For about 30,000 miles now the car has felt slightly down on power. At first i thought it was my JB+ getting recognized and cancelled out by the ECU, but now, after having a shop put in a new battery, plugs, coils, oil change, downpipe and tune, i think im having a fuel delivery problem.

My car is a 2013 MCS and for about a month and a half now, on cold start in the morning, i am getting bad sputtering and rpm surges.Since my spark plugs are about 30k miles old, and my coil packs were all OEM but 1, i thought after this tune up she would be back to running great and full power would be restored, but it still feels the same.

My symptoms are as follows: Rough cold start in the morning, runs fine after that. Rough start upon leaving from work, works fine after that. Power feels like it is down on boost and it feels pretty laggy. Launching in 1st gear the stock clutch chatters a lot and the rpms drop like it is struggling to keep up the power needed to launch the vehicle.

After extensive research, and already knowing of the extended warranty on the HPFP for the R56 2007-2012, i really think i have a problem with my fuel delivery system, any thoughts?

I just spent almost 3k on all the maintenance items i did and the tune and dont want to spend any more money on this dayum car right now, i just want to enjoy it. My plan is to see what my shop says that installed the tune, but i have already talked to mini usa and they could potentially escalate it up the management chain and have it paid for if i can get the mini dealership to diagnose it and confirm it is the HPFP. The problem is, they want to charge me $130 to diagnose it and if it isnt the HPFP then i am just out that $130.

Why do these cars have to be so finicky? I have had this car since 36k miles, now has 72k miles, and i think 10k of those miles of ownership have been 100% operational. Seems like there is always something wrong with this damn car.

ARRRGGGHHHHHHH

Please, provide input if you have any!

 

Have you looked at the intake valves?

I walnut blasted my '13 and my '12 at around 90k. The N18 isn't as bad as the N14, but it's still worth a look, and in my experience, it will sort out a rough idle and the start up issues you describe.

 

Yes I had the valves walnut blasted like 2 or 3 oil changes ago, which I do every 4,000 miles. Because I had it done so recently I can’t imagine they are gunked up. When I had them cleaned the shop said they were not bad either.

 

Bummer.

A couple more questions:

What tune do you have?
Which spark plugs are you using?
Which downpipe are you using?

 

Stage 2 tune, ngk1422 plugs and a militek 2.5 inch cat less dp. The rough start is the same as it was before with stock plugs stock downpipe and the jb+ piggyback tune only

 

Shows no codes and all af ratios and temps look fine while running, but rough startup and slightly down on power.

My shop says one day next week i should leave it overnight so they can put the scanner on it in the morning for the first cold start of the day.

I wonder what that will tell us. I think it will be the HPFP not meeting pressure specs only when cold. And i think when i replace the HPFP the power will return......hopefully i am right...

 

So we have looked closer at the fuel pressures and AF ratios and things look good.The shop has the car now and is trying to diagnose it. I am worried my turbo could be failing.

 

This could be something as easy as bad gas. Do you have any way of testing your fuel?

 

I don't, but i strictly use shell 93 premium, so i personally dont think thats it, but i do not know. The shop is testing the whole fuel system as well as the turbo.

 

It's a bummer, but it happens, even at Shell. I'm in Illinois, and our lovely governor approved the sale of winter blend fuel up until July. This wasn't a highly publicized decision,but it happened. On the winter blend, the car was definitely down on power, and at high rpm's, the car seemed like it would start to choke out. I'm not saying this is your issue, but something to take a look at.

 

So i believe it has to be the turbo failing. The shop suggested we try to change the boost pressure sensor first and if that doesnt solve my issue with being down on power then it is the turbo. They put a boost gauge on it and said it was not holding boost into the higher RPMs. I let them change the sensor, and they claim it improved, but it still feels the same to me.

At this point, i am thinking it has to be the turbo. I am hearing a lot of metal on metal turbo like noise, am down on power, and sometimes in the mornings or afternoons on cold start it idles rough for like 10-15 seconds.

Any input? What else could it possible be? My shop tested the vacuum system(replaced a couple hoses), tested for boost leaks, tested the hpfp system, and they said there is just a little play in the shaft of the turbo. I dont know if they pressure tested the wastegate.

 

Bad turbo at 72k miles? Honestly, that's not likely. If I just spent $3,000 on parts/tune I would hold that vendor's feet to the fire. There's no way your car shouldn't be running perfectly unless they did something wrong.

 

It is running perfectly no codes no nothing it just feels the same as before when i had the jb+ tune.

