So one morning I am heading into work car does some funky stuff, i make the exit ramp, car dies stopped at next light. Unable to start for about 15 minutes. Get it started limp into my work parking lot. Inspect the engine bay and find the following:

1. Coolant hose below reservoir blown off
2. Gas smell in coolant reservoir
3. Oil coating everything surrounding the crankshaft pulley. Not a little but ALOT
4. Crank no start

So due to #2 above i know head gasket blown minimum. I am not a mechanic but can tinker enough to cover the small potatoes. So I quickly delve into google to find all the how-to's i can.

Thank you ErictheCarguy(youtube), Mod Mini(youtube) and milanmastracci(youtube), I have an N18 engine and these guys were the best help.

I did not have a code scanner so I started punting parts at the engine, mainly due to leaks or looking bad:

• Oil lines connected to the turbo
• Coolant lines connected to the turbo
• Coolant side of oil filter housing gaskets(need to do the oil side still there is a small leak). There was coolant here that looked like a slurpee. I may have photos
• Head Gasket
• Head bolts
• Timing chain Full Kit (chain, sprocket, lower guides, upper guide rail, the 3 bolts to hold lower guide, crank pulley seal, vanos gear bolts, and crankshaft pulley bolt). Thnak you ECS tuning
• Alternator (this was changed because there was so much oil i was worried for a short and I do not know how to clean it up...yet)
• Serpentine belt (do not know the mini name for this)
• Intake vanos bolt was stripped and could not remove.(hammer + screw driver) replaced the bolt
• Spark plugs

I replaced all the above and to the torque for an N18 engine. I was most worried about the timing and bent valves. I do not have the mental fortitude for that. Goto to start the car praying. Crank no start. Over 2 days I got it to start for maybe 30 seconds each time and it was rough. After 30 seconds it would die out if I was not pumping the gas pedal.

After replacing all the gear i did get a code scanner. It was from Oriely, while i wait for the mini specific Foxwell brand to come in. The scanner said these were permanent. I do not know what that means, but they would not reset. I checked for shorts in the wire harness and current/voltage leaking from the battery. For the first bit after connecting the battery the computer pulls from the battery but after that there is no drain.

1. P053C Positive Crankcase Ventilation Heater Control Circuit High (Check PCV Electrical connector(s))
2. P007D Charge-air temperature sensor, electrical: Short circuit to positive
3. P0238 Turbocharger Boost Sensor 'A' Circuit High
4. P0100 Mass Air Flow or Volume 'A' Circuit
5. P0102 Mass or Volume Air Flow Circuit Low Input

This is where I had the biggest mental panic. I am not a mechanic wtf did i just do kind of thing.

Then i replaced the spark plugs as the old were blackened. Were they good or bad? i dont know but new gave me more peace of mind. I purchased an inline spark tester and then realised i do not have the tools to get it down onto the spark plug. Tool not used, moved will go back and figure it out.

Still crank no start. But it was like it almost would start but not quite

Then I moved to the fuel side the 2 times it started was after i fiddled with the high pressure fuel pump lines. I tested the engine bay relay. It tested good. I then tested the hpfp by jumping the relay. It ran but was gurgling. All the videos I watched the pump made a nice zzzzzzzzz sound. Thank you doit_vehicles(youtube). Ok so i am thinking this pump is sucking or getting air and not providing fuel to the injectors.

Yesterday I removed the rear passenger seat and gain access to the top of the fuel pump. I do not like what I see


Fuel pump with blackened pin


that pin sure is blackened. I worry because that pump obvious got hot or sparked and its in the fuel tank.

This is where I am at right now I did not open it up until i get a new pump in.

photos of stuff here:

Coolant jelly


Lots of oil


Even more oil

 

Sorry there was a lot in that one post, but it also helps me to remember what I did

 

Wow!

I applaud you for doing that in the parking lot! How long did the whole procedure take?

 

So far i am on week 3 of maybe 2-3 hours of work mon-fri and 5 hours on sat and sun. I had no other option as home is 30+miles away and tow truck would have ate the money for parts.

Hopefully the burnt fuel pump is the last of my woes

the 2 hardest things were
1. not knowing what i was doing until i was doing it
2. getting out of the despair/panic and doing what i gotta do

 

I'm with Nik -- kudos for taking this on. Timing chain isn't for the faint-hearted.

 

For a "non-mechanic", you are certainly taking on a big project! Best of wishes to you! I hope you are successful.

 

Thank you for the well wishes.


Yesterday was go to the pull a part yard day.

1 engine was an N18 i took the following:

1. High pressure fuel pump. (I crossed referenced the part numbers at Realoem.com)
2. It had the thermostat hose without the sensor in the elbow.

I paid $56 for the HPFP. I figured if mine is messed up this is more than an OK price to pay to see if I get different results.
Foxwell reader was supposed to be in yesterday too(it did not show up). I did not put it on though as I want to replace the low pressure pump first.

I replaced the thermostat a while back and always hated having the hose with a cut sensor to keep the hole plugged. Got that situated for $8


I hate this hose

I also took the low pressure to high pressure fuel pump inlet hose thinking that maybe the HPFP is sucking air that way. This was futile as the pull a part had a different end on the line side. The HPFP side had the same connector though.

Fuel pump will be arriving Jan 5-7, so i got a bit of time off. May take the time to clean the entire engine bay.

Would there be any other part I should try to scavenge off the pull a part? I was thinking maybe the interior fuse box.

 

Looks like you are making some progresses. Congrats on the work.

 

That blackened pin on the in tank pump.

