Good day everybody. Glad to join the group. Feel in love with Mini when I rented one in Germany many moons ago. Actually the exact same model down to the color as the one I own now. I have a black 2010 S N14. Purchased in Kansas City even though I live in Chicago(Amazing how difficult it is to find a manual). I joined because I have some mechanical as well as upgrade questions. Here is a list of what I have had done since I purchased it with 70,000 miles. It now has 77,000 miles. New tires Fixed drivers heated seat oil changes of course thermostat housing and thermostat oil cooler seal turbo oil line coolant flush brake fluid flush new intake manifold(old one was slightly melted so the car overheated at some point replaced almost all engine sensors(2 MAP, solenoid, crankshaft, and 2 oxygen) new valve cover new spark plugs high pressure fuel pump gasket Walnut blasted intake Nm air charge pipe And here are my issues that I'm trying to resolve. Slight vibration at idle and poor mileage(20-30mpg). I now have a P129E - Manifold Absolute Pressure Minimum Pressure Implausible code after installing the new MAP sensors. Tomorrow I will swap it with the old sensor to see if the new one is faulty. No other codes. OBD live data shows upstream oxygen sensor(O2S11) bounces between -.01 and .01 which I believe means super lean as it is supposed to be between .45 and .50. downstream sensor(O2B1S2) stays pretty much at .80. There is a oily foam under my oil cap which only goes away after long highway drives. It is not on the dipstick and the coolant level hasn't changed so not a coolant leak. I tried to measure crankcase pressure but only have a gauge in InHg which showed 2.5 and did not move from idle to full throttle. 2.5 InHg converts to 84mbar but the N14 is supposed to have 38mbar pressure. I have ordered a mbar manometer to confirm this. So I am thinking a vacuum leak but I cannot find it anywhere. Any advice or opinions?
Welcome to M\A. I am not a 2nd gen guy but several smart on guys here are and they will see your post shortly to offer some help.
Welcome to M/A! I'm a Gen 1 guy with 3 MINIs, so I cannot offer you much help as I am not familiar with the N14. However, we have a lot of guys/gals in M/A who ARE familiar with those engines and can provide the help you are seeking. We are GLAD you are here...just give the rest of "the pack" some time to assemble and they will hunt you down...LOL
How long have you been a PJ? I used to hang with some of the "Jolly Green Giant" guys when I was stationed out of NKP, Thailand. I wouldn't sweat the gunk under your oil cap. It's just moisture from condensation that hasten't burned off because you haven't had the engine at operating temps long enough. I traded my R56 for my F56 about 5 years ago, but I'm sure there are some other members that can help with the other problems.
Welcome to Motoring Alliance. I am not a master mechanic or even a real good shade tree mechanic but rough idling and poor mpg’s might be caused by carbon build up on your intake valves.
No dice there 00Mini. I recently had the intake side walnut blasted so it is squeaky clean. Just one tour vetsvette twenty years ago. Then onto firefighting in Washington DC and other things. Now unemployed in Chicago looking for something to do. Nothing out there quite as fun as the old days though. As far as the car goes I understand not getting the temps up high enough on short trips but the milky froth wasn't there the first months I had the car. Maybe it is this bloody cold Chicago winter causing it though.
First MOVE SOUTH!! Welcome to MA. Is there any Mods done to the car? As usual check all your connections, maybe you have a loose connection. On the lean condition. Make sure the PVC pipe that is on the passenger side that goes to the intake is attached well. I had my R58 blow that line off and cause an unsteady idea and some codes but the car ran fine. If that line has ben plugged by you or someone els to cut down on carbon unplug it it needs to be open. These engines benefit from an oil catch can. I know that's not much help but I am running late. If I think of more I will post later today. How about some pictures. Of the Mini that is!
Running late on a Saturday morning? Will post some pictures once this cold goes away and washing my car wont freeze the windows and gas cap shut. So the only upgrade on the car is an NM air charge pipe. The PCV pipe was broken a while back so I replaced it and it is fine now though it brings up something I forgot about. Lets see if I can explain this well enough. When I replaced the intake manifold there was a little white plastic piece inside that faced up and diverted the air coming from the PCV tube to the manifold. My new manifold did not have an opening big enough for me to put this piece in. I suppose I could have drilled the hole bigger but I just skipped it and put the plastic piece in storage just in case. So now the PCV pipe enters the manifold with a small hole and no diversion piece. I wonder if this could be my issue. As far as the catch can goes I have one for the turbo side(BSH) but am waiting for my manometer so I can check crankcase pressure with it on and without. I want confirmation on how it works since I can only find conflicting information regarding blocking the PVC port and pressure at idle.
