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R56 DME Failure Question Jump to Latest Follow

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ls12go ꞏ Registered
L Joined Jan 18, 2014 ꞏ 4 Posts

Discussion Starter ꞏ #1 ꞏ Jan 18, 2014

First time post and new to the Mini 2 forum but grateful that I can ask the "EXPERTS".

I have an 07 Hardtop S with 70K located in Oh.

2011 had the timing chain cold weather mod done.

Four weeks ago at 20 deg F, I started the car in my garage, warmed up for a min then drove three blocks for fuel ﴾premium
always﴿. It started but would not go above 1K or it would act like it was misfiring and then stop with a half full yellow check
engine light.

Towed it to mini for the High Pressure Fuel Pump recall but once installed it did not fix the issue. Mini then:
* Cleaned the fuel rail and pressure was correct.
* Removed intake to check for carbon ‐ little found.
* Tested Mass Air Flow ‐ checked out.
Assembled intake and the mini started right up and ran fine. I gave the tech permission to drive it home and cold start in the
am ﴾20 deg﴿. Started fine and they ran a diagnostic check which came back clean.

Fast forward after two weeks of daily driving with no issues...yep it failed again with the same symptoms. Towed it to a local
BMW mechanic who pretty much retraced the steps of the mini mechanic. He now believes that the DME is bad.

Sorry for the novel just to get to this question but I always thought that when a DME went south, it stayed south and did not
heal itself. I found Go DME in Texas that will run a diagnostic DME scan for $75 but I question if this should be my next move.
BTW, Mini wants $1425 for a new one and emphasized that there is no refund or return.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

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Tabintab ꞏ Registered
T Joined Oct 3, 2011 ꞏ 185 Posts
#2 ꞏ Jan 22, 2014

How much has this cost you so far?

Tab

ls12go said: 
First time post and new to the Mini 2 forum but grateful that I can ask the "EXPERTS".

I have an 07 Hardtop S with 70K located in Oh.

2011 had the timing chain cold weather mod done.

Four weeks ago at 20 deg F, I started the car in my garage, warmed up for a min then drove three blocks for fuel ﴾premium always﴿. It
started but would not go above 1K or it would act like it was misfiring and then stop with a half full yellow check engine light.
Click to expand...

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alexcannas ꞏ Registered
A Joined Nov 12, 2010 ꞏ 80 Posts

#3 ꞏ Jan 27, 2014

I think that the DME is pretty solid thing... To go bad, it usually takes water to foul and rust the connections. If it is the DME,
Bosch actually has a repair centre in Germany where they can professionally repair DMEs with hardware faults. I don't know
about the costs, but it should be cheaper than getting a new one, otherwise it would make no sense to offer the service...

However, you should try to get the error codes stored in the units when the problem happens. Those can be really helpful to
troubleshoot...

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ls12go ꞏ Registered
L Joined Jan 18, 2014 ꞏ 4 Posts

Discussion Starter ꞏ #4 ꞏ Feb 5, 2014

I found GoECU in TX that will test the DME and rebuild it for $500. Unfortunately they said that the processor in mine was bad
and could not be fixed. Purchased a new one from Mini ﴾$1513 ouch﴿ and then programed it to the car. Problem has now
changed to no starting at all ﴾motor turns over only﴿. Checked and found no spark, fuel pressure or for that matter no signal
﴾trigger﴿ going to the ejectors.
Error codes are now 2BD2 ‐> Internal driver inside DME, 2B4A & 2B4E Throttle sensor which I was told is the high/low faults
and even if it was disconnected the car should start and idle around 1800 RPM.
I called six Mini dealers around the US today and spoke to a tech that suggested swapping out the new with the old DME to
see if it at least starts. If it does then the new one needs reprogrammed. If not... I'm going up to the fourth floor ledge..

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AMAUTOS7 ꞏ Registered
Joined Sep 20, 2009 ꞏ 337 Posts

#5 ꞏ Feb 6, 2014

I had a fault DME Unit from day one

The symptons were a metallic clicking noise under throttle which results in complete power loss for 1 second then power came
back on

When you start it up does it stall on its own and fail to start up properly

Like this???

