Hello all,

I have recently had a new rattle occur in my '07 MCS which concerns me. However, I've scoured the posts and the tension of the timing belt doesn't seem to be my issue, but what do I know?

The noise is strange. The car starts up fine and idles quietly. When I accelerate 2-3K RPM, there is a raspy tinny sound coming from what sounds like underneath the car momentarily. Once I'm in 2nd-3rd gear driving straight, it goes away. The sound also occurs when I'm getting on the freeway onramp. It seems to be more prevalent when I turn!?!

The noise goes away completely once the car has warmed up and has been driving for 5-10 minutes.

I happened to start the car with both doors open yesterday and heard the noise, which to me sounds like it's under the car and is a heat shield of some type. I say this due to the fact it is a very tinny sound. I'm scheduling an appointment at Mini SF, but am concerned this might be a huge problem and damage the car even driving it there. The strange thing is the car performs flawlessly after it's warmed up and the sound is gone.

Any thoughts?

 

There is a plate on the underside of the car that will hold up the exhaust system if any of the rubber gormmits break. This plate was loose on my car and would only rattle between 1500-2000 RPM in certain gears. It sounded very tinny like a tin can was hanging on a string under the car and hitting the underside.

Other than that see if you can take a sound clip of video of it and post it here.

 

Thanks for the reply. I'm no mechanic, but this sounds like the issue to me rather than engine internal. Any other advice would be great!

Vielen Dank!

 

Mine would stop after a short warm up time as the plate warped a little from the exhaust heat and would then stop rattling. It was easy to find when I looked under the car. if i remember correctly it has 4 10mm head bolts holding it in place and was about 4-6 inches square one bolt in each corner. Close to the center of the car from front to back.

 

schatzy62's response is probably your best bet. If that isn't it, then it does sound like something related to your exhaust system. Something loose that gets tightened when the system heats up....

 

Thanks all, So I'm taking the car into Mini for service in the next couple of weeks. I spoke with a service tech and mentioned the issues I had read about, tensioning chain, low oil, heat shield. He mentioned the most often issues are the chain and the oil.

So, as I can perform basic maintenance, I checked the oil. I have to tell you, I know a little about cars, but could not for the life of me read the dipstick in our Minis! Feeling like an idiot I believed I read it was a little low, but still was concerned to put in too much oil to screw up the pressure and damage the engine. I also read how the manual says do not put in any oil unless the warning light comes on which it had not.

So, a little caution to the wind, I did add a quart of 5w/30 Syntec. Low and behold the noise is completely gone.

Please don't think too badly of me. I am nearly overdue for my oil change so, I figured I was going to have the oil changed soon anyway and adding a quart wouldn't be too much of a risk.

 

Don't feel too bad--the MINI dipstick is notoriously hard to read.

 

any update on what your noise was? I'm having the same issue and i've already had my timing chain done by the dealer...

 

Hi there, so yes, I do have an update! After taking it to the dealer and paying what I thought was a ridiculous price for "service" I asked them to do an oil change. They replied the car wasn't due for one, but I asked them to do it anyway. I was having trouble reading the dipstick and now I know why! The car was two + quarts low on oil... This is after I had added a quart a few weeks before! Once they showed me the dipstick with an oil change it is very easy to read.

I've also posted another thread talking about "warning" lights about the oil. We have come to the correct conclusion there is not oil warning light to let you know when to add more oil. If you see the oil warning, you are already in big trouble. There has also been much debate about how often to check the oil on these cars as they seem to burn a fair amount of oil. SO, grab a rag and check those dipsticks boys and girls.

P.S. The car is running better than ever. That's what good engine lubrication will do

 

Tell us your findings on how to properly read the dipstick.

Thanks,

 

What was the conclusion of the noise that you were hearing, was it just low oil? or was there a heat shield loose somewhere?

 

Reading the dipstick has been beat to death out here but the one I like best is:
Check after car is warmed up (while getting gas).
Let the car sit for 5-10 min.
Pull the stick out and wipe it off.
Reapply the stick but don't run it all the way down.
Pull it out and wipe it again. Repeat this 2-3 times.
Then stick it all the way in, pull it out and read it.
I keep mine up to the bottom of the top mark (little ****).
Supposedly if level is between to 2 marks you are ok.
I used to check it first thing in the morning and that was close but apparently according to Mini it is best to check it at operating temps.
If you just changed the oil it's a little harder since the oil is almost clear.
Follow the same procedure and if you can't see it on the stick, lay the stick on a paper towel. You can see where the oil is that way.
After a little mileage the oil darkens up and it's easier to see.
Hope this helps.

 

Thanks for the tip; however, I've seen your posts already and I have used your method. From what I can tell, it seems to be working for me, so thanks again. Just for good measure, last night, I pulled out the dipstick for 1.5-2 hours to let the oil drain from the tube and got the same reading. I just wanted to hear what revelation for reading the dipstick DerLowe got from the dealer.

 

seems like my other reply didn't show up.. DerLowe what was the cause of the rattle you were having? Was it low oil or some sort of Heat Shield issue?

 

So, was your issue low oil only. Or did you already cause damage to the chain, etc. ?????????? I'm assuming that since you asked for an oil change and they did it, your timing chain is OK. I've been telling folks regularly to check oil at least at each gas fill. Being 2+ quarts low (and for how long???) you may have caused some damage. Figure there's only 4.4 quarts total to start with. Hope you're ok.
How did they explain how to read the dip stick????

 

I checked my oil after getting onto the freeway and having my red oil indicator come on around the turn... i have been having it changed every 7k miles and have never had any problems until now. I checked it and i couldn't get it to register on the dip stick so i put in 2qts of oil and took it out for a drive and the noise is gone.. i hope that i didn't do any damage to the engine, there's no leak anywhere and i dont' have any white smoke when i'm driving.. i am blown away that my car has burned this much oil... I'm have the dealer change it tomorrow.

 

Sorry all, I had been busy with work and had no idea everyone was even interested in the rest of the story. Yes, I am now able to read the dipstick... First of all it's easier to read when there is actually oil on it I also noticed with these dipsticks it's all about the angle and lighting.

They changed the oil and filter and all with the car is now good.

 

Good deal. Glad to hear you didn't sustain any damage due to the low oil. At least that's what we hope.
Yes, the stick is easier to read with oil in the car. LOL