Well I don't know why but when i fixed an exhaust leak it stop happening.

 

my '04 cooper does this alllll the time!!!

 

my story: never had a problem starting my 07 base model with 61000 miles, no mods, until 2 days ago... went to leave for work (70 degrees outside) and it started, bogged down then stalled out. second try it started just fine so i ignored it because it had started fine all day (i work nights). leaving work the next morning the same thing happened and on the second try it started and i made it home fine. a few hours later i left to go shopping and this time it took 3 tries to start. leaving the store also took 3 tries. called mini and they said i could drop it off that night. leaving my house to get to mini it took 5 tries to start the car and it bogged down and stalled 3 times on the drive there (first time it ever did that while idling during a trip). so far the dealer has had it 2 days and can't pinpoint the problem but they said the computer keeps going into "fail safe" mode, like a laptop would. will post again when i have some answer!

UPDATE:
So mini decided it was the post-cat sensor and for $527 they replaced the part and gave me the car back. The very next day though the car was having the exact same problems. I immediately brought it back to mini and after 10 days (!) they replaced a valve that regulates the outflow of exhaust (they said it wasn't opening fully which was causing too much pressure build up in the engine and so the car would bog down and die) and two other parts in the exhaust (don't know what they were called or what they do). Anyways now the car is running beautifully and sounds perfect but what a hassle that was!!

 

Hi all,

I have just joined from Australia....

I have a 2005 Cooper S and 2 weeks ago got the dreaded start and stall issue. I have read nearly all the posts on here relating to this and acknowledge the problems posted by other members. I would like to share what I have done to solve the issue. This has worked for me and is very simple and more importantly cheap. The problem started after not driving it for about two weeks, I went to the local fuel station and filled up with their top octane 95 or 98....then the problem started, I ran the tank to empty, refilled with 95 Octane from another supplier, removed the spark plugs (which were fouled) and cleaned them with a wire brush. Replaced the plugs....BINGO.....the old girl starts first time again!

As I said I acknowledge the fact there may be other issues with other members cars, but I strongly suggest people give this ago prior to spending bucket loads of cash.

 

Its funny, but I have NEVER had that stalling problem. I have an 05 S cabrio with 34k and no engine mods. I have yet to replace the plugs, and I have always run super (93) for gas. I bought it with 6k a year ago, and its been running great. Are people cheating and using the mid-octane gas...or even the lowest? Gas is expensive, so are people trying to save money and in the process sacrificing performance? As a tip--I have found that the car runs by far its best on Shell gas. After I first bought the car, I would get an intermittent "check engine" warning, that I traced to a faulty knock sensor. I found however, that when I used only Shell gas, it NEVER came on again. All the other brands made it come on again. It also seems to have a bit more power. Any one else notice their car having a brand preference for fuel?

 

Two cars ago, the little '92 Escort wagon I was driving ran noticeably better and got better gas mileage when I could find Mobil hi-test to put in it.

Nudnik is fine with about any brand 91 octane gas I've put in as long as it is *not* 7-Eleven or Circle K gas. He hasn't shown any preference for a particular brand yet.

C ya,
Dutch

 

Funny thing is ...it was with "Shell" that the stall started! I always use the high octane fuel, as I said since doing the plug clean and refill no issues.....oh and my Coop has only done 46000 km's.

 

But plug fouling COULD, not definitely, but could be a result of bad gas.
Just sayin'. You've always used high octane, but I wonder if some people cheat now and then. I also wonder what differences there are with the gas in Australia as compared to the U.S. Yes it IS funny though that your problem started with Shell...go figure. Makes mine run great. I've tried other brands, and I felt the difference. Its subjective, i know, but it seems to work for me.

 

OK, 2003 MC,, 77k miles on it (all ours). Starts in the morning, even in spring/summer, and stumbles and sometime stalls. Always starts hard in the AM, but even after 8 hours sitting at work it's fine. What gives and how do I fix it?

 

My car has been stumbling lately at the start. Usually in the morning, but it can be any time. I recently replaced my bypass valve with the DT modded one, but even before that the stuttering was there and sometimes she'll limp at start out from a stop sign or traffic light.

Also, prior to installing the DT BPV I had noticed a 3-4 MPG drop all of a sudden. I calculate my mileage myself using the old calculator gallons/miles ratio at fill up. I used to get ~26-27, up to 29 if I was mostly highway.. Now I am getting about 22... The CPU says 26, and it used to say ~30... Very irritating... Don't have a clue what could be causing it. Maybe I am leaking fuel somewhere.

