Well,,,,,, the clutch/bear that was replaced hasnt fixed the noise...still doing it. So, I make the return appt....

In the mean time, ( weekend before the the return visit to dealer) Randy Webb was in town,, and had pully and oil catch can installed.

Now North Scottsdale Mini says the the noise is because of mods done to the car... The OIL CATCH CAN is causing the noise .... something with vacuume causeing pressure on the crank bla blaa blaa..... not doing any damage, but it now make noise...

The noise is now a different noise than from the origional one I was speaking of they are now telling me.... I said , NOOOOOO it the same,, it stopped for a day or two,,, and returned at the same noise, under the same conditions. I have been hearing it for 3+ months now.. I know the damn noise... Im now hearing it in my sleep.... Vacuume my #$%.

 

You know I'm really starting to get sick of dealers giving the people the run around. Now I can understand them protecting them selves from people modifying the cars, so incase something breaks they can blame it on you. So they take the easy road. So I say screw it! Just write letters to BMW Canada or BMW USA.

I have wrote a letter to BMW Canada and this is what they replied (So far this is the best service I have recieved yet)

Thank you for taking the time to contact MINI Canada. While we regret the situation you have encountered, we appreciate this opportunity to respond to your concern.

Please be assured that the overall satisfaction of all MINI owners, concerning both the products and services provided by our organization, is of great importance to us. We naturally would like each customer to experience faultless performance from our product and premium service through our MINI retailer organization from the outset on and for the entire period of ownership. Therefore, we were concerned to read of the disappointment you have expressed in your correspondence with your overall experience with the level of service from your MINI Retailer.

We are currently in the process of investigating this matter with your MINI Retailer and the Regional Aftersales Team. While we provide this matter with the full attention it deserves, we request your patience while we make certain that no details have been overlooked. We can appreciate your desire to have the matter resolved promptly and endeavour to resolve this concern as soon as possible.

Please accept our apologies for the inconvenience and time you have spent dealing with this matter.

Sincerely,

Customer Service
BMW Canada

So now im waiting patiently for their final reply.

 

Here is the diag of the problem....

 

Excessive Vacuum in the crank case, right?!?!?!?! You know what take the catch can off and take the car back. Thats what I would do. But we all know what the answer will be, "Ohh it was caused after you installed the catch can, blah blah blah.

Kep things simple just start firing off letters to BMW.

 

Thats what im going to do..take off then go back... the thing that really sucks, it I have the paper trial of time of when the things happend... I quess I should become a crystal ball reader... Ill make a fortune predicting the future.. like, making repair appointments before doing mods to cover may ***... oops, that appointment was for the non fix the week before...

 

I have an 04, with 46000. I have reciently noticed the same problem. Do you think the dealer would cover this, I have only 4000 on warranty. It would be great to get them to replace the clutch and throwout, especially now.

 

most likely,, as long as you dont have a catch can

 

Ha ha ha that just reminded me, when I did talk to the service manager he told me that it was my large wheels that caused the noise in the clutch, hahaha.

 

Is there any way to get a print out of the campain to see what it specify's and what it covers?

 

ttt

 

ttt

 

BMW Canada, most arrogant *******s I have ever spoken to in my life! The idiot who called me today was so arrogant that he said that if I didnt like the service at BMW Crowfoot I should drive up to Edmonton, its 3hrs away!!! What kind of car company is BMW obviously they dont care, and dont take me seriously. I thought BMW cared for customer service.

On top of that at my last service the replaced the glovebox liner and decided not to install the little a/c vent for it, but wait they didnt forget, they just didnt feel like doing it. How do I know, becuase they put a little plastic cap with carpet over the hole where the valve used to be!! Im glad it wasnt a couple of bolts on my wheels that they decided not to install.

Well anyways cars going in on Thursday to get the a/c valve re-installed and there going to take a look at the noise from the clutch. Im still stuck in a catch 22 though because even for them to diagnose the problem they would have to drop the tranny, and if its not a defect I have to pay... what am I supposed to do? It will be hard to pay $1800 for a clutch after 30K km.

If anybody does have a photo copy of their service reciept that spoke of the problem please either pm me or email it (black out any important info)

 

Heres there reply which took 5 months to get to me because they sent it to me but, well I never got it, funny how that works. Only after I called did they "re-send" it.

We appreciate your patience during our investigation with MINI Crowfoot.

As it is the common desire of MINI Canada and our retailer network to maintain customer satisfaction , we have taken the liberty of discussing your concerns with Mr. Russ Murray, Service Manager, at MINI Crowfoot. It is our understanding that shortly after the purchase of your MINI, some modifications have been made to the vehicle and is possibly causing a few components to make some noises. Mr. Murray confirmed that a few months ago, when they evaluated the condition of the clutch, they were unable to duplicate the noises that you had brought to their attention. We recommend that you contact MINI Crowfoot or the MINI retailer of your choice to allow them the opportunity to evaluate the current condition of the vehicle and determine the appropriate course of action.

