I've only had my '12 Countryman for a month or so, but now that the temps in NY have been dipping to or below freezing I've noticed the engine seems to have no power when first starting out. The engine feels like it bogs down when it first gets going. Two mornings in a row I've almost stalled backing out of my driveway heading off to work. Both days I let it warm up long enough to defrost the windows, so definitely enough for the engine.
Do manual transmissions (or autos for that matter) get stiff and sluggish when left sitting in freezing or near freezing temps?

 

The simple answer is no. If the car is running long enough to defrost the windows it should run just fine. There has to be something else causing this. Your dealer should be able to trouble shoot that. They may have to keep the car overnight on a cold day to duplicate the problem.

Modern cars need relatively little warm up time and typically it is a waste of time to let the car idle more than a minute or two before drying off. Your owners manual will cover this.

 

You don't need any warm up, just enough time to get the oil circulating.

Manual geaboxes may be stiff when it's really cold out and will loosen up as you drive, but the sluggish engine sounds like a problem.

 

I'm don't really think it's the engine. It seems to rev fine in neutral . It's when I put it into reverse to back out the driveway and the first time I put it in gear. Once I get going and make it to the first stop sign on my road, everything is normal from there on.
So manual gearboxes can get stiff enough to notice on cold mornings?
This is my first manual transmission btw.

 

do you have a turbo? i wonder if this is the high pressure fuel pump? sounds like, not enough fuel getting to its destination. like others say, take it to the dealer.

 

Yes it's an All4

 

it could be a sensor too...you may want to use the search function on this forum, if you havent already, to get a list of possibles so when you take it into the dealership you can ask them to check this or that.

 

I couldn't even get mine started on Saturday and they replaced the low pressure fuel pump. Similar issue yesterday but I got it started and now they are doing the injectors.

 

Our All4 has always been prone to stalling the first time or two it starts to move regardless of the temperature. Some days it seems like the calibration of the throttle isn't right when you first start. When you let out the clutch and the rpms decrease, adding throttle doesn't seem to do much in the first start of the day which results in a stall.

 

That's EXACTLY it. You described it better than I originally tried to, but you nailed it. It's like the throttle doesn't quite work right at the moment the clutch begins to engage. The only difference is it only has happened on cold mornings (near or below freezing) for me. 40F or above and no problems,

 

My ALL4 does the same on cold starts and I found that if you hit the sport button, the throttle is more responsive for those cold morning movements. Just don't push it too hard until it warms up. If you have Mini Connected, it will tell you when it is warmed up.

 

Did you get the answer definitively that manual transmissions do indeed get stiff in cold weather? Yes, absolutely, almost comically so with the ones at our house who spent the night in 0-10 above. Think of molasses, very cold. So you're trying to stir gears through that. Spinning / gear friction will warm them up eventually.

I always notice shocks, too, for the first few miles on very cold mornings. Stiff indeed.

 

Yes exactly. My car is in a garage and the weather has been very mild this year, but I remember not so fondly driving those first few km in a previous car during -20 Celcius mornings... molasses in the tranny is very apt.

 

I've noticed when I first start up the car idles at around 1200 RPM, then drops to around 1000 RPM after 30-60 seconds. I take that as indication that the car is ready to leave the driveway.

 

On page 103 of the manual we are directed, "Do not to wait for the engine to warm up while the vehicle remains stationary. Start driving right away, but at moderate engine speeds. This is the fastest way for the cold engine to reach its operating temperature."

I don't know how this applies to severe cold weather conditions, but my practice is to jump in, press start and engage. I recall it was the same when I used to drive BMW's.

 

That's exactly how I do it each morning - but it's only in the low 30s here so far this winter. I'm fortunate not to have to climb out of a hole to get on the road, so I've neither challenged the waking MINI or experienced significant hesitations.

 

They also replaced a faulty thermostat (actually its the sensor inside that was defective). Its starts okay for now.

 

Ours is treated to a heated garage, so I have never seen that issue as of yet.

My 1981 CJ7 would stall its 360 V8 just by releasing the clutch with the trans in neutral, just from the increased viscosity of the oil from the cold. But we are talking Northern Alberta -58f.

 

Ours does this too. Took it to the stealership- and were told we just have to live with it. Not impressed...

 

Both glad and sorry to hear others are having this problem too. I thought maybe I was just crazy.
Unfortunately, when I back out of my driveway, I have a moderately steep hill to climb when I go to put it into 1st, so this issue is going to be with me all winter.

 

Try to back into driveway when u get home. So in the morning u just pull stright out. I dont have an issue with my ( auto) backing out in the morning.