Howdy ~

600 miles and driving in Germany doing well. But, I have a question for other MCS owners.

I've noticed at idle that my wonderful little java seems to chatter very much like a diesel during her down time. I suppose its more after she warms up, cuz that usually when I think to myslef - 'she sounds like a diesel - sure this is a turbo )

any other happy owers purr like a dang diesel?

I tried to search for some sort of topic like this, but couldn't find anything. Thanks for any feedback.

Now, if I could only talk the German BMW dealer to program the ECU with that dang burble...

 

I thought I read that the 07s make that chatter. Maybe it's the common rail?

 

Most likely attributed to the direct injection system.

 

humm, i'll have to do some searching tomorrow

plus I have this rear left knocking noise like something is 'loose' (boot is empty)

 

My R56S makes the same sound just thought it's the way it is.I'd like to know otherwise.

 

Hi 07PepperS

This subject has been discussed at length on the main R56 board, the ticking noise you are hearing is a characteristic of direct injection engines. I also put a call in to my dealer and learned that it is normal. Here is a link to the original discussion: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=95376

Happy Motoring!

 

yup, discussed many times at length

 

thanks guys.. sorry my search ability didn't give much to go on, user error I suppose....

 

read the post.. .wow - - pretty harsh read.. and all I wanted was some info.. and got loads of bantering back and forth.. oh well, got some info I was looking for.. I'll forget all the negative stuff.. .. . . . ..

I love the R56 - ticker or not...

 

The engine noise problem: I bought the car to dealer twice for engine noise issue and they keep telling me that is normal. Finally, the third time, when the noise is getting very loud, the dealer replaced the timing chain tensioner. Last week, I noticed the engine is knocking/rubbing noise in the morning when engine was cold, I brought back to the dealer and they told me they have to replace the timing chain and engine head.
The car only had 47,000 and always serviced by Mini dealer.

 

Yes, it is a noisy engine, BUT...

If the chatter is very loud, like a very loud diesel, it could well be the timing chain tensioner.

I had a very loud sound at idle that went away at about 1800RPM. It turns out my tensioner went bad, the timing chain backed out, and I was stuck with $2k in labor bills to rebuild the engine (MINI picked up the cost of parts as a goodwill gesture since I was only two weeks out of warranty).

My advice: get it to a dealer.

 

Does anyone know of any 2011 owners with the timing chain tensioner problem? I noticed mine is pretty chattery in the morning but it does quiet down a bit when the engine's warmed up. It's at about 8400 miles so far.

 

Because of the way the tensioner is designed, it's possible for any model year to develop a chain rattle if the oil level gets too low. And a rattly chain will generally occur before you get a low oil warning from the car. If the oil level is low, topping off the oil should alleviate any chain rattle -- short of a bad tensioner.

First thing one should check whenever a tensioner/timing chain problem is suspected is the oil level. And on these turbocharged MINI's, it's a good idea to check it frequently anyway.

 

Thanks for the tip! It has been a while since i last checked my oil level now that i think about it.

 

I'm one to check the oil pretty frequently, but to be honest, I really dont know how to interprit the oil measurement with the dip stick. Its not like any other dip stick that my Nissans or Hondas.

also, before I bought this 50 Camden, I had test drove several others, most that had under 9k miles. They seemed to idle much smoother and healther unlike my 50 camden that runs good(35kmiles), but a little rougher.

Should the timing chain/tensioner be my first concern and does replacing it remedy a semi-rough/diesel-ish idle????

 

The rattle "solved" by the tensioner change, is only audible at either idle or between 1600-2000 rpm in a cold morning. After the engine warms up, this rattle goes aways. It all has to do with the the timing chain not being properly tensioned. This sound is VERY loud and reminds me of a tractor rather than a plain diesel.

However, if you are hearing the direct injection system, then the sound will be there irrespective of the engine temperature. This sound is normal...

 

I can't decide whether to be worried or not... All this talk of the diesel sound or tensioner sound is hard to decipher. I just picked up my '09 MCS with 17k on it and I thought it was loud but attributed it to the direct injection. Now Im getting worried as the days go by. Maybe I'll hit up the MINI dealer next week.

 

Gitmoe,

There are a number of threads that have video and sound of the bad tensioner. check those out and see if that is what your car sounds like. If so take it to the dealer.

But as others have said low oil can cause the same sound. just to let you know i have to put a quart of oil in my 08 S very 1800-2000 miles. This IS normal and MIN/BMW will also tell you that it can burn a quart every 1500 before there should be any concern.

So to all check your oil regularly, like at least every 2nd or 3rd gas fill up.

 

I'll have to check the oil today and get into the habit of doing so often. That just seems weird to me with a newer car. But I've never had a turbo car so a lot of this is new to be anyway. My engine sounds a lot like other engines Ive heard from watching CAI installs and a few other mods. That's why I wasn't totally freaking out.