I've noticed this noise off and on since shortly after I took delivery of my MCS and its taken me a while to figure it out (I've got 1400 mi. on it now).

When I pulled into my garage I would sometimes hear a ticka-ticka-ticka noise. The noise correlates with engine speed in a way that made it sound like a loose tappet.

Lately I've noticed that I only hear the noise when the 6 spd is in 'neutral' and the clutch is released. If I push the clutch in, the noise goes away. If I let the clutch out slowly, the noise stays gone. If I let the clutch out rapidly, the noise comes back. My current theory is that something rotating with the clutch is making contact with something stationary inside the clutch housing.

I'm going to make an appt. to have this checked out, but was wondering, has anyone else seen this??

thanks,
marty

 

I've had this on other cars and it was the transmission. When the clutch is pressed, the transmission is disconnected from the engine. If you had noise then, the best guess would be the throwout bearing. With the clutch released, the input shaft of the transmission is turning, even in neutral, giving you the tik-tik.

Keep us posted, and good luck.

 

I now have the same problem, approx 1800 miles on mine, Feb '03 build...this issue seems to have crept up on a few people lately. As stated above, some people who have had this addressed by dealers have had their entire transmission replaced. Hopefully I can take my car in to get it sorted within the next few weeks.

I'm not looking forward to possibly parting with my MINI already...so far, no other big issues, however I'm worried that once I take it in to the dealer, issues may start rolling in. Although yesterday I had my first brief run in with the DSC/TPS light combo...hopefully it was just a fluke.

 

UH OH!


I never noticed anything odd prior to my transmission failure....

IF it, hope it doesn't, happen to you... DEMAND they tell you the CAUSE of the failure...

I've been told they are only supposed to replace the transmission... no matter what the problem with it is...

I'm still waiting to hear from MINI about what CAUSED this.... Wonder if I will ever know...

 

I noticed a little sound a few days ago when sitting in neutral and when you press the clutch in...it goes away. It doesn't sound very loud though! I guess this will be mentioned to the dealer when I have them check the clicking noise in the rear left side when I hit a bump. I wonder if that noise is from one of those loose shock bolts



Cheers,


JJ

 

OK, I've had it in to the dealer. They think its a bearing and expect the factory rep. will OK a replacement of the transmission. He's supposed to look at it this Friday. The dealership here in Pleasanton CA. is excellent!

I took delivery of this MCS at the end of Feb. (don't know what the manufacture date is), but its looking like I might not be the only one to have this problem.

I hope its not widespread.

 

Although the noise I reported at the top of this thread didn't sound terrible, I knew it wasn't something I should hear on a new car. The dealer and the factory rep. both agreed and they are in the process of replacing my transmission right now.

I'll be without my little MCS for the week-end, but will have it back Monday. I'm just glad that they stand behind their product like this. This is not a cheap fix for them. If I find out exactly what the problem was, I'll post it.

 

I have the same noise I just noticed it yesterday while I was waiting at a fast food pick up window. I acts exactly the way you explained it too. Mine is a Mar 21 03 birthday. I will try to pay more attention to it for a little while longer b4 going to dealer and see what happens, but I sure do hate that "stumble" I get in low RPM 1st gear.


Peter

 

I took my car in to the dealer this week and of course they called me up a few hours later and tell me "it's normal, they all do that" and gave me an excuse that it's b/c it's a 6 speed trasmission, blah, blah, blah...as far as I'm concerned, that can't be normal. Now I'm going to have to find time to take my car in to another dealer sometime later. I'm thinking of maybe just waiting awhile until a few more of these creep up and get fixed so that I won't have to fight with the service dept to get them to acknowledge that it's a problem that needs fixing.

The worst part is that most of the SoCal dealers only provide loaners to ppl that bought the car from their dealer (I ordered my MCS from out-of-state instead of getting robbed with markups and packages I didn't want).

 

I just picked up my car after replacement of the transmission to fix that "tappet-like" noise. I asked if they found a reason for the noise, and they told me that they just ship the entire transmission back to Mini. So, no additional info. on that.

The factory rep. authorized the swap to fix the noise. So I think they may know that some trannys have a problem. (My car has an 01/03 build date.)

If your dealer is blowing you off, its probably because they just don't want to take the trouble to go to bat for you. Of course, your noise may not be the same problem I had, but they don't *all* make that noise.

My dealer (Pleasanton BMW/Mini) is great. They even sell their Mini's at list! The trade-off is that, I found out today, they have over a 1 yr. wait for Cooper S models.

If the noise continues, or particularly if it gets worse, you may want to find some way to contact Mini directly.

Good luck.

 

>>Good luck.

Thanks...glad to hear yours was taken care of.

I'll probably try to take my car to my local dealer next. I also want to go to a showroom and witness for myself that all MCS'es make the same noise. I was hoping there was already a precedent and it was indeed a known issue. It seems a lot of UK/euro owners that have reported the same issue also had their trasmissions replaced and with little hassle. The dealer I took my car to did give me an impression from the beginning that they weren't too enthusiastic about working on my vehicle. Not only that, I discovered they forgot to take care of one of the issues I mentioned (even though the service rep told me they did). It was a somewhat small issue (ran out of washer fluid that day), but not reassuring me about their service level nonetheless. So far I have yet to find any good data on SoCal dealers with good service departments (and not JUST for customers that bought from the dealer).

