Yes they still have a timing chain although I saw some comments about MINI "might" have made a small re-design on the revised engine (my JCW has the previous design). Will see what the dealership says... Other than the noise the car runs great - I just don't want to deal with a major engine failure and deal with warranty repairs, loaner for a week, etc.

 

Hello,
I am negotiating the purchase of a '10 Clubman S. I have learned from the dealer that the timing chain was just replaced in Nov-11. The Mini dealer was not too forthcoming considering I am not the registered owner of the car but when I asked if it was the tensioners, guides, and/or chain which was replaced he said it was the "whole assembly". I don't know if this means the full SIM110207 or not but I presume so. Besides this issue the CarFax indicates all scheduled maintenance was performed, and the Mini dealer did not report any visits other than those for normal maintenance. The car is still under warranty as it has only 26K miles on it. I am happy with the condition and the price I've negotiated but I am cautious because of this timing chain replacement. From the survey it appears most people have the problem fixed permanently when this work is done, although about 20% say the problem comes back afterwards. I would appreciate some input from those who've had this issue:
--does the fact that this car needed this work indicate that other related problems might surface down the road? In other words, should I avoid the car?
-- or should I be happy that the problem was found and fixed, and be relatively comfortable going forward (or as comfortable as you can be considering...)?

Thanks -- bill

 

My experience after about a year with total assembly getting replaced is that it fixed the problem. But I also caved and bought the extended warranty and extended service package. I was told that when the tension issue is addressed as mine was, it is resolved. That has been true for me.

 

I've had mine replaced, the entire thing, chain, guide, tensioner bolt, sprocket, etc. It's only been 2 months but everything is fine now and my SA said they have not had one come back in the past 2 years. I trust my dealership, they've always been up front with me. They even fixed mine and the car was out of warranty. I also had the thermostat replaced. I bought my car back in August used. It now has 63,000 miles on it.
That's all I've had done and it drives great. I love it. I would say from everything I've read Mini's are a little touchy but well worth it.
I don't regret buying it.

 

The squeal while engine running and the occasional quick squeak when shutting off the engine have gone for the last week or so. Go figure. Maybe it was the rather extreme cold weather we were experiencing.


The ticking noises are still present when cold, not so much when warm. Sometimes the ticking almost completely goes away then returns a few seconds later. Some new videos will be posted below - looking for opinions if I should bother seeing the dealership on Monday or just wait it out. Ideally I would rather not see the dealership. Right now I just think I am being paranoid because my last MINI was leased and I didn't care too much.


Engine noises when cold:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsYdPCBqOVE

Engine noises when warm:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksEEKbGPbUs

 

To me it does sound like the tensioner issue. Most of the noise should be coming from the curved shroud on the passenger side of the motor. Lifters are noisey and possibly alot of it could be the injectors. Listen closer to the left (passenger side) where the curved shroud is that's where your timing chain is located.
Hopefully, I'm wrong. I'd still take it in and let the SA listen to it.

 

My 2008 R56 just had tensioner and hydraulic piston #3 installed last month, along with a number of other repairs for oil leaks, ect. While the replacement helped part of the noises, I still hear the same metallic clatter/rattle from my car that I hear in your video (not the rhythmic pssh, pshh of the injectors, but the non rhythmic- tap, tap tap tap- metal on metal clattering). I can only assume that it is coming from the chain itself- and that it has streched (again)! It required numerous visits and a MINI Engineer to verify/ identify the problems this last time. The noises have been very noticeable to me for at least 6 months this time (dealer called the engine noise normal).
I live in Houston, TX- extreme cold is not a factor here.
There must be an underlying problem causing this to happen repeatedly, although no one has really been clear on whether they know what the problem is, or whether it is a total mystery to them.
My R56 has experienced far more problems than anyone else I've heard about- some common issues, some uncommon- all frustrating. MINI has finally agreed to repurchase my vehicle, so I will likely never know what the full scope of the problems are.

 

I just had my entire timing assembly replaced under warrenty. I took the car in for the cold start noise and an oil leak that both ended up being the tensioner and I had the window sensor issue too. Since the chain had stretched they just did a full replacement. The whole thing took less than a day and they game me an awesome 2012 Countryman S to drive as a loaner. I feel bad for everyone on here who has had bad dealer experiences. I went to Mini of Pittsburgh and couldn't be happier with their service. They fit me right in and did everything I could have asked for. They even detailed the car inside and out without me asking. They are just a great dealership to deal with. However, as great as they are I hope I don't make a habit of visiting them. Happy motoring!

