1st Gen R53 Cooper S Most liked posts in thread: R53 Fuel Filter Housing Pressure Regulator Failure? 2-3k Hesitation & Hard Start

Was really tempted, Dave. I looked at Colin's....but that pump I have is just 5k mi old & still works fine.....at least, it seems to.
So no one here has seen the failure I'm suspecting?
Is the DW direct fit & DIYable?
Thanks, Dave!

 

Yup, checked that vac line immediately after removing the IC. Good. That's pretty new together w/ the rail fuel pressure regulator. Do you have a pic of the micro filter? Where is that located? Thanks, Zip.

The stock pump died on me at around 50k mi.

Thanks, Dave. A friend has a new spare pump. I can try to swap that in 1st.


So, no one has ever heard or seen fuel filter housing pressure regulator failure? I suspected that coz of both the ticking upon priming & the slight improvement upon swapping an old, lower rated & probably faulty R50 one.....How much better? It can restart w/o foot on the pedal after the car has been turned off. The stock 1? Restarts are always the same struggle & puffing as the 1st try. I went ahead & ordered the filter housing assembly from ECS. Let's see & hope this gets sorted. Another 1 for the archives.

Any more ideas, guys? Does a bad gas cap give the same symptoms? Thanks!!!!

Seems like this grumpy but so loved R53 is living up to its name, GP......for, guess what.....Guinea Pig. Haha.

 

Thanks again, Zip. Good to know about the cap. Was thinking it might....like if the filter housing gasket weren't properly seated, the car won't start....

 

My Nippons of way more miles clocked have never seen issues the R53 has had.....Wished these were more reliable....The things you do for love....hahaha.

 

So, the old dried up R50 filter side fuel pressure regulator has now been inside the tank undisturbed for a week. That old used rusty part has been sitting in storage for more than a decade....haha.
Had to prime a few times, tap the pedal to get it started. Warmed it up, turned it off, restarted without priming but easier with.
Left the car for about an hour, it started w/ priming in 1 take. The R50 part seems to work better now that it has been immersed, fuel lubed & exercised.....Looking bright it might be the faulty part. Still observing & allowing faith to go to work here.

 

That part isn't available separate from the filter housing assembly, not the pump. Just trying to pinpoint where the symptoms are coming from... to help those who might see the same troubles from our aging lil cars.
No one wants to blindly just throw parts in & keep hoping they'd hit the nail.

 

I've yet to tackle timing chain cover gasket leak. Tedious job for such a minor thing. This wasn't in the list of common leaks for gen1s. It's not really bad. Just a drop per day or 2.

 

Update:
Drove GPig yesterday & it stalled on me 5 times. Had to be pushed aside. Had to proceed with the surgery as parts arrived.
Removed my old pump....
Swapped my buddy's spare 06/2016 production date VDO pump in....

New left, old right.
Car still won't start. NOT THE PUMP!!!!!
So, I placed the old pump back in.

Removed the clicking Filter Assembly, pic'd on the right, w/ a new OE 1....on the left....

Boom!!!! Car instantly started. Puffed a bit & had a bit of misfire & P0300. Cleared & restarted fine. No more clicking from the filter assembly. Took it for a spin, car pulls w/o hesitation. Old guy is back!!!!
This 4.55bar Fuel Pressure Regulator that you can't buy separately was the culprit....


One for the archives. Hope this would help those aging gen1s hunt down fuel distribution issues.
A blessed weekend, all.

 

Thanks, @00Mini sir!

 

Updated 1st post for everyone.☺

 

Haha, thanks, @Metalman. Our gen1s are getting old. New undocumented ailments are popping up. I hope this is the last of the undiscovered ones.