What is the average mileage on the engine this problem starts to happen and what are the early sign it is coming?

How much it cost to have the engine fixed? I am just curious.

 

On the N14 motor it is somewhat dependent on driving style and weather conditions etc. But the safe bet is that between 30,000-50,000 miles you will have enough build up to make it worthwhile to get a walnut blasting done.

It seems the average price for an independent shop is bout $350. Dealers charge more.

My car was t 99,000 miles and I thought it ran great. Had the first cleaning done then and found out what I was missing. Car was much more responsive immediately after.

 

I've had my JCW a little longer than you have and have wondered about this also. At least once a week I red line the RPM's to burn off carbon build up. About 7000 miles ago I started adding Liqui Moly Jectron on a regular basis of 1200 - 1300 miles, the car now has over 32,000 miles and of course I use premium fuel. Only time will tell if this will work or not, just have to wait and see.

 

When I was in for the 30K service, I talked to my service tech about his experience with carbon buildup on N18 engines. He reported that he has noticed a big difference between N14 and N18 engines. Very little (if any) buildup on N18s. Like Tex6 Hawkeye, I like to rev it up periodically just for good measure and fun.

 

K ....just got back from having my MCs Vert blasted at my dealer and it only cost 325.... and my car has 52,600 on the clock.

 

Had the walnut blasting a few weeks ago, WHAT a difference. Didn't realize how much performance I had lost over time. Have 86K and the tires break loose quickly under moderate throttle which hadn't happened in quite some time.

 

short wait , My Brother........ same thing happened on the way home ...I was shocked I gave it the gas and I literally did a burn out .....DAMN! It's like a new car ..mind you I've only had it for a month .. I have nothing to compare it to... only this new experience of driving it as a used vehicle and I was still in love with it. Not knowing how much get up and go it was missing!

 

I imagine there isn't, but is there anyway to see a carbon build up problem without dismantling the intake valve components?

I have about 57k on my jcw, but drive it like I stole it so hoping that has helped burn off any potential build up

 

I observed that the driving attitude has a lot to do with economy in a very strange way. The only way my gas mileage improved from new is to have the engine rev up and going to the red line from time to time.

At 2K, my average was about 18-20 mpg not going over 4K rpm. Now at 3.7K with more aggressive engine rev up to the red line, I average about 26 mpg. It seems to run cleaner.

For now, the engine doesn't seem to complain...... no time to build up carbon but packing heat at an alarming rate. I am wondering what is melting every time I park my car in the garage.

 

Has anyone seen, used or bought the Bavarian Auto's media blaster kit? $231 It appears to be a decent deal. Comes with everything except the air compressor, in-line dryer/filter and shop vac.

 

If you want to carbon blast DIY here with the tools linked:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-cleaning.html

 

Thanks. Read this entire thread a few days back and just wanted to know if anyone bought the Bavarian kit specifically. I don't want to fab a kit myself and want everything to work correctly and want feedback as to if its undersized etc. By the way....ECS....just received my shipment from you guys. Thanks. Haha.

 

You are welcome. Ok, did not know ,you knew about the DIY thread.

Thanks

 

So, at the bottom line my understanding is every Mini owner should expect to have to do a carbon blasting at about 30-50K because of a flaw in the original engine design that is not covered by the maintenance and warranty program.

What are the other major problems on the N18 engine?

 

I have 2006 convertible. Not turbo. 70,000 miles. Never heard of carbon build up problems and it was serviced at Mini dealer. Recently engine light came on. Went to independent shop because I no longer trust mini dealers. Diagnosed as misfiring. After investigation, it was found that the valves were cracked and damaged due to carbon build up. After removing head, it was found that all valves needed replacement. Obviously this will be extremely expensive. Does anyone have ideas on the cause? Mechanic could only say it should be cleaned regularly and try different gas. Is there any recourse to the manufacturer?

 

On your particular case it's 99% of the time poor preventative maintenance. The engine in your MINI is not the same as those in this thread where you posted. Unlike those in this thread, the engine in your MINI atomizes fuel behind the valves, so regular doses of Fuel System Cleaner every 15K miles keeps carbon from building up off the valves.

On the newer direct injection engine, this preventative maintenance doesn't work so well....

 

This is a 2nd gen thread. Correct me if I am wrong but completely different engine. Just don't want you to be misinformed.

Ok just saw the last reply after I wrote this.

 

Thinking about getting a carbon cleaning done. Not sure if I have an issue, but just as a precaution.

If I need to also do an oil change should I wait until after walnut blast?

 

I'd say do it after, but it shouldn't really matter.

 

The US fuel is not of an excellent quality.
Use high octane fuel, synthetic oil and drive regularly on a highway at high speed.High revs when you accelerate are not so good, the pressure will inject oil in the combustion.

 

We recommend a walnut shell cleaning every 40k miles for the N14. You can stretch it to 50k but the cars start running poorly at that point. I've seen people claim that aggressive driving reduces build-up, but I haven't seen that pattern.

 

Newb question and asking out of ignorance, but how is this different than the seafoam treatment that I've read about?

 

My 2012 JCW Convertible is at the dealer now getting walnut shell blasting done. I bought the car Feb 1, 2014 with 8,070 miles on it and it now has 30,500 on it. I'm getting misfires when apply full throttle at intermittent intervals. It took a bit of pushing on my part but my dealer is covering the cost "this time".

 

So much for the N18 improving the carbon build-up. Seems that all direct injection engines regardless of make have this issue. Just get used to it.

I bought the media blaster from harbour freight about a month ago. My 2011 JCW has 49,000 on the clock and I'll attempt the cleaning myself this summer.

 

^He has a N14. N18 didn't come on JCWs until 2013. Cooper S had the N18 starting from 2011.