2007 MINI COOPER S Complaints

THE FOLLOWING IS MY COMPLETE ACCOUNT OF THE EVENTS THAT OCCURRED WITH MY 2007 MINI COOPERS . ' MARCH 12TH TO MARCH 16TH TRIP TO MYRTLE BEACH AND BACK TO MY HOUSE IS APPROXIMATELY 490 MILES. THE CAR'S PERFORMANCE WAS WITHOUT INCIDENT ON THIS TRIP. THE VEHICLES ON-BOARD COMPUTER PROVIDES NO INDICATION OF ENGINE PROBLEMS. ' FRIDAY MARCH 18TH DEPARTED HOME FOR UNIVERSAL STUDIOS. TRIP TO UNIVERSAL STUDIOS IS APPROXIMATELY 222 MILES. THE CAR'S PERFORMANCE WAS WITHOUT INCIDENT AND ON-BOARD COMPUTER PROVIDES NO INDICATION OF ENGINE PROBLEMS. ' SATURDAY MARCH 19TH LEFT UNIVERSAL STUDIOS FOR RESIDENCE. AT JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA I PULLED INTO RIVER CITY MARKETPLACE. UP TO THIS POINT IN THE TRIP THE VEHICLE HAS TRAVELED APPROXIMATELY 162 MILES FROM UNIVERSAL STUDIOS TO RIVER CITY MARKETPLACE. THE CAR'S PERFORMANCE WAS WITHOUT INCIDENT AND THE VEHICLE'S ON-BOARD COMPUTER PROVIDED NO INDICATION OF ENGINE PROBLEMS. AS I PULLED INTO THE PARKING LOT I HEARD A LOUD BANGING SOUND AND THEN THE CAR STOPPED. THE CAR ON-BOARD SYSTEM SHOWED NO EMERGENCY INDICATOR WARNINGS WHATSOEVER ON THE TRIP FROM UNIVERSAL STUDIOS TO RIVER CITY MARKETPLACE UP UNTIL THE TIME THE CAR STOPPED. I NOTICED NO OIL LEAKS BENEATH THE VEHICLE WHILE IT WAS WAITING TO BE TOWED. ON MONDAY MARCH 21ST I SPOKE WITH MY MINI COOPER SERVICE ADVISER,TO INQUIRE ABOUT THE CONDITION OF MY VEHICLE. IN SUMMARIZING OUR CONVERSATION THE ADVISER STATED THE SERVICE TECHNICIAN INITIALLY INDICATED MY VEHICLE ENGINE HAD BEEN 'RUN DRY' OF ENGINE OIL AND IF THIS WAS THE CASE MY VEHICLE WARRANTY WOULD NOT BE HONORED BY THE DEALERSHIP. I WAS ASTOUNDED AT HEARING THIS INFORMATION AND THE SERVICE TECH THIS COULD NOT BE POSSIBLE BECAUSE I HAD CHECKED THE FLUID LEVEL ON MARCH 11TH AND THE DIPSTICK CLEARLY SHOWED "FULL". THERE HAD BEEN NO ON-BOARD COMPUTER NOTIFICATION OF ANY ENGINE OIL CONDITION. THE SERVICE TECH STATED THIS VEHICLE DOES NOT CONTAIN THIS FEATURE WHEN MY VEHICLE MANUAL CLEARLY INDICATES SUCH A FEATURE. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 MINI COOPER SPORT. THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH WHEN THE CHECK OIL WARNING LAMP ILLUMINATED AND THE VEHICLE STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A LOCAL REPAIR SHOP WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN TENSIONER FRACTURED. AS A RESULT, THE TIMING CHAIN LOOSENED AND CAUSED ALL THE PISTONS TO MISFIRE AND DAMAGE THE ENGINE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED WHO DID NOT OFFER ANY ASSISTANCE SINCE THE VEHICLE WAS OUT OF WARRANTY. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE AND THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 82,000.

