My mechanic says that I might have a bad dme. I can buy a new one from the dealer for about $1800, but I see on eBay that there are used sets of dme, key, door lock, ignition lock and keyless entry module for a few hundred.

How will this affect me at inspection time if the vin on the dme doesn't match my car? Does anyone have experience with this?

 

Found some info about the inspection at this thread here, last post.

 

Have him do more diag as a failed DME is not usually the issue.

But if you do try to swap all that stuff you will fail inspection as the vin from the wrecked car is what will be shown to your inspector and cause you to fail.

 

everything else has been checked.

Sometimes, intermittently, it won't start. It will kick over for 2-3 seconds, start to run really rough and then die. And so this every time until I remove the relay under the hood with the lightning bolt over the engine symbol for more than 40 seconds. Sometimes it will die while at idle and not restart. Twice it has even died while moving. The courtesy lights come on and stay on when it is doing any of the above. I have replaced the throttle body connector, the throttle body itself and the crank position sensor.

The mechanic, a bmw/mini specialist, has had it for 1 1/2 weeks, and can't replicate the problem.

Replacement of the DME with ebay stuff is not ideal, but I can't afford $1800 plus for a factory unit.

 

Swapping the DME and associated parts is a great way to cause yourself or future owners a large ***-ache.

You’ll pretty much never be able to order keys by VIN again unless you have a title in your name from the car the stuff came out of.

 

Imat this point, future owners are not a consideration for me.
If it comes to a done, I have no choice. $1800 is simply not an option.

 

I would suggest finding another mechanic. There's a lot of people out there that don't have the proper diag tools to work on these cars. It could be something as simple as the fuel pump dying.

If you shotgun a used DME at it and it don't fix the problem is your mechanic going to eat that?

 

This!

With that much money involved, it never hurts to get a second opinion. You never know, you might save yourself hundreds/thousands of dollars when it's all said and done.

 

This mechanic does have the tools. He specializes in bmw/minis.
Also, I when I originally took it to him, he spent 2 hours and told me the TB connector was going bad, as was the crank position sensor. I had him replace the TB connector, that plus the troubleshooting was c.$350. I replaced the CPS myself, and fixed some leaky oil gaskets. Soon after, the problem happened again. I called him up to ask, and he offered to troubleshoot the car again, FOR FREE. so he has had my car for almost 2 weeks, and cannot replicate my issues, but isn't charging me for it.
He has not definetely told me the issue is a DME, but is still trying to track down the problem.
If I take it to MINI for troubleshooting, I'm back to paying $117/hr for a problem that may not appear for over a week of daily normal driving.

TL:DR I can't find the issue, mechanic can't replicate, I feel stuck.

 

If it was me I would just take it to MINi and have them scan the DME and go from there. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong....but if the DME really is "bad".....its toast. Its not going to work properly for weeks, and then act up.

The fact that the guy has had your car for two weeks straight and is trouble shooting it for free means two things. One...he's a nice guy....and two, he doesn't know what he's doing when it comes to MINIs. What has he been doing to it for two weeks??

Pay for a MINI dealer to look at it. What's your other option? Buy a used DME and then hope your mechanic can get everything going again?

 

Well, as I said, this problem does not happen every day, it is not consistent. Sometimes I have gone as long as a month without it having an issue. It doesn't seem to happen less than four or five days after the last time I pulled the relay. When the car is working, it is working properly, without any issues. It is completely random.

 

Sounds like a sensor....not the DME. Do you get a check engine light when the motor dies? When it dies will it start back up?

Either way....i would still take it somewhere else for a second opinion.

 

The only code I ever get, and it doesn't happen every time, is for a vehicle speed sensor, I think it's P0501, vss have been replaced.
It will start back up sometimes after sitting for a length of time not less than 30 minutes. If I pull the relay under the hood with the lightning bolt and engine symbol for at least 40 seconds, it will start right up most of the time. Sometimes it takes a time or two for the relay pull trick to work.