When I was driving my car home from the Paramount screening last night and became stuck in traffic at almost a dead stop for 45mins, it really didn't sound very reassuring at all. Especially since it seemed I could still hear a strange noise while accelerating up to speed once the traffic cleared (being next to a sound wall probably helped amplify it).

 

I also have a little tic tic noise but only as the clutch is engaging.... no noise at all in neutral or in gear... I can only hear it taking off in 1st with the windows down.... I will take it in if it does not go away as the clutch breaks in.....

 

mine is definitely always present with clutch engaged in neutral...one odd thing I noticed recently is that sometimes when I first start my car and engage the clutch for the first time, no noise at all...but if/once I depress the clutch again and release it and anytime after that, the noise is constantly present when in neutral. just bizarre...

for now I'm letting it slide...if it gets worse or I can really sense something mechanically wrong, then I'll take it back in. At least hopefully more data may accrue regarding the problem in the meantime.

 

hmm i dont have the tick tick noise

but i gear a "thud" type noise or "clunk" when i shift from first to second

my car runs beautiful and nothing else is wrong (knock on wood)

should i be worried?

 

I have the exact same symptom on my 2005 MCS. I took delivery during the summer and I only noticed the noise during the fall/winter. I guess I didn't notice it right away b/c the a/c was on all the time. Then during the fall, when the a/c was off, I noticed the noise while I was outside the driveway opening the garage door. Anyways, how loud is the noise? With my car, the window has to be down and the radio off. The sound is more like a muffled tick.

I noticed this topic is almost 3 years old. I'm wondering if this is a common problem and a TSB is out.

 

Actually, I heard this sound a while back when my car had only about 1500 miles or so. It is a very faint sound with the same symptoms mentioned above. My car is an '06 S, Nov '05 build.

Maybe it's worth bringing it to the dealer to have it checked out? It doesn't seem to effect performance much. Did anyone who had this problem and got a new tranny see a noticable difference in tranny or throttle response?

 

I described the noise to my brother who's a Acura technician. He instantly said throw out bearing. But he said to wait and see if the noise gets much louder. Right now the noise is barely noticeable. I have to shut the stereo off, open the door and listen carefully. As of now, my first service is up during the summer. If the noise gets louder by then, I'll bring it up when it's time for the first service.

 

Sighhh...I suggest a search of the topic. It has been threaded many times. I am suprised some dealers are replacing entire trannys based on this complaint. It is a legitimate beef but it seems the ordinary fix is to do nothing. I have an 04 and an 05. They both do it. Most S owners I have talked to have the slight but noticeable "tick" It is annoying, it shouldn't occur but the general concensus is that it is not hurting anything. Don't get me wrong. I haven't heard your "tick" and if the dealer replaced the tranny maybe it is not the same "tick" generally complained of. In my case, I'd prefer doing nothing rather than let them pull my sweet running engine and swap out trannys creating God knows what new problems, in my case X 2 . If my "tick" turns into something later, its still covered but in the meantime, I don't even notice it. I too was worried when I first heard it(within the first 1,000 miles) but that was 30,000 miles ago. Its no worse now than it was then.

 

I agree...there are more threads on NAM about this than I can count! ...and I have never heard a definitive answer if the tapping noise is normal or not.

Just let the clutch pedal out slowly when in neutral. The noise will disappear.

 

Here are BMW/MINIs official answers:

http://www.alldata.com/tsb/BMW/11281...30105/105.html

http://www.alldata.com/tsb/BMW/11176...05/210105.html

Steve

 

These have been mentioned before, but at least for the MCS it does not cover past 08/04 production (i.e. doesn't cover most of the 2005's). And there are posts on MINI2 describing how the so-called "improved" flywheel did not fix the "problem". Is there a bulletin for 2005 or 2006 6-spd Getrags?

 

NO!

These are the only official fixes acknowledged currently by MINI.

Steve

 

What happens if you do nothing? Does anybody NOT have this on their MCS? I've had it since day one, and it doesn't seem to have gotten any better or any worse.

Here's what it reminds me of. I used to own a Ducati ST-2 motorcycle (wonderful machine!). Have you ever heard a typical Ducati dry-clutch? They rattle just like this; it's considered a badge of honor by Ducksters all over the world. In fact, some owners even replace the sealed housing bit with one that that has holes in it so that you can hear the rattle even more! The louder, the better. No, Duck owners don't claim "clutches save lives," but it's still a mark of distinction.

Is this what's going on with the MCS Getrag?

 

The "what happens if you do nothing" question has not, to my knowledge (and I might have read every NAM and MINI2 post on this topic!!) been answered! Like you, I have had this since day 1, it is only noticeable if I engage clutch quickly while in neutral (so I let the pedal out slowly....and no tapping), and it is unchanged in 12 months of ownership.

 

I've noticed this problem on my brand new 06 MCS. It's been making the noise since mile 1. I talked to the dealership and they said they reported it to mini and they don't know what's causing it. Probably a crock of bull, since mini already released a TSB for it, just on the older models.