 

The squeal and the loud ticking have gone away for whatever reason so I delayed my appointment for a while. I am back to the usual lifters/injector noises.

 

I have an service appointment this Thursday for a slight timing chain rattle at start up but I can really hear it mostly after the engine is nice and warm at about 1800 to 2000 rpm. I hope my dealer does me right and doesn't give me some lame excuse that it's normal or oil was low or the stars were aligned just right...

 

Got a new timing chain today under warranty https://www.northamericanmotoring.com/forums/stock-problems-issues/209272-timing-chain-issues-14.html#post3441889

Couldn't be happier!

 

I have a posting under the sticky on this subject (just search Iautox) so I won't go into the whole story here. The tensioner on my 07 S failed at 20K miles and all was replaced under warranty. Not so long after replacement it began to occassionally make noise again. I complained about it to the deal at every service appt. over 3 years, while in warranty, and they could never "duplicate" it so they would not do anything. At 67K miles and out of warranty they were able to duplicate it and after I forcefully complained they and Mini covered 70% of the cost. They should have covered all of it. Now 1.5 months and 535 miles after it was totally replaced again I believe the chain broke last night and likely killed the engine. Loaded it up on the tow truck and had it hauled to the dealer ..... again. Most unreliable car I've ever owned!

 

Sorry to hear about that.
Mine went at 62K and now have 64.5K and still quiet as can be.
Guess I'll just keep my fingers crossed.

 

Was it covered under warranty?

 

Unfortunitely, no I was out of warranty but my dealer only charged me $500 of the $1700 bill and submitted the rest to Mini as good will.
I was happy with that since I went in intending on paying around $1500.

 

just had my chain tensionor and guide rail fixed for the 2nd time. I have 2009 MCS 22k miles still covered under warranty but warranty is up in 2 months. i asked my SA about it and he said its a common problem just like the carbon build up.

 

How many miles did you have when the first one was changed?

 

^Px, sounds like me. I have about 26K on my 2009 MCS. I had the chain, rails, etc replaced once and now it's loud but they told me it was down 1.5 qts oil (yep....ranted about that in another thread on the oil dipstick that can't be read reliably). Oy. My warranty is up in Nov. Gulp.

 

I had to look at my posting i believe it was at 13k miles. My warranty is up in 3 months and with only 22k miles on it and with so many problems I'm a bit worried. I hate to say it, but ready to trade it off due to reliability.

 

I'm a bit confused. My warranty is not up until 7/2012 and my Mini is an '08. Assuming your Mini was bought in the U.S.(your sig says your from Nebraska) you should have a four year warranty. When did you purchase the car?

 

your right it will still have the 4-year/50,000 Mile Limited Warranty, which is the drive train warranty i imagine. Its the bumper to bumper warranty that is the 3-year/36,000 that ends in 2 months.

 

Bumper to Bumper and Drivetrain are 4 year/50,000 miles. The free maintenance is 3 year/36,000. I have an 08 bought back on 07/2008 and my warranty expires on 07/2012. I'm still replacing scoops, vanity mirrors, little things like that under warranty with no questions asked.

 

Yeah....reliability! GAAAH! Doesn't help matters that I just got the Consumer Reports Auto Issue in the mail and the MCS got a big black circle!!

 

I'd take all that with a grain of salt.
I still say the Mini overall is a pretty good little car if appropriate
maintenance is done on them.

 

2010 Clubman S, rattle started about 3 months ago around 16k miles. I had all the usual symptoms, pronounced rattle between 1500-2200 RPM after cold starts between 30F-40F. Rattle would stop after a few minutes and the engine was warm.

Took it in immediately and dealer couldn't reproduce and said I need to monitor the oil level more closely. Which was strange because the oil level was fine when I took it in, anyway...

Winter in Chicago has been very mild, so the condition didn't occur that often until the past 3 weeks when the rattle got much worse. I recorded the sound in various conditions before making another appointment.

Dealer has had my MINI for 4 days and they aren't being very forthcoming with information. The steps my SA has outlined seem to follow the trouble-shooting steps in SIM110207. Today they are measuring the timing chain after checking the computer for errors. SA wasn't interested in hearing the recordings I made because "they need to triangulate the rattle with their own ears".

Is it normal for the dealer to take so long to work through this problem? I understand they don't want to replace parts if they aren't needed, but at what point have other owners demanded they follow the complete SIM110207 fix?