Yes late on a Saturday! I asked for weekends off this month....so....I am working every weekend. @usafpj13 take a look at this thread https://www.motoringalliance.com/threads/pvc-n14.30857/ There is some good information posted by some of out Gen2 guys. For the record I am still learning the Gen2 Minis. My wife has a convertible R57 with the N18 engine and I have an R58 JCW with a N14 motor. But I have owned my Gen1 R53 for 14 years so I am still mostly a Gen1 guy. I am wondering if that part you left out is the check valve that should close under boost. The thread I linked to explains the PVC system fairly well.
@MCS02 Thanks for the link. I have read for hours and hours about the PCV and catch cans and still the same 50/50 result of blocking off the PCV is fine against blocking the PCV causes too much pressure in the crankcase. This is why I am doing my own test when my new manometer arrives next week. I don't believe that plastic piece is a check valve. I tried finding it on parts websites but no luck. It is a 90 degree elbow in the intake manifold near the throttle body right where the PCV tube enters. It ends up pointing straight up in the intake manifold against the flow of air. So I'm thinking it has to be there to use the flow by air to create a vacuum and suck the air from the crankcase. Since I don't have it in there now maybe too much air from the crankcase is getting sucked straight into the air intake. Maybe I will take a picture of it and upload it here. Edit: Actually I will just cap the PCV to see if that fixes anything since it will take this little white plastic piece out of the equation.
and now for some hard data. Compression test: Cylinder 1 - 160psi Cylinder 2 - 156psi Cylinder 3 - 162psi Cylinder 4 - 172psi - Oil on spark plug threads Crankcase pressue test: I believe spec is 38mbar but that is from online as I cannot find it in my Bentley manual. At idle 55-70mbar At idle with PCV plugged - -5 to +10mbar So the compression test looks good to me except the spark plug gasket on cylinder 4 is failing or failed. Could the leak on cylinder 4 cause the frothy oil and bad crankcase pressure? I am thinking about doing an oil pressure test or testing the fuel injectors but don't know if they would be useful.
Replace the plugs and tq them down and check them again in a week. It looks like #4 was not torqued correctly. Oh and #2’s rings are starting to fail, but not bad at all.
The plugs were just replaced by a mechanic I trust. I replaced the valve cover gaskets a few months back and that is when the frothy oil started so that's why I am thinking #4 is leaking air. What makes you think it is the torque? Any ideas about the crankcase pressure? Such a huge difference from spec, to my idle, to idle with the PCV plugged. Can any of these issues be due to the timing chain?
I don't think it would be a timing chain problem. Are you getting any rattling from the timing chain? I changed mine at about 56,000. The tensioner went bad, i could have just changed the tensioner but to be safe I replaced everything. By the way in my R58 the chain rattle sounded like a bad valve or a rod tapping. Perhaps the valve cover is bad. It could have a crack in it or the PVC valves could be pad.
The engine does have a rattle but it is so diificult to tell where it is coming from in the Mini as it always rattles from the lifters. I have only had the car for 7,000 miles so I cannot compare it to anything. I wish I knew someone else with an R56 so I could compare sounds. No dice with the valve cover as I just replaced that.
I used a screwdriver as a stethoscope, I am old school, aka old. The sound from the chain was loudest on the passenger side. Does the motor get quieter when it warms up? If it's the chain it will not get quiet. My wife's N18 sounds like a diesel till it warms up. The only time I have seen old do what you are describing is if the car is driven short distance and not getting hot enough to burn off the moisture. So you could be correct about it being the cold weather. stupid question, did you clear the road and it come back?
Just went out and started her up. Sounds like a diesel but when I put my ear to the plastic it sounds stronger in the middle of the valve cover than over the chain. The sounds does not disappear after the engine is warm. Maybe I will make a recoding tomorrow and post. I do not understand your question @MCS02
The chain was loudest when I put the screwdriver on the belt tensioner where I am pointing in the picture. but only by a little.