So I just got back from Grand Rapids this past weekend where I checked my mileage seeing it was first trip of some distance. On the way there I got 38.4 mpg, but on the way back the mileage dropped to 30.5 mpg. The car ran fine w/o an issue on the trip. On the way home from work last night I noticed that between 3-6K the car was just "flat", felt like an invisible hand was holding my car down. IMO the car isn't boosting and ofcoarse w/o a boost gauge I can't tell Now for the record I have a universal K&N open element filter, but I installed that when the car had 1032 miles on it and right now its well over 2300 miles, so IMO that isn't an issue. There is NO CEL, NO sputtering, NO driveability issue, just "flat" performance between 3-6K. I called the dealership and the soonest I can take the car in is next Wednesday as they only have ONE tech trained on the R56 and the next one is going in for training in 3 weeks:impatient So, what do you guys that have some knowledge on this think it is?

 

Whatever the cause is, I think that it would be wise to remove the K&N filter, and return the intake to stock, before you take it in. It would be too easy for the dealer to blame the cause of the problem on your CAI.

 

Yeah I thought about that too Coffee, its too bad that some dealerships try and take the easy way out I mean this mod has been on the car for over 1300 miles w/o an issue. I'm wondering if some type of factory re-flash is going to be in order

 

I just got back from Autozone and they scanned the computer and came up with the following:

-P2187 "system too lean at idle"

-P0301 "cylinder #1 misfire"

So basically the car is running on 3 cylinders With the price of gas going up again today I'm sure that's a good thing with the car running incorrectly as far as gas mileage is concerned so what do I do now? I ask this because this is my only car and I can't take it to the dealership till next Wednesday, 8 days away

 

I spoke with a friend of mine who's got an EVO VIII and he told me to clean the MAF out with that spray that's specifically made for electrical connections, so I did. I then took the car out for a ride and what do you know...THE POWER IS BACK Apparently the brand new, oiled from the factory, K&N's can sometimes have too much oil and it then gets onto the sensor in the MAF. He also said that this usually happens when the filter is new, meaning the problem shouldn't rear its head again, lets hope! I cleaned it out pretty good, but when I get home from work tonight I'm going to clean it out again to be on the safe side. This is NOT a regular parts cleaner and/or brake clean, its made just for electrical parts, so make sure your careful if/when this problem comes your way and you wanna try this.

 

Pardon my ignorance, but the is a K&N aftermarket airfilter? What's MAF? And what does oil have to do with it. And you just spray the electrical stuff all over the filter? Do you take it off first? (that's enough questions for one day).

 

Oil on the MAF (Mass Air Flow Sensor) happened to my focus and I cleaned it off wioth electrical conector cleaner (Basicly a spray that leaves no residue) and cleaned it off let it dry and worked great.

Basicly oil coating the MAF from the filter will cause it to be insulated and not read correct air comming in causing incorect fuel to be added. This in turn is picked up by sensors like the o2 and well its just not good.

 

Silk has nailed it


Ryan dropped me an email and came up with a good "preventive maintence" idea that he's going to do and maybe others should think about...spray down your MAF before hand to eliminate ANY chance of this happening to you

 

I still have some spray I got from VW parts from when I had my 2002 GTI. Same use, was $15 I think

 

I'm still having problems, but it seems to come and go. One day the CEL is on and the power is there, then I get it cleared at Autozone and later on the power is flat above 3K to 6K Even when I clean off the MAF with that delicate electrical cleaner this evening it didn't work, damn!, I don't want to take it to the dealership but it could actually be something with the car and not something I did (see my other post for this for further explanation )

 

Sorry to hear you're having troubles Klasse! Have you tried cleaning out the MAF gently and then putting the stock airbox back on? It would be good to plug my scan-tool into your car and drive around and see what all the sensors are reading. We can do that this weekend if you have time.

 

I'll give you a call this weekend Ryan, its worth a shot for sure, THANK YOU! I'm sceduled to go to the dealership next Wednesday, but I can't figure out why the "flatness" of the motor comes and goes Having put the intake on w/1045 miles on the car and then having the problem well over 1200 miles later makes me think the intake isn't the issue. I did clean the engine bay before the show, but was careful around the plugs, maybe some water got onto something BTW, the CEL did come back on today, so there's going to be "something" for you to see on your scan tool. Seeing that your scan tool can read what's going on I assume its not the generic code reader that Autozone has, so that's a good thing!

 

Ryephile/ Klasse. Where can you buy a scan tool thats specific for the r56.? What brand?

 

I'm not sure, I've just been going to the nearest Autozone for the readings/clearings, but I did call a shop that used to work on our vans at work and he said the more accurate scanners have to be updated every year. The MINI dealer said the generic code readers can't read the MINI's codes accurately, we'll see. IMO the car has a bad coil and/or plug because misfire cylinder #1 still came up after the clearing whereas the code for too lean at idle (can't remember the code number I posted right now ) has not come back. BTW the CEL doesn't flash and the car runs fine as long as you don't get on it, very hard to do as you all know! The funny thing about all this is the inconsistancy of it because 2 nights ago I stayed ahead of a mid-90's Mustang GT and it pulled like its usual self...HARD! I just hope they replace the coil and/or plug if that's what it is and call it a day, I want my MINI back because right now its NOT the same car

 

Is there any chance you may have a vacuum leak?

 

I'm not mechanically inclined and can only do small repairs, is there anything that makes you think so? I really appreciate the help The more info I have and for Ryan to check out over the weekend will be VERY helpful BTW I put the stock airbox back on per Ryans suggestion and at first it didn't do anything but on my way to work the power was back. I did take it to redline once in 2nd w/o a problem and when going into 3rd gear it seemed to run out of steam right before 6K.

 

Well Im certainly no expert, Ryan would know all this stuff better than I would. I previously had a Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX and whenever I had a vacuum leak it killed performance a lot like you are describing. Usually the vacuum leak would be from a loose hose connection. Once you start working in the engine bay you would be surprised how often that happens. Thankfully the fix is easy once you locate the leak. Mention it to Ryan, although Im sure he will probably think of that too. I did the same intake mod you did and would be interested to find out the cause of the problem.
Amy

 

Thank you very much for the info Amy

Ryan, I've got your cell and tried calling you a couple days ago but you didn't answer and I got NO message either, so I'll try again tomorrow afternoon. I'm thinking about meeting up with you around 2:30 at the Mobil station on 13 and Woodward if your not doing anything around that time, rain or shine is good for me, thanks!

 

I know this may be a little late. Also things to consider is unmetered air getting in after the MAF. Another thing that was common on poorly instaleld intakes on the focus cause Aftermarket intakes had replaced tubing between the MAF and throttle body. Im not too familliar with this engine yet but check to see if anything after the MAF and before the intake runners is loose cause you may be getting unmetered air and the ECU is reacting to the lean mix by blasting you with timming or dumping fuel or sumthin. Also if you are using the same K & N buy some cleaner for it (Autozone or whereever) its called K & N filter charger kit its like $15. If you have not cleaned the oil off the K & N it may be just re-oiling you MAF. OH and on the focus i drenched the MAF with that stuff making sure i flushed out what I could never touching the sensor or using anything to clean it like a q-tip. I hope it has worked out or does work out for ya.

 

What happened with this issue Klasse Act? I had a similar issue and it was the m.a.p. sensor, changed it and all went well!