MINI Complaints

AFTER NUMEROUS TRIPS TO GARAGE TO DETERMINE WHY THE ENGINE LIGHT WAS COMING ON AND CAR SIGNALING BY WAY OF ALARM FOR ME TO SEE SERVICE DEPT IMMEDIATELY AND AT LEAST TWICE HAVING BEEN TRAVELING ON THE INTERSTATE AND FOUND MYSELF STRANDED WITH EXTREMELY LOW LEVEL OF ANTIFREEZE, BMW SERVICE DEPT RECOMMENDED A CHANGE OF HEATING THERMOSTAT. SAID THEY HAD SEEN THIS NUMEROUS TIMES. I TRUSTED THEM AND SPENT $550.00 ONLY TO START HAVING THE PROBLEM AGAIN 3 WEEKS LATER. NOW I'M TOLD BY MINI DEALERSHIP I NEED A RADIATOR, BUT GUESS WHAT, IT'S OUT OF WARRANTY. THIS CAR LIVES AT THE GARAGE AND I CANNOT TAKE IT ON A TRIP WITHOUT FEAR OF BEING STRANDED ON THE HIGHWAY. BMW REFUSES TO COMPENSATE FOR WHAT I BELIEVE IS AN ERROR IS DIAGNOSIS. *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

POWER STEERING FAILED MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO DRIVE/ TURN VEHICLE. THIS HAS HAPPENED MULTIPLE TIMES. TYPICALLY THE POWER STEERING COMES BACK AFTER A MINUTE OR TWO BUT DURING THE LATEST INCIDENT IT DID NOT COME BACK ON. *TR

POWER STEERING FAILED, CAR WOULD NOT TURN. SECOND OCCASION 1/19/12 SAME THING AT 40MPH. AFTER CAR RESTS PROBLEM DISAPPEARS. ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO TURN CAR AT ALL. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 MINI COOPER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH, THE POWER STEERING FAILED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT MENTIONED THAT SHE WAS UNABLE TO MANEUVER THE VEHICLE WITHOUT APPLYING AN EXCESSIVE AMOUNT OF FORCE TO THE STEERING WHEEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHO WAS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE FAILURE BUT REPLACED THE POWER STEERING FAN AS A TEMPORARY REMEDY. THE REMEDY FAILED TO REPAIR THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 80,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 84,000.

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.

POWER STEERING STOPPED WORKING---WHILE DRIVING ON CURVE---IMPACTED CAR CONTROL. REGAINED POWER STEERING. THIS HAPPENED TWO MORE TIMES. VERY DANGEROUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *TR

MY POWER STEERING IS GOING IN AND OUT. I MIGHT HAVE IT, AND DRIVE ANOTHER MINUTE ITS NOT WORKING. THE CAR ONLY HAS 58740 MILES ON IT I HAVE HAD IT CHECKED OUT AND THE PUMP SEEMS TO BE THE PROBLEM. MINI SAYS THERE IS NOT PROBLEM WITH THEIR STEERING PUMPS BUT WHEN I GO ON LINE AND CHECK THERE SEEMS TO BE A LOT OF OTHERS HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM AT THE SAME APPROXIMATE MILEAGE MARK GIVE OR TAKE A FEW. THIS IS OVER A THOUSAND DOLLAR FIX. IS MINI GOING TO WAIT UNTIL THERE ARE ENOUGH ACCIDENTS BEFORE THEY ADMIT THERE IN PROBLEM? I HAVE CHECKED THE FLUID AND THE FAN ALL IS WORKING AND FINE. IT'S JUST THE MALFUNCTIONING PUMP. *TR

VERY DISAPPOINTED WITH MINI COOPER AND THE CORPORATION OF BMW ON HOW THEY HANDLED MY ISSUES WITH MY 2004 MINI. I CAME TO THE DEALERSHIP SEVERAL TIMES IN RAMSEY, NEW JERSEY WITH THE REPAIRS THAT WERE RECALLED. I HAD PRINTED THE RECALLS AS EVIDENCE THAT THERE WERE IDENTICAL ISSUES AS THE REPAIRS NEEDED TO MY CAR! THE DEALERSHIP IGNORED AND REFUSED TO EVEN LOOK AT THE