My 2008 Clubman has 112,675 miles on it. Took it in for a state inspection and to fix a few things yesterday. My mechanics are pretty realistic and not prone to fixing things that don't need to be fixed. They advised me I'm at the point where it may be more cost-effective to sell my car rather than pay $300-$400 hours of diagnostic time to figure out exactly what's wrong with the timing chain and the oil consumption. I had the timing chain holder (?sorry, not sure of all the part names) fixed several months ago because of a rattle. I'm still getting the rattle occasionally (mechanics heard it yesterday and test drove it). They say it could be that part of the chain has broken off and fallen and is rattling around, or that the chain has become stretched and is in danger of breaking. For this odd combination of possibilities, the car passed the state inspection but the mechanics are urging me not to drive it if possible. I am including the shop's relevant comments here.

I'm wondering: Does this seem reasonable? I know that cars are way more expensive than when I bought my 3-year-old Clubman in 2011, but it seems as though I could be spending a lot of money to keep it in good repair. Thanks for any advice.

We have completed the oil change on the Mini and it passed state inspection. We topped up the tire pressures, reset the TPMS in the CBS, then test drove. The TPMS light is now off. We adjusted the dash lighting to be brighter.

We have the following updates:

3) We test drove to check for rough shift from 2nd to 3rd gear. We did not really notice a difference or a rough shift compared to other gear shifts. There was one time where the shift was a bit odd going from 3rd to 2nd. We checked the transmission fluid and found it was slightly dirty. We recommend servicing the transmission, however this may not correct the shifting issue you are experiencing.

4) For the oil consumption issue, we checked around the engine bay for oil leaks but found none. The crankcase pressure was found to be out of spec. We smoke tested the breather/vacuum diaphragm in the valve cover but we did not see any vacuum leaks from this. It did have an excessive amount of oil pooled inside of it which could be causing it to get stuck. The valve cover/breather is likely the culprit and will require valve cover replacement which is warrantied.

5) We noticed during the test drive that there is a rattle from the passenger's side of the engine bay at around 2k rpm. We verified in the shop that the sound is coming from the timing chain side of the engine. We will need to remove the valve cover to inspect the timing components. If the upper chain guide is damaged again, it is likely that either the timing chain is stretched or the timing chain tensioner is losing oil pressure, causing it to slacken off on the chain. During the upper timing chain guide replacement earlier this year, we were not able to locate the original plastic chain guide. It is possible this plastic piece had already broken off and had worked its way out of sight/reach, and has now gone down to the oil pickup tube. If in this tube, it will cause a blockage which in turn reduces oil flow and pressure. In order to check the pickup tube, we will need to remove the oil pan.

NOTE: It is not recommended to drive the vehicle as the rattle could indicate potential failure inside the engine, causing damage. If we do open up the valve cover to find issues with the timing chain, it may be best to forego any further investment in this vehicle due to its age, mileage, and cost for repairs.

 

If you cannot do the work yourself, it might be time to move on.

 

I agree with Nik. If you were able to DIY replace the valve cover and timing chain and drop the oil pan to remove broken plastic parts reducing the oil pressure, then your Clubman would probably be worth saving.

 

Thank you. I can't do the work myself, no.

 

Good luck with the sale!