MINI Canada's commitment is to ensure that your vehicle is free from defects in material or workmanship during the New Vehicle Limited Warranty period. MINI Canada will not accept any liability for any modification of the vehicle or installation of any performance accessories or components attached to the vehicle which alters the original engineering and/or operating specifications or which results or may result in malfunction/damage to the other original components.

Please accept our apologies for the inconvenience and time you have spent dealing with this situation.

Sincerely,

BMW Canada

 

Hey Bydgoszcz,

I was just wondering if you had an update on your clutch problems. I have been having exactly the same problems with my clutch for about two years. I have noted it to the service department at Crowfoot Mini, but they have not told me that my clutch needed to be replaced until this week. Upon doing a search on the matter, I was surprised to see so many people having the Chebacca problems with their clutch.

Mini Crowfoot has quoted me $2500 to fix the problem, and claim that it is not under warranty unless their is a faulty part. I plan to be their when they pull it apart to check out the clutch wear. It goes into the shop next week, so I was hoping to hear how it went for you...

 

I'm in the same boat. I've had the noise and told by many its a warranty fix. Talked to the dealer and told its not, and i'll have to get the clutch done to get rid of it. Well as fate would have it there is an issue with my throw out bearing, which is covered under warranty . So it goes in this saturday to have the box dropped to take a look inside. While there thier they're going to put a cluthc kit in for me ( i provided it) Lets see if they'll throw me a bone and drop in the fly wheel.

Mike

 

My car has just started to make the clutch squeal. With 102k miles on the car I don't have to worry about warranty coverage! What I do have to worry about is whether it is worth fixing or if I should wait until I really need a clutch. Any other high mileage MINI drivers know how long a clutch should last? Also, as the work will be done on my dime, should I have them replace the flywheel at the same time?

 

^^^Hmm..hard to say what's the best choice. I personally would wait to fix/buy anything until your clutch actually begins to slip or go out. I drove almost 5k miles with that occasional squealing clutch and I finally brought it to the dealer before my warranty ended (they replaced the throw-out bearing). However in the meantime, look for a good deal on NAM.com for a new factory or aftermarket clutch. I personally wouldn't bother changing my stock flywheel and spend the money elsewhere.

 

I have this problem too... Had it before... along with the lovely throw-out bearing issue... that was replaced along with the flywheel and clutch... cam back again... car is currently at 25K miles... experienced it about 3 times in the last few days... mainly when cold and/or wet outside... marvelous...

 

Ugh. This just shouldn't be. Not after going through the replacement of nearly every item related to the transmission.

This noise use to occur on my '98 Integra GS-R. It was nearly identical to the noise mentioned throughout this thread. The solution was to slip the rubber boot off the throw out bearing housing, heavily grease the joint/ball, and re-apply once a year. Maybe that's a possible work-around for MINI owners too?

 

glad i don't live in canada seems you guys are getting the shaft.

 

Hey people, I just started having this problem too. I have just over 23000 miles on the car and i took it to the dealer and the first thing they said was i drove the car too hard...and they dont know if they will be able to fix it under warranty and they quoted me freaking 5000 dollars...I will keep you guys posted about this

 

As I battled and lost this issue on my 04 S cause I had a oil catch can installed and fell under car was modded issue..( readers digest version of story be found in post 51 ).. My GP just had the exact same issue, and was fixed pronto with a smile at the same dealer ... Funny, I just realized they had the same milage at the time of failure..

It is the duel mass flywheel vibrating making the noise. Not a major problem.. more of just a wierd noise. Elementry example... Take 2 frisbees, one very slighty smaller then the other.. lay one inside the other, that is what the duel mass wheel is kinda like. but they are solid metal of course. now spin one inside the other, that is how the flywheel spins. Now notice how you can wobble one inside the other! that is what the flywheel does when it makes that noise... Very basic explination, the peice is obviously much more technical that this, but might give you a visual idea what is happening.

 

honestly to tell you when we bought the car it was a used demo car, and im pretty sure people whom drove it didnt give a ****** about the clutch.

so basically mini took apart the transmission and because they said we abused the clutch and flywheel, its not gonna be covered under warranty. its gonna cost 3k to fix everything and its coming out of my pocket...

 

My experience with this noise points to the throwout bearing. My '04 MCS (197,000 mi) has a Fidanza aluminum flywheel, a Spec clutch and a stock throwout bearing. It started making the howling noise on cold clutch release late in the winter. I'd had the noise several years ago when I still had the stock clutch and flywheel and it's the absolutely the same noise. The only part common in both situations is the throwout bearing. Gotta be it.

 

-I'm fairly new to the automotive industry, a technician out of tech school for 2 years now, but still a little green. I have this same issue with my r53. This answer makes the most sense to me, but without looking at the bearing myself I can't confirm that this is the case with my vehicle. Thanks for the response. Hopefully there is an easy way to get up there and check.