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

Absorbing everything! Really appreciate it! I"ll be attempting this when I get back from work-related trip. Updates then.:fingerscrossed:

 

I agree. I've filter on order,too, just in case. It's a messy job I probably cant avoid. 1 question, why do you think the rail wasn't pressurized @ all after sitting before pump primed it? Wouldn't that point more to FPR than filter? I'm planning to do these by elimination. The 2 OEM FPR o-rings might have to be ordered from Germany. Have you guys had any experience recycling back the said old o-ring?
Thanks guys!

 

Learning from every post! I shall heed all your advices & do them 1 by 1. Wires, filter & FPR, if necessary. Hmm, would be great to have a fuel pressure gauge permanently attached on the dash. To Paul, Nathan, Sneed & Keith, inputs are valued. Thanks!

 

Hey guys, back w/ a lil update. New OEM plug wires in, smoothened idle further, not that it was rough. Hard start/pre3k hiccup symptoms still persist. Turned engine off upon hitting oprating temp on scangauage, it struggles to restart, as it has been doing lately even before wire change. Though engine sounds way smoother & more reactive.
Vote for filter next? Hoping this gets finally resolved. Thanks!

 

Update:
What happened to me yesterday might have just explained half my issues. The hesitation might be a solved mystery.
Took the MINI to work yesterday. Car started the usual w/ a few tries, drove fine w/ very faint hint of hesitation...must be a good day, me thinkin'. I usually run A/C to kick the highspeed fan on since my lo-speed resistor hasn't been resurrected yet.
Suddenly, I lost A/C cold air, hmmm, batt light on, another hmmm. Scangauge reads 11+v. Switched A/C off, batt light goes off w/ it, Scangauage reads 12+v instead of the usual norm of 13-14+v. Did it 3x more, same results. CRANK PULLEY. Gotta get myself home quick & weave thru city traffic, I thought. Got home w/ temp gauge @ usual midpoint but scangauge read 234F/112C, exact temp trigger for the high speed fan. Engine bay emitted a very very light haze w/ a rubbery smell. Confirmed w/ Keith my suspicion before digging into it. Glad I had a crank pulley puller ready. This is when forum-generated paranoia becomes a good thing.
Attached pic shows a totally separated damper. Miraculously, my newly installed OEM belt,stock idler/alternator/A/C pulleys & tensioner were all unscathed. I'm blessed. It somehow cushioned the blow of frustration on why this car suddenly decided it wants to get sick.:confused5:
I'm looking at the bright side always. I'll be doing all these repairs & maintenance at 1 time to get it back better, more enjoyable. These unplanned expenses are like Pacquiao blows! Painful, frustrating, takes the air out of you. Fortunately, I've patience to rope-a-dope w/ an old reliable RAV filling in as my daily.
Thanks to M/A & the kind members of this community for being my shot of anesthesia! I'll keep posted on the healing process!:wink:

 

Yeah, I've been bracing for this since I saw a friend's 05 w/ just 21k mi break. Fixed that w/out a proper puller & t'was hell. Learned from it. What damper do you guys have on?

 

Seems to be the most popular choice. How many miles on it, Nathan? I'd like to believe those should be a real "Lifetime Part". Prior to damper failure, I noticed some significant drop in mpg on the OBC. I presumed t'was due to a lot of stationary idling while observing the engine's behavior on varying rev ranges. I definitely was never running rich. Anyone observed the same?

 

Haha. Was never enticed to put on those solid ones. Cost-wise, they're tempting, but I plan to keep the car & maybe hand it over generations down.:wink:
Some good insights there, Keith.
Thanks all!

 

solid damper

I'd probably go for that!

 

Hi guys, sorry,it has been awhile. Work & travel cut the momentum. Here's a premature update- Finally put on the ATI damper an hour ago. Have yet to take it for a spin. 2 weeks back, replaced the fuel filter & the torn passenger side inner CV boot that I'd just wrapped w/ rolled, ziptied garbage bag to keep dirt & water off that joint. Amazingly, the bag held on well! As expected, the old filter was black, & the housing had some gunk in. Twas a struggle to unscrew the untouched 10yr old filter housing, still managed to finish in less than an hour. Oh & my battery lost all its juice with the long hibernation. It tested OK, & was recharged.
Took quite a number of cranks to get it started after sitting for almost a month. It felt fuel-starved. When it finally fired, felt some misfire. Turned off, checked all plug wires, then attempted to restart. Took about 3 tries again to get it fired, idle smooth! Checked the hesitation, less noticeable but still felt it. Got better as car warmed up though. I suspect the hard start issue is still there, will have to observe before digging further. For now, just glad to have all these maintenance, repairs out of the way & to have put it back on its feet. Pump seems to prime well, pressure yet to be checked. Have fuel rail pressure regulator, injector o-rings ready to go in if diagnosis would point there. I'll get back after I take it for spin & maybe a fresh tank of vPower.
Simply followed all the comprehensive DIY How-tos archived here in M/A. All very helpful! Appreciate all your help & inputs! What would I have done w/o your guidance? Thanks guys!