07 S won't start - scraping sound
 

Hey everyone. I bought a R56 a little while back that didn't run. Crank turns smoothly by hand, checked the timing chain and guide rails, they're good. Small leak from what appears to be the rear main seal. New battery, replaced spark plugs, changed oil and filter, normal maintenance stuff. But the weird thing is, when I try to crank it, the starter turns, and I can hear what sounds like the flywheel spinning, but the crank doesn't turn with it. No grinding sounds, more like scraping. I was in the process of taking the trans out but figured I would jump on here to see if anyone else had a similar issue. My guess is it's either the clutch fork not engaging the clutch and then the crank, the flywheel is busted, or maybe one of the gears in the trans cramped out. Any ideas for what I could check before the trans comes out would be great. Thanks everyone.

it sounds like you have two different issues. 1- the engine not starting and 2- the transmission has weird noise.
it is a manual tranny, right?
what was the issue when you bought, why did it not run?

Yes, it's a manual, sorry about that, I should've mentioned it in the post. The pre owner said it had a clicking sound, and he got scared to drive it cause he thought it was the timing chain. I checked everything and it wasn't that, everything is good. It was making the same sound when I tried to crank it then, but the battery was old and not holding a good charge. I got it really cheap (especially for only having 47k miles).

Before we dive too deep and shoot blanks, are there any CELs. Even if not, did you scan it?

I tried but my reader wouldn't connect. The service screen was showing a service brake pad error, but it was the wear sensor wire had broken.

Which region are you in?

Is it possible that the ECU is shot and that is why it doesn't communicate and hense no start?

I'm in NC. I checked all the fuses and the wiring to the ODB connector and didn't see any issues.

Do you have another cooper same engine and transmission that you can pull the ECU from and put into this one to see if you're getting communication.

read my thread about the countryman i bought.
https://www.northamericanmotoring.com/forums/r60-countryman-talk/305947-struck-by-lightening-or-flooded.html

I read thru your thread - great job on the All4. I don't have another ECU handy, but I've seen several in Craigslist and eBay that I may pick up. Any thoughts on the trans issue? Thanks so much for your help.

Before you go changing electronics, pull the starter and see if all the teeth are still on the pinion. Then check the flywheel to make sure that all the teeth are there as well. If the starter is spinning, and engaging the flywheel, the engine should crank. Something has to be worn or broken in either the starter of the flywheel for this to fail. If the starter didn't spin when you hit the button, I would then look at the electronics, but only after verifying that the starter was getting power as well as a signal to crank and didn't do so. Keep it simple and start by verifying the basics.

if the DME is dead, there is no way to start the car. when he connects the reader, he cannot communicate with the ECU.

In my case, the ECU was dead along with three other modules. Since I had other Minis, I used a DME to verify that there was communication and I did.

confirm that the plugs are tight at the DME and try communicating with it. So, the previous owner never used it after he heard the noise and prior to that, it was running fine? also after you bought it, you started the car fine, right? it is AFTER you did the timing chain that it did not start, correct?

I understand that but what he is describing here indicates that the starter motor itself is spinning so that means the DME is telling the starter to crank. This is why he needs to find out what's spinning (as he described it) and only then can he proceed to the next step in troubleshooting the issue which would be determining why the spinning starter motor isn't engaging the flywheel. Unless is misread his description, this seems to be a mechanical issue of some kind. It will be interesting to see what he finds.

You could be right...but what i meant to say is that even with a dead DME, the starter will crank the car. If you look at the wiring of the starter, the signal wire is coming from the fuse box inside the car. the CAS is initiating the starter through that fuse box.

Thanks for the responses. I'll pull the starter and check the teeth and check the wiring to the reader. I really appreciate everyone's help.

Yes, you're right on your thoughts. The starter is spinning but not engaging the flywheel. It's odd.