so I should be logging data in about a week.

 

Been logging data for over a week now and everything appears to be fine after clearing the CEL. There were no pending codes or freeze frame data.

I've been a little surprised how much the intake air temp rises while sitting in traffic with the NM intake. I'm seeing 15+ degree increases over the ambient air temperature which drops down to +8 when I start moving again.

 

That's nothing compared to my IAT in California, sitting in traffic or traffic lights I'm seeing 130F on an 87F ambient!

 

Wow, that is crazy! My readings were during stretch of low 80's in Chicago. Are you running a stock intake or CAI?

 

Stock intercooler, stock CAI, any intercooler does nothing when your Mini is just sitting there not moving forward. Even when my fan comes on coolant temps drop 20 degrees, but IAT stay the same. Under hood temps is what drives up IAT's.

 

Systemlord-

Did you end up getting a tune? I saw in another thread where you were considering the Manic tune to lower your engine temperatures. I'm strongly considering a Manic tune after I install a FMIC.

 

I'm not getting a Manic Tune without meth injection and not till my warranty is up, my warranty company is just looking for excuses to void warranties! Since I installed my Ohlins Road & Track coilovers my half shafts became void for any warranty claims. I'm not giving them anymore excuses to void my warranty on parts still warranted!