Hi,

I am having a weird issue on my R57 where I can hear an electrical buzzing as soon as i turn the ignition on, it gets louder if i turn the lights on or press the brake pedal. I can also hear a whining that climbs with engine RPM.

I have checked the battery earth, as well as the earth strap in the engine bay, and under the valve cover and they are all fine.

Has anyone had the issue before and know of a fix? As far as I am aware the speakers are stock.

I have added a video

You Tube

 

Hi,

I'm having the exact same issue in my 2011 Mini R57. I'm planning on getting an auto electrician to take a look in the New Year, as the noise really spoils the experience in the car.

Did you manage to establish what it was?

Thanks
Chris

 

Hi,

Yes it was the radio. I replaced the radio and the issue stopped. All the connections of the mini earth through the radio and there are some isolation circuits that stop the noise normally. On my radio they had been damaged so the only way it could earth was through the speakers.

 

Hi,

Thanks for confirming, I was hoping it wasn't the radio but that would make sense. I will look out for a suitable replacement and then try to install myself.

 

Just to followup on this, just in case it helps anyone else.
I pulled out my radio at the weekend so that I could get the part number from it and after putting everything back together, there was no noise coming from the speakers as before.
Not sure if it was due to me unplugging everything, or even moving the wires around, but the issue seems to have been fixed.