UPON RETURNING HOME AND PARKING MY MINI IN THE GARAGE I SMELLED SOMTHING STRANGE. MY WIFE AND I UNLOADED GROCERIES FROM THE CAR I NOTICED SMOKE FROM THE HOOD OF THE CAR. WE QUICKLY ROLLED THE CAR OUT OF THE GARAGE AND OPENED THE HOOD, I NOTICED THE CONNECTION ON TOP OF THE AUX WATER PUMP BURNING. THE FIRE SUBSIDED ON ITS OWN. *TR

MY MINT CONDITION 2007 MINI COOPER S WAS DESTROYED BY FIRE ON 3/31/11. I HAD JUST DRIVEN IT 4.5 MILES TO WORK, PARKED IT, WHEN APPROXIMATELY 12-15 MINUTES LATER I WAS ALERTED BY THE COMPANY SECURITY DEPARTMENT THAT MY CAR WAS ON FIRE. THE TOWNSHIP POLICE AND FIRE DEPARTMENT WERE ALREADY ON THE SCENE PUTTING OUT THE BLAZE. THE CAUSE OF THE FIRE APPEARS TO BE ELECTRICAL AND STARTED IN THE ENGINE. MY PRISTINE CAR WITHOUT A SCRATCH OR DENT ON IT, HAD ONLY BEEN DRIVEN 15,000 MILES -- AND IT WAS DESTROYED. THE CAR HAD BEEN FAITHFULLY MAINTAINED AND I BELIEVED IT TO BE IN PERFECT RUNNING CONDITION. FORTUNATELY NO ONE WAS HURT AND NO OTHER CARS WERE DAMAGED. BUT WHAT IF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED WHEN THE CAR WAS PARKED IN MY GARAGE? I WAS SHOCKED TO READ ONLINE THAT OTHER OWNERS HAVE SHARED SIMILAR EXPERIENCES AND THAT YOU CAN FIND NUMEROUS VIDEO CLIPS ON YOU-TUBE SHOWING MINIS ON FIRE. WHAT IS BMW DOING ABOUT THIS? UPDATED 08/17/11*BF UPDATED 02/02/2012 *LN *TR

2007 MINI COOPER S, TIMING CHAIN BROKE AT 64K MILES. THERE ARE COUNTLESS COMPLAINTS OF THIS PROBLEM ALL OVER THE WEB, WE NEED TO FORCE MINI TO ISSUE A RECALL. VEHICLE WAS PROPERLY MAINTAINED PRIOR TO FAILURE. THIS IS A CHAIN, NOT A BELT. MORE INFORMATION ABOUT SIMILAR COMPLAINTS CAN BE FOUND HERE: HTTP://WWW.MINICOOPERSPEED.COM/MINI-COOPER-COLD-START-KNOCKING-NOISE-ISSUE-2007/. *TR

THE VEHICLE WILL NOT START. THIS OCCURS RANDOMLY (MINE HAS HAD THIS HAPPEN TWICE IN THE LAST MONTH). VEHICLE WILL NOT START FOR SEVERAL DAYS THEN APPARENTLY ALL OF A SUDDEN WILL START AGAIN. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO DEALER AFTER THE FIRST TIME BUT THEY SAID THEY COULD NOT RECREATE THE CONDITION, SO NOTHING WAS DONE. NO CODES WERE STORED IN THE COMPUTER. THIS SECOND TIME IT HAS NOT STARTED FOR THE LAST 4 DAYS. ENGINE WILL CRANK, I PULLED A SPARKPLUG AND PUT IT IN THE IGNITION COIL AND IT WOULD FIRE, BUT THE ENGINE WILL NOT START, LIKE IT ISN'T GETTING FUEL. THIS COULD BE A SAFETY ISSUE IF YOU NEED TO RELY ON YOUR CAR TO BE SOMEWHERE. IF IT WONT START I AM WORRIED THAT IT COULD ALSO DIE WHILE GOING DOWN THE ROAD, WHICH WOULD BE A HUGE SAFETY ISSUE, ALTHOUGH IT HAS NOT DONE THIS, ITS JUST A CONCERN. I DO NOT EXPECT A CAR THAT IS ONLY A LITTLE OVER 3 YEARS OLD TO NOT START. I HAVE CONTACTED MINI USA BUT THEY ARE HESITANT TO RECOMMEND ANYTHING OTHER THAN TO HAVE IT TOWED TO THE DEALER AGAIN. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 MINI COOPER S. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 40 MPH, THE ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED AND AN EXTREMELY LOUD NOISE SOUNDED FROM THE ENGINE. THE CONTACT CONTINUED DRIVING, AND THE ENGINE PERFORMED AS THOUGH IT WERE ATTEMPTING TO STALL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER WHERE THEY DIAGNOSED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN FAILED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 47,000.

