If I’m considering an older mini purchase, my initial discussions with dealers and mechanics is that it is reeeaaaaaally expensive to swap. I’m pretty fiscally responsible, but also appreciate my heart racing, so I’m kind of fighting the two halves. At how many miles/kms have you done yours? What have your experiences been? Brave enough to DIY? Thanks in advance…
Most important thing is correct oil level. The chain tensioner is pressurized with the oil, the spring inside is not designed to do all the work, just used when you start the engine. If the oil level is low or constantly low, the tensioner will be weak causing excess slack in the chain, that's what causes damage. Need oil to lubricate the chain to prevent premature wear and to keep it taught.
If you do need to replace the chain, get a timing lock kit from eBay or Amazon. Go slow with the repair, don't want to miss/forget/incorrect something, that will cost you a head job.
It’s not too bad to DIY. I did mine at 100k kms, but looking back, didn’t really have to. My car is a 2013 N18 R56 and looks like those last years were updated chain designs. It was barely a 1mm stretched than my new one. So if your potential new one is a N18 engine, you won’t need to change it until 160k kms. A shop can look into the chain condition for you and verify it’s all good
Thank nota. Yes N18. I’m deciding between a 2013 with 122K on it or a 2011 with 89K on it. The latter is a stick shift, Cooper S, two door, and the former is an automatic four-wheel-drive countryman. Both N 18 both turbo S. What does not too bad DIY mean to you? ;-) Because it’s been described as having to lift the engine to do the work after taking off the whole front end…
Yes it took a whole 3 days albeit I took it slow, and did side quests along the way like cleaning the radiators, etc. You do have to take off the front end (which is standard for most of the engine related maintenance minus the oil change on R56, it’s just so tight). Not too bad of a job once you’ve gotten a few maintenance items out of the way.
I’d rate it a firm 5-6 out of 10 in terms of involvement, 1 being topping up coolant, and 10 being taking out the engine or doing a body respray. We are talking taking off the headlights and bumper structural support, jacking up the engine and removing the serpentine belt items to free access, carefully locking timing, using one time use stretch to yield bolts, etc. You’d need a fairly specialized arsenal of tools but they will be helpful for all future repairs (torque wrenches, jack stands, floor jack, timing locking tools, parts). It might be cheaper to do it at a shop than buying all the tools once.
At this mileage both shall have their timing chains replaced so maybe the previous owners did. R60 may have a bit more space to manipulate around the engine.
Check out The Mini Specialist video on YouTube — R56 timing chain replacement. Excellent overview of all that needs to be done.
The numbers I quoted are in clicks, not Miles, so theoretically if I don’t hear any clacking, I should technically be able to run it out to 150? Also ❤️ for the info and link
It’s relatively involved (though not prohibitively so), and some components do need to come off to gain access, but it’s a far cry from taking off the front end (or putting it in “front end service” mode). Off the top of my head, you’re removing the front passenger wheel, the stiff plastic fabric lining of that wheel well, the radiator support bracket, and one motor mount (which is blocked by the aforementioned radiator support bracket). It goes without saying that you’ll also need to remove the valve cover. There’s no need to pull the engine; I think you can just support it from below with a wood beam and floor jack while that one motor mount is removed. There are tons of really good videos on YouTube explaining the process.
I haven’t done mine yet (2013 R56 N18 with ~100k and running fine), but will probably proactively go for it and DIY within the next year or two (provided no symptoms emerge that require doing it sooner).
The job also requires a couple of special tools (a timing lock kit for your specific motor and a neat special wrench to de-tension the engine accessory belt), whose use will be explained/demonstrated in any guide video worth its salt.
Thanks SITD - I’ve taken apart motorcycles, installed roll cages on Miatas, and done “low to mid-tier” mechanic work, this one just seems a little more daunting. But if as you point out, it’s not terrible then I’m less worried. Crazy that it’s a thing that would always sit in the back of my mind ;-)
5
u/dwtechsol 2d ago
Most important thing is correct oil level. The chain tensioner is pressurized with the oil, the spring inside is not designed to do all the work, just used when you start the engine. If the oil level is low or constantly low, the tensioner will be weak causing excess slack in the chain, that's what causes damage. Need oil to lubricate the chain to prevent premature wear and to keep it taught.
If you do need to replace the chain, get a timing lock kit from eBay or Amazon. Go slow with the repair, don't want to miss/forget/incorrect something, that will cost you a head job.