1st Gen R53 Cooper S Most liked posts in thread: Morning Hard Starts & Now, 1-3k RPM Hesitation/Yoyo/Hiccup

UPDATE

Hey guys, my Walbro kit arrived today. Figured to finally have some light at the end of this very long tunnel.:wink:
Got everything ready for pump extraction & Walbro swapping. After getting the pump assembly out? Lo & behold! A TORN FLEXI TUBE on the outlet of pump. Uh oh, no replacement for this part w/ the kit. Scavenged my pile of junk in the garage & found an a yard long Gates fuel line, test fitted, & voila, just the right amount of tight + clamps.
Put the assembly right back into the fuel tank w/o swapping the Walbro yet. Cranked & it STAAAAAAARTED right up. I'm sure my fuel pressure now is way above 22psi. Idle was smooth, stepped on the pedal to look for my YOYO. Gladly, I couldn't find it. WOW, this one's for the X-Files. Anyone out there ever had their in-tank flexi tube turn brittle & break? Tank of gas was generally clean after 10 long years. Pump float arm a bit corroded but still works!
Since I had the adrenaline & momentum going, finished up my long overdue 1st stage fan resistor delete & jumped it w/ a long 12ga looped wire ziptied to the fan harness. Hid it on that bumper cavity under the LH headlamp. Tested the start/shut trigger temps. They were right on spec. Switched the A/C on, !st stage on HI came.
I just had no PS fan coming on at 1st stage since I have an 02 that wasn't rewired. Awhile back, I got tired of a randomly recurring sticking relay that kept my 2nd stage on when engine off. Had to line a relayed toggle kill switch for this & it worked perfectly.
For the PS fan, jumped a line to the + wire on that lil fan from my 2nd stage relay kill switch. Now, I can turn the fan on anytime before I'd get the 2nd stage w/c I now doubt will ever be called.
Why the doubt? Coz the resistor delete got me HI when Low is called. Engine is like 3.5F cooler, A/C cooler. The only downside to this mod is if your allergic to the loud fan noise.
Exhaled a huge sigh after all these today. I lost a yoyo, got a new Walbro spare pump I hopefully won't have any use for but gained a ton of new knowledge AND, found my old toy back. Can't curse nor complain.just THANKFUL!!!!What an adventure!
Thanks all for checkin' in. You guys have been my only refuge thru all this! M/A rocks!

 

Very possible cause for float arm corrosion as ethanol is hygroscopic. Well, it has been a decade old. I'm now strictly on vPower nitro+. Took it for a spin now. Just wow! Awesome response. I've forgotten how good it was. Just so relieved this episode finally concluded.

 

Update

Knowing the Gates fuel line that replaced the torn OEM pump tube was just an SAE 30r7, I didn't want to wait too long to replace it w/ hopefully a lifetime fix. Devised a metal tube coupled w/ SAE 30r10 end tubes to replace the 2 day old fix. True enough, lucky to have dug in the tank again. The 2day old tube submerged in petrol showed rapid deterioration. Pic would show bloating, permeation & it's now a soft tube. Imagine if that had stayed a few days longer.
Hope this will guide those who might have same problem.

 

Haha. How many are those they say? CVT, Fuel filter,PS, S/C, Tranny/charger/PS fluids,& so on. BMW made sure MINI remains truly British.:lol:

 

That should be expected as you've emptied the rails.
A friend called late last week seeking answers on exactly same symptoms as I had. His is an early 03R53. Told him my journey. He cut diagnostic corners & went straight digging into the in-tank pump hose. Oddly, same exact problem...A BRITTLED LEAKY HOSE. A swap cured the start & hesitation/misfire problems.
For those looking into this,though that hose comes w/ the VDO pump assembly, it can be swapped separately. Just make sure it's rated to be submersible. Gates 30R10 or equivalent should be good.
Guess our cars are starting to see new problems w/ age. That might only be the 2nd documented case. Hope ours will turn out to be random rather than some new found fault.

 

I always listen & let pump cycle 1st in all my cars before cranking. Those are the said symptoms even if its primed. Pump seems to be working fine, otherwise, I presume I'd never get it to start. Rail might just be empty after sitting awhile. Car is in pristine shape @ 45k mi. Never tracked, just enjoyed, religiously maintained & cared for.
Perhaps you might have a pic of that vac line, I'd really appreciate it, Paul. Intercooler should be off to access, right? Would that line cause both hard starts & yoyo?
Tip my hat to ya for how you've maintained Blimey! Been following since way back.
Thanks!

 

Thanks mucho, Nathan, you just beat me to checkin RealOEM. Anything I should watch out for in taking the intercooler off?

 

Would definitely be on that.:fingerscrossed: Keep you guys posted on hopefully positive results. Again, thanks!

 

Thanks for the great ideas, Paul. Sweaty palms just makes wrenching 10x harder, messier & longer. Just checking the bpv w/ zip tie took quite awhile. Haha. Will try tackling this later.

 

Update:
FPR Vac line 13 was in place. Car has been sitting, so decided to check if there is any pressure at all in the rail by pressing the schrader valve. Nothing, no pressure left. Hmm, checked the pump by priming it...pressed the valve again... PRESSURE. Put the IC back on & restarted the car...5 attempts before it fired up. Same old. Good to have eliminated 1 suspect.
So, FPR replacement next, guys? Couldn't find any how-tos w/ pics. Keith, I think had 1 way back, but pics have expired, if I recall right. Anyone? Thanks,guys!

 

FPR vac line 13 looks good, even like new, pliable w/o visible cracks. I"ll look closer. Off to ordering FPR w/ its 2 o-rings & injector o-rings then. How can line be separated from FPR bell housing? Just pull it off?
Appreciate the tips, Paul!