Hey all,

I've recently contracted the infamous "ooorrrrtttt" sound with my clutch and I was notified by the dealership that it was due to my pressure plate not engaging properly and that since the part is considered wear-and-tear, I'm not able to get it repaired under warranty. So now I'm stuck with one of two options, either to get the clutch replacement done at the dealership for $1500 or do the work myself and just get the necessary parts. Well, I gather you knowledgable folk can decide which of the two ways I've decided, so after doing a little research on the topic here at NAM and ordering the relevant documentation (Bentley and Haynes manuals), I'm ready to start acquiring the parts and whatever tools I might need for the job. After consulting the Bentley manuals (which seems to be the more detailed of the two), I noticed it recommended all of these BMW specialty tools to do the work. After realizing how much it would cost me to get all of those tools, I was wondering if someone with experience doing this sort of work on the Mini could help steer me in the right direction regarding what tools are absolutely essential for the installation/removal of the transmission (namely flywheel and clutch) and those tools I might can simply substitute for another type of tool that would work just as well. I appreciate all the feedback you guys can provide and thanks in advance!

GotMINI

 

You won't need any of the special tools. Just basic mechanic tools, some torx sockets (male and female), a clutch alignment tool that should come with a clutch kit and something to pop the tie rod join that can be rented at kragen.

The noise will come back and is common on bmw's. So I don't recommend replacing it unless you are having driveability problems or want to upgrade the clutch.

 

[QUOTE=Alerious]I've recently contracted the infamous "ooorrrrtttt" sound with my clutch and I was notified by the dealership that it was due to my pressure plate not engaging properly and that since the part is considered wear-and-tear, I'm not able to get it repaired under warranty./QUOTE]

Don't let them off the hook. The noise is from the dual mass flywheel and NOT the pressure plate. It is covered and they know that as this has happened to a LOT of us. I argued with my dealer and then simply drove to another and when they heard the noise they said they would do it the next day under warranty. I had 40,000 miles at the time and I figured that I would pay for a new clutch and pressure plate since there would be no labor to put it in. That was a bit less than $300 for parts. And at 40,000 the clutch and plate looked fine but now I don't have to worry for another 50,000.

But the bottom line is that they surely know it is not the clutch as the noise is well documented. And if they did only the clutch and plate, the noise would still be there. Ask them what would happen then.

Rich

PS-Where are you located and perhaps some of us can give you an idea of which MINI techs are on top of this.

 

Hey there,

Same as above - it IS covered under warranty. I had my flywheel "updated" when mine was making the same sound - the new clutch assembly still made the same sound - so they replaced it - TWICE. My MINI service advisor knew what it was right away - he said they do make noise for no reason once in a while and the ONLY remedy is to replace the clutch / flywheel.


Hope this helps

 

That's great news regarding getting the repairs under warranty! I'm actually in the Orlando area and when I brought my Mini into the dealership (Downtown Mini) for them to diagnose the sound (same time when I was doing my 15% SC pulley upgrade/lightened crank pulley), they immediately notified me that the problem was the pressure plate and since I wasn't in the 3 yr/36k mile warranty period, it would have to come out of my pocket. I suppose it can't hurt in calling them (DTM, that is) on Monday regarding this known problem and see what they say. If any of you have another dealership that has done the work under warranty, it might even be worth the drive (depending on how far) to get the work done by them instead. I figure worst case scenario, I'll still end up having to do the work on my own, but then I most certainly am upgrading both the clutch and flywheel to a better aftermarket set. Thanks again for the responses, though, I really hope I'm able to get this resolved without having to get down-and-dirty myself.

 

The 3 year/36k warranty is for maintenance items and if you indeed did wear out the clutch it would not be covered. But, you're clutch is not worn. The Flywheel is bad and is covered under the 50,000 enging and drivetrain warranty.

Have them bring in the local Mini rep. I had mine done in New Jersey.

Rich

 

If the noise occurs when moving the clutch peddle, then it is from the pressure plate or throw out bearing not the flywheel. I replaced my flywheel with a light weight and the sound has developed again after about 30k miles, the same time it took for the original clutch to do it.

As far as warranty is concerned, the noise is not caused by wear on the friction surface, so don't let them tell you that it is your fault. My flywheel and clutch came out looking brand new.

 

I am curious about something, though, after searching through past threads regarding flywheel/clutch issues, I came across this particular post http://www.northmericanmotoring.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8949&highlight=flywheel that I found intriguing. I own a 2003 MCS that has the chatter noise mentioned in the thread and what caught my eye was this service bulletin http://www.alldata.com/tsb/BMW/11176...05/210105.html someone mentioned from BMW/MINI. It turns out, any pre-production 08/04 model Cooper S have a known problem with the flywheel and the chatter noise I hear and based upon customer complaint the flywheel must be changed. Therefore, it sounds to me that the dealership should have to honor the warranty and replace my flywheel and in turn I can pay for the clutch to be changed as well. I know that seems a little like a dirty tactic to pull when I've been listening to that chatter for a long time now and after understanding what it is, I never saw it as a problem. Of course, I believe the chatter also started around the same time my current problem occurred, since I never noticed it idling like that when I first bought the car. I figure I'm gonna call the dealership on Monday and tell them about the issue I'm having and bring up that service bulletin that I learned of to deal with the issue. I mean, BMW/MINI shouldn't have released that service bulletin if their dealerships aren't gonna honor it, right?

 

So I had an appointment with my MINI dealership today to show them the issue my MINI appears to be exhibiting from the service bulletin I came across and now I'm not so sure what to do. Apparently after talking with the service manager, he said the rattling problem is something common that affects all MINIs and he could demonstrate that even a low mileage MINI will show the same behavior. He said that the problem has nothing to do with the flywheel and the throwout bearing is the actual culprit. If I bothered having them diagnose the problem and attempt to fix the issue under warranty and replacing the flywheel did not resolve the problem, the dealership would then require me to pay the 12 hours of labor to do the job. What I don't understand is if my MINI has the exact issue as described in the service bulletin, how can they charge me for the labor? Apparently there is an issue with the flywheel, otherwise why else would they have released the service bulletin? I managed to setup an appointment for next week sometime to have one of their field engineers' look at the problem and he/she will decide whether it is serviceable under warranty. I suppose I'll find out next week what the outcome of this whole thing will be, but I guess my only worry is what I should do if the field engineer decides it isn't serviceable under warranty. If any of you have recommendations or some incite on this matter, I'd really appreciate hearing from you all! It isn't my wish to rip the dealership off by any means as I had the intention of replacing the flywheel and clutch myself, but not having to spend the money and time to do the work would be nice.

GotMINI