I have an 07 R56 with about 91k on the clock. Recently it has been getting kind of cold here, around upper 40s at night (i know that's not terribly cold). When I have been driving home from work I'll let the car warm up for a couple minutes then drive off. About five minutes into my drive the car goes into limp mode and the yellow engine comes up on the tach display. About two minutes after it comes on it goes away like nothing happened. I have checked for codes to no avail.

 

Keep a code reader in the car with you and check it when the CEL comes on. Some codes clear themselves if follow up self tests are ok.

 

are u sure its not a coincidence that it's colder now?

 

Nope definitely not a coincidence. It happens every year. Something about a Earth having a tilted axis of rotation and going around the Sun.

Sorry kyoo...I couldn't resist. :-)

 

Does anybody remember the year most Mini owner's had the dealers swamped when NY had blizzard like conditions and was buried in roof high snowfall and subways flooded? Mini even came out with an improvised intake manifold for cold weather, while these Mini's come from a cold climate (UK), they perform not so good in extreme cold weather.

 

My guess is the throttle body is freezing up, happened to mine. I would get someone to read the codes for you with another diagnostic reader. Been a few documented cases on that.

 

My throttle body froze up twice last year with the extreme cold we had. Had the intake manifold changed to the cold weather version and it hasn't happened since. While the intake was off I had the valves walnut blasted, what a difference it made.

 

When your throttle body stuck did your engine rev at all?

 

DO you guys think that it would be the throttle body freezing even though its only dipping into the low 40s. I don't think its a coincidence at all since the colder nights we have had it happened, and then the some what warmer nights it doesn't happen. Would it be possible to check the codes in NCS even though my OBDII reader isn't picking up codes?

 

I don't think going into the 40's would cause the throttle blade to freeze up like mine did. We had an extremely cold winter last year and the condensation inside the return hose from the intercooler drains to the throttle plate and freezes. After installing the cold weather intake I never had the problem.

 

Not likely.
I know it's vegas, but water still doesn't begin to freeze until long after temps drop below 32F (residual engine heat sink, etc).

Yes, there are plenty of BMW/MINI-specific codes that a generic reader may not be picking up. Try autoZone to see if they can read codes for you for free, or find some local Vegas NAM member with an AccessPort.

My guess is that you have an issue with cold idling at start-up, and that the issue clears after engine warms up and DME goes into normal idlo mode. But what exactly the issue is will be determined by the CEL codes.

a

 

Auto Zone doesn't read codes for anyone in CA, they say, "we don't do that in CA".

 

You are right on the money here. I just had my intake manifold replaced on my '12 N14 fJCW with the "Cold Weather Manifold". This part was developed, I've been told, by BMW Canada with Birchwood BMW's help here in Winnipeg, MB. They are also the ones who replaced it on my car.

In case anybody is wondering, here's some information on Winnipeg:
Winnipeg lies in the middle of the North American continent on a low-lying, flat plain. Due to its location in the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Prairies, and its distance from both mountains and oceans, it has an extreme http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humid_continental_climate (Köppen Dfb,[SIZE=2][14][/SIZE] USDA http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardiness_zone 2b),[SIZE=2][15][/SIZE] in that there are great differences between summer and winter temperatures. The openness of the prairies leaves Winnipeg exposed to numerous weather systems including blizzards and cold http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic high pressure systems, known as the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polar_high. Winnipeg has four distinct seasons, with short transitional periods between winter and summer.
Temperatures as high as 42.2 °C (108 °F) in July 1936[SIZE=2][16][/SIZE] and as low as −47.8 °C (−54.0 °F) in December 1879[SIZE=2][17][/SIZE] have occurred in the city, a 90°C (162°F) difference. According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environment_Canada, Winnipeg was the coldest city in the world with a population of over 600,000 based on the average night-time temperature from December to February, inclusive;[SIZE=2][18][/SIZE] however, now that Ulan Bator has grown bigger than Winnipeg, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulan_Bator is now the coldest city in the world (with a population of over 600,000).

The manifold works like a charm so far.

Oh, and if anyone else says that they live somewhere "cold" and it doesn't go below 0*C, you're a *****. The UK isn't cold.

 

Yeah, just bought my R56 last Summer. 2007. It's been zero or below
and Limp Mode keeps tripping, limiting me to 35 mph

Where can I get a winter intake manifold?

 

11614584240 Cold Climate intake manifold.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...different.html



Thanks

 

I just hope it solves the problem. Looks pricey.
I'm even get the "limp" when it's 27* outside now.

But....thanks again!

 

You are welcome. Clean the throttle while you have it out.

The stock intake ~ $400 vs. cold climate ~265.39 , good luck and I hope that helps.

 

When converting to the Cold Climate Intake, what else needs to be swapped out? PCV lines, fittings, etc?

MCS 2007 - my throttle freezes up in the single digit and below range.

 

I have an 2008 R56 Justa..Been having trouble with the yellow engine light coming on when temps get 10F and below which triggers limp mode. I have to let it run for 5min/shut off for a couple of min/it then resets and normal drive again. The other day it was -10F and it would not start. Battery good, not getting fuel. Put in some HEET (Gas line antifreeze & water remover) started up within 10 min and no engine light. Next day still below zero, started right up and no engine light. Yippee...FYI

 

was this manifold an S only?

 

Nothing else is required, the intake comes with a new PCV hose, as well as new intake gaskets.


The Coopers don't really have the issue the S's do. A theory behind the ice buildup in the S cars is the fact of the intercooler, air temperature changes cause condensation which is then passed through the ducting and finds a home at the next lowest point in the sytem, ie the throttle body.

Coopers may still be susceptible to ice in the intake, but we haven't seen any with that issue yet here in Michigan.

Many of the Coopers we've seen with cold start issues came back to needing spark plugs or the car was left to sit in the extreme cold with low fuel levels.

Nick
Detroit Tuned

 

Not True at all! Mines a 2007 Hatchback, not "S", and I haven't driven it since Christmas

 

It'll only get worse

 

Care to elaborate on that?

What codes do you have stored? the throttle body being full of ice doesn't just happen and not store codes.

The fact that you even have the issue in temps in the high 20's leads me to believe you may have other issues..

 

Yeah, it's throwing a P0974 code, (shift solonoid). Like I said it's an '07 R56 auto tranny. I had a Buffalo dealer and service manager admit to me this was a design flaw. Just look thru these many posts and you'll get an idea of how many owners are very upset.