I was told by a mechanic that after driving the car and it was parked, that the engine had to be left running for at least 30 seconds. He claimed something about the oil in the lines rotting the turbo but my ADD kicked in.

Is this accurate or could I turn off the car and walk away?

Sorry if this has been asked before.

 

Turn it off and walk away. It's not a Peterbilt.

 

The engine has an aux cooling pump to cool the turbo after driving. When you turn off the engine you will hear it running.

 

Don't know if you listen to White Roof Radio but they did say pretty much the same thing about letting the turbo idle a minute or so before turning it off. They said that it was better for the engine and other parts of the car also. FWIW.

 

Thanks for the input, fellow MINI owners! I appreciate it. I'm going to look more into the aux cooling pump. I honestly just want to turn it off and walk away. What do you guys do in your real lives, though?

 

Turn it off and walk away. That's what I do. Have had a MINI ('09 MCS first, now '11 MCS) for three and a half years and ~40k miles.

 

I don't know about everyone else but I open the hood (after letting it idle for 30 seconds) then run around the car 22 times while chanting the Lord's prayer backwards.

I know it works, my turbo has never failed; even after 13K miles.

=Laserjock=

 

 

Sounds like a plan, but what if I'm not religious? Can I sing a soccer chant instead? I'll compromise and let it idle for 15 seconds and do the first verse of "ooooooo Balotelli!" (google it if you're a soccer fan and want a quick laugh)

 

Jeez guys,is common sense that out of style?

It depends on how you are running the car. If you just got off the track, or a screaming, hair on fire, backroad run, then yes, let it run a little and calm down. If you were just running to the store, just turn it off and walk away...

 

Don't forget if you ran your AC and it's humid out to turn off the AC then turn just the fan on to blow warm air through the ducts to remove any moisture and prevent the moldy/musty smell.

I read that in a owners manual once.

Turbo cars from the 80s-90s had such issues with turbos burning up that this became 'common knowledge' that persists today. Anyone remember turbo timers being on the mod lists?

 

This was more of an issue with older car that had a turbo but no aux pump that continued to cycle oil through it after shut down. Since, as others have said, the mini already has an aux pump that circulates oil through the turbo after shut off, you are fine to simply turn the car off and walk away. However, if you've just finished an autocross run or a hot lap, I'd still suggest opening the hood and allowing the engine to run for a bit to cool off due to the higher than normal tempt experienced under those conditions.



Oh, BTW, if you try the chant thing, please take video. A good laugh during the work day is always appreciated

 

I only let mine idle for 30-45 sec before shut down if I've run it hard. If normal driving I think just turn it off and let it go.
Just my opinion.

 

+

 

I always let mine go anywhere from 20-30 seconds. Then shut off. That's just in general with any turbo car I've ever had.

 

The engine on a modern car does not get any hotter running on an autocross course than it does running to the store - you're wasting gas letting it "cool off" cause it's not.....

Earlier turbos were not water cooled, so shutting one off when it was red hot could coke the oil and clog the lube ports and ruin the bearing. However, the only way you could do that on the street was to be running full chat up a mountain and shut it off immediately at the top.

Likewise on the track, you have a cooldown lap, your turbo and engine will not be any hotter than on a hot summer day in traffic with the A/C on.

Don't worry about it.

The far more important thing you can do to make your turbo last is to keep the oil topped off and changed regularly - how often is a matter of debate that I don't want to open here, but I change mine twice a year or every 7,500 miles. My engine is spotless inside, and I had the auxiliary cooling pump recall done, so I think my turbo is as protected as it can be.

 

Agreed... take a calm victory lap on the track to cool down but for street driving just shut it off and let the aux cooling pump do it's job.

 

Geez, what's wrong with you all? Just leave the engine running all the time. That way, oil will never stop circulating. Problem solved. Next question?

 

The one who walks away and doesn't cool the turbo and the engine properly is going to regret it in the long run...

I am sure the guys suggesting to just turn it off and let the aux water pump do its job have never heard of EGT gauges...If you have one of those fitted to your exhaust manifold, pre turbo, you can watch the temps and judge for yourself when it is appropriate to turn the engine off. Normally, after a spirited drive the EGT is in the range of 1500oF and if you let it idle for 3 minutes it drops to 850-900oF. This is a safe EGT to turn the engine off...if you don't, it is like you are asking from it to drop from 1500oF to 850oF in a fraction of a second. Imagine how bad is this for the turbo's internals. Even the oil is cooked at such temperature differences. The result? Clogged oil lines, cracked manifolds, cracked turbo ports, shaft failures etc...
So, next time you turn your engine off, just remember this advice...metals are metals and they should be heated up and cooled down gradually!

ps: I have two probes, one for each set of scrolls in my exhaust manifold, and measure EGT in each set of cylinders.

 

every car I've had no matter the driving (with the exception of driving like a psychopath witch Is revered for closed courses) get up to temp and stay around that temp regardless of me being at idle or moving. could be wrong though as i usually am

 

Ok Guys let me give you an insight, YES.... let the turbo cool down a bit before shutting down your car. Yes, the R56 has an AUX but still let the spool of the turbo circulate and cool down. I have seen r56 owners kill their turbos at 20,000 miles, you just don't go to the store and run no boost remember the R56 ECU gives you boost when the car asks for it even minimal throttle depending on engine load. So in conclusion, idle the car down a bit.

 

Eh, yes you can. I run to the store, (or other places for that matter), and never get into boost unless I want to.

I've even got me a little gauge that shows me... (Scangauge2)

So in fact, I can drive my car without getting any boost, and I don't feel the least bit bad about just shutting off the engine when I stop.

But, I'm just an old engineer, I could be wrong. (but I'm not...lol)

 

Yeah that's a bit different if you're not in boost since your not putting stress on the turbo to do the work. But if you are in boost often and constantly then it is the best idea to let the turbo cool 15-30 seconds. I've done that with my other turbo car and same with my MINI.

 

this brings up a memory of my old friends mother who on a -20F night would leave the bar, start her very cold ford and rev the **** out of it before the oil thought about flowing, used to cringe hearing those lifters and bearings dieing.

For my MINI I try and not drive hard the last few blocks on way home.

 

I'm purchasing a 2013 JCW-GP this Tuesday and I want to know these issues been resolve prior me signing my loan...
Did they fix the turbo sludge problem?...
Did they fix the timing chain tensioner issue?...