^^What he said

Pour some simple green in it, with some water...shake it a few times. Gets all the oil out

 

didn't feel like removing the IC. Also don't want to leave base residue in the IC which simple green has. base and aluminum don't go hand and hand. In the industry i'm in nitrogen is a perfect pressurized cleaning agent for this type of job.

http://industrial.simplegreen.com/ind_products_msds.php

 

I agree with "leomulhollandiii:" I don't know off-hand what metal(s) is/are used in the intercooler, but one has to be careful with Simple Green; it's not a friend to bare aluminum...

 

It says simple green is ok if washed off within 10 minutes....sure there are other option....simple green was used on airplanes by many for years....unknowingly....but with a lifespan of 60 years or more, corrosion is a bigger deal than on a car thatmay last 15...
Most folks do it in lots less...(than 10 minutes before rinsing to neutralize)....just be sure to rinse throughly.
any product can do harm when used incorrectly....be sure to read the label/manual.

 

are you sure you'll be able to do a good rinse through all the little nooks and crannies of an intercooler?

 

Well after 5 hours and several swear words the intake and inter cooler are clean! She feels like new again. Used seafoam and sprayed into the intake and cleaned with brushes and picks. I have the before video with really bad lighting. try to post that up later. She runs as good as new. didn't take after photos cuz i was just happy to get it done. put ot all back together and remembered that i forgot. Blew the inter cooler out with 250 psig of nitrogen. about a half a quart of oil came fly out. The smurf runs like a rocket all over again. But next time i'll let mini do the cleaning with the walnut blaster. BTW car threw a CEL. Must of had left over seafoam. Oh well i'll turn it off later!

 

Can the intercooler safely handle 250 psig? I'd be worried about damaging it.

Do you have your own nitrogen blower or something? Any reason to use nitrogen over, say, a gas station's tire pump?

 

yeah i have a nitrogen tank with a reg. 250 going in with an open end doesn't mean it is holding 250 psig. you can p/u nitrogen at you local Air gas place. if i was holding 250 # that would be a different story but knowing aluminum it should be able to hold that sort of pressure. I use nitrogen because it is an inert gas that pick up impurities that oxygen can't, thus it gets rid of oil and any contaminants water and detergents cant get rid of! if you have the chance i would recommend using it of evey clean out application!

 

Very informative thread!
Subscribed

 

cool! if you have any questions feel free to PM me and i'll help yu out as much as i can!

 

I would love to clean my valves on my two 03's (S and non S) like that!!! Is there a "How To" on it?

 

"I have probably done the Sea Foam treatment about 15 times since October 2009."

Have you tried anything else? BG44K for example?

 

I don't believe the 1st gen MINIs are direct-injection (and the non-S 2nd gens certainly aren't).

In a conventional port-injection engine, the valves are continually "washed" with gas.
So all you really need is to maybe throw a bottle of techron in your tank every so often.

 

Nice. BG44K it is then.

 

My 2007 MCSm JCW has 80k and it has never needed carbon cleaning. But man if that build up is from 25k I'm a bit worried what mine looks like. I run 93 Sunoco so I would think maybe that's why it doesn't idle rough and/or knock. I also am still on the original HPFP too.

OT: I've been thru 5 chain jobs and 1 early clutch job, so I'm still part of the club.

 

That's after 25k? Oh man I wonder what my 180k looks like!!!

Guess I will look around for a place that does this. How much was it? What was the turn around time?

 

Your local dealership should be able to do it.

Ask them about carbon blasting with walnut shells, and point to SIM120210 if they aren't clear. Sometimes, the service advisors aren't up on all the new toys the technicians have at their disposal.

 

OK, so after reading the 117 posts in this thread, I am thoroughly stumped as to the proper way to deal with this issue on a new mini.

I will be receiving a 2012 CM S all 4 next month (if it makes the next boat!). With a brand new 2012, what do you guys recommend as the proper maintenance schedule that would not interfere with the warranty.

In otherwords, what interval do you recommend for changing oil? What Oil and filter are you using? How often should I Seafoam? Should I use the Blue Stuff or just let a dealer do it at the 15,000 mile maintenance check?

Is a self installed Oil Catch Can a good idea on a new car or will the dealer use it as an excuse to invalidate the warranty on future issues?

Any info would be appreciated. I am 220 miles from the nearest dealer and I live in a fairly remote part of the country. Car problems are not fun out here.

 

You might want to take a look at it regardless. The fuel you use has NO effect on the carbon buildup on the valves of an R56. Due to the direct injection, the backside of the intake valves never see the fuel, which means the gas never washes the backside of the valves off (like on a traditional engine).

You get oil vapors which cook onto the intake valves from a few different sources, from the normal seepage at the turbo seals, from the normal operation of the PCV system, and even from normal wear & tear of the valve stem seals. As your mileage climbs all of these sources will contribute more oil to the intake tract. The build-up effectively restricts how much air flows into the cylinders, it would be similar to having the lobes on your intake cam wear down and since it happens gradually, you may not even notice the performance degrade.