Video unavailable
This video is unavailable

If so its a broken thermostat its a common problem I hope my advice helps

BT11 WRK as seen on National Geographic Channel & Modern MINI Magazine

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ls12go ꞏ Registered
L Joined Jan 18, 2014 ꞏ 4 Posts

Discussion Starter ꞏ #6 ꞏ Feb 7, 2014 (Edited)

Yes, it was very similar to your video except after the third time it stopped running, it would never restart unless you waited
about an hour to restart. However, the thermostat got my interest because once Mini mysteriously had it running the
temperature dropped into single digits one night and when I went out to start the car it started right up ﴾no hesitation or
cutting out﴿ and after one minute, I shut it off and noticed the cooling fan would run for 10 min. The following day I noticed
that the heat would drop down to cold air at a stop light. The coolant level was fine and the next day it warmed up to 30+
outside and I never gave it any more thought.
Today it has been in the shop for seven weeks and unless something is found by next Wed I'm going to flatbed it up to the
dealer to where they can at least contact Mini engineering.
Thanks for your reply.
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AMAUTOS7 ꞏ Registered
Joined Sep 20, 2009 ꞏ 337 Posts

#7 ꞏ Feb 9, 2014

This occurred intermediately on my JCW

It would fine one day and not the next

BT11 WRK as seen on National Geographic Channel & Modern MINI Magazine

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ls12go ꞏ Registered
L Joined Jan 18, 2014 ꞏ 4 Posts

Discussion Starter ꞏ #8 ꞏ Feb 26, 2014

Well after nine weeks and $3,200 later, a DME wire was discovered shorted to the intake. It appears that after seven years of
vibration the shielding around the wiring harness and the wire's jacket wore thin and shorted to ground. Glad to finally have it
back and running. Classic Mini in Cleveland were great to work with and I would highly recommend.
The End...

mycooper1

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mycooper1 ꞏ r56 08 Cooper S

M Joined May 13, 2014 ꞏ 1 Posts

#9 ꞏ May 13, 2014

No start issue

Hi there,

My mini has experienced very similar issues in the same area. The other day I went to fire it up and it just turned and turned‐ no
start. Pulled a plug‐no spark. So after reading this forum I decided to ship it up to the Willoughby Hills location for service.
They've replaced fuel pump, coils and plugs with no luck. Called them yesterday to give the go ahead for reprogramming
software. I'm curious on more info where this short occurred behind the manifold. As I'm over guessing on the final
bill/timeframe. I too had the infamous timingchain overhaul @55k. My mini has approx 77k on it now.

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Sinclair ꞏ Registered
Joined Jul 10, 2022 ꞏ 2 Posts

#10 ꞏ Jul 10, 2022

ls12go said: 
 Well after nine weeks and $3,200 later, a DME wire was discovered shorted to the intake. It appears that after seven years of vibration the
shielding around the wiring harness and the wire's jacket wore thin and shorted to ground. Glad to finally have it back and running. Classic
Mini in Cleveland were great to work with and I would highly recommend. The End...

I know this is probably a long shot but, do you recall which wire it was? My mini r56 2012 is currently having the p2b4e fault
code and it just won't clear. I've only swapped out the the pedal sensor with a used one as a test. Also had fault codes p2b4a,
p2b4b and p2b4c but, those were able to clear.

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mike1967 ꞏ Registered
M Joined Apr 8, 2017 ꞏ 13,364 Posts

#11 ꞏ Jul 10, 2022

Sinclair said: 
I know this is probably a long shot but, do you recall which wire it was? My mini r56 2012 is currently having the p2b4e fault code and it just
won't clear. I've only swapped out the the pedal sensor with a used one as a test. Also had fault codes p2b4a, p2b4b and p2b4c but, those
were able to clear.

