Just picked up our new 06 JCW and made the 110mile drive home. Some things I noticed - are these common to the breed or anything sound worrisome? In other words, you can expect to see the following in my upcoming search history!

We'll do a full service and replace all fluids and an overall check. There are some rattles and the usual stuff to sort out. We paid $6k with 101k miles on it. Seemed reasonable.

1 - Cruising on the freeway at 70mph, and 3000+ RPM in 6th. Is that correct? Love the torque for acceleration but jeez, for cruising that is a bit high it seems. I can't imagine gearing has been changed on an otherwise completely stock car. The 2103 MCS with auto runs a fair bit lower.
2 - Cruising a steady speed and lift off the accelerator and it stumbles and it feels like the engine sort of bucks. Press on the accelerator and the same thing happens. It seems to pull fairly cleanly under acceleration but on transition it causes a noticeable jerk. My guess is it needs plugs, wires and the usual tune up stuff.
3 - Shifting feel is horrible - it's much heavier than I would expect and vague. The only thing I have driven that was worse was my Porsche 914 which was like a stick in bucket of baseballs... Guessing there are shifter linkage kits?
4 - Clutch engagement seems very abrupt and deep into the pedal range. It holds under torque and doesn't make any sounds but will take some getting used to.
5 - The headlights seem to be fairly dim. Will be looking for upgrades to those.
6 - Wow, what fun car to drive!!


The white JCW is going to be my son's car, and I'll take his black '13 R56 MCS.

 

Congrats on the purchase!

1. Yes these things sing down the highway! like you said, its geared this way for torque not overall comfort. Still surprisingly good on fuel considering this.
2. Likely a simple issue, cant say i have experienced that. Start simple before getting to involved
3. The shift cables are semi-prone to being a nuisance, when i picked up my car they were shot. It was almost impossible to tell which gear you were in, and it felt stiff. New cables tightened everything up and feels much smoother.
4. My original dual mass clutch felt this way, converted to single mass and it moved the engagement point but the aggressive engagement remains.
5. The headlights are not amazing, could try some different bulbs and possible adjusting
6. Indeed, when all else fails you'll remember how much fun these cars are! Always a joy to drive!

Best of luck with the car

 

Agreed with starting simple in diagnosing issues. Mine still doesn't have enough total miles accrued to have exhibited such issues plus was modded when brand new, which subsequently took some sorting. A few thoughts, regardless...

Displayed mph vs specific rpms will likely be a bit off, i.e., speedo reading a few mph high on the highway(apparently) intentionally by BMW design. Compare to a gps device and you'll likely see that error. Aside from worn ignition components, you might also check the supercharger boots for cracking which might cause that described jerking. I'd start by checking if any codes are present if you have an OBD scanner. I have a Foxwell corded unit originally purchased for my R53 but subsequently bought a bluetooth dongle, which (IMO) is more comprehensive and much more convenient to use with device of preference. This is the one I bought and like but maybe you could borrow one before spending $$:
Also agreed that worn shifter cables can cause balky shifting, however 1st Gen "facelift" models (mid-2004 and beyond) had an improved design with cables and shifter box not shared with earlier production vehicles. Accessing those components requires dropping the exhaust system (front res pipe) as well as lowering the heatshield to drop the shifter box from the chassis for access to the cables. Aftermarket "short shifter kits" achieve that function by changing the fulcrum points with longer shifter rods which extend downward but then encroach with that res pipe with rattles and resonance vibes resulting - in my own experience. Mine had a B&M kit (NLA) which drove me nuts until I purchased a donor shifter box, rebuilt that while replacing the white plastic retention piece (often has broken with miles and heat cycles) as well as the "bump stop" o-ring and lithium greasing all moving parts. Although my modded shifter box had very few miles at time of rebuild, I chose to utilize a machined plastic retention kit offered by Cravenspeed (bought here), which is adjustable from the top side once assembled and installed. Pics of all that in my (sig) topic and elsewhere on this forum.

Good luck with your projects and please keep us posted...

