Engine Turns off while coasting
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1st Gear
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 26
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Engine Turns off while coasting
I have a 2007 Mini Cooper Base model and I've been having an issue in the past few months where the engine will turn off while I am coasting with clutch pressed all the way in. Only the engine shuts off, all other lights and operations are still running.
If I am coasting around 60 mph and in 6th gear and I see the rpms go to 0, sometimes I can press the gas pedal all the way in and after a few seconds the engine will come back to life, of course revving very high for all the gas I just gave it. But if the rpm's go to 0 and my speed gets too low, giving gas won't restart it and I will have to restart manually with the push button.It does start up right away every time though.
I feel like this happens more frequently when my gas tank is full but it has also happened when I am around a 1/4 tank or so, less frequently though.
The check engine light comes on and off intermittently, I had a mechanic check it and it said 'Misfire in Cylinder 4' I'm not sure if this is directly related because I've had issues where I needed to change sparkplugs and the symptoms were totally different when that was happening. I would lose power while driving, no engine turn off like this case. Would replacing the coil or sparkplug in that cylinder make sense as a fix for this?
Any other recommendations to fix this. I've had the car without issues since 2007 and this just started around March. it's not the worst problem to have but it can be very annoying and I don't want it to get worse, obviously.
If I am coasting around 60 mph and in 6th gear and I see the rpms go to 0, sometimes I can press the gas pedal all the way in and after a few seconds the engine will come back to life, of course revving very high for all the gas I just gave it. But if the rpm's go to 0 and my speed gets too low, giving gas won't restart it and I will have to restart manually with the push button.It does start up right away every time though.
I feel like this happens more frequently when my gas tank is full but it has also happened when I am around a 1/4 tank or so, less frequently though.
The check engine light comes on and off intermittently, I had a mechanic check it and it said 'Misfire in Cylinder 4' I'm not sure if this is directly related because I've had issues where I needed to change sparkplugs and the symptoms were totally different when that was happening. I would lose power while driving, no engine turn off like this case. Would replacing the coil or sparkplug in that cylinder make sense as a fix for this?
Any other recommendations to fix this. I've had the car without issues since 2007 and this just started around March. it's not the worst problem to have but it can be very annoying and I don't want it to get worse, obviously.
4th Gear
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 362
Likes: 2
I have a 2007 Mini Cooper Base model and I've been having an issue in the past few months where the engine will turn off while I am coasting with clutch pressed all the way in. Only the engine shuts off, all other lights and operations are still running.
If I am coasting around 60 mph and in 6th gear and I see the rpms go to 0, ...
If I am coasting around 60 mph and in 6th gear and I see the rpms go to 0, ...
Or did I misunderstand ???
I am confused by part of what you are saying.
As i understand it you are moving at 60 miles an hour and push the clutch in and hold it in. The engine stops and while still holding the clutch in you press the gas pedal and the engine will start back up without anything like a starter motor or cluch engagement to cause the engine to turn over and start.
If that is truely the case then i dont see how that can happen.
It sounds to me as if maybe you have an electrical malfunction in the tach.
But of course if you are engaging the clutch when the engine is off and the car is doing 60 miles an hour yes the engine should start back up.
As i understand it you are moving at 60 miles an hour and push the clutch in and hold it in. The engine stops and while still holding the clutch in you press the gas pedal and the engine will start back up without anything like a starter motor or cluch engagement to cause the engine to turn over and start.
If that is truely the case then i dont see how that can happen.
It sounds to me as if maybe you have an electrical malfunction in the tach.
But of course if you are engaging the clutch when the engine is off and the car is doing 60 miles an hour yes the engine should start back up.
Step 1, learn how to drive a stick....coasting out of gear is a no-no.
step 2, sounds like a shop with a data logger odb2 port plug in would be useful....plug it in, then drive, duplicate....then look at the data.....
Any chance the car has auto start enabled? Some mini's can be programmed to SHUT OFF at traffic lights, out of gear.....automaticly, then restart.....
step 2, sounds like a shop with a data logger odb2 port plug in would be useful....plug it in, then drive, duplicate....then look at the data.....
Any chance the car has auto start enabled? Some mini's can be programmed to SHUT OFF at traffic lights, out of gear.....automaticly, then restart.....
Thread Starter
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1st Gear
Joined: Mar 2007
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I coast as much as I possibly can while driving this car. I get a solid 43 mpg doing this. Yes I know it's supposedly bad but I have been driving my car this way since i drove off it off the lot in 2007. It now has 133,000 miles on it and so far, this engine issue has been my biggest problem with it. So I am going to stick to my driving style. Now keeping in mind that I have been driving this way for five years, it doesn't have auto start and it's not caused by coasting with the clutch pressed in because it only started to happened recently, anyone have any other ideas?
