UPDATE! Today's a nice sunshiny day, made all the better when a Fed Ex truck stopped by my house. The driver had a single flat envelope--my reimbursement check!

I'd sent a link to this thread to Keith Sutch, manager of MINI of The Woodlands. I hated to mention the dealership by name, but felt I had no choice. Keith's a great guy, and he's really a go-to guy for problems. I know the problem orginated much higher in the food chain above the dealer level, but he took over and got the refund. Couldn't have happened at a better time--tomorrow's our 43rd anniversary!

At any rate, thanks so much to Keith--MINI of The Woodlands continues to be a great dealership in my eyes. I no longer live in the area, but if I did, that's where my next MINI would come from.

(I do still have to have the car checked over by the new dealership--Parker MINI of Little Rock--when they open in about a month or so.)

 

Good for you!

 

Thanks for the Tip, i subscribe already

 

What production dates does this timing chain 'campaign' cover?

I recently picked up a 01/2010 production MCS.

 

It covers 2007-2010 MCS, you're in luck.

 

Thanks, Systemlord, but are you sure about that? The only images I've seen on this thread showed letters indicating 2007-2009 were covered. I haven't seen anything more recently indicating the campaign was extended to 2010 MY. Anything more concrete?

 

Most 2010 are not covered. I went in for this to see I was part of the recall and I was not.

If anything the stupid head shield they placed on my turbo oil feed line caused a new valve cover I had to melt since they didn't wrap it properly and part of the headshield was touched the new valve cover. A week old valve cover....for another valve cover. *****....

 

I could be mistaken, look here.

Was your AEM heat shield touching the heat shield covering the turbo/DP? Mine was and burnt and melted the underside of the AEM shield. I have burn marks on my heat shield covering the turbo and DP.

 

They did replace the turbo heat shield when I was in recently. The scoop is also a little deformed and I believe they'll replace that next time I bring it in.

 

Get one of these (inexpensive) and you'll never have a problem again with a warped hood scoop, my hood scoop barely gets warm after a spirited hard run through mountain passes. All those expensive heat shields that fit over the turbo and downpipe don't do anything as far as keeping temps down on the hood scoop, but they look nice. Link

 

I acquired a Mini Cooper s 2007 last summer and I just saw this forum while searching for more info. Do you guys think I can still take my mini to the dealership for it to be taken care off about the water pump?

 

Welcome!

The first thing I would do is to call MINI USA on their 800 number and see if you are registered with them as the owner of your car. That's important, because that's how you get service bulletins and recall information that affect your car.

The second thing to do is to go to the dealer. They have a little machine that can read the key fob. It will tell you what bulletins or recalls are pertinent to your car. Not all R56s are affected by any one issue, even within a model year. Things to ask about are the timing chain tensioner, turbo shielding (if it's an S), HPFP, and the water pump you asked about. The reader will also tell you about other things that may need servicing, such as the brake wear. Whether or not you choose to do them there is up to you, but at least you'll know what's needed.

 

Welcome new member!

As I recall replacing the water pump requires the engine be slightly lifted by an inch or two to be able to pull it out. Good news is the newer water pumps are not made of plastic, it's made of aluminum which is the way it should have been. I have seen people paying around $800 for parts and labor.

 

How would I go about knowing if the recall was taken care of on a Purchased pre-owned
2009 Mini S Such as mine? Search Vin# Maybe? or is there a BMW web site that I can cross reference on? Anyone?

 

I would first call MINI USA on their 800 number, and tell them you are the new owner. They need current contact information for any recalls, service bulletins, etc. Give them the VIN#, and they may be able to tell you what needs to be done.

The other thing I would do is have a MINI dealer read the key fob. That has all kinds of information, including brake wear, etc., and their machine will also know what recall or service bulletin is applicable to your car, and whether it has already been done or not. Whether or not you choose to do the work there is up to you, but at least you will know.

 

My MINI Cooper S was produced 1/11. Do I need to be concerned about the recall on the aux water pump? Is there any indication of the DAY produced? I do hear the aux pump doing it's thing upon shut-down. I assumed this was "normal". It does seem to run more than a few minutes. Maybe runs for 1/2 hour after shut-down? I did buy the extended warranty when I purchased.

 

About the aux pump, it runs for 5 minutes after shutting off your engine. The aux pump circulates coolant through the turbo because when you shut off the engine everything starts heating up because it is no longer being cooled. Having the primary Cat 6 inches from the turbo is another reason why cooling is so important for the turbo, all cars that have turbos have some sort of cooling after shutdown. The compressor turns over 150k a second and can take a while to stop spinning. I wish the aux pump ran longer than 5 minutes.

 

I got the feeling from the last posts in this thread about the timing chain that there was a campaign to replace them, at least on the '07s to '09s? I just talked to my dealer and they said no deals on my wife's '09 JCW...'make sure you have enough oil, the real problem is that people run them too low'.

It's making some noise now at 33k miles...will keep an ear on it and if it gets worse replace it myself I guess. I'd rather pay the $650 than need a motor!

 

I'd call MINI USA on the 800 number and ask them if your car is affected. Give them your VIN. If you do need it and it's on your own nickel, budget double that amount, unless you're doing it yourself.

I will say that the dealer gave you good advice on the oil. The original oil change interval for the '07s was 15,000 miles, and cars were coming in with 2 quarts left in the engine. I don't know what the current recommendation is, but I do know it's been shortened a couple of times since then. (We do our own, much more frequently.)

 

Thanks! Just called them and it's not affected supposedly. Will keep up with the oil...I've grown to be a slacker with my R53 - I change it around 10k miles and usually have less than 2 qts left...keeps the dust down on the driveway, though!

Guess I won't do that with the 56...

 

Absolutely, don't do it with any of the newer MINIs (or any other car)! I'd reduce your oil change level a bit, too--7500? These engines run hot and oil does more than just lubricate. Also, I've seen studies that say even the best synthetics start to break down after about 7500 miles, so some of your protection goes away long before the oil change, even if has the proper level. This isn't unique to MINIs, by the way. ANY of the newer engines work far harder and far hotter than older engines.

I had a chat with some of the mechanics at the dealership where I used to go (before I moved here). They showed me a new timing chain tensioner, and an old, broken one. It doesn't take much imagination to figure out what happens to the engine when that thing breaks. And it's just plastic. They all say the number one thing to do is keep the oil levels up. In fact, one of the service advisors at that dealership keeps a gallon jug under his desk so he can show people what typically comes out of an engine when the oil is drained. He showed it to me with horror, pointing out that it was "only 2 quarts."

Back in the day, we used to change the oil in our Porsche every 3,000 miles. That was pre-synthetic, of course, but all of our car buddies did the same thing. That 356 still sits in our garage. It turned 50 this year--47 years since Hubby bought it.

Oil's the cheapest thing you can buy to prevent problems, especially if you change it yourself!

 

Note that changing the oil more frequently does not have any impact on the life of the timing chain or components.

Just check the oil level on a regular basis and top off as necessary. The synthetic oil will hold up just fine for the extended intervals that MINI recommends.

The tensioner is made out of metal, not plastic.

 

Has it been changed?

 

It has always been metal. I suspect your service advisor was showing you one of the rails or guides for the chain. Those are made out of plastic.

 

Yeah, you're right. Guess that's why I'm not a mechanic!