 

You should talk with the service manager at your dealership before installing the catch-can if it's in-warranty, esp. with a brand new car. Odds are you're going to have some issues you have to take it in for so it would be best to get a feel for the service department ahead of time. That or you can make sure it's completely reversible and put it back to stock before you take it in.
You'll want to change the oil at least mid-way between the 'free' Mini services which are typically between 15-18k miles apart and I would do the Seafoam treatment just before each oil change (say every 7k miles or so).
Like any maintenance stuff, your results may vary. The best thing you can do with a brand new car is to have a good talk with your service department. If you live 220 miles away, they should be understanding.

 

Do it when the car tells you to. This is what the dealership recommends.
Some people aren't comfortable with 15k miles between changes, so they do it more frequently at whatever interval makes them comfortable. I don't know that anyone has ever had problems with their MINI that can be directly traced back to the car computer having them wait too long between changes, but it's relatively cheap to change the oil, so if you need to do it more frequently to have warm fuzzies, then knock yourself out.

Oil from MINI is the easiest/safest option, but your service adviser should be able to recommend an alternate, and MINIUSA posts a few on their website. I always use a filter from MINI; it's not like it's hundreds of dollars or anything.
A caveat: if you're going to go with what the car computer tells you for oil changes, make sure what you use is rated as meeting BMW LL-01 standards. Anything less should be changed more frequently, as it's not designed to last that long in the MINI's engine.

I do not believe we have yet seen any of the new N18 engines exhibiting carbon buildup issues. Until we know it's still a problem, it's probably best to skip it.

No.
I'm the one who brought up the "blue stuff", and that was because it's something that a MINI technician said BMW had them use in extreme cases of carbon buildup. I had them use it on my car and it did an excellent job at clearing away all but the most caked on carbon. ... BUT it ended up fouling my catalytic converter and I had to get that replaced (under its federally-mandated warranty). I would never, under any circumstances, recommend that anyone other than a dealership technician use the blue stuff to clean carbon off intake valves... and even then, I'd wonder why they weren't using one of the fancy new walnut shell carbon blaster machines MINI now recommends.

Always have MINI do the scheduled maintenance checks. Not doing so may invalidate your warranty, should problems arise.

Any after-market parts/modifications may invalidate warranty coverage for an issue which can be traced back to the after-market part/modification. With the new N18 engine, it's not possible to put a can between the crankcase and the intake ports to mitigate carbon buildup. The only place one could go is between the crankcase and the turbo & intercooler to mitigate oil fouling. I don't know that anyone has yet provided evidence that this is still an issue on the N18. It may be an issue... or the new valve cover may (finally) do a decent job at filtering this stuff out. Until we know for sure, I'd suggest leaving it stock.[/quote]

If you run into serious car problems, that 220 miles drive will seem the least of your worries. Don't do anything to risk your warranty unless you have good reason to. As for oil changes, if you want to do them more frequently than the car computer suggests, you can always buy a couple filters and some oil while at the dealership and save them until you need it -- that's what I do, as I'm also a good ways away from the nearest dealership.

 

Thanks, that helps a lot. After reading all the problem posts on this site it really makes me have second thoughts about buying the Countryman.

I am coming from a Ford F-250 4WD Diesel King Ranch pickup and the mini was exciting to drive. But Fords have never given me problems over the years. However after living in the mountains for years and watching all the sports car drivers have all the fun, I decided to try and take a chance on the new Countryman.

Still waiting on delivery, I didn't have to put any money down to order, so I could still change my mind. But I am so excited waiting for the new car that I doubt anything will change my mind right now.

 

Don't sweat it too much, if you pop onto one of the Ford forum's you'd find even more problems. At least Mini's don't spit out their spark plugs, cylinder threads and all.
The Mini's come with a pretty decent warranty, just plan to supplement the 'free' maintenance a bit.

 

I'm not going to sugar coat it for you and make you feel confident on your future purchase. These cars are financial suicide, I found out the hard way this is my first Mini. The price you pay for this premium well equipped car today you could get a 135i and have a lot less issues.

I'd wait til 2013 for another S model. I would want to know that the timing change, hpfp, clutch and carbon issues are taken care of for 2012 models first before pulling the trigger. OR you can just buy a Non-S Countryman and not have to deal with any of the headaches the S brings. If you must have it then lease it so you are not stuck with a lemon. I love MINIs but I feel over 50% of 07-10s are considered Lemons by definition and law.

2007-2011 are ticking time bombs, no1 can speak on the 2012 models. We need a 2012 S model that has made it to at least 30k without being in the dealer over 5 times, having more than $3k worth of warranty work done already to it.

Most people on here accept the BS from these cars and will make excuses. There should be none. Personally I feel MINI should buy back or offer trades on all cars that needed 5 chain jobs, multiple carbon cleanings and hpfp replacements. I think they should offer 7yr/100k standard with available extended 2yr/50k buy up on 2012s to re-inspire confidence in Motorers. Hell at this point they should offer standard 10yr/100k like GM and Hyundai.

On that note I'm seriously contemplating a 05-06 R53S or 10-11 NON-S Cooper/Clubman in the very very near future.

/rant

 

You'd want to change oil every 5k or so depending on driving habits. You do know that these motors burn 1qt of oil every 1k miles? At least my N14 does and almost every other N14 does. It's "normal" and MINI says you gotta treat these cars like an old Ford 302 keeping cases of oil in your car.

For N18 from what I hear still burns oil. So if you wait until 10k or 15k you will have like -5 qts. Btw I needed 2 full quarts yesterday after just getting an oil changed at dealer almost 4 weeks ago.