THE CAR HAS A LOUD RATTLE SOUND WHEN STARTED WHEN COLD , OR THE FIRST TIME AFTER SITTING OVERNIGHT. NOISE WILL SUBSIDE AS ENGINE COMES UP TO RUNNING TEMPERATURE. HAS DEVELOPED INTO A HARD STARTING ISSUE OVER TIME. AT TIMES IT TAKES AS MANY AS TEN ATTEMPTS CRANKING THE ENGINE TO GET IT TO START. WHEN RESEARCHING ONLINE, I HAVE FOUND A FORUM ON MINI COOPER PROBLEMS THAT DESCRIBES THE ISSUE EXACTLY AND ALSO HAS A VIDEO WITH SOUND THAT EXACTLY MATCHES MY CARS PROBLEM. THEY DESCRIBE IT AS THE TIMING CHAIN AND TIMING CHAIN TENSIONER THAT COULD CAUSE ENGINE FAILURE IF NOT CORRECTED.

ENGINE RATTLE AT START UP, ENGINE WILL NOT MAINTAIN IDLE WHEN AMBIENT TEMPERATURE TOO COLD (AS HIGH AS 20 DEG F BUT MORE COMMON AS TEMPERATURE DROPS) AND CAN EVEN DIE. ENGINE HESITATION AND STUMBLE WHILE ACCELERATING AND WHILE MAINTAINING HIGHWAY SPEEDS, REGARDLESS OF ENGINE AND AMBIENT TEMPERATURE. LACK OF ENGINE POWER. CAR MAY SEEM TO BE RUNNING FINE BUT WHEN ACCELERATING THE ENGINE WILL STUMBLE AND HESITATE, MUCH LIKE A MISSING CYLINDER, THIS CAUSES THE CAR TO ACCELERATE SLOWER THAN EXPECTED REGARDLESS OF THROTTLE POSITION. THIS CAN CREATE AN UNSAFE CONDITION. SEEMS TO BE MOST PRONOUNCED AT PART THROTTLE BETWEEN 2000 AND 3000 RPM BUT IS STILL PRESENT AT HIGHER SPEEDS AND MORE THROTTLE OPENING. CAN ALSO MAKE THE CAR STUMBLE VERY BADLY WHEN STARTING FROM A STOP, CAUSING THE CAR TO MOVE FORWARD A FEW FEET VERY SLOWLY BEFORE ACCELERATING AT A SOMEWHAT NORMAL PACE. THIS EFFECT IS SIMILAR TO LETTING OUT THE CLUTCH TOO SOON BUT HAPPENS EVEN IF RPMS ARE BROUGHT UP TO 2000+RPM AND THE CLUTCH IS SLOWLY LET OUT. *TR

2007 MINI COOPER S ENGINE RATTLES LOUDLY FOR THE FIRST 30 SECONDS TO 2 MIN. AFTER STARTUP IN COLD WEATHER. CAUSED BY CAM TENSION ISSUES. MIN HAS WORKED ON IT NUMEROUS TIMES. IT IS NOW OUT OF WARRANTY BUT STILL HAVING PROBLEMS. I HAPPENS ON AN ALMOST DAILY BASIS ON COLD DAYS. *TR