 

Ya I have the same problem with my /2005 s only got 35000 mile on mind
Not only it stall when park too long but my window don't work too when you go to close the door my window will no go up and open the door it will not go down have to drive the mini for a week befor the window to work right dose nobody have this problem :

 

I've had the stuttering problem for the past 2 years ive owned my 2004. Since it's obviously a common problem, I never paid much attention because the car would never stall. Recently it has Horton more frequent and a lot worse. I have a vacuum/boost gauge and have noticed just before it does this, the vacuum slowly starts creeping from about 20 in-Hg to about 8 and that's when it starts to idle like a musclecar. To me this means a vacuum leak is gradually forming. It also means that it's probably a valve opening. I've eliminated the pcv, and I don't believe it can be the bypass because the bypass recirculates post throttlebody. Anyone know of any other vacuum related valves on the R53 engine? Feel free to debunk my theory.

 

It could also be showing the ECU's effort to keep the engine running by opening the throttle valve.... When the stumble/stall occurs, and what state the engine's in at that time, will likely throw some light on the source of the problem, so good on ya for watching your gauges! Unlike a carbureted engine, fuelies have an active element that tries to keep it idling, so it's like having an invisible guy pressing the gas pedal when he spots the RPMs dropping below threshold, and it throws a big bunch of variables into the equation.... ECU trouble codes can be helpful in debugging the issue, though, so if you have an OBD-II reader, it'll give you clues as to what to look at....

If I remember the intake manifold/intercooler/supercharger/throttle tract correctly, it has the throttle body, the bypass valve, the PCV, the post-supercharger vacuum/boost port for the fuel pressure regulator to ensure proper fuel pressure under all conditions, a MAP sensor to let the ECU know what's going on in the manifold (i.e., boost or vacuum, and how much of either), and the injectors themselves, and that's about it.

There are a lot of joints in the manifold, though--throttle body to intake tube, intake tube to supercharger, supercharger to intercooler "horn", intercooler "horn" to intercooler, intercooler to the other intercooler "horn", other intercooler "horn" to the manifold, manifold to four injectors, and manifold to head. That's a *lot* of opportunities to develop a small leak, and a *lot* of places to check....

A cold-start stumble/stall suggests (to me, at least) either a fuel pressure issue (weak fuel pump, maybe, or poor regulator) or a vacuum leak that seals itself through thermal expansion of the leaking thingie (or the part the thingie is attached to or the gasket between them) once the engine warms up. If you spray ether or some other flammable liquid on the leaky thingie, the latter will reveal itself by the engine speeding up a bit until the ether/whatever is consumed and the leak resumes. The former can sometimes be band-aided by simply changing your start-up routine, by turning the key on and then putting on your seatbelt (or whatever else you do to get settled and ready to roll) before actually cranking the engine over, to allow the fuel pump more time to get the pressure up.

Not having had this problem on my MINI often enough to really look hard at it (I've occasionally had it stall right away, and occasionally had it stumble) in the year and a half that I've owned it, all I can do at this point is speculate, and draw from similar experiences with other cars I've owned....

It could also be a fuel issue. I'd be sorely tempted to throw some "dry-gas" in there to see if maybe it's a glob of water from condensation that's causing it. It's not humid often here in Hell's Forge, AZ, so condensation-related issues don't crop up often, but I remember some of the "fun" it caused when I lived in NJ....

Another potential variable that just popped into my head--the amount of oil consumption via the PCV, and how often the intake tract gets cleaned.

I have an oil catch can in my PCV circuit, and even though my oil consumption is very low, it catches an ounce or so of it between oil changes. My intercooler was almost clean inside when I opened it up recently to install my vac/boost gauge, after a year of running the catch can. I cleaned it anyway, but it was a *lot* cleaner inside than it was before I got the OCC. Maybe there's a link there--oil fowling up the works, either by collecting on the ends of the injectors or messing up the action of the MAP sensor.

HTH!

C ya,
Dutch

 

Window's a separate issue. Try whacking the door right above the speaker really hard with the side of your fist (like "Fonzie" from Happy Days starting up the jukebox) and see if that fixes the window temporarily. If so, the window motor's brushes likely need cleaning.... One thing that helps with that (provided you live somewhere where it doesn't rain often) is to leave the windows down a smidgen--maybe a 1/4" gap or so between window and seal at the top.

HTH!

C ya,
Dutch

 

Good point on the throttle body. I have the Mynes software so I will check the logs and see if the throttle angle is magically changed by the ECU. My problem is not on startup, and is fuel/temperature independent. The next step is to wait till it happens and go around all the seals with a propane torch (unlit of course) and see if I can find the vacuum leak. And if all else fails, I suppose I could light the torch and go for the fuel lines... :-) jk.

 

I've seen the A/C cycle on/off in the reading of my vacuum/boost gauge while the idle speed stays constant, which suggests some method of idle speed regulation. I haven't seen any other method of idle speed regulation on this engine, so I imagine, since it's throttle-by-wire, the ECU regulates idle speed by cracking the throttle open a smidge when idle speed drops below a threshold.

