3 replies to this topic

[manilamini]

There is a high pitched noise coming from the fuel tank of my Japan spec SPI. At first, I thought it was the fuel pump giving up but a friend who has worked on a fair bit of Minis thinks it's some kind of valve on the fuel return line. Apart from the noise, the car runs fine. Any ideas what it is.

[minicooper1.3i]

Is it a new noise, or is the car new to you? I've owned / driven several different MPi's and the fuel pumps on each sound different when the key is turned to ignition. You can always hear the pumprunnig until other noises exceed it. An early one (P reg) of mine is a lot noisier than an R reg one. As far as I'm aware, there is no non-return valve in the fuel circuit as it is a closed circuit. The pump governs the direction of flow and is constantly running, returning unused fuel to the tank.

If it's a new noise and is getting worse, then you're pump may be on the way out. I gotta say though that I've never known one to fail and one of mine is approacing 100k now.

If it's an original noise that hasn't changed, then I'd say the old proverb fits.......'If it ain't broke, don't fix it'...lol

[manilamini]

The car is new to me as I came from a 998 Carb model that I recently sold to get the 1.3 Injection Mini. It actually sounds like a whistling noise that comes and goes. Sometimes it's there then goes away and comes back again. I'm not really sure if the valve my friend told me was a return valve but I checked the Mini parts catalog and it is described as a fuell cutooff valve on top of the tank beside the pump. I tried cleaning by forcing compressed air into the fuel cut-off one way valve? that my friend suggested and the noise did go away for a while but went back after a long drive. It could be that. I wonder if that valve failing will lead to me being stuck at the side of the road somewhere.

[Sprocket]

Its just the way they are