The front had oil in it, but ill ask him when i see him tomorrow thanks for input.

 

When the coupler becomes loose (from the holes turning oval). does it make any noticeable noise... ie rattle?

 

I've never experienced noise from egged coupler holes first hand. The 2 couplers I've pulled only had ever so slight egging and no apparent noise(on my stock blower).

Just google and/or youtube eaton noises and make your own determination. To me when the bypass valve closes I don't want any slop. Slop will cause wear and shock to the whole system.

If it were me I'd pull the snout inspect it. ie bearings, seal, coupler, oil and rotor gears. Couplers, seals, bearings and oil are cheap.

Jeremy

 

Does anyone know the number and location of all the bleeder valves in the coolant system? Also does anyone know the pressure (psi) within the coolant system? Gracias.

 

After reading this thread I've become concerned about a rattle from my R53. This rattle seems to be coming from the engine/passenger side and is loudest when coming off of idle (most often when the clutch is being engaged at low RPMs). I can usually minimize the noise by having a slightly higher rev and playing with the clutch a bit off the start. I've thought this to be the tensioner pulley and belt. There is usually a squeak from the belt if I shift hard in the upper RPMs. The noise can be heard at idle when the engine is cool and only slightly when warmed up. It is not apparent at cruising speeds.

Does the supercharger rattle constantly? Only at idle? I've got 70k miles on my '06.

 

My SC is going south. The sound you are looking for is really loud. Its hard to pinpoint it from just looking at it. Take a long screwdriver and put it on the charger on the driver side, believe you'll know if its that. Also you'll notice a faint "clinking sound" that will usually mature to a full blown sound of coins in a coffee can. Mine has not got that bad yet but i imagine its not far off. That being said im thinking of rebuilding the back end of my SC. Ive found the gears online and being a machinist feel the rebuild is not to difficult. Harder to get to then anything. Has anyone rebuilt the rear end and if so what all should i get. Another question, will i have to worry about the debris from the gear failure being ingested thru the seals or anywhere on the back for that matter?

 

The oil seal should keep debris from getting into main case/rotors. Modify a tie rod end puller to fit underneath the pto gear to pull if off the shaft. Bake new gear and quickly seat it onto shaft(tap it home to same level as before and keep other end static to prevent endfloat changes). The waterpump drive should be easy to re and re the gear, bearing and seals. Good luck!

I spoke to a supplier about seals and bearings for our M45's and they've got front seals and PTO refresh kits for sale now. The rear needle bearings are still on 40 week back order.

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?...=STRK:MEWAX:IT

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?...=STRK:MEWAX:IT

Jeremy

 

I talked to a guy from Endyn and he said check out Magnuson Products for gear and rotor replacements in the MINIs M45.
http://www.magnusonproducts.com/

 

I just spoke with them and was told they are not re-building MINI superchargers because they "can't get the little gears".

Spoke with PS Superchargers also. They said you have to buy a new unit if your PTO gears are shot.

Jim

 

PS Superchargers... do mean PSE Superchargers?

Looks like the number of re-builders are dwindling. Steigemeier is still doing it.... http://www.stiegemeier.com/pricing.html

 

You are correct, sir! I did mean PSE.
Also, the High Speed Lab, through autoXcooper.com does the rear gears.
Now...which one to use? Hmmmm..............

Thanks!
Jim

 

One thing to say...some rebuilders do not replace the seal that keep the lube in the rear gears...them saying they do not/can not/don't do it anymore might indicate that after they did rebuilds in the past with new gears, they still ran dry, and were destroyed...cause the seal did not get 100% replaced, or was previously compromised.
Gears are sold (last time I checked) by a few companys that rebild the sc to other dealers...so them saying they can't get them might be more of an admission that if there is a defect in this area, they do not/cannot fix it with certainty.
Just a thought.

 

I successfully replaced the mechanical pump on my r53 with an electric water pump. However, for some reason when i drive it now it overheats after a few miles. Im not sure but I think it might have to do with the fact that the pump is always on full blast and is creating some kind of air pocket in the system. It ran fine at idle for a long time, but when i tried to drive it and got some heat to the engine, the overflow tank overflowed and spewed fluid all over the engine compartment. Does anyone know if I should take out the thermostat and put in an electric thermostatic switch to control the pump? That's my only idea. If anyone has another idea let me know.

 

Try re-bleeding it...sounds like similar symtoms to a faulty bleed (air pockets) after work on the cooling system...

 

Well, I sent off my spare supercharger to Steigemeier last Thursday. Having the "Front-Drive Rebuild Plus Water Pump Drive Rebuild" done. Spoke with Robyn there. Very nice and helpful.
I'll snap a few photos upon it's return.

Jim

 

So after much experimentation and error and discovery, I have finally bypassed the broken, noisy, unreliable gear-driven water pump for a relatively inexpensive yet very durable electric pump setup. It took me a long time but I had no previous mechanical experience, and therefore this procedure could be done by anyone. I have over a hundred pictures of the process and when I get a spare few days (I work as a very busy EMT in Indianapolis so that might be difficult to come by) I will try to write up a full how-to on the process including pictures, part numbers, cost estimates, etc. Just so everyone knows, if your supercharger gears are going bad, don't spend thousands! It can be fixed for hundreds! PM me with specific questions, but keep in mind I won't be able to get the written how-to up for a little while yet.

 

Looking forward to your write-up.

 

+1

 

Can't wait to see the write up. The electric conversion should be interesting especially the way the water pump integrates into the SC/ block.

 

It is also a way to get an extra hp or two out of the car on a hard pull, hottrodders have been doing it for years...not a big differance, but a tiny bit more compared to a similar car...
Might be interesting to see how it works long-term.

 

So I read through this whole thread, guess I should be considered the lucky one with 133,000 miles on a 2002 original SC.

Last talk early this year seems to indicate that only a few places are left for a good rebuild, what are they now almost 1 year later?

http://www.stiegemeier.com/home.html seems to be one.

Any others?

I am thinking at this point I should just spend the money and be done with it as it is a matter of time.

Thoughts?

 

I would go to www.waymotorworks.com to have mine rebuilt when the time comes......

 

I'd definitely do an oil service front and rear. Mine were fine at 160000+ but were nearly empty.

 

I agree, it is just a matter of time. I would recommend doing it before you have the teeth on the gears chew themselves up. Preventative maintenance...

 

Did you determine where the oil went? Out a seal or into the intake chamber?