Yep...not even 2 weeks after I picked up my new toy, it died...in the far lane of the 10 at 70 mph in steady traffic!! I heard the belt tensioner start to rattle and tick about 2 or 3 mins prior to...the belt snapping. Then, the dash lights up like a christmas tree, temp spikes to full hot, and car loses all power. Here I am trying to thread a coasting, powerless, car through 5 lanes to make the exit. After almost getting hit TWICE (apparently, no one in CA cares about hazards flashing and arms flailing), I made the exit, coasted down to the light, and then had to push the MINI about 1/4 of a mile down the road to a parking lot. Waited there for a good hour and a half for the tow truck guy to come pick me up. Good thing I sprung for the extended warranty (Car's an '04 with 62k miles on it) as it covered the towing. Thanks for letting me vent...now, here are my questions/concerns:

Anything I should have the tech look at/test for specifically, besides the belt, tensioner, head/head gasket (due to overheating)? Also, the pulley is not stock (can't be sure exactly what it is, but the consensus is that it's a 15% Mini Mania per my other post...only mods as far as I can tell are the K&N intake and Pulley). I'm not worried about them covering it, as the car was delivered to me that way, but I don't want this to result in them fixing the car with a stock pulley (this one's pretty banged up). Any advice? I apologize for the lengthy note and all the parentheses, but I appreciate everyone taking the time to contribute to this.

-E

 

Oops...mods, can you please move this to the proper area (clicked on the wrong generation when posting)...my apologies! Thanks!

-E

 

If you want the moderator to see your note, click on the black exclamation point in the red triangle on the upper right corner of your posting. That sends a note to the moderator.

 

Done...thanks!

-E

 

wow sorry to hear that buddy!
What dealer did you take it to?
Are you sure you will not have issues when it comes down to the Pulley?
Won't they say that because it is an aftermarket pulley they won't warranty it???
Can you take these cars to a BMW dealer to fix it?
Did you buy it from a MINI dealer?what kinda warranty is it?

 

Well the ext warr company will only know what is told them, so work with the shop to CYA both of you.

The Alta Tensioner Stop AMP-ENG-190 found near the bottom of that link, would have saved you a ton of issues so you might want to have that put in with the new parts too.

 

Thanks for the support guys! The car was purchased at a BMW Dealership (McKenna), and that's right where it went back to. They said they would be the ones taking care of the repairs...still waiting on a call back today. Either way, it should get fixed with no problems and considering the MINI is the second vehicle I've purchased from them in 3 months (first was an '05 Touareg which went back because I found out it had been wrecked), they kinda owe me. I'll post updates. Again, thanks for the support...and I'll definitely be putting that tensioner stop on!

-E

 

Aye man good luck to your MINI. Sorry you had to go through all that crap. But hey what doesn't kill your MINI makes it stronger.

 

Update:

So I spoke with the dealership yesterday, and they're being very accomodating. After diagnostics checks, etc, there's apparently no damage from the snap aside from the belt, pulley, and tensioner. They're replacing these parts with (my choice really) the 16% M7 Pulley, JCW belt (per M7's specs), new tensioner, and ALTA stop (thanks to Dustin at AutoXCooper.com), with no questions asked. They gave me a new A4 2.0T to drive (these things are surprisingly quick!), and a full tank of gas to get around on. Kudos to service as it should be! Although not a MINI dealer, they do carry BMW, Audi (wish they'd have given me an R8 instead), VW, and Porsche...should anyone be in the market for, or need service on any of these vehicles, I'd definitely recommend them! Thanks again for the support on NAM...great bunch-o-people here!

-E

 

M7's recommendation on the belt is wrong. Not up for debate either. The JCW belt was designed for an 11% reduction pulley, not 15% (or greater). Try the NAPA 060535 or 060539 (or possibly Gatorback 060537) belts instead. Not your bad, just giving you the heads up on what will make power. Your tensioner will be out of spec with that belt, and you may have slip (or will develop slip as the belt stretches due to heat & time).

- Matt

 

A 20L Audi? That oughta kick the Veyrons butt!

Glad to hear they're getting you all fixed up. I'd also flush the coolant and change the all fluids to make sure none of then reduce performance as a result of any possible boiling form the over heating.