Ok, I tried the screwdriver stethascope idea, good one by the way. I still couldn't pinpoint it. While sitting at idle the rattle is very pronounced. I sat in the car and turned the AC off and the rattle went away, turn it on and it comes back. Now I figure the could be one of two things. 1. The AC compressor has a rattle maybe in the pulley bearing or inside. Or 2. The load from the AC makes the brings the rattle out.

With the AC turned off I can't hear the rattle at any RPM what so ever. I guess the next step is to get the car up on ramps and do the screwdriver trick on the compressor.

When I do hear the rattle, it sounds the loudest at the rear passenger side of the engine.

 

Ok, I tried the screwdriver stethascope idea, good one by the way. I still couldn't pinpoint it. While sitting at idle the rattle is very pronounced. I sat in the car and turned the AC off and the rattle went away, turn it on and it comes back. Now I figure the could be one of two things. 1. The AC compressor has a rattle maybe in the pulley bearing or inside. Or 2. The load from the AC brings the rattle out.

With the AC turned off I can't hear the rattle at any RPM what so ever. I guess the next step is to get the car up on ramps and do the screwdriver trick on the compressor.

When I do hear the rattle, it sounds the loudest at the rear passenger side of the engine.

 

I get some noise with the AC on, it's been there since new.
What year is this car? I changed the Crank pulley to an 06 style, the noise is still there, but you need to know it's there to notice it ( very slight only at idle at a stop light ) - AC only.

With the compressor on the demand on the belt, belt tensioner, alternator, etc is greater..... This may be a good place to look.....

 

It's an 04' R53. That sounds like the same issue. How did changing your crank pulley reduce the noise? Is it a lighter pulley with less drag? If that's the case I could go with an aftermarket, non-reduction, lightened crank pulley.

 

The early pulley has a ruber center. 06 this was changed to a style more lik what you would see on an SBC. The noise was driving me nuts, it wasn't bad, just enough to figure out what the,,,,,the dealer... you can guess what they said. When I examined all the components on the front of the engine, I suspected the crank pully could wobble under load - BMW did change the design.... Bottom line the noise was reduced with the change, I still hear it & know where there are paint imperfections, dings, scratches... that nobody else sees.
My advise is to take a good look in that whole area. I see so many posts "I have that exact same" - they are almost NEVER the same.
There was a good reason I asked if the AC was on.....
If you need a pulley - that's another discussion
Best of,
Steve

 

Thanks for the feedback Steve. I'm going to put it up on ramps in the morning and I'll post what I find here.

Have a nice evening.

Chad

 

Chad, run it with & without the AC, Be sure to have an assistant.... or a couple of umbrella girls would work

 

When I checked the supercharger with the screwdriver to my ear it sounded smooth, the rattle was nowhere near there. I put the car up on ramps this morning and it does seem that the rattle is more prevelant from the bottom. I don't think it's quite as low as the crank pulley though which leads me to believe it's coming from the ac compressor. Unfortunately the ac compressor is hard to gain access to from the top or bottom because it's on the lower middle. I'm going to remove my wheel lining later today to gain more access to it. I have a few things to do this morning.

 

I found the problem! It was the crank pulley. I'll bet you'll never guess how I found out. Ok, maybe you did.

I was driving today and all of a sudden Boom! Clank, clank, clank ect. I pulled over with an overheated engine and lights going crazy. I popped the hood to find the belt came off. Not only was the belt off but the crank pulley was laying on it's side between the block and the engine compartment. The crank pulley completly came apart.

The only visible colateral damage I can see is a tear in the cv boot which I can replace without a problem. Has anyone had this happen before? Do you think there will be any other damage internally?

I still need to pull the remaining piece of pulley off of the shaft. I think I will need to use an impact wrench to do so because I can't stop the crank from spinning even when in gear.

Any comments or suggestions? New pulley suggestions?

Thanks,

Chad

 

Ouch! Did you kill it before the engine completely overheated?

I used an impact gun to bust off the bolt, then a regular harmonic damper puller to pull it off. I would suggest an ATI Super Damper over the redesigned 05/06. Spend a little more and have some peace of mind!

 

Well, I had to get the car to a place to park it si I drove about a 1/4 mile before turning it off. Do you think there's any damage?

I was looking at that same pulley, they have them at Way Motor Works. Do you think that's the best place to get one?

Chad

 

That's where I purchased mine from. That was the cheapest I found.

 

Hey Chad, took some pics of the OE pulley, I removed to send..... too late....

The replacement? I believe the engine is pleanty safe with a light weight 0, +2. The crank is short, just slightly over square, 3.38" bore & 3.03" stroke. There are pleanty of old, heavily abbused, still onthe road, SBCs with a stamped sheet metal "V" pulleys... The replacement available, in 06, for this , my, car was the OE 06 or a light weight aluminum.... post 30 this thread.

