2005 MINI COOPER Complaints

AIR BAG INDICATOR CAME ON, AND THE "PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF" INDICATOR CAME ON SIMULTANEOUSLY. CALLED MINI COOPER OF PENSACOLA, FL AND THEY SAID THE CAR WAS NOT ELIGIBLE FOR REPAIR. THEY SAID THE BAG WOULD DEPLOY IF THEIR WAS AN ACCIDENT AT FULL FORCE. I BOUGHT THE CAR FOR MY GRAND DAUGHTER AND FEEL THE AIR BAGS SHOULD BE ACTIVE AND OPERABLE FOR THE LIFE OF THE VEHICLE. THERE ARE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ON THE INTERNET ABOUT THIS ISSUE. I FEEL BMW IS NEGLIGENT IN NOT RECALLING THESE VEHICLES AND CORRECTING A MAJOR FLAW, AND INHERENT SAFETY ISSUE. *TR

MY COOLING FAN BURNED OUT CAUSING THE POWER STEERING TO FAIL. I FOUND OUT THAT THIS WAS A KNOWN PROBLEM IN MY MODEL YEAR AND THAT THE WARRANTY ON THAT PART HAD BEEN EXTENDED. HOWEVER, MINI CLAIMS THAT THEY STARTED PUTTING NEW PUMPS IN FEB OF 2005. MY CAR WAS MADE IN MAR OF 2005 AND THUS THEY WILL NOT COVER IT. I WENT THE EXTRA STEP AND HAD THE DEALER DO A DIAGNOSTIC WHICH FOUND THAT MY CAR HAS THE SAME PART WITH THE SAME PROBLEM AS DESCRIBED IN THE WARRANTY EXTENSION. STILL MINI WILL NOT COVER IT. ONE OF THE REPS TRIED TO COVER IT UP BY TELLING ME THAT THERE IS CONFUSION ON THE PART NUMBER MATCHING BECAUSE THEY USED THE SAME PART NUMBER WHEN THEY CHANGED THE OEM PART. THAT DOES NOT COMPUTE BECAUSE IF THAT WERE TRUE, THERE WOULD BE NO WAY TO ACCURATELY DISTINGUISH THE GOOD PARTS FROM THE BAD ONES. THERE 222 OTHER STEERING COMPLAINTS AT NTSB SO I'M NOT ONLY ONE. I'M CALLING A LAWYER BECAUSE THIS IS RIDICULOUS. HOW CAN MINI LET CARS THAT HAVE A KNOWN SAFETY RISK CONTINUE TO BE ON THE ROADS? *TR

POWER STEERING IN THE VEHICLE WENT OUT WITHOUT ANY WARNING MAKING IT VERY DIFFICULT TO STEER THE VEHICLE CORRECTLY. SINCE THIS DATE THE POWER STEERING COMES AND GOES INTERMITTENTLY. *TR

I HAD A TEMPORARY LOST OF POWER STEERING ASSIST. I DROVE TO A FEW BLOCKS TO STOP. THE PROBLEM DISAPPEARED AFTER I RESTARTED THE CAR AGAIN. THIS HAPPENED TWICE BEFORE WHILE MY WIFE WAS DRIVING A MONTH EARLIER OR SO. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS, I HAD A VERY HARD TIME TO STEER THE CAR AND FIND A SAFE PLACE TO PARK. *TR

DRIVING ABOUT 10 MPH ON A ONE LANE STREET, I TRIED TO NEGOTIATE A RIGHT HAND TURN AND THE STEERING WHEEL BECAME VERY DIFFICULT TO TURN. THE CAR RAN OFF THE ROADWAY AND COLLIDED WITH SOME SHRUBBERY. *TR

THE FIRST OF MULTIPLE STEERING FAILURES OCCURRED IN A PARKING LOT, THANKFULLY. NONE HAS YET TO HAPPEN ON INTERSTATE OR AT A DEADLY RATE OF SPEED, WHICH THAT WOULDN'T HAVE TO BE VERY FAST IF A CHILD RIDING ON THEIR BIKE UNEXPECTEDLY DARTED IN FRONT OF YOU. IF THE STEERING MALFUNCTIONED AT THAT MOMENT IT WOULD BE OVER FOR THE KID. I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW A KNOWN, POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS, ISSUED GOES UNADDRESSED. I'M BEWILDERED. *TR

