2nd Gen R56 Cooper S Most liked posts in thread: Death Rattle

The traditional 'death rattle' is the result of a bad tensioner/timing chain cartridge. The fix is a few bucks, but can easily be done. The most effective preventative measure that can be taken once you have your car fixed is to change the oil religiously. Pay no attention to the factory oil service intervals: change the oil at least every 5K miles. At least.

 

After reading this, i feel so left out. I want my name changed to:

"A Fool and His Money"

 

Welcome aboard. We are here to help.

There is a lot of great information on this forum for all types of topics.

Now to your post. I don't think that you are giving enough credit to MINI owners for knowing about our cars. In reality, you will find that many of us know a good deal about cars and MINIs specifically. That doesn't mean that it is all puppies and bikini babes around here. We know there are problems with these cars and they can be frustrating. But in the long run, when cared for they are great little cars.

Since we don't know each other I don't how much you already know about the issue you are experiencing so here goes:

• The engine in a Gen 2 MCS is called a N14 motor
• This motor is known to have issues with the timing chain, tensioner, or guide rails to fail. However, not all N14 motors have this failure happen.
• The tensioner did receive a update. There is now a longer tensioner which allows for the chain slack to be taken up and maintain proper tension
• There is a published TSB, Technical Service Bulletin. SIM110207. Attached. This TSB details what the process is to determine if the tension on the timing chain is within spec.
• If you are not the original owner and the tensioner has been replaced by MINI prior, there should be a record of that for your VIN.
• You will get more help from your dealer if you understand that you need them on your side. This is certainly emotional for a lot of owners, but it seems that owners that scream and yell don't get much love from their dealer. They are not the ultimate decider. They get paid for the repair, either by you or by MINI. It is in your best interest to get your dealer on your side working for you to get MINI to cover it or to discount the cost.

I am not sure if there is a right or wrong answer on this being a defect or not. Many manufacturers have found that after a product is released changes need to be made to it. In my opinion this is one of those. The longer tensioner allows for the slack to be kept in place up to a certain point. Short of replacing the motor with a different motor design what else could they do. This solution allows them to keep these motors on the street. The tensioner itself is a inexpensive part. Screws in like a bolt. They even have a tool to test the chain tension to see if it is in spec. A homeowner doesn't tear down their house because one of the windows leaks cold air and rain comes through it. They fix the window.

I have not ever seen any numbers on how many N14 motors have actually had this problem. Or how many categorized by under warranty vs. out of warranty. So what percentage is it? To be fair if this problem is a very small percentage of total N14 issues, then it has probably been handled reasonably.

I assume you are out of warranty at this point. How many miles are on your car? Is it still the original tensioner?

Good Luck.

 

Would someone please crash the site again? I have seen the future of this thread, and it ain't pretty!

 

I bit more info on your 2008 MINI would help.
Could be several things. Have you checked the oil lately?
Do you think MINI customer service would admit such a thing? No way.

Welcome to M/A

 

I guess you wish was granted.

 

There are a number of things that can cause a rattle. Some as simple as loose or rubbing heat shielding or as complex as the timing chain and followers. The 2nd gen cars do have issues with the timing chain. But it doesn't mean the car dead just that it needs to get fixed.

How many miles are on it?

 

If you actually said "Death Rattle" to Mini Customer service, I'm not surprised that they said that they haven't heard of it. Had you asked about worn timing chains or timing chain tensioners, they most likely would have had an answer for you.

Death Rattle, is internet forum slang for a noise from the timing chain, it is not a technical term.

 

Found this somewhat interesting..... As applied to used cars..... Hmmmmm "Death Rattle Guy"

The Lie Car Dealers Tell Every Single Day

Course this express warranty would have also expired in his case as well...

But it's good to know that this might help others out, to remember this, when buying a used car... Or heileocopter.....

 

Spammers I'd bet.

 

Yes... 11317510801 supersedes 11317510736 and 11311485401

RealOEM.com - Part Search

But be aware this thread pertains to the 2nd generation MINI and yours is a 1st generation MINI...

 

Cooper or Cooper S?

 

Welcome to Motoring Alliance !!

 

^^Seconded^^

Then I would check how much oil is in the car, low oil can and will cause clatter for obvious reasons.

We don't see many Coopers come into the shop needing timing cassette work, unless run extremely low on oil or ran the dealer recommended schedule.

I've only done 1 Cooper timing cassette, whereas I've done countless amounts of N14 chain kits, we have started cryogenically treating the chains and tensioners we include in the kits to try and overcome the chain stretch and failure rates of these cars.

If you wanted to take a cheap route you can try the "updated" tensioner, that is about 1/2" longer and is designed to take up the stretch that occurs over time, but it is only a band-aide.

Nick
Detroit Tuned

 

Moved to 2nd Gen Cooper S area.

The tensioner is a known issue. Don't know enough about it myself to offer informed info. Others will.