2nd Gen R56 Cooper S The 'Carbon' Problem...

Discussion in '2nd Generation: 2007+ R55 through R61' started by Redbeard, Jan 31, 2011.

  1. Rixter

    Rixter Well-Known Member

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    My mother, who's German, was not amused :D
     
  2. Crashton

    Crashton Club Coordinator

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    I'm sinking is was a hoot! :lol:
     
  3. Redbeard

    Redbeard JCW: because fast is fun!
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    Okay, work order is non-descript:

    F ADVISE ON REFLASH
    11 CK CUST STATES
    181 IPS 0.00 (N/C)
    PARTS: 0.00 LABOR: 0.00 OTHER: 0.00 TOTAL LINE F: 0.00
     
  4. Rixter

    Rixter Well-Known Member

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    Hmmm that wasn't too helpful. Thanks for trying :Thumbsup:
     
  5. Metalman

    Metalman Well-Known Member
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    I appreciate the effort Redbeard.
    When the mechanic said "I probably shouldn't tell you this....." They must not have wanted the info to get out of their hands. Normally some type of "identifier" shows up on the work order. I'm sure they have it logged on their computer that they re-flashed your ECU and what version of the flash was installed.

    Hmmmmm..... I wonder if all I need to say is.... "give me that 181 IPS re-flash". Followed by.... Would you like a box of chocolates?

    Then immediately I'll get this look..... To which I'll say... Never mind...

    [​IMG]
     
  6. Redbeard

    Redbeard JCW: because fast is fun!
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    LOL! It might work. :lol:

    I've got a track day this weekend and the service indicator says 4200 to next service. The last time that happened by the time I got home from the track day it said, SERVICE SOON. LOL. When I pop in next I will relay the questions you guys have and post up.
     
  7. Redbeard

    Redbeard JCW: because fast is fun!
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    OH! Here is the pic o the service page

    IMG_20110201_183606.jpg
     
  8. Redbeard

    Redbeard JCW: because fast is fun!
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    Well here ya go MINI is claiming the quality of the fuel again... Didn't they do that with the fuel pumps a year or two back?

    My favorite is this:
     

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  9. TheCheatOSX

    TheCheatOSX New Member

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    To be fair, SIM130107 is for the non-turbo N12 engine. But I agree, "Bad Gas" is a joke.
     
  10. Redbeard

    Redbeard JCW: because fast is fun!
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    True.

    BTW Thank you for posting the list! It's awsome. I know that was some serious work. It is appreciated! :Thumbsup:
     
  11. Minidave

    Minidave Well-Known Member
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    What the hell does "bad gas" have to do with carbon fouling of the intake valves and ports in a direct injection engine? The valves never see the supposed bad fuel, so how the hell can it have any effect?
     
  12. Metalman

    Metalman Well-Known Member
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    It's easier to point to something outside of their control as being the cause of the problem. The only other possible ingredient would be "Bad Air".
     
  13. Redbeard

    Redbeard JCW: because fast is fun!
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    The claim is the poor quality gas leaves a residue that adheres to the intake valves when they open during the "off" cycle.

    Apart from the bad gas crap that is what's happening. Its a side effect of direct injection. BMW, Audi, VW, and Ford are all seeing signs of the same effect in their DI engines.

    Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk
     
  14. YesIFit

    YesIFit New Member

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    FYI ... there are two people down here with similar problems. One woman's '07 MCS has been @ the dealership for 7 straight weeks b/c of a CEL they can't get to go away, and the other woman's Justa has been at the dealership 6 times (over 90 days total) since October of last year for CEL's.
     
  15. Redbeard

    Redbeard JCW: because fast is fun!
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    Good info. At the end of the day the only way to "fix" it is to pull the hea and physically scrub it clean and/or replace the parts (valves) damaged by the build-up.
     
  16. czar

    czar New Member

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    Or install a water/meth kit, and run it continuously, until your happy with a visual inspection, and then you can run your water/meth kit as normal, either from on boost demand or from fuel load demand.
     
  17. Jason Montague

    Jason Montague New Member
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    :cornut: The chocolates only work with Female techs. To Male techs you offer a case of beer.:lol::Thumbsup:

    Jason:popcorn:
     
  18. Person Moved On

    Person Moved On New Member
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    My 09 Clubman JCW is in for it's 30k service and I just talked to the service guy and on the "Recommended Action Plan" was an line item - PERFORM IN-RAIL FUEL INJECTION CLEANING for $161 - he had already marked it as declined in the plan so I called to see what this is about.

    He told me that MINI is now recommending that this be done on an annual basis to help with the carbon buildup problem. However he also said that it wasn't mandatory and that I could add a Techron Fuel System cleaner every 3-5K miles.

    Has anyone else heard this from their dealer?

    Since I have about 5-6K until my oil change I decided to wait and figure out what's best and maybe have it done then.

    Any ideas? I know this topic is the proverbial dead horse, but it's also doesn't seem to be going away. - Thanks
     
  19. Rixter

    Rixter Well-Known Member

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    I have always used the Techron concentrate after every oil change on all my vehicles. I also only use Chevron gas w/Techron. It's good stuff. It's debatable whether it helps for a direct injection engine, but it certainly isn't going to harm anything and it's relatively inexpensive preventative maintenance.
     
  20. Crashton

    Crashton Club Coordinator

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    The Techron will help keep the injectors clean along with the combustion chambers. It is not going to do a thing for the intake valves due to your MINI being direct injection.
     

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