I have owned the car a little over a year now (09 S) and from the beginning I have noticed a noise that sounds like a card in bike spokes at lower rpm's. Sorry thats about all that I know to compare it to. It seems like lately I notice it louder and more often. I hear it every morning going through my quiet neighborhood and when i'm beside a wall or tall curb. It is for sure coming from the engine compartment but not sure what it is. Is that the sound that the turbo makes at low rpm? Is it a normal sound that all turbo coopers make?

 

Don't hear anything like that from my 07 MCS. Is it only happening while moving?

 

Yes. As long as i'm slowly moving then it does it. I just remembered that I also notice it everytime i back up my driveway and into my garage. BTW, my car is a manual if that matters.

 

Possible causes but not sure.

*bearing may be going out
*CV joint possibly going bad

Does it do it more so when turning the steering wheel?

 

I don't think it is related to the hubs as in a cv joint. It seems to gain in sound level and intensity as i give it more throttle but only up to a certain point or the sound of the engine just becomes louder.

 

It may be unrelated - but my old r53 had the same type of sound. It took the dealer several days to figure it out ( with me on this board looking around feeding info to the tech - look in the first gen forum there is a HUGE post on this sound ). It turned out to be the harmonic damper ( balancer ) was separating. The dealer thought it was a cv joint, then a trans issue... etc... it was a clicking ( card in the spokes sound ) that was r.p.m. related, not road speed related. It was a pain in the ##### to track down , it was the first one my dealer had seen fail. On the up side , since they had pulled my trans ( yes, they pulled the trans.... for inspection ) I got them to replace the clutch assembly while they had it apart, all I had to do was buy the parts.

Good luck & keep us posted

 

It could be the exhaust manifold to head gasket is leaking at one of the cylinders. Often these types of leaks won't be noticed unless the engine is under load. The fact that it seems to be more noticeable with increased throttle is a good clue. To narrow it down, you need to find a good safe place to drive where you can clearly observe the sound, and try it in different gears. If it seems to keep pace with the engine RPM, than it's something on the engine side of the clutch. If it follows the vehicle speed, then it's somewhere between the transmission input shaft and the tires, and you can discard my guess. Good luck.

 

Thanks for that info Bigcoyote. I have an appointment scheduled for next month for the auxillary water pump recall so I will have them check it out. Whatever it is though I only notice with the windows down normally and it seems to be getting alil thrashier (is that a word) sounding. One thing though is when i'm reving the engine in the garage i don't notice it so it seems to only happen under load.

 

Thanks Blackbomber. Yeah i'm going to go to the high school parking lot behind my house tonight and see if i can narrow anything down.

 

It's not really clear from what you posted...does the speed of the bicycle spokes change with engine RPM or road speed? If you drop the engine speed to idle does the clicking speed drop with it? I only ask as I've had several cars with similar sounds "beside a wall or tall curb" and all turned out to be wheel/brake/axle related, and were thus road speed dependant.

 

It seems to be RPM related Selder but only when under load. Like I said earlier, I hear it up to a certain point and then it either quits or other engine noise takes over. I dont hear it when i'm reving it in the garage but i do as I'm pulling away from my house or backing up the driveway. As I leave my neighbor and speed up I hear it as I give it gas. It almost seems like it could be turbo related because i noticed at lunch that as I give it gas it increases. Say i'm using half throttle and hear it and then mash the gas I immediately start hearing it louder like its related to the speed of the turbo more than the RPMs. Does that make since?

 

Well if my guess (bad manifold or gasket) is correct, then it's indirectly related to the turbo since higher RPM=increased cylinder pressure=more exhaust gas being expelled. Of course the "hot" side of the turbo is at the other end of the manifold, but I would think any leak at the turbo itself would be a steady noise, not like a card in spokes. My MINI is not turbocharged, but I do have some turbo experience with VAG products.

Anyway, getting louder as turbo spools might still be a leaking exhaust manifold or gasket. The rate of clicking increasing with turbo speed would not. I suppose a turbo vane out of alignment could be hitting something and causing a sound. And I'm assuming MINI turbos are variable vane, which would explain why the sound is only there under load. Turbos spin at such a high speed, I would think this would present itself as more of a buzz than a click. My money is still on exhaust manifold, but you are narrowing it down, which is good.

 

I've been having some troubles myself with a very similar sound. I also have a manual and the times I notice it the most is when I am at a very low rpm - say when I'm turning a 90 deg corner in 3rd gear, as soon as I hit the gas after rounding the corner, I hear that same type of "playing card on a spoke" noise. The noise seems to get louder/faster for a few seconds before it completely disappears. Just to clarify, the only time I hear it, or notice it, is when I am either just taking of - with the clutch fully released and I'm in gear - and/or when the rpm's are very low (about 800-1500...like you should probably downshift).