Both solutions work. The ATI piece is the most recient addition - option. I like it. On the light weight side, I haven't heard of or seen a failure from any of the quality brands & there must be in the thousands out there by now... More if all other brands are included, Subi, EVO, Honda, Toyota......Almost every VW owner I know..... If you look at a damper like the "NVH" killer for the engine.....
Later & best of,
Steve

 

That's nice to hear. I wanted to save some money and go with a lightened pulley but I've read so much on the need for the dampener. Do you think the Alta crank pulley would be ok?

Another issue I have now is finding a cv boot. I've been calling around and nobody has a listing for just the boot, only the whole axle.

My next project is to get the remaining part of the pulley hub off of the crank shaft.

 

No problem with Alta at all. There is a discussion going on HERE on a different thread on this subject.
An argument can be made either way. I like the ATI. Is it an absolute????
It's a comfort level deal. If you're comfortable with a light weight, go for it.
The cv boot.... do you have a forign car part place near by? The boots have so many apps that it's easier to go somewhere that YOU can actualy see your app & order it.
checked your profile.. if that's your white "shaker" I got to get right down there & put a great flame job on it......

 

Yep, that's my pepper white "shaker". Wounded at the moment but nursing him back to health.

I found several listings online for the boot. My inner boot is the one that got damaged. I've never pulled one of those apart before. I've replaced cv boots before but only with quick boots. You know the ones that are split in half so there's no disassembly required. If the job is doable I'd like to do thus the right way.

I got the bolt out of the end of the shaft but I still need to remove the remainder of the pulley. It seems like it just ripped off where the metal and rubber connect. This has to be where my noise was coming from.

Since there's not much left of the pulley, should I just try to pull what's left off with the harmonic balancer all at once? I'm looking around for a puller now. Am I going to have a hard time putting the harmonic balancer and the pulley back on?

 

That is "I have that exact" ... there's no doubt in my mind that pulley had a wobble under load.. It took some time to find the issue... the dealer was less than worthless - the car was still under warranty when I changed the pulley. Those little strange, makes no sence noise makes me a little nuts.... or just maybe more so

The crank bolt is a 1 time use, I replaced that also with a better grade 8 w/ blue Locktite... AND, no the pulley is an easy change - light weight or harmonic, they're 1 piece - interference fit... Just get the torque right & you're good to go

 

Could be the dreaded supercharger death rattle, im surprised nobody mentioned that in this thread.

 

So are you saying that the harmonic balancer and the pulley are one piece? That would make me feel a lot better.

 

Yup.. it IS 1 piece. Since you're in FL, I'd stick with an OE size pulley.... them there blowers get pretty GD HOT & over drive don't help. Your 15% is perfect

Almost forgot about the CV boot.. as far as I can see, it looks like any other boot change... they're all a PITA

 

Yeah, I'm going to get the lightened Alta pulley same as stock size. They are having a 20% off sale now also.

By the way... I don't have a southern drawl. I'm from Oregon. You have to go a bit north of me to hear that lazy southern speach. I'm assuming that's what you were referring to with the "them there blowers get pretty GD HOT". LOL

Thanks for all of your help, I really apreciate it!

Chad

 

Hey Chad, we have a gentelman here in town who is from Batesburg SC, he's 90 - very old school. He is the father of a good friend - when learning that this Mini had a blower & where it was located... those words are almost an exact quote... He knows a thing or two about blowers - his car is a 32 highboy with an Ardun head 48 Mercury w/ Scott blower & 2 - 2 barrels - "Daddy" on the top of the doors. He built it in the early 60s. If you pm an email I'll send a pic.....

When you get the Mini back together - post the result.

 

That sounds pretty cool. I will PM him to take a look.

I got the pulley / balancer off without a problem.



Now I just have to find someone to get me a new one fast. I ordered a half shaft this morning and will have it by the end of the week. I decided to go with the half shaft over just the inner boot because it only costs about $30 more for the entire axle assembled and ready to go with a lifetime warranty. If you look at the pulley you will see a sizable ding in the edge. I think that's where it hit the axle. I can't see any damage but there may be some under the inner boot or the joint itself. Better safe than sorry, right?

 

Good deal on the half shaft, true, better safe than sory... not to mention your time.

Now that you've seen the OE piece, it's pretty evident how it could fail...

You got it going now - a little luck & next weekend, should be good to go

 

That's what I'm hoping for!

Yes, after seeing the factory pulley it's clear that it was a poor design. Too much of a weak link between the pulley and the balancer.