A liquid works better for finding vacuum leaks, as it temporarily forms a partial seal when it hits the leaky thingie, at least until the vacuum slurps it all up. Ether works very well, as it also is flammable, and the engine will speed up considerably when it hits the leak....

HTH!

C ya,
Dutch

 

Yeah, I agree it has been almost 2 weeks now and 500 kms later and no stall since cleaning the plugs, so I am over the moon!!

 

I had to have the fuel pump replaced. I received a letter from mini about the warranty being extended on it. This was after I had to get towed to the dealership. I have an 09 mini convertible. I have had the fuel pump replaced at under 6,000 miles, timing tensioner replaced, speaker replaced, piece on convertible top replaced, trunk sensor replaced yesterday, but I am going back tomorrow because it is still opening by itself. Been to the dealership over 7 times for repairs and my car only has 16,000 miles on it. I have driven at least 980 miles back and forth to the dealership for repairs because I live over an hour away.

 

Judging from the drop in gas mileage and the poor running, I'd say the ECU's running your engine a bit rich rather than a fuel leak. Maybe a quick adaptations reset will fix it up. Is there a MINI tuner near you?

C ya,
Dutch

 

turning the ac off upon the first initial pull out of the driveway seems to help the car not stall. I won't turn it on until i've been driving for at least 30 seconds.

 

Same issue here for about 9 month. 05 Cabrio w cvt. Problem....approaching a stop whether hard or soft, rpm dives to about 500 then back to where it is supposed to be. Gas does not make a difference. Additives seem to help for a short time then it starts again. Reset computer from dashboard following directions on one of these boards. Better for a while then bad again.

Went to my friendly autozone store when Service and DSC light came on for good.....They plugged into computer and codes for cylinder 3 not firing were all ablaze. So replaced plugs, and ignition coil. Put seafoam in gas (half can) and the other half in the vacuum intake that is attached to charcoal filter on passenger side front of engine...Mini sputtered, choked, spit, vomited, and stalled a few times during the half a can dosing....

Turned it off for 10 minutes to let the magic potion do its work. Restarted...had a thick cloud of white smoke for about 10 minutes (carbon burn off I assume and was advised by Rory at AutoZone.

Took Mini for a test run. Power was awesome, acceleration was fabulous, and no RPM issues on hard or soft stop. I am a few hunderd miles into it, and so far so good.

I believe I had a bad Ignition Coil that was affected by high temps, and dirty engine.....

Hope that helps some of you.

D

 

05 R53 MCS 6sp (build date late 04) - Called dealer and there is a software upgrade to fix start and idle issue. Made an appointment and will give an update.

 

Dealer updated software. 2 days without stalling on startup. $59.
Fingers crossed that this is a permanent fix.

 

Well I have same durn problem. 05 MCS 6sp (build date 5/05) 76k

I ASKED FOR A SOFTWARE UPGRADE BUT.........The dealer (Bavarian BMW / Motor City Mini) told me there is a bulletin but it only applies to build dates prior to Jan 05......

This problem is really strange. The same thing happened to me last year about this same time.... Start, rough idle, and stall in the morning. Then after a few tries it starts and runs fabulously. It mysteriously went away.

This year same thing started 2 days ago. However, now has gotten worse. Sometimes it just keeps turning over (no start). Then, finally it will start and rought idle.... finally it will start and run smoothly.


HERE IS THE LIST!!!!!!!! PLEASE ADD SOME IF I MISSED A FEW
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************************************************** ****

After reading a ton of these posts.... Here are some of the "FIXES" or things that members did that "may" have helped (no particular order):

1. REPLACE TEMP AND MAP SENSORS
2. HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP REPLACEMENT
3. SEA FOAM CLEANING
4. FUEL PRESSURE REGULATOR / INJECTOR O-RINGS
5. CHANGE FUSE #3
6. CLEAN THE PLUGS
7. PCV VALVE
8. ECU reset
9. SOFTWARE UPGRADE
10. TURN KEY AND WAIT IN 1ST POSITION - THEN START


I noticed that #10 above does change the results for me. Sometimes it will start very good and smooth when doing this....then it stalls. In any event, it did not "fix" my situation.

Currently sitting at the dealer: They charge $125 for diagnosis...... so, I told them I am really curious to hear thier Rx.

They gonna earn it......... Least I hope so.

I'll keep you guys posted and I hope "THE LIST" helps future guys/gals out from having to read a thousand posts.

 

I recently started having minor starting issues with my 2006 Cooper S. What seemed to work the best is turning the key and waiting.

Until a couple of days ago when all it would do is crank but not even sputter. I had to have it towed to the dealer who tells me my internal fuse block is shorting out (moisture). They want to replace it and then see if that works. Am I being suckered into a part I don't need? I figured it was the fuel pump as all other electronics work fine.

Any advise would be appreciated