2002 MINI COOPER Complaints

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 MINI COOPER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 50 MPH, THE TRANSMISSION HESITATED IN A JERKING MOTION AND BEGAN TO DOWN-SHIFT INTO ANOTHER GEAR CONTINUOUSLY. IN ADDITION, THE ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR AND EP CODE ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER, WHO STATED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED DUE TO INTERNAL DAMAGE. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 56,416.

THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT CAME ON IN MY 2002 MINI COOPER S. THE MINI DEALER SERVICE DEPARTMENT SAID THAT THE AIRBAG CONTROL UNIT WAS FAULTY...THAT THE "MRS CONTROL UNIT SHORTED". SINCE THIS IS A PIECE OF SAFETY EQUIPMENT, AND SINCE IT IS NOT A MECHANICAL DEVICE THAT WOULD BE SUBJECT TO WEAR, I BELIEVE THE DEALER SHOULD HAVE REPLACED THIS UNIT AT NO CHARGE...AND/OR AN ALERT SHOULD GO TO OTHER MINI OWNERS. I HAVE SINCE HAD THE CONTROL UNIT REPLACED (AT CONSIDERABLE EXPENSE) BECAUSE I FELT UNSAFE DRIVING WITHOUT AIRBAGS. *TR

POWER STEERING FAILED WHILE CAR WAS BEING DRIVEN. LUCKILY THE CAR WAS AT LOW SPEED AT THE TIME AND I WAS ABLE TO GET TO A SAFE STOP BY USING BRUTE FORCE TO STEER THE CAR. POWER STEERING THAN REAPPEARED INTERMITTENTLY OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS, FINALLY FAILING COMPLETELY. MECHANIC SAYS POWER STEERING PUMP FAILED AND THAT IT IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH MINIS. COST WILL BE OVER $1200 TO REPAIR. IT APPEARS THE ISSUE IS ALREADY BEING INVESTIGATED BY BMW, YET THEY HAVE TAKEN NO ACTION TO RECALL OR FIX. *TR

I WOULD LIKE TO REPORT A POWER STEERING FAILURE ON MY PREGNANT WIFE'S 2002 MINI COOPER. THE CAR ONLY HAS 61K MILES ON IT. SHE WAS DRIVING LAST NIGHT, IN THE RAIN, AND THE POWER STEERING PUMP WENT OUR AS SHE WAS ON A FREEWAY TRANSITION RAMP AT A SPEED OF 40-50 MPH. SHE ALMOST LOST CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE AND ALMOST HIT THE SIDE RAILS. FORTUNATELY SHE WAS ABLE TO AVOID CRASHING. THE POWER STEERING PUMP STARTED TO WORK INTERMITTENTLY AFTER THE CAR WAS SHUT OFF AND RESTARTED. THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY PROBLEM AND MINI/BMW NEEDS TO ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM BEFORE SOMEBODY GETS SERIOUSLY HURT OR DIES.

WHEN I LEFT MY HOME I TURNED ON THE HEATED SEATS. AS I TRAVELED APPROXIMATELY A HALF MILE I FELT LIKE BOTTOM SEAT WAS EXCEPTIONALLY HOT AND TURNED THE BOTTOM OFF . SHORTLY THEREAFTER I SMELLED SMOKE AND FOUND THAT A HOLE HAD BURNED THROUGH THE SEAT BEHIND MY BACK. THERE WAS SMOKE, A HOLE ABOUT THE SIZE OF A SILVER DOLLAR AND MY COAT HAD BEEN BURNED . MY COAT DID NOT CATCH FIRE BUT HAS A PERMANENT BLACK BURN MARK. *TR

POWER STEERING FAILURE--THE POWER STEERING IN MY MINI COOPER S 2002 BEGAN "CUTTING OUT" AND BECAME MORE FREQUENT OVER A FEW DAYS. THE "CUTTING OUT" HAPPENS WITHOUT WARNING AND IS POTENTIALLY QUITE DANGEROUS AS THE VEHICLE BECOMES ALMOST UNMANAGEABLE WHEN MAKING A TURN. THIS MAKES DRIVING THE VEHICLE VERY UNSAFE. UPON RESEARCHING THIS PROBLEM, THIS IS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM WHICH WILL EVENTUALLY OCCUR WITH MOST MINI COOPERS EVEN THROUGH FAIRLY RECENT YEARS OF MANUFACTURE AND OFTEN AT FAIRLY LOW MILEAGE ACCUMULATION. *TR

LOSS OF POWER WHEN GOING 60 MPH IN THE HIGH SPEED LEFT LANE OF FOUR LANE HIGHWAY. CAR WENT INTO "LIMP MODE" AND UNABLE TO ACCELERATE. CAR WOULD ONLY GO 5 TO 10 MPH WITH LARGE TRUCK BEHIND AND BEARING DOWN ON ME. EML AND SERVICE ENGINE LIGHTS ON DASH. WAS ABLE TO PULL INTO A CONSTRUCTION LANE THAT HAPPENED TO BE RIGHT THERE. OTHERWISE WOULD HAVE BEEN UNABLE TO GET CAR OUT OF THE WAY. CAR NEEDED TO BE TOWED. FAULT CODES LIST THROTTLE BODY AND WIRING HARNESS AS PROBLEMS AND RECOMMENDATION IS TO REPLACE BOTH. FROM MY RESEARCH, THE PROBLEM IS WELL KNOWN AND RELATES TO POOR CONNECTOR BETWEEN THROTTLE BODY AND WIRING HARNESS. MINI HAS SINCE REDESIGNED THE ANGLE OF THIS CONNECTOR TO FIX THIS PROBLEM. SUCH A LOSS OF POWER WHILE DRIVING IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. SHOULD BE RECALL ITEM. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 MINI COOPER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE POWER STEERING PUMP CONTINUED TO RUN WHILE THE ENGINE WAS TURNED OFF. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER NOR REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE FAILURE AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 49,000.

BOUGHT THIS CAR IN 2008 AND HAVE HAD VERY FEW ISSUES. THIS MONTH (NOVEMBER 2011) THE CVT (AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION) WENT OUT. ONLY REPAIR APPARENTLY IS "REPLACEMENT" - RECEIVING QUOTES BETWEEN 7K AND 9K FROM THE DEALER AND AAMCO. NOW FINDING OUT THIS IS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM WITH ALL MINI COOPER CVT'S. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE. REPAIR COST NOW EXCEEDS CAR'S VALUE. WON'T DO IT. FOOL ME ONCE... SHAME ON YOU. *TR

THIS CAR GOES INTO LIMP MODE AT VERY IN OPPORTUNE TIMES, BEFORE THIS LATEST TIME (AGAIN TO THE SHOP) IT NEARLY GOT ME T-BONED IN AN INTERSECTION, THIS CAR HAS BEEN IN THE SHOP NUMEROUS TIMES FOR ENGINE ELECTRICAL PROBLEM, THIS IS A KNOW DEFECT WITH THE WIRING HARNESS-I BELIEVE THIS SHOULD BE COVERED IN A RECALL FOR A VERY UNSAFE SITUATION. *TR