Hi MINI friends;

My '05 MCS was running fine from Lincoln, NE to Columbia, SC and then ran fine for a week there. Saturday, I was cruising along and had a VERY sudden loss of power. So much so I had to pull to the side of the road. I turned it off, checked what little I know to check, started back up and it ran fine for a while. Then it did it again and the service light came on. Not the emergency light, just the service light. Happened 3 times. Anyone know what to look for?? Thanks!

 

Sounds like it went into "Limp" mode….
Take it to your local indy mini guy ASAP.

 

What is "Limp" mode?? It's parked in the university parking garage right now and won't get back there for a couple weeks. At least it's safe and sound right now.

 

The easiest way to determine what is wrong is to read the trouble codes. A service shop (dealer or independent) or even an auto parts store can hook up a handheld scanner to the car and read the trouble codes. The trouble codes will give some idea what it wrong.

It could be a whole range of things.

 

Thanks! Since it's 1,200 miles away (I miss it terribly), I won't get there for a few weeks. at least it's safe where it is. Anybody know what possibilities and costs I might budget for? What is the worst and best scenario. Im no mechanic, even though I can build a Steinway from the ground up! Go figgur! We're literally tapped out on the move thing. Good thing my new job will cover 66% of it, but right now, we have nothing until that and the new paychecks start rolling in. Its a great gig, just moving at university pace on paybacks!
I was thinking a computer need, a fuel injector problem, or the southeast heat. It was 98 last week with airconditioner running all the time. Any thoughts are welcome. just throwing stones out there for ideas...I like to think about stuffs.

 

When you get home, or back to your mini, post back into this thread.

 

Nice. Home is now...not home; Lincoln. We're moving to Columbia SC. That's now where the MINI is; nice and snug in the University of Columbia's parking garage. We're back in Lincoln to finish work at UNL, then move all our stuff to Columbia in about 4-5 weeks. We're tapping out everything already to just move. Moving sucks. When there we'll get some $$ back for expenses.
MINI is there. I'll try to get it limped to the nearest MINI mechanic and will let you know what it is.

Anyone in South Carolina? Who's the best MINI mechanic in the Columbia/Lexington/Irvo township areas? Much thanks
Paul

 

I would get a OBD reader and see what triggered the limp home mode.

 

There really is no telling. It could be as simple as a vacuum leak or as bad as burnt valve.

Did it run rough or just lacked power? If it just lacked power then it could be a vacuum leak (like on the supercharger boots).

Get the codes when you get back to the car, report back here and we'll see if you can fix it yourself.

BTW, limp mode is when the computer drastically limits power to the engine. It like self-preservation mode.

My first (real) job was at a University too (U of Michigan). At the time we didn't have two nickels to rub together - barely had enough money for gas to make the trip. Good times!

 

I'm thinking limp. It cut off like night and day. Turned off then on, then good for a few miles, then did it again. Just limped into the garage and parked it to be dealt with after the move...

 

What are my cost estimates from most to least on this stuff? I love my MINI, but this is the second time with trouble in 20K miles since I bought it. I may have to let her go if I'm going to do this often to a daily driver. Hate it!

 

By not having any idea what's wrong it's really premature to talk cost. It could range from $100 to well over $1000. BUT relax there's nothing you can do right now. Wait until you get back to the car before you get all worked up and worried.

 

Did you ever figure out what it was? The symptoms that you describe, is exactly what happened to me today on my drive home from work. The CEL came on with a sudden loss of power so I thought I had stalled in stop and go traffic. I turned the car off while still rolling and the engine revved freely for the first few seconds, and then I couldn't get the engine to go higher than 2,000 RPM once I shifted into gear. Luckily, i was already in the far right lane when this happened and pulled over at the next exit. Did the turn off engine while rolling thing a few more times and it did the same thing.

I finally stopped for about 2-3 minutes with the car off, and started it back up. I finally got the car to rev freely, even while in gear; however, the CEL was still on. I went straight to my mechanic, and now he's got the car for the weekend to figure out what had happened.

I also noticed that there was some rubbing noise whenever I would rev the engine, or when I was moving. Not quite sure what the cause of that is.

 

Bet $10 the sound you heard is the crank damper slipping...tearing itself apart.....

 

Car is in Columbia, SC and I'm back in Nebraska moving there this week. I won't get a chance to check it out til next Tuesday...

 

Hi i recently experienced my 04 R53 loading power. I receive and service engine light and it went into limp mode. EML light came on. I was able to drive it back but it would not go over 2,000 rpm’s . I have seen previous post about others having this same issue. I was wondering if they new what issues could be. Unfortunately i didn’t have time to get the codes. Just trying to see what i be expecting to fix on it