Link to thread on MINI2

 

Intersting buzzing about on this topic. It seems we may have new software by end of sept or early oct. But will it fix all hmmmmm

 

All I can say is "You Go! MINI2 folks!" That is, I hope some of those folks get the software installed and test it well...and then report on the fix. ALL OF WHICH I will need to hear about before I go running to my dealer for an install. As someone whose car was made WORSE by a software upgrade which was supposed to fix the stumble, I'm definitely not going to run the risk of a less-than-thoroughly-tested install. MINIUSA seems to be in full Microsoft mode here in that they want their paying customers to be beta testers, and then can only shrug and say "oh well, we're still working on it" when their "patches" make things worse. No thank you...I want to see someone run on this "CD35" for a good month before I apply it to my MCS.

 

>>All I can say is "You Go! MINI2 folks!" That is, I hope some of those folks get the software installed and test it well...and then report on the fix. ALL OF WHICH I will need to hear about before I go running to my dealer for an install. As someone whose car was made WORSE by a software upgrade which was supposed to fix the stumble, I'm definitely not going to run the risk of a less-than-thoroughly-tested install. MINIUSA seems to be in full Microsoft mode here in that they want their paying customers to be beta testers, and then can only shrug and say "oh well, we're still working on it" when their "patches" make things worse. No thank you...I want to see someone run on this "CD35" for a good month before I apply it to my MCS.


Wise move.

 

Folks--

I was the lucky receipient of "v.35" earlier this week...I have a write-up in "Mini Talk"...you can check out my on-going review there. I probably should have just posted in the "Stumble" thread...
Thanks...

 

According to one wise person I spoke to in MINI management, v.35 is NOT the "fix" for the stumble. That fix is still being tested and is still slated for December release. By his advise, I will wait.

 

I had the CD v.35 update applied to my car today, along with having a window track/regulator squeal and rear hatch rattle repaired. The service advisor who wrote up the ticket when I dropped the car off asked me for details regarding the drivability issues so that he could note them on the ticket, and I replied that my car had the bog, the stumble, and the yo-yo...

The service advisor stated that the lack of low-end torque was "a characteristic of the car, so it can't be 'fixed;'" but in the same breath he affirmed that the stumble and yo-yo were not normal, and would be addressed. I opted not to waste time trying to clarify that the bog is definitely not normal, as there is a huge gulf between "characteristically low torque levels at low RPM" and "Geez- did my throttle cable just break?!?" (Funny how weird that reads, using old tech analogies to describe a drive-by-wire car. :smile: ) Besides, this individual was a BMW service advisor, not the dedicated MINI service advisor with whom I normally interact; as such, he may not have first-hand experience with this condition.

The drive home was promising- I stayed to mostly empty secondary roads, and kept the pace brisk. So far, so good... this feels like the car I paid for! Now, i just hope it will last. Tomorrow will be a better test, since the stumble seemed to happen most frequently when the engine was still cold...

I will post a follow-up tommorow, to let everybody know how things progress...

I also ordered the rear foglamp retrofit kit today. SUV repellent!

 

I'm Headed in for this software update tomorrow. My car is experiencing cold start issues if it sits for a day or more and it has the stumble at low rpm in second gear.

We will see :smile:

 

I'm Headed in for this software update tomorrow. My car is experiencing cold start issues if it sits for a day or more and it has the stumble at low rpm in second gear.

We will see :smile:

 

After a few days of driving with the CD v.35 software, I can confirm that it seems to help with the bog, but not the stumble or the yo-yo. The car ran really well the night I drove it home, but by the next afternoon, it was obvious that the yo-yo and the stumble were back. Maybe the 2004 Motoring Accessories Catalog will include the MINI battery post disconnect, so we can reset our ECM's every night?

The engineers are getting closer, but they are still not there yet.

One other effect of v.35 that I have noticed is that the engine revs higher on starting than it did on the previous software release. When it first fires after cranking, it immediately jumps to 2000+ RPM before settling down to its usual smooth 800-900 RPM tick-over.

I called the service advisor at my MINI dealer today to provide him with some feedback on how things are going with the new software. The service advisor also forwarded me to the dealership shop foreman, who asked for details of the symptoms my car is exhibiting. I reviewed these with him, and he advised me he has received information from MINI that v.36 is intended to specifically address the "no power/poor performance at low RPM" condition, which I have been referring to as "the bog." No mention was made of the yo-yo or stumble in the information at his disposal. I asked about an ETA for the release of v.36, and he replied that there was no offical release date given, but that MINI/BMW usually release a new software CD about every 1.5-2 months. This is consistent with the other posts I have read here that indicate we may get a fix that works in December...

Although it's not directly related to our MINIs, the foreman also mentioned that the BMW 745 series cars are having software problems as well. I guess we're not quite alone in this predicament...

On a brighter and more definite note, my fog light switch assembly is in, and I have an appointment scheduled next Wednesday to have it installed!

 

When I mentioned the Stumble to my service advisor, she immediately said "Oh, that's a known software issue. Takes 2-3 days to have the ECU sent to New Jersey to be reprogrammed."

So apparently they have the fix available for those that want to give up their MINI for 2-3 days.

This was the Long Beach MINI dealer in California.

 

Oh, how I get tired reading all these stumble threads, I try to quite since I have mine and it has no stumble and OutMotoring had his ecu flashed with the newest one (that isnt even out yet and is so new that it doesnt even have a number) and has so far not reported any return of the stumble.