I'm new around here, and have a question about my 2003 Mini Cooper S. I notice a vibration in the drive train. Can feel it through my feet in the pedals and sometimes through the steering wheel and shifter. Noticeable on acceleration and more on deceleration. A "buzzy" kind of feeling. There are no performance mods on the car yet. Do any of you notice this? Thanks.

 

No, none at all. I have an S with the 17" wheels if that makes a difference.

I'm not sure what normal troubleshooting routine would be, but before taking it to the dealer I'd figure out:
--is it speed dependent
--if you put the clutch in does it stop (IOW is it drive train or wheels)

HTH,

Jeff

ps: I should add--the Mini has a really smooth engine (mine does at least.) If I have the radio up without looking at the tach I literally wouldn't know if I'm at 2k or 4k rpm.

 

I don't see vibration as a problem. The only vibrations I feel from the transmission, throttle pedal (even though it's drive by wire, there is vibration, cool!) and steering wheel are normal ones especially at higher RPM's. I think the car is relatively very smooth overall comparing to other cars, so I wouldn't worry, I use it to my advantage.

 

It may be the shift cables. On a few cars, there has been a vibration associated with these.

It definitely isn't a normal situation for the MCS. I would get it checked out with the dealer.

Give me a call if you have any other questions - it's always tough to diagnose problems over the internet. :smile:

Randy
720-841-1002

 

Thanks for your thoughts. I can tell you it isn't the wheels/tires, it happens even at a standstill. And thus, it is not speed-dependent either. But that suggestion helped. In neutral, I can rest my left foot on the brake pedal, rev the engine with my right foot, and get the buzzy vibration. If nothing else knowing this will make it much easier to demonstrate at the dealership. Love the car, would hate to have the experience harmed by dealer indifference. Wish me luck.

 

So you guys get virtually *no* vibration coming up through the shift ****? Hmmmm.... I get a tiny bit, so that if I rest my hand with zero pressure on the **** i can feel it buzzing back and forth. Any significant pressure or grip allows my hand to just absorb all the buzz though. But you guys think I should get that looked at?

 

It could be the exhaust rubbing against the heat shield. That was the cause of my vibration problem.

 

Just wanted to "finish what I started" here and report what the dealer told me when I brought the car in. I rode with the technician for a test drive. He reported that he indeed could feel the buzzy vibration I was talking about - through the throttle pedal and through the shifter at certain rpms. But, he said it was just in the nature of the car and not something I should be concerned about. He told me a few other customers had mentioned a similar vibration. He even said something to the effect that maybe sometime the manufacturer would develop a retroactive "fix" to isolate the vibration, but then some people would probably complain that they wanted more "feedback" from the mechanicals. Oh well... I guess I'd like to drive 3 or 4 other S's to see if they buzz/vibrate the same as mine. Maybe I'm being oversensitive, but it doen't seem like a car with under 3,000 miles on it should vibrate like that.