We bought a 2010 Mini S that had 250 miles on it from the dealer. The original buyer of the car had experienced a loose radiator shroud bolt that the fan knocked into the radiator, warping the block and requiring a new crate engine. Mini gave him a new car. We looked it over and decide to take the car with the new motor. Leaving the dealer after putting 250 miles on the new engine, we were one exit away and the engine suffered a sudden and catastrophic failure. A hole the size of my fist was in the top side of the block. It seems a wrist pin just 'walked' out of the connecting rod and piston and at 6,000 rpm's the engine self destructed. After much thought, we opted to leave it and traded for a 2011 Clubman and so far it is a wonderful car. Here is the one with the now third motor.
Just curious...that first engine was killed by the radiator getting punctured and then overheating? I don't see otherwise how a loose screw or radiator would end up warping a block. Also, that first owner must have driven the car a looooong way over-heated. I overheated my 2002 MCS more than once (via a variety of on-going cooling system problems since it was new) and never warped anything. It was still running strong (albeit after replacing water pumps, thermostats, fans, expansion tanks, etc.) at 130K miles when I traded it in for my current ride. Anyhow, interesting story. Enjoy your Clubman!
Let me get this straight... you were driving a new engine with 250 miles on it @ 6000 rpm? I'm not saying the wrist pin should have "walked out" I'm asking if you read the OM regarding new engine break-in procedure or are aware that the new parts need to burnish in before seeing high rpm/load?
Color me the same shade as you. If anyone drives a new engine that hard with so few miles on it, I would guess they will be getting to know the local MINI service advisors by their first names fairly quickly. Just my opinion...
Sadly, I'm going to have to say that the OP should run, not walk, as fast as possible away from that MINI dealer and their service dept in particular. If you want to keep that Clubman (particularly if you're inclined to doing things like running engines to the redline when they have 250 miles on them ), find somewhere else to service it. See, I think that the "loose radiator shroud" was probably a service-related mistake that resulted in a destroyed engine (aided by a driver who likely drove way too long with a check-engine light, coolant warning, and funky sounds coming from under the bonnet). Then that same service dept installed a replacement engine....and likely botched that job as well. Clearly I have no proof of any of this, but I've been around the MINI world for quite a while and know that there are quite a few MINI dealers/service depts that really shouldn't be allowed near a wrench. Sad but true. Hopefully the OP will find one of the good dealers/service depts and will motor on happily.
If the OP makes a habit of running new engines to 6,000 RPM, it may not matter where it's serviced but I agree with your POV on the two engine failures.
Engine failure reason? The service advisor told me to "drive it like you stole it". No lie. I am not one to beat on cars and the engine was not screaming when she let loose. Just very suddenly and w/o any warning at all. The dealer took a while to insure I knew all the controls and never mentioned any break in period when asked. Just that the Mini would intuitively pick up on my driving style. As regards the first motor, that's all they told me, she overheated and they needed to replace the car for the buyer and the motor to sell the car as used. My other cars are very high performance and never had any problems. My M5 is flawless.
This is a perfect reason to RUN away from that dealership like they have the plague... Stupidity is an affliction for which there is no known cure. I'd highly suggest reading the OM as it contains a lot of useful information.
Probably SHOULD have read the OM! We read the manual and it said to keep it under 4500 RPM's or 100 MPH up to 1,200 miles. Our new Clubman is going by the book. Thanks for the input. The dealer and service guys still told me to drive it hard and it would be a screamer. I did not know the scream would come from my wallet! I really do feel that the wrist pin failure was nothing but a fluke.
Isn't it a amazing that some people working in an authorized dealership would be so technically clueless as to tell a customer to abuse their new vehicle - which in fact according to the OM can void the warranty? I find this stuff incredulous and a disgrace.
Agreed!!!! I wonder how the customer would be treated when they came in at 20K miles with a failed clutch...Think it would be covered under "their" warranty???
interesting...just had a BMW service rep. tell me ''drive like you stole it...and we'll fix it". This was at my first oil change. i was thinking, so what happens when the 4yrs/40k runs out? guess i'll need to trade out before that happens...
Frankly, that is exactly why I would be somewhere between extremely dubious to terrified if I was seriously considering a CPO BMW turned in from its original lease, for my long-term ownership. Most likely, much of the internal (and invisible) damage wouldn't begin to rear its ugly head until after the warranty had expired.... and repaired at MY expense. I must say, however, that my dealer has always stressed the need for proper break-in intervals and treatment of a new car. No one there has ever told me to drive any of MY cars like I stole it.
Evern if BMW was paying for my car I would not abuse it. I have respect for all the hard work that went in to designing and building it. After it's properly broken in I will run it hard when it's warmed up and ready to go but I will never abuse any machinery no matter who paid for it. I know better and have respect for it.
But just fwiw, this is why CPO has an extended warranty that covers major systems. And besides, anyone buying a used car (CPO or not) should do due diligence and get a pre-purchase inspection, Carfax, etc. By taking the proper steps, I think it's possible to avoid abused cars. What I'd actually be more afraid of are cars (again, CPO or not) that were dealer demonstrators and/or loaners. Some of those end up CPO (but I also think that lots are NOT CPO'd and go to used car auctions). Carfax should show those up. I actually think that the "drive it like you stole it" advice is more common among service advisers than we'd like to admit. I got a version of that when I bought my MINI and went for my first test drive, and have read numerous threads on other boards where similar things were posted. There's also the relatively common attitude (again, posted on other boards) about beating the crap out of loaner cars "Just to see what they'll do." Sure, some of this is macho posturing, but it's pretty clear that people will do all sorts of evil to cars that aren't their own.
I think one can minimize the risk, but its always going to be there. Unless one knows the previous owner and his driving style, its a calculated guess. You're probably correct on your "drive it like you stole it" comments. I suspect its widespread. I simply wasn't brought up in a manner to abuse things. Growing up, we all had to work hard for what we owned, which no doubt gave us a different prospective on life. Your comment on loaner cars also applies to rentals. I've seen some really harsh treatment of rentals....really harsh!