IN SEPTEMBER 2012 I NOTICED A LOUD FAN NOISE THAT WOULDN'T TURN OFF. THE CAR WAS ALSO OVERHEATING. I NOTICED THAT IT WAS VERY HARD TO STEER THE CAR, BUT I THOUGHT THAT WAS DUE TO THE OVERHEATING. MECHANIC DETERMINED FAILED CYLINDER HEAD GASKET IN 11/2012. THE RADIATOR WAS REPLACED AND THE THERMOSTAT WAS REPLACED. IN 11/2012 THE WATER PUMP WAS ALSO REPLACED. IN 12/2012 THE BATTERY HAD TO BE REPLACED. IN 06/2013 THE HEATER CORE WAS REPLACED. I BELIEVE THAT THESE ISSUES ARE DIRECTLY RELATED TO THE LOSS OF POWER STEERING AND THE ASSOCIATED FAN FAILING, WHICH CAUSED THE CAR TO OVERHEAT AND THE BATTERY TO FAIL. PLEASE SEE NHTSA COMPLAINTS 10453158, 10444328, 10379750, 10442431,10379459 FOR SIMILAR CASES OF THESE SAME ISSUES RELATED TO THE FAILURE OF POWER STEERING AND THE ASSOCIATED PUMP. *TR

MY WIFE BOUGHT A 2005 MINI COOPER CONVERTIBLE AND IT DROVE FINE FOR LIKE ONE DAY, THEN AFTER THAT IT STOPPED SHIFTING GEARS. WE NOTICED IT WOULD GO AROUND 35MPH THEN THE GEARS WOULD NOT SHIFT. AFTER AWHILE IT WOULDN'T EVEN GO OVER 15MPH. AFTER TAKING IT TO GET DIAGNOSED FOR SOME REASON IT RAN 40 MPH FOR ABOUT 30 MINUTES THEN THE SAME PROBLEM OCCURRED AGAIN. *TR

WHILE I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH MY STEERING GAVE OUT AND LOCKED UP, ALMOST SLAMMING ME INTO THE GUARD RAIL. I WAS FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO STOP BEFORE TRAGEDY. UNFORTUNATELY I WAS BLOCKING A LANE OF TRAFFIC UNTIL I COULD FORCE MY WAY OF THE ROADWAY. THE SECOND INCIDENT HAPPENED AS I WAS TURNING INTO MY OWN DRIVEWAY. THE STEERING LOCKED UP AGAIN CAUSING ME TO MISS MY DRIVEWAY AND CRASH INTO THE DITCH. THE OTHER SAFETY ISSUES WITH MY CAR IS THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS WILL STOP WORKING AT RANDOM AND THE REVERSE AND TAIL LIGHTS WILL FAIL AT RANDOM. THE ENGINE LIGHT STAYS ON AND THE CODES READ EMISSIONS FAILURE. WHEN I TALK TO MINI COOPER CUSTOMER RELATIONS THEY GAVE ME AN EXTENDED 100,000 MILE WARRANTY ON THE POWER STEERING AND EMISSIONS. MINI COOPER CLAIMS THEY CAN'T DO THE SAFETY REPAIRS DUE TO A PART SHORTAGE. THEY EXTENDED MY ALREADY EXTENDED WARRANTY TO 150,000 MILES AND ARE WANTING TO CHARGE ME FOR DIAGNOSTICS ON THESE EXTENDED WARRANTY ISSUES. THEY WILL NOT OFFER ANY RESOLUTION AND CLAIM IT IS MY PROBLEM AS A CONSUMER AND CLAIM THE POWER STEERING ISSUES ARE NOT SAFETY RELATED. WHEN I ASKED ABOUT THE ELECTRICAL LIGHTING ISSUES THEY REPLIED WITH THAT'S NOT MINI COOPERS PROBLEM. *TR

THE MANUFACTURER HAS RECENTLY STATED THEY ARE GOING TO EXTEND THE LIFE OF THE WARRANTY FOR THE POWER STEERING PUMP FOR MODELS RANGING FROM THE YEARS 2002-2005 AND SOME 2005 MINI CONVERTIBLES. I HAVE A 2005 MINI CONVERTIBLE, AND HAVE THE FAULTY POWER STEERING PUMP THAT THEY HAVE EXTENDED THE WARRANTY LIFE FOR. I IMMEDIATELY CALLED MY LOCAL MINI DEALERSHIP TO GET MY CAR FIXED AND FOUND THAT THERE IS A WAITING LIST TO GET THE WORK DONE. FROM WHAT I HAVE BEEN TOLD THE PARTS ARE ENTIRELY UNAVAILABLE, AND I CAN EXPECT TO WAIT UP TO A MONTH BEFORE I CAN EXPECT TO BE ABLE TO GET MY CAR FIXED. TILL THEN HOWEVER I CANNOT GET MY CARS INSPECTION RENEWED AS IN MY STATE A CAR CANNOT PASS WITHOUT POWER STEERING. I HAVE BEEN LEFT WITHOUT ANY FEASIBLE MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION, AND UPON BEGGING MINI TO HELP WITH MY PROBLEM WHICH THEY HAVE CREATED I WAS TOLD THAT THEY WERE GOING TO DO NOTHING ABOUT IT. THIS LEAVES ME WITH EITHER HAVING TO BREAK TEXAS STATE LAW AND DRIVE THE CAR WITHOUT CURRENT INSPECTION, OR DROP OUT OF SCHOOL AS I WILL HAVE NO WAY OF GETTING THERE UNTIL THE MINI FIXES THE PROBLEM. *TR