1st Gen R50 Cooper P0340, P0341, TCS Head Scratcher

Discussion in '1st Generation: 2002–06 R50, R53 & 2004–08 R52' started by rmagdaleno, Dec 11, 2015.

  1. rmagdaleno

    rmagdaleno New Member

    Mar 17, 2011
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    Hi!

    I hope you guys can help me because I've been scratching my head over this one for the past couple of days. I apologize in advance for the wall of text, but I've always felt that when troubleshooting, too much information is better than not enough.

    I recently had my wife's R50 up on the stands for some maintenance and all was fine when I handed it over to her. She drove to work, filled the tank (with premium), and came home only to tell me her MIL had come on and that the traction control indicator was on and wouldn't go off.

    Now some background:
    2006 R50, Manufactured 11/2005
    Five speed manual
    98,925 Miles on the odometer

    Her car is approaching 100k miles and she was set to go out of town for a week, so I figured it was an optimal time for some maintenance/repairs.

    Here's the list of services and parts:
    Oil service (filter, drain & fill) - BMW/MINI synthetic 5w-30
    Brake service (front rotors, pads, fluid flush & fill) - EBC Greenstuff DP21388, ATE Super Blue
    SS brake line install (some scuffs and wear on the originals, and since I was flushing, figured what the hell) - BMMC1000CL
    Engine air filter - MANN C2245
    Cabin air filter - MANN CU4624
    Serpentine belt replacement - Gates K060406/6PK1036
    Inner CV boots (when I went in for the rotors, I noticed they both sides were torn) - Lobro GKN 304412
    Inner CA ball joints - Lemforder 25385 02 009
    Outer CA ball joints
    New ignition wires - Kingsborne Firebraid 12-7000FB
    New spark plugs - NGK Iridium IX, Standard heat range ZFR6FIX-11
    New battery (hers was starting to fail when the outdoor temps started dropping) - Optima Red
    Transmission fluid drain and fill with an LT-3 equivalent (according to my local independant MINI shop.) - BG Products #792 API GL-4 SynchroShift II 75W-80


    Still pending:
    Fuel filter replacement, I just didn't get to it before she needed it back.

    After I was done, I scanned for errors and there were none. I then took it for a test drive then rescanned, and still nothing. The next day, the MIL was glowing. I did nothing engine side except replace the belt, plugs, and wires.

    When I saw the 0340 code, I backprobed the camshaft sensor with my oscilloscope (grew up working on cars, fix electronics for a living) and saw that I was getting a correct waveform and a peak to peak voltage of about 4.75V. 1/2 duty cycle puts it just below the 2.5V spec for the sensor at idle, so I'm assuming the sensor is fine.

    Since I don't have a breakout for the ECU cables, I'm trying to figure out a way to backprobe the crankshaft position sensor to verify that waveform, but its a pain to reach and have the engine still operable. I've only been able to access it by going into service mode, so my thought is of making a long probe that I can insert through the bottom of the car while it's up on ramps. Another option is I can take the crankshaft sensor from my project R53, but since it's not an easy swap, I'm trying to avoid it. Also, I'm getting tired of cannibalizing parts and funds. I want my 53 on the road as well!

    As far as the TCS light goes, that's also a mystery. Of the past six or so start-ups, it's come on about 50% of the time and of course, will not shut off using the manual control. Could latent air in the brake lines cause this? The lines were thoroughly bled, or so I think they were. The brakes feel fine.

    The car starts right up with no hesitation, idles smoothly, runs well as far as I can tell, but I can't get those codes to go away and as I mentioned, the TCS light comes on occasionally at start-up. It might be a little sluggish, but I honestly am not sure since I don't drive it that often and am used to my modified S. I'm also not convinced that that's just in my head since I know when these errors are thrown, the ECU shifts to a default map.

    To top it off, my OBDII scanner died shortly after clearing the codes to see if they returned...they (or something else) did and now I'm out a scanner so I have no idea. I might have to run by an AutoZone and have them read them for me.

    So, there you have it. Any suggestions? If the crankshaft position sensor is bad, what could have caused it to fail, and why now? If the issue lies in the timing, why? I don't see how the timing could have been affected by a simple belt / plug replacement. I'm at a loss. Please help!
     
  2. interzonearts

    interzonearts New Member

    Jul 2, 2015
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    Welcome to the forum, it seems you'll be great assess to it:)
     
  3. MCS02

    MCS02 Moderator
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    Jul 31, 2009
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    Welcome to MA! The you may have a bad wheel speed sensor or it is not plugged in all the way causing the the traction control light to be intermittent.
     
  4. rmagdaleno

    rmagdaleno New Member

    Mar 17, 2011
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    Thanks for the suggestion! Now that you mention it, I don't remember if I included that in my final assembly check-list. We have rain for the next few days, but I'll give that a look once the weather clears up. :fingerscrossed:
     
  5. Dave.0

    Dave.0 Helix & RMW Powered
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    May 4, 2009
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    After you check the wheel sensors swap out your plug wires for sh!ts and giggles. Minis like OEM coils, wires and NGK plugs.

    MSD coils and other aftermarket wires and stuff are known to cause strange problems that you would never think are related.
     
  6. rmagdaleno

    rmagdaleno New Member

    Mar 17, 2011
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    I did use NGK plugs, but unfortunately the original wires fell apart as I was removing them. I'll try swapping for the ones that I'd been using reliably on my R53. Thanks for all the suggestions guys!
     
  7. RallyMini370

    RallyMini370 Well-Known Member

    Mar 12, 2012
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    I'm having a misfire issue with my R50 and I fitted an Optima Red top a few weeks before the issues started. Any chance you can try another battery?
     
  8. MCS02

    MCS02 Moderator
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    Chris, saying you had issues is an understatement :lol:

    But now that I think about it have you tried your batt. I can't remember
     
  9. rmagdaleno

    rmagdaleno New Member

    Mar 17, 2011
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    Hey guys, update time.
    I checked the wheel speed sensors and everything was plugged in properly. I haven't tried another battery since the original dropped to below a working voltage.
    As luck would have it though, I took the car out for a spin last night and both the MIL and TCS light went out! Maybe it just needed some time with the new setup to stabilize.

    As far as the Optima battery, the only problem I encountered was the fit was a bit tight. The cables were a bit short but once I got rid of the plastic cover for the jump terminal, all was good.

    I'll let you guys know if anything changes, taking her out for a longer drive today.

    I hope nothing else pops up, I'm soooo close to finishing my 53! :fingerscrossed:
     
  10. interzonearts

    interzonearts New Member

    Jul 2, 2015
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    The driver side window in our Cooper wouldn't open for a couple of days after i replaced the alternator last summer.Then it started working out of the sudden. It's been working fine since.
     

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