Well, here I sit in the Moritz MINI service department waiting room. My 2009 Cooper S is having the same issue. It is going under diagnostics now. Waiting for them to come out and tell me the "bad gas" story. Not sure how I should react because after reading all of this I think my first reaction would be anger.

I guess we'll see.

 

Well hopefully you do show it as anger even if there is some. Best bet is to jsut sit down calmly and say "Can't be I only use top tier gas. And you will have to prove that the gas is bad."

 

Update: They came back and said, "We are replacing your high pressure fuel pump because it has failed. We want you to monitor it and if it happens again, call us."

Just like that. End of explanation. No charge. No mention of bad gas whatsoever. The service rep did say this problem is "common" but didn't go into it.

So good on Moritz in Arlington!! Had it fixed in about 2 hours.

 

Why do I find that line kinda funny?


Sounds like they treated you right.

 

Thanks to this forum, we've been saving every single dated fill-up receipt since mile 1. Every bit of gas entering the car has been from very busy Shell stations, always V-Power 93 octane, and always complete fill-ups.

If/when we develop fuel pump issues, I want to be armed to the teeth. I'll give the SA the chance to do right, but failing that there will be the nuclear legal option.

 

I don't know but it is funny. Like I was going to ignore it.

Anyway one more thing. They did not flush my fuel system. I wonder if they tested the gas and found it to be OK.

But yeah they treat me right. I was worried but it turned out to be a non-issue.

 

Very interesting thread. No stranger here to HPFP issues. I own a 2008 BMW 135i - N54 engine which is well documented to have HPFP issues. (My MINI is on order and should be here in a couple of weeks!)

The HPFP problems have been discussed ad nauseam on the BMW forums. I don't recall ethanol percentages being brought up as a cause. On the BMW side, the HPFPs are replaced under warranty without hassle.

In fact, BMW issued an extended 10 year/120K mile warranty just on the HPFP in all N54 engines (which is definitely NOT the MINI engine).

Why are MINI customers not getting similar treatment?

 

Many Mini customers are getting excellent treatment for their HPFP failures. I did. But there have been a few individual dealers who have chosen to play the "bad gas card". As if bad gas obtained at a gas station could fail the pump. As if it's even possible for excess ethanol to fail it. They just try for what they think they can pull off I guess. Numbskulls.

 

I *just* joined this forum exclusively so I could document/post to this thread. Purchased and took delivery of a new '10 MCS last Tuesday, Februrary 9, 2010. About 370 total miles includes one highway trip of 235 miles. Problems: First start of the day, which was Monday evening, February 15, the car immediately stalled. After driving out to dinner last night, February 16, the car stalled immediately after attempting to start it to return home after dinner. Over the last week, I note the idle speed surges at times between about 700 to 900 RPM. On the highway trip, stuck in backed up, accident-related traffic, the car will not creep smoothly in first gear; it begins to buck. I phoned the (so far, excellent) dealership sales rep this afternoon to discuss the issues and he had a Service Manager return a call within the hour. The Service Manager indicated they had observed problems with the fuel pumps. Of note: the car still has the original, initial tank of fuel the dealership filled it with when I took delivery of the car. Bad gas? I think not.

 

I've just had mine replaced again. Might as well get used to it, seems to be a very common problem.

 

I just had mine replaced at 6900 miles. I took it to Desert Mini Las Vegas and was treated pretty well overall. I brought it in only because the check engine light was on. The car didn't have any major problems, just some surging when coming to a stop.

The very first question they asked me was what kind of gas I was using, (only knowing that the CEL was on). I told them I was using an off brand gas but using 91 octane. The told me to start using Chevron or Shell and gave me a phamphlet explaining the virtues of "top tier" gas. The phamphlet stated that top tier gas should be used, but if it wasn't available in your area, not to worry about it - just add a bottle of MINI fuel system cleaner every 3000 miles and everything will be fine. It also contradicted itself by stating that top tier gas assures that you wont be getting more than 10% ethanol. But then states that ALL gas in the U.S. is limited to 10% ethanol max.

Anyway, to their credit, they repaced the pump under warranty with no hassles.

 

I just find this utterly ridiculous. In this day and age, you can't tell me that a fuel pump is that susceptible to "bad gas"?