20 replies to this topic

[brivinci]

Your tip indicates that the mixture is about right. The black sootiness is oil being burned in the cylinders. Have you noticed any oil consumption (if you have oil leaks then its impossible to know) when you checked the level? Do you let the car idle a lot or drive VERY slow and at low RPMs? That could cause a bit of the soot build up.

 

More extreme cases could be oil getting past the valve seals and into the cylinder or worn rings. It doesnt look excessive though so nothing too major.

[ryomini]

Hi to all you Jap mpi / spi minis

and yep the mpi spi combination had me confused too

 

I am really a bike guy and I have never seen plugs that white in my life before

 

I always look for a dry light black rim and a tan ceramic core, just like the colour of tan shoe polish - it should be light and even

 

I promise you I have never seen a USED plug as white as that - talking to a garagist may be worth it as they see more cars then most of us ever will

 

my car was running super rich because of defective vacuum line connectors - now solved and after 35 minutes of dual carriageway driving I pulled my plugs and they are a dry black rim with a tan ceramic core - I am happy with this

my mini is fast, acclerates well, spins up to 4000rpm easily - though I wouldn't normally rev it hard it seems to pull better when I change before 3500

I think your plugs are too lean but that is from my personal experience others seem to think that they are ok

[bottledfish]

Hi brivinci,

I have noticed the oil goes down to just above minimum but then stays there for a while, I wouldn't say I have any excessive leaking of oil, but have placed newspaper underneath to make sure. My exhaust however does emit a very slight white smoke/vapour even when driving apparently. I don't often leave it idling but I do try and drive it at around 2000rpm as I was always told this was best for fuel consumption etc. perhaps not the case for a mini?
Thanks for the reply

[brivinci]

Well, every car is different so if you are basing that 2k RPM number as just a general rule, I'd rethink it. To be honest, I have no idea what the "best" RPM (if there really is such a thing) to achieve better fuel eco. There are so many variables to factor in in this. These motors are not like your typical engine that can lumber along at 2k all day. Being from the US, where the V8 has been so popular, running down the highway at 70mph and cranking over 1500 on the tach is not completely unheard of. It is however, unrealistic in a Mini. I have noticed that I get worse MPG's on highway runs when I running sensibly on country roads. 

 

On the exhaust, when you start it up, do you notice more smoke then when its running? If you put your hand in front of the tailpipe, will it get covered in soot/oil? It really is starting to sound like you have worn rings or valve seals.

[bottledfish]

There is more smoke when starting engine from cold, which i thought was quite normal as it seems a lot of cars do that. However there is a small amount of smoke when i am driving apparently. i have attached a short video showing the extent of the smoke that emits whilst driving (although the car was currently in idle)  exhaust.wmv   1.08MB   7 downloads . I placed my hand by the tailpipe, and it doesnt get covered in soot etc, but a small amount of wet soot did hit my hand. I think i had my valve seals replaced last year but will check. If it is rings or seals, how urgent is that to replace do you reckon, and easy? ish...

[bottledfish]

also i dont know if not having a catalytic converter currently would make any difference? but thought it would be worth mentioning