I just bought a 2007 MCS. I've driven it for 1300+ miles now; so I think the break-in period is over. Today, I was driving inside my apartment complex's parking lot, when I noticed a weird noise when I lifted the clutch pedal when down shifting from 2nd to 1st. It happens as the clutch slips when it's compensating for different engine-tranny speed. I've only had it happen at slow speeds (8mph). I can't explain the sound, it's not scratching it's more like a "hhhammmmm" sound. This isn't normal right? Have I burnt the clutch? Can this even happen this fast? I really appreciate your help on this.

 

You should not be shifting to first gear unless you are at a total stop!

 

Wrong! You can certainly down shift into 1st while driving slowly. He's talking about a new Mini, not a classic mini.

 

Sometimes I do need to shift to first gear in traffic or when looking for parking space, etc. I've never seen people go to a complete stop so they can shift to first and accelerate all over again.

So do you think I broke it? What should I do?

 

Care to explain this myth?

 

Don't you love internet forums where you ask a question and someone jumps on you about some other issue he/she gleaned from your post?

mbotvinick seems to be living in the days when cars didn't have synchromesh in first gear. Let's see, my 1957 Alfa Romeo Spider didn't have first gear syncho... It has been awhile.

How loud is this noise? I don't know much about the structure of the MINI clutch, but typical damage to ancient clutches was the throw-out bearing. However, it tended to make a banchee whine.

Next time you are at your dealer, ask them about it. Your car has to still be under warranty, so don't worry about it unless it gets louder. It may be a normal sound.

 

I agree. I've been driving a stick since I was 13 and I've always been taught to never downshift to 1st. I've never questioned it. For cruising in extremely slow speeds (in traffic or looking for a parking spot), I stay on 2nd.

 

In the land of syncros, 1st gear is just another ratio to choose from.

 

Your teacher probably thought you would over-rev it by dropping into 1st when going too fast. It is a safe thing to teach a 13 year-old...

 

Update on clutch noise!

I couldn't sleep, so I decided to take the car for the spin and see if I could reproduce the sound on any other gear. At first, I wasn't able to get the noise from 1st gear. Then I decided to drive faster so everything would get warmed up. I was able to reproduce the sound in 1st gear after this. I noticed I could get it in 1st, 2nd and 3rd... But the sound was not as loud as it was before. Steps to reproduce:
1) go in desired gear; accelerate til it hits 3500rpm
2) press clutch pedal and let the tach read 1000rpm
3) slowly let go of the clutch and let the engine slowly try to match tranny speed... noooiisseeee...

I continued to try and reproduce the sound; see if I could get it as loud as it was the last time I drove the car. Noticed it was only getting weaker. After a while I was not able to reproduce again. I drove the car fast again to try and see if this was the cause. After a few quick sprints between stoplights I was not able to reproduce. This is good because I'll be able to get a good night sleep. I hope this problem doesn't come back again.

Do you think something could have gotten stuck between the clutch and flywheel? Oil, some other kind of residue that could've provoked their rubbing together to generate the weird sound.

 

Hey bro, happy to hear the noise died down. But if it really worries you that much you should get the dealer to take a look at it, or like someone said, it could normal. Compared to others, my mini has it's own unique noises, but then again it's been rebuilt several times. Oh and you saying "Noticed it was only getting weaker. After a while I was not able to reproduce again." kinda freaks me out, you should get that checked out hahahah jk.

Looking thoward to our roadtrip, take care.