Does it go down if you press it?
Mine did. The "black" was from fuel leaking out it. Caused a "check gas cap message". I used JB weld marine to fix it.

...though that seems like the least of your problems.

dan

 

Oh and a "permanent" code basically means the fault is currently present. Compared to a code for a fault that isn't.

Dan

 

1. That burnt pin is not loose at all just really burnt



Amazing it did not blow up the gas tank

2. i am getting a decent amount of smoke from between the down pipe and the turbo. Not sure why. Could be purple power degreaser i used to try and clean the outside with. It is definately coming from the down pipe/turbo gasket area (this was replaced with new), it does not smell like burning oil, also cold side is dry(no oil) in the air tubes and in the turbo. Also the fan inside had no wiggle.

Could it be from the head gasket being blown and oil going where it should not and it needs time to burn out?

i have video but do not know how to post it from a phone.

 

Today was moving day. I closed up everything except for the wheel arch liner on passenger side today and prayed.

I drove 15-20 miles heading home. Something unfortunately seemed like it fell out of the engine. Looking in the rearview it looked like a long(6inches) bolt from the drivers side. I had a follow car and we stopped at first available spot and inspected the mini. I never took a bolt that long out of anything, and do not believe it to be part of the car. I am hoping at worst was a socket extension i forgot on the wiper area or best case something on the road i did not see. Also the check engine light came on with 2 codes:

1. P053A PCV Heater 'A' control circuit open Need to check the connector as I replaced the air line.
2. P0128 Coolant thermostat (coolant temperature below thermostat regulating temperature) did not use the air bleeders to remove air after filling with coolant

I am currently researching these now and mini is parked again(although 20ish miles closer). New thermostat housing/sensors order a bit ago due to the nature of my problems. This bastard might have been the cause of the whole mess

Last edit i promise. Yesterday i let the car idle with the Foxwell meter hooked up looking at the live data. Coolant temp was at about 144f degrees. This time a round it was only reading 108f after the drive and the radiator fan was blasting away

Hate that the car is not in the driveway, so I can not try the little fixes and ease my mind

 

Update(finally)

#1 on post above was fixed by pushing the connector together all the way
#2 Ended up being the thermostat housing was melted on the inside. Yes it was melted.( i have a photo) It was a no name ebay cheapy thats been on for a couple years. If you google search P0128 all the top replies state to keep driving your good. DONT DO IT!! Your temp sensor my not be getting coolant to get a temp reading due to thermostat housing issues. You keep going your gonna wish you didnt


New thermostat installed, did not order the crossover pipe to the water pump at the same time so I delayed myself by a week because the old one had a flattened o-ring that leaked when reinstalled.

Fast forward to today, new crossover pipe came in and installed it with new thermostat. During this I dropped that metal retaining clamp thing down between the starter solenoid and *unknown* could not find it again. This was the old one, new tube came with one but the clip is at the house.

Filled system with RO water let run for 30 minutes. Drove around parking lot got temp up to 210ish. Parked car inspected everything.

Leak at the auxiliary water pump, due to not putting hose clamp back.

could kick myself for such a dumb mistake, but that why I used RO water. Fixed the clamp topped up with more RO water. Sat for 30 drove around parking lot revving engine then parked.

No issues! no codes!

Drained water replaced with coolant

Had a friend follow me home. Half power light came on about 1/2mile down the road from the house. Kept going.

Parked in drive and see steam coming from the hood. oh crap

Coolant was coming out of the crossover pipe from the missing retaining clip. tube came apart slightly at the connection

Will install during daylight tomorrow, along with an oil change

 

I also lost that stupid clip for the water pipe. $40 from mini. Never found it.

coolant hose pliers work great for putting it on.

Dan

 

Lost clip here as well. Special level of hell for whoever designed that bit. What a PITA.

 

I used one of those extendable magnet sticks to hold the clip in place while I pushed it onto the pipe. Worked pretty good, but I had to work by feel since my hands were too big for that spot.

 

Does that kinda end up being the case for everything inside this car's engine bay?

 

So good news: I have a couple hundred miles driven.

Bad news:
I give it the gas half power light comes on. I can hear the turbo fwsshhhh for a decent period when it is going to do this. Normal is fwsh done, this is more like fssssshhhhhhhhhh bam! half power light.

Question:

I did more than a visual inspection today of the coolant. I took the cap off after car has sat for about 8ish hours. The coolant reservoir had pressure a little bit stronger than opening a 2liter soda. is that normal? kinda worried i might be back to square 1 with the head gasket though coolant levels have not changed

 

What codes are you getting now?

Actually I think that "Whoosh" is a good thing, means it's holding pressure/vacuum.

You're getting close!

Dan

 

P00BD Mass or volume air flow A circuit range/performance - range too high

the woosh is good but it stays in whoosh mode to throw the half power

 

What diverter valve do you have? Stock or aftermarket? Maybe it is sticking

 

I did purchase and replace the diverter. It was an ebay special back in October. Before this journey i never not once heard that woosh sound even with the new part. After everything was "running" and i heard it, man my heart sank fearing the worst.

part link is below

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Mini-Cooper...72.m2749.l2649

 

Have you cleaned your MAF?

 

since this code no, right before installing a new intake tube during the process, yes even got air sensor cleaner.


Last night I got a half power light and no code which i see a fair bit of in the forums

 

Half power mode and no code tells me you have the wrong code reader... You need a BMW / Mini specific code reader. I would suggest picking up a Foxwell NT-530
https://www.foxwelltool.com/wholesal...installed.html

Having the right scan tool will greatly reduce the time spent troubleshooting your issues.