I don't know if this helps the OP, but I thought I'd chime in since I was looking for a solution or cause for my own rattle. If I have a chance tomorrow, I'll have someone record the sound and see if it's the same. I'll definitely be following this thread!

 

You totally hit the nail on the head MrsDarcy. That is exactly when i hear it on mine. Please share the vid on here if you can get one so I can see if its the same sound. Sounds like you are dead on what i've been trying to explain.

 

MrsDarcy's description of her issue definitely sounds like a bad outer CV joint.

 

Thanks for the response Blackbomber. I know nothing about CV joints, but I looked up a few other CV issues here on NAM and it appears it's a problem only when turning? Please tell me if I'm wrong - which I am a lot (don't tell my husband I said that!) - because I get the noise whether I'm turning a corner or not. I get it when I'm going through a parking lot, like at Wal-Mart when I'm looking for a parking spot or need to brake for some one going into the store. It can be in first or second gear and happens when I take off at low rpm's, like I described above. I used the accelerating-through-a-corner example because I hear it then too.

So if I get the noise both going straight and after turning a corner, could it still be the outer CV joint? I'll try to post a video of it acting up this evening.

Thanks for all your input! I sure appreciate it and I'm sure cooperjunkie (OP) does too!

 

The "classic" CV joint noise is a clunking that starts when you're turning one direction or the other. Gradually it happens more and more until it happens when you're going straight as well. At some point the joint fails, and your car will not move any more. In extreme cases it can let go completely and the drive-axle will flail around destroying everything it hits. (Very very rare indeed for any modern car, but I've seen it in old RWD cars where the bolts holding the CV joints to the diff housing backed out.)

If I am interpreting the description of the noise correctly, it could be the injectors. Mine make a relatively quiet noise I think of as a "diesel clatter", which is easier to hear with the windows down, and is more evident at low RPMs than high. .. At least I think that noise is the injectors.

Have you had a mechanic ride with you (or drive the car with you in it) to demonstrate the noise? I have a good relationship with a couple of mechanics, and one was able to give me an idea about the possible causes of a particular noise my wife's car (non-MINI) was making a couple of months ago.

 

I'm pretty positive mine is not a cv joint. I am familiar with that sound from previous Hondas that I've owned. I am going to have a mechanic at the dealership look at it next month when I take it in for the recall. I will see what they say then I guess.

 

Slave's description of the CV joint is exactly the way I would describe it. I'm not thinking injectors for the OP (good thought, though) since he doesn't hear them at idle while stationary. They will change with RPM, but are not load dependent.

 

How about preignition (detonation/pinging)? In my old cars, those would be the sorts of circumstances that I would hear detonation. And it made a sort of spitting rattle sound in the one that did it the worst.

None of them were direct-injected, though, and none of them had knock sensors.

Maybe a faulty knock sensor? Not sure if the engine management would pick up on that.

 

No one has said this but it's probably the timing chain. This is a hugely common problem and the dealers know a lot about it. Did you take it in yet? Also, check your oil level every fill up, the S tends to eat oil pretty considerably and this can ruin your timing chain tensioner very quickly

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=US&h...xVY&nomobile=1

Here is the video I took today - and my first attempt at posting one on NAM! Unfortunately I was unable to find someone to record the video for me, but I think this worked out ok. It's a bit of a challenge to hear, but if you pay attention to the revs you can see the noise occurs just after the 1000 mark. In particular, you can hear it very well when I'm shifting into third gear... This was taken on a straight road while shifting from first through third gear while keeping the revs as low as possible. Remember, only pay attention to the sound just after 1000 rpms. Otherwise it just sounds like I'm bogging down and need to shift.

Cooperjunkie, I hope this helps! If you guys are having a hard time hearing it I'll attempt to do it from the outside of the car and have someone assist me next time - maybe this weekend.

 

Just to throw another option in... I had a Subie that had a bad throw out bearing in the clutch that made a similar noise....

Let me know if you want some assistance capturing a video Mrs. Darcy.

 

Detonation related to timing and fuel quality will be compensated for by engine management. But pre-ignition from hot spots in the chamber (carbon buildup) can not be compensated for.

 

Honestly I can't hear alot from the vid. at least not the sound i'm talkin about. Here's an update though. I have noticed that when i first start the car and pull out of the garage in the morning i instantly hear it as i'm letting out on the clutch and letting the increased rpm's pull the car out. I'm not even touching the gas. Just lettin out on the clutch.