I mentioned in my original post that I did have a mechanic read the code and it came as cylinder 4 misfire, months later I went to an auto zone, actually this was just two weeks ago and they gave me a code of 1632, thermostat heater control circuit open. Would this make sense to anyone? I'm not very inclined to trust it because they were using the VW setting to read my codes since I guess mini wasn't in their OBD.
Ultimately I guess I am going to have to take it to the dealer, I was just wondering if anyone experienced something similar. It seems like the answer is no.
I mentioned in my original post that I did have a mechanic read the code and it came as cylinder 4 misfire, months later I went to an auto zone, actually this was just two weeks ago and they gave me a code of 1632, thermostat heater control circuit open. Would this make sense to anyone? I'm not very inclined to trust it because they were using the VW setting to read my codes since I guess mini wasn't in their OBD.
Ultimately I guess I am going to have to take it to the dealer, I was just wondering if anyone experienced something similar. It seems like the answer is no.
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4th Gear
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 362
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) and I can't remember ever coasting like that on purpose. There's really no need for it in any circumstance that I can think of. I can think of lots of reasons NOT to, but...
So I am going to stick to my driving style.
I was just wondering if anyone experienced something similar. It seems like the answer is no.
Let us know what you find out from the dealer.
__________________________________________________ __
I had a similar problem in a different car. When I would push the clutch in to change gears the car would stall. When I let the clutch out it would start back up. Turns out this was caused by a loose ground connection for the battery. Try checking all the ground points.
4th Gear
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 362
Likes: 2
Believe it or not, I actually tried this (coasting @ 60+ mph) yesterday on my way home. Very little/no traffic on the highway, I thought - - what the heck, let's just see what happens... pushed in the clutch & held it in for a while, even tried shifting to neutral while coasting.
So what happened? Short answer - nothing. Engine settled into a normal idle while I rocketed (almost) silently down the highway. I let it coast a while until speed dropped quite a lot, then I put it back into 6th gear, revved the engine a bit to match revs to speed, and motored on normally. No drama.
Would I do it again? No. It was just an experiment to see if I could reproduce the problem that the OP reported. My engine responded just as I expected - no stalling, nothing, just a smooth idle.
For what it's worth.
__________________________________________________
So what happened? Short answer - nothing. Engine settled into a normal idle while I rocketed (almost) silently down the highway. I let it coast a while until speed dropped quite a lot, then I put it back into 6th gear, revved the engine a bit to match revs to speed, and motored on normally. No drama.
Would I do it again? No. It was just an experiment to see if I could reproduce the problem that the OP reported. My engine responded just as I expected - no stalling, nothing, just a smooth idle.
For what it's worth.
__________________________________________________
I would be willing to bet that the engine never really stops turning over as there is "absolutely" no way for it to start up again just by pressing the gas pedal.
I would also be willing to bet if the engine rpms were checked by an external source that the engine is still running during the coasting.
I would also be willing to bet that it is an electrical malfunction with the tach.
I would also be willing to bet if the engine rpms were checked by an external source that the engine is still running during the coasting.
I would also be willing to bet that it is an electrical malfunction with the tach.
6th Gear
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 2,264
Likes: 31
From: wisconsin, usa
page 101-102 of my cms all4 owners manual:
Never drive with the clutch held down,
with the transmission in neutral or with
the engine switched off; otherwise, engine braking
action will not be present or there will be no
power assistance to the brakes or steering.
page 108
Coasting
When approaching a red traffic light, take your
foot off the accelerator and let the car roll to a
stop in the highest gear possible.
On a downhill gradient, take your foot off the
accelerator and let the vehicle coast in a suitable gear.
Fuel supply is shut off automatically when the
vehicle is coasting.
scott
Never drive with the clutch held down,
with the transmission in neutral or with
the engine switched off; otherwise, engine braking
action will not be present or there will be no
power assistance to the brakes or steering.
page 108
Coasting
When approaching a red traffic light, take your
foot off the accelerator and let the car roll to a
stop in the highest gear possible.
On a downhill gradient, take your foot off the
accelerator and let the vehicle coast in a suitable gear.
Fuel supply is shut off automatically when the
vehicle is coasting.
scott
Well, I grew up driving freewheeling SAABs. First one was a brand new 1969 model 96. A freewheeling transmission disengages the drivetrain when you lift off the accelerator. Safety? I'm still here to talk about it!
