stupid mom - engine rebuild cost

nickwalshh

right so - been on the family's mini one 1.4 for a while now. i have my own car now so recently my mums been driving it around for at least the last 10000 kilometers put on the engine and only barely putting a lick of oil in it - needless to say when i hear it today it was knocking in first and second gear... third up seemed to be fine though! Well it sounds bad and it looks like an engine rebuild asap before it siezes or at least taking it apart - anybody know of the general cost this could be? the car is still worth a bit and relatively low milage so it should be well worth the rebuild! thanks

Nissan doctor

nickwalshh wrote: »

right so - been on the family's mini one 1.4 for a while now. i have my own car now so recently my mums been driving it around for at least the last 10000 kilometers put on the engine and only barely putting a lick of oil in it - needless to say when i hear it today it was knocking in first and second gear... third up seemed to be fine though! Well it sounds bad and it looks like an engine rebuild asap before it siezes or at least taking it apart - anybody know of the general cost this could be? the car is still worth a bit and relatively low milage so it should be well worth the rebuild! thanks

Going by what you've said, I'd be very surprised if the knocking is coming from the big ends. The only way she could have caused big end failure is by letting the engine run very low on oil, and if that was the case, the chain/valve train would be rattling like an old tractor before the big ends would fail.

Is the oil at its max level now?

Owen

Have you topped it up with oil? And if so, what type of oil? The R56 engines are very fickle about what gets put in them, and things like valves can be noisy like a tractor if the wrong oil goes in. I've seen an oil change to the correct stuff sort out a lot of noise issues.

Failing that, Nissan Doctor's on the money with the cam chain tensioner. For all their little quirks, the MINIs engines are mostly reliable and tough. The only exception being the first 2 years of the R56 S engine and its cold start rattle.

nickwalshh

thanks for the reply - well yes she did let it run very low on oil - the dip stick literally didn't have oil on it when i dipped it today - i filled it up anyways and the noise (if it wasn't knocking) subsided a little but yeah still there in 1st and second - doesn't sound like a tractor now and actually after about 5 kilometers you could barely hear it when it was idling - don't know to be honest

nickwalshh

Owen wrote: »

Have you topped it up with oil? And if so, what type of oil? The R56 engines are very fickle about what gets put in them, and things like valves can be noisy like a tractor if the wrong oil goes in. I've seen an oil change to the correct stuff sort out a lot of noise issues.

Failing that, Nissan Doctor's on the money with the cam chain tensioner. For all their little quirks, the MINIs engines are mostly reliable and tough. The only exception being the first 2 years of the R56 S engine and its cold start rattle.

are they the same engine though i thought the 1.4 was different but im no expert. it's the recommended castrol 0 30w(I think) thats in it at the moment couldn't tell you what she had in it(or barely had in it) before i saw it today

Owen

The 1.4 was run for a limited time in the One and has subsequently been replaced with a few variants of the 1.6. It was essentially the same engine as the 1.6 Cooper, made in Hams Hall, but with a smaller displacement.

0w30 is the correct oil, keep it topped up properly as it will wreak havoc with the systems inside. The R56 engine has on demand oil pumping and it can all go wrong if that's trying to scavenge oil and keep things lubricated if there's little inside.

nickwalshh

thanks so im potentially not looking at a rebuild?

Nissan doctor

nickwalshh wrote: »

thanks so im potentially not looking at a rebuild?

Check the oil level, fill if needed and listen for noise....then see where you are.

Owen

Wouldn't think so, and wouldn't bother. Those engines can take an unmerciful pounding. Even if it were to croak a few months down the road, you'd buy an engine from the UK for next to nothing. MINI Matt is a specialist breaker who'll happily ship an engine here and stand over it.

If you register on http://miniclub.ie, you can ask a user there irlmin who's an Independent MINI Specialist in Cork to take a look at the car for you sometime. He's got Dealer level diagnostics, and has been working on all sorts of MINIs since the 60's. He's got a new MINI Clubman himself.

nickwalshh

thanks nissan doctor the noises im describing are all the same with the oil at the now correct level

Owen

Sorry, I'll take a few steps back, and agree with Nissan Doctor, if the noise is still apparent, it will need investigating - but I sincerely doubt it'll need a rebuild.

nickwalshh

thanks, suppose thats good news! cheers for the replies lads just thought id lash it up here before i bring it into a garage over the next few days

Nissan doctor

nickwalshh wrote: »

thanks, suppose thats good news! cheers for the replies lads just thought id lash it up here before i bring it into a garage over the next few days

The noise of a big end failure will be very distinct versus the valve train or chain noise so should easily diagnosed.