So I recently purchased this vehicle and everything seemed fine at the time. It had 102k miles on it and the 100k service had been done (stack of receipts for proof) then the other day I started to hear this weird knocking type sound or more like a bottle cap rolling around in the bottom of the engine. It is heard on the left side (supercharger side) of the engine and I cannot seem to figure out what is causing the noise. It only seems to make the noise when it is first started up and does not appear to go through the rpm range from what I can tell. Any and all help would greatly be appreciated!

 

should have said that the car is a 2005 Mini S. Only modification is an Intake.

 

I will venture a guess, I see many have read but no one have offered any opinions yet. Without any other reason or conducting a failure analysis this is nothing but a guess... timing chain guide... my guess the timing chain guide has broken, and because part of it is missing, the timing chain is slapping about at the lower RPMs and as the revs rise the tensioner can take out the slack.

here is more information:

http://www.promini.com/technical/tec...gine-noise.php

Best of luck.

Motor on!

 

Are you able to take a video of it? Does it sound similar to this?

 

is there any easy way to look and see if it is a guide or the tensioner that has failed? I have heard that the tensioner is the culprit in the gen 2's.

 

the picture is a link to the video on photobucket. the noise i have does not sound like that though.

 

Ah! Didn't realize that.

Hm not sure. On top of the timing chain guide suggestion, maybe check out the belt tensioner.

 

i will add that when it makes this noise, the engine seems to shake a bit more than normal.

 

The next time you start it - keep the clutch depressed and see if it still does it. Also - on the highway driving next to a center divider wall with the window down you might be able to notice that it still happens throughout the range. My guess is that it's coming from the drivetrain???

 

I have done both and it does not change. the noise continues with the clutch pressed and I do not hear anything while driving. I have narrowed it down to either the chain guide or chain tensioner. I'm going to try to get a look this weekend.

 

So I went ahead and replaced the tensioner. When I pulled the old one out there were signs of wear on the cylinder as well as a nice line all the way around the cylinder that indicated that it may have been getting stuck. After I got it all back together and started it up again, the noise was still there! I waited for a bit and drove it to see if it just needed to get some oil pressure built up for it to work but to no avail the noise is still there. I am now at a loss! Does anyone know of any other tests or possibilities to fix this noise issue?

 

Hey man, I had a similar problem and just got it fixed. Exact same side of the engine and the sound of something rattling.

Here is a vide of my sound:

I took it to a shop and paid an arm and a leg but it finally works great. It turned out that the tensioner was going bad and the main culprit was the Alternator. Apparently the alternator was seized.