Need to replace Turbo and warranty won't cover it, need advice!
 

Hi all, let me start by saying that it is my fault for going -6k without an oil change. I really did not notice, this is my first Mini and I am used to being notified by a specific indicator, not to mention that I do a lot more driving now due to a change in position at work and I was racking up a lot more miles than I thought.

With that said, I got a check engine light (the one with the slash going through it) and power was reduced. Took it in for service and they told me that the oil was all slugged and it clogged up the turbo and that Mini didn't want to cover the repair under warranty because they said it was owner neglect and they quoted me a ridiculously high price to fix it.

Anyone have any advice? Any shops they'd recommend preferably in the North NJ area? Or any Mini mechanics that do work "on the side." Anyone know the estimated labor hours to replace the turbo?

What's weird is that before I took it in for service, aside from the light and the reduced power, the car wasn't making any noises or stalling. After I picked it up (they changed the oil) it is now very noisy and jerky/stalling when I slow down. I asked the mechanic at the Mini dealer why it was worse now than when I brought it in and he said that it was because of the new oil which makes no sense to me. The mechanic also said there's a small chance that it could clear up in a few days. Any thoughts on any of this?

with a 15K inteval you ran 21K on oil ?
I'm suprised you didn't cook the motor as well ...I'd be willing to bet that you were 2 quarts low minimum ...
That being said , you likely "coked" up the turbo. Since the oil was sludged up , it cooked inside the chambers due to the high heat and might have damaged the bearings/shafts

Have you tried running a quick search on Yelp in northern Jersey to find some decent shops? I'm guessing a decent shop could perform the job under 3 hours? Is the car still under warranty?

book time is 9.2 hours at dealer, (where iam at). most 'small' shops probably wont even touch this repair. if you do replace it get the feed and return lines for the turbo and new gaskets for the manifolds. there is a service indicator that appears yellow when nearing due, and red when past due, everytime you start your car, right on your tachometer fyi...