6th Gear
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 2,264
Likes: 31
From: wisconsin, usa
i helped a friend replace sprague clutches in his saab sonnet and sedan several times
it was a mechanical attempt at dealing with lift throttle oversteer
5th Gear
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 1,025
Likes: 2
From: Los Angeles
Jeez folks, who gives a crap how he drives HIS car.
If he likes to drive like that then let him. He was asking for help on a particular issue he is having. He never asked opinions about his driving style.
If he likes to drive like that then let him. He was asking for help on a particular issue he is having. He never asked opinions about his driving style.
My '10 Cooper Auto will occassionally stall out while coasting in neutral. Have had it to the dealer a couple of times.
BTW the SAAB freewheel originated in the two stroke oil in the gas mixer engines to prevent loss of lubrication while engine is decelerating.
BTW the SAAB freewheel originated in the two stroke oil in the gas mixer engines to prevent loss of lubrication while engine is decelerating.
1st Gear
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 20
Likes: 0
Did you ever find a fix for this? I just experienced this today for the first time, both when I was waiting at a couple stop lights and when I was coasting at 30mph before a turn. There's no shuddering, or noise, all of the lights/radio/AC stays on and pushing the button turns the engine back on however, unless I'm actually pushing the gas pedal the car wants to shut off.
6th Gear
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 3,428
Likes: 37
From: Mission Viejo, CA
@OP
Perhaps your engine wouldn't stall if it had sufficient RPM's do to a misfire, many of us get misfires and our engines continue to run. The OP might not be saving on gas but even if he was it's offset hugely when you reduce your braking power assist potentially risk causing a major accident to someone other than the OP when you loose your braking power assist, put undo stress on your throw-out bearing. This makes absolutely no sense for the sake of MPG.
Perhaps he is no longer with us, or perhaps his Mini lost braking power assist and the unthinkable happened. He was rolling the dice for himself and other's in front of him for a few MPG.
Perhaps your engine wouldn't stall if it had sufficient RPM's do to a misfire, many of us get misfires and our engines continue to run. The OP might not be saving on gas but even if he was it's offset hugely when you reduce your braking power assist potentially risk causing a major accident to someone other than the OP when you loose your braking power assist, put undo stress on your throw-out bearing. This makes absolutely no sense for the sake of MPG.
Perhaps he is no longer with us, or perhaps his Mini lost braking power assist and the unthinkable happened. He was rolling the dice for himself and other's in front of him for a few MPG.
Last edited by Systemlord; Sep 6, 2015 at 01:21 AM.
Neutral
Joined: May 2018
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
From: Gladwin, Michigan
Engine loses power shifting from 3rd to 2nd turning corner
while down shifting to turn corner my mini will appear to be functioning but no acceleration so I look at RPM’s and it is at 0. Everything appears to function as normal but obviously you cannot accelerate and if your heater/fan blower is being used the blower is the only thing that stops. This is an intermittent problem that happens more frequently during cold weather & lesser in damp weather. Always when down shifting from 3rd to 2nd more frequently when turning corners and occasionally when slowing to stop at intersections. No warning indicator lights appear, and no codes either. A push of the ignition button and the cars resumes where it left off. It never does this with my fiancé but I have had passengers witness it. Since I have become accustomed to this issue and navigate it well. Last winter it became more predictable when turning the corners so I learned to watch the RPM’s, during process of down shifting & acceleration the RPM’s drop to just above “0” and catch & jump back up. When the car fails the RPM’s drop all the way to “0”. I press the ignition button and continue on my way. When I first experienced this I spoke to my trusted personal mechanic back in my hometown, someone I knew had vast knowledge & I could trust. I explained everything I had learned & the consistent details I had observed. My mechanic told me to remove where the air intake connects to the manifold, to access the throttle plate bores. He stated the bores had too much carbon build up and the plate was sticking causing the intermittent power loss. He instructed me to spray carb cleaner on a rag and wipe the bores the best I could and that this problem would continue to occur more during the colder winter temperatures. And it did. I couldn’t get my fiancé to agree or even try to disprove my mechanic by doing what he instructed to see if it stopped. My thoughts were if you don’t agree they best way to prove or disprove someone is by doing exactly what they say, if it doesn’t work they were wrong & you were right. My fiancé didn’t fall for that. So the car still has this issue. I’ve taken it a reputable shop. They can’t duplicate it and there are no codes or faults. I can’t make it happen while driving so I can’t show the shop mechanic. So I’m either going to have to get greasy myself (no problem there) or take it to my old mechanic 2-1/2 hours away. This previous post is the first I have read where someone has experienced something close to my issue. And I have been googling the **** out of it! If any of you knowledgeable individuals have any input please reply! Thank you!
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