i see many such problems where wiring harness or a component has spiked the ecu, dont take much, even connecting a battery
with the ignition key in the slot can do it, AA and RAC state you should switch the head lights on when jump starting a car as
this guides any electrical surges to a high amps circuit and lowers the risk of destroying the lower voltages within a ecu, as
chips runs on micro voltages and can bus systems,
this all said when i get a ecu damaged car I always change the wiring harness and the component that keeps flagging the code
in first place,, i got a cooper s in at mo and to say its n=been a problem child is understate, this one the vanos solonoid failed
shorted out and because the ecu's are earth switched it nailed a few circuits,, just be careful that not fixing the outcome with
out fixing the cause,, ie harness or component

IF ANYONE NEEDS ENGINE REFRESH REBUILDS FEEL FREE TO ASK I WILL PRIVATE MESSAGE YOU SEE WHAT I CAN DO TO
HELP',,, I DO A FIXED PRICE FOR HEAD OFF PISTONS RE RING BETTER RINGS NEW TIMING CHAIN KIT VALVE STEM SEALS ETC,,

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Sinclair ꞏ Registered
Joined Jul 10, 2022 ꞏ 2 Posts

#12 ꞏ Jul 10, 2022

mike1967 said: 
i see many such problems where wiring harness or a component has spiked the ecu, dont take much, even connecting a battery with the
ignition key in the slot can do it, AA and RAC state you should switch the head lights on when jump starting a car as this guides any
electrical surges to a high amps circuit and lowers the risk of destroying the lower voltages within a ecu, as chips runs on micro voltages
and can bus systems,
this all said when i get a ecu damaged car I always change the wiring harness and the component that keeps flagging the code in first
place,, i got a cooper s in at mo and to say its n=been a problem child is understate, this one the vanos solonoid failed shorted out and
because the ecu's are earth switched it nailed a few circuits,, just be careful that not fixing the outcome with out fixing the cause,, ie harness
or component Click to expand...

Very insightful information I had no idea about!

The other issue I have is there aren't any reputable mechanics where I live on island that I can trust will do a good job or know
what they're doing.

The dealership, that also sells KIA, quoted over 3k for a new ECU ﴾DME﴿ I think for MINI's.
This is the same dealership that quoted over 2k to replace 2 rear struts after they had left the vehicle jacked up on the lift for a
few days ﴾tires hanging﴿ when sent in for a service.
Went to an experienced indi shop and got the struts done for way less and they used original parts.
The indi shop unfortunately does not do much electrical work to find the root issue of the code. They do however know the
pedal sensor is what is causing the problem and explained it could be the sensor itself or the wiring heading to the sensor.

I borrowed and OBDII from a friend and used the free version of the "infocar" to read the same codes.

With the key in the slot but ignition off ﴾push start﴿ I was able to clear the codes and when I started the vehicle and rescanned,
no codes. AWESOME!

I was excited and felt proud! Lol.

Then, I tapped the gas pedal to see what would happen and boom, half yellow check engine light. Scanned the car with the
app and the same code came back p2b4e
Not sure if this hints a y thing to you.

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mike1967 ꞏ Registered
M Joined Apr 8, 2017 ꞏ 13,364 Posts

#13 ꞏ Jul 10, 2022

leaving a car on a two post ramp with wheels dangling is fine wont hurt nothing i do it all the time at work, the shocks mimic
the travel of the springs so wont get damaged anyone telling you different is just helping them selves to your money in my
book,,
as for your code its throttle pedal fault code, the throttle body in on bottom of inlet manifold and they do go faulty, also the
wiring harness where plugs in to t can get wet over time corrode cause a high resistance or even a short ,, the end of this is ecu
and if throttle body shorted could very well damage it, as it runs on a 5volt rail refrence voltage and also its a earth return
circuit so they cut they control the earth circuit to control it,, before the ecu is the throttle pedal and also can go faulty or if car
ever had water leak inside could also be possible, below is screnn shot of ecu pin outs and what you should see at the pins
from ecu and plugs,
IF ANYONE NEEDS ENGINE REFRESH REBUILDS FEEL FREE TO ASK I WILL PRIVATE MESSAGE YOU SEE WHAT I CAN DO TO
HELP',,, I DO A FIXED PRICE FOR HEAD OFF PISTONS RE RING BETTER RINGS NEW TIMING CHAIN KIT VALVE STEM SEALS ETC,,

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