I just had them hold the car for 2 weeks doing a full test on fuel system, vacuum system, and turbo, and the outcome was a new boost pressure sensor...

How do i hold their feet in the fire?

 

The only way you're going to be able to quantify any performance increase from the tune is to put it on a dyno. If you're pulling the same HP as stock, the tune wasn't done properly. The dyno run would cost you around $150 unless the vendor who did your tune has one. Then I would insist they prove their tune was beneficial by sticking it on the dyno and providing a report including HP, torque and AFR readings.

 

Of course, but i would have had to dyno it prior as well.

I've been driving the car so long, i just remember the days when it pulled smooth and responsively, and it has been getting slightly worse for like 20,000 miles now. I have had the car checked over multiple times and have done basically everything else. Im thinking turbo is failing. After watching like a million turbo failure yt videos, im a little more sure the turbo is failing, but i dont have the money right now to replace it, and i dont want another emergency to arise if i do replace it. All my friends are saying keep limping on it for now....

 

Well, you know what your stock HP is, right? My tune added 18HP at the wheel (before/after tune dyno runs). That's a substantial difference that can really be felt. If you haven't had the same experience then I would suspect shoddy work.

 

Do you have a boost gauge installed? What were the boost values stock? What were the boost values on the JB+? What are your values now?

I would suspect if it feels the same as on the JB+, the boost hasn't changed. If there is a boost loss due to a failing turbo, the ECU would see it.

 

I know what the stock hp is. I actually have a 2012 mcs in stock form also in my driveway. I drove my MCS(2013) in stock form for about 3 weeks when i first got it, and i remember what that felt like, and i remember what it felt like when i added the intake, boost tubes, exhaust, and jb+ after 3 weeks of owning it.

It was wicked fast, responsive, and definitely had all of the stock hp. It doesnt feel like it has the stock HP even anymore.

 

I dont have a mechanical boost gauge, but i have the dash command app. The boost is peaking at 16psi and peaks about 12/13 in stock form. I am not worried about them pushing the boost higher, they will do that for me no problem if i want.

I think the turbo is holding boost but just not spooling properly or something due to maybe failed bearings or something. It makes a lot of metal on metal noise.I really want to swap out the vacuum pump and hpfp to see if any of those bring the car back to life, but i dont have monies rn. I really didnt expect to have a failing turbo at 72k miles.

 

This seems to be some new information to this thread... If the turbo is making metallic noises, chances are good the shaft/bearings are shot, and the turbo needs to be replaced.

16psi is low for a stage 2 tune, but if the turbo compressor is actually rubbing inside the housing, I would expect lower boost numbers. Which tune did you go with?

 

They call it a stage 2, but they did only increase the boost pressure by 25%, which equates to roughly a max of 16psi. I call it more of a stage 1. But they will update the tune for no charge, like if i replace the turbo and need to adjust it. I've thought about just asking for a refund and shipping my ECU to mario.

About the metal on metal noise. It is not all the time, it sounds like the compressor wheel is rubbing against the house on startup but goes away after maybe 20 seconds. But then on hard accel and decel there are some points where i get that same metal on metal noise, a similar version of what you hear in turbo failure videos. Seems like it has gotten worse over time.

 

Any metal noises from the turbo = pull the turbo.

For future reference, adding power will exaggerate any issues with a car. Best to get the maintenance up to date, and check the general health of the vehicle prior to adding more power.

 

thank you for your input Nik, im thinking the same with the turbo. Its time to swap it out. Im convinced its been the root of my power issue for a while now.

As for the maintenance. I have always done 4,000 mile oil changes, and all maintenance ahead of schedule if possible. Wish i had the money to just do the vacuum pump, hpfp, and timing chain for good measure. Even if they are in perfect condition.

 

You can get a vacuum pump service kit (orings) on Ebay.

Dash Command will read out the fuel pressure in the distribution rail. If that runs ~1000 at idle, and ~1600 psi when driving, the fuel pump should be good.

You have an N18 engine, so the timing chain should be fine for many more miles. (mine has 116k miles and is still good)

Your oil change schedule should be more than adequate. I run ~5000 mile oil changes on my cars, because its an easy interval to remember.

 

Fuel pressures are good, and the shop tells me they did a full test on the vacuum system and even replaced a couple lines they say didnt look very good, not collapsed though. So at least i have that peace of mind.

Hoping replacing the turbo brings the car back to life... I am going to go with the borg warner airwerks 41mm with the M7 green intake tube.

Mario can't get parts for his 43/56 turbo right now :(