 

Thanks to both of you! I don't really have time or space to work on it but I know my son is excited to get his hands dirty. And what could go wrong with a 17yo tearing into a pretty sophisticated car, right?! I have other cars that the OBD scanner would be helpful with. I hadn't thought that the clutch was simply heavy to handle the torque and designed to engage aggressively. He'll adapt. It's his first manual car. The shifting isn't vague, it's just stiff so, maybe it just needs some grease. We'll start there and go forward.

Are motor mounts a problem area? Do they get loose or sloppy over time?

Thanks!

 

shifting can also be impacted by worn motor and transmission mounts. shifting on my 06 improved each time i did the rear motor mount, upper mm, and eventually the transmission mount.

when i did the upper motor mount and transmission mount, i bought a generic OEM-equivalent mount. then i added the stiffest poly bushing inserts available. for the RMM, i bought used, but it uses both replacement bushings vs basic inserts.

 

@phone_cover +1 on that! A friend of mine owns an R56 and tracks it hard in Time Attack. Although different generation he literally cannot shift some gears when the upper engine mount on his fails.

 

This was my thought. Could worn/deteriorated motor mounts cause the bucking as well as bad shifting. Urgh. I have a feeling we may need a seal replacement as well.

 

Definitely agreed on eliminating motor mounts as possible root cause before tackling the shifter/cables. Doing the latter is more R&R effort to access (although not difficult) - especially if those parts are otherwise OK as-is...

 

Waymotorworks sells a lower engine mount with upgraded bushings in it already, which makes it a simple swap. I’m running a BSH lower and an eBay knock off vibra upper. Unless you are thinking of tracking it, don’t go this route. The extra vibration in the cabin isn’t worth it. My buttons for light on headliner are the rattling at certain rpm’s, luckily the dash and everything else remain rattle free. Another tip, stick with stock intercooler and stock intercooler boots, honestly just throwing money away on anything else

Only pic of eBay upper I seem to have.

 

I think it would be fun to do a track day or autocross for fun but the primary use will be daily driving so I don't think more vibration is what we're after. I'm more interested in reliability at this point.

To put it another way, straight from the dealer this car is more capable than we are as drivers!!

 

I daily drive mine too, it took a little getting used to, but she’s been setup like this for a year now. Dailying a race setup isn’t for everyone, hence why I gave the warning. Ever since we made the move down here to Florida, we actually have been taking the mini a lot more, easy to maneuver in traffic and small parking spots at the beaches. I probably need to quiet this exhaust a little, but that can wait.

 

Remember, for all these problem areas, most of us have "been there and done that". Keep in mind, in addition to this forum, YouTube is your friend and, after watching a video or two, you'll become master mechanics.

 

i get what you're saying, and i'm not trying to change your mind. however, i think the NVH discussion is generally over reported. the stiffer mounts don't just make your car vibrate. they hold your engine in place better. so, instead of losing power as your engine mounts torque and twist (and fail), the engine is held in place and the power is sent to the wheels. what i'm saying is - the car drives better with the stiffer mounts. in my opinion. your miles may vary.

 

I get it. It's just not top of my list right now to optimize power getting to the ground beyond what the factory thought was necessary. In your example, if 200hp gets to the ground stock and 205 get to the ground with the new mounts, I can live with my son not getting the extra 5hp! I appreciate the info though. Someone mentioned using the stiffest bushings. Something that has different bushings would be a nice option if they need to be replaced.

With 101k miles, I'm sure it needs shocks or a coil over upgrade, there are some trim pieces that are missing, some paint/clear coat needs touch up etc etc.

After driving it again today, it feels much better. Part of my problem is I haven't driven a manual in 20+ years probably! There is still an abrupt transition when lifting off and then transitioning back onto power and it feels like it could be made worse by bad mounts. I'll report back after the dealer tells me how bad it is!

I did notice some knocking at idle when cold in neutral and then when I depress the clutch, it goes away. I'm dropping it off at the dealership tomorrow for a full inspection. What a fun car. I can't wait to get it all dialed in!

Thanks so much to everyone who has chimed in so far. This forum and you all are such a great resource! I hope to contribute more as we progress.

 

I can agree on the lower mount, replaced mine with powerlex and don't notice a difference. But i can agree on keeping stock. Considering the price difference if not fully using the capabilities of poly bushings.

If the lower engine mount is gone, grab the oil pan and try rocking the engine, use alot of force! If it doesn't move it's likely fine.

The upper engine mounts and trans mount are more difficult, sometimes the engine is offset visually to one side. Besides that they basically need a visually inspection.

Pop off your airbox, inspect the shift cable ends. Mine were visually $%$% and separating. If they look OK, have someone shift gears while you watch, could visually see a resistance or bind.

Keep it simple and diagnose for now!

 

I went through several OEM upper motor mounts before I finally gave up and installed a Vibra-Technics. Those stupid hydraulic mounts just don’t seem to last, and I’m not what I would consider rough on them. Even before they leak, they start to allow excessive movement.

I later swapped in a lower mount from them as well after a particularly hot day where it felt like I’d broken the lower mount. Best I can guess is that the poly bushings I had in it softened excessively in the heat.

NVH at idle is noticeable with the high durometer rubber, but the car drives a lot better than it ever did stock.

 

I can tell you that the search function on this site is not very good when looking for threads that apply to issues you encounter. I find that searching through Google (enter northamericanmotoringdotcom, then topic) will yield you much better results.

 

This is interesting. I didn't realize one was hydraulic. Sounds like we'll be doing motor mounts soon. We're in a fortunate situation where money isn't the primary concern. Having a space and tools to work on it is. We live in the city so work here would be in the driveway - and my wife doesn't like the idea of a car sitting in the driveway up on blocks with the engine out for weeks at a time! We have a shop but it's an hour away and already has 2 classic ('71 F250 and '68 Lemans) cars going through refurbishment.

We'll keep you all updated and will certainly have more questions. Thanks!!!

 

The engine mounts shouldn’t take to long. It will honestly take you longer to jack the car and set on stands than it will to change out the lower mount. The upper mount isn’t as bad either on the post face lifts.

I wanted to mention something on the clutch part, I had an 09 Clubman S, and moved to my 05 R53. The clutch pedal on the 2nd generations is way lighter than the 1st generation. For the past 2 years I have gotten used to the heavier clutch pedal and when hopping into a gen 2, I feel like I’m going to throw my foot through the floor.

 

Yeah. The two motor mounts are easy. I could probably do both in about two hours total, including finding my tools and jacking the car up. Be careful with the ground on the upper mount. Trained gorillas have been known to snap it off.

The transmission mount is a little more involved on the R50 because of the air box, but it isn’t terrible. Not sure about the R53.

And you can do all of them with just a floor jack and some jack stands.

 

Hahaha trained gorilla's... lol. R53 transmission mount is about the same. ModMini on youtube is your friend. I personally coat every bolt in either anti-seize or some thick grease like Lucas red n tacky whatever upon assembly... you'll thank yourself later!

 

It’s easy to see if the engine motor mount has failed. The rubber on top is crushed down to 1/8”. I recently replaced mine and the bolt was rusted from the hydraulic oil leaking out the bottom. This is the only rust I have found on the entire car.

The replacement bolt was $12 and the shipping was $12 and the rust in the eye is priceless!

Motor Mount

Kurt

 

Have you met the trained gorillas with impact wrenches yet?

 

I try not to let them touch the car 😉 Safelite is the only ones that have worked on my R53, let’s hope today 3rd appointment is my last one. First one they cut the glass out but didn’t have the white clips that go under the windshield to hold the chrome trim, no biggie have a garage and it was only 3 days of no Mini. 2nd time they have the clips, set the glass, and boom 3 scratches in it, one the runs across the whole damn thing in line of site and another was basically in the same spot of the previous crack. And the wife wonders why I won’t let anyone touch her.

 

yea, that design right there is exactly why i used a poly insert on the upper motor mount. this mount should last a while, hopefully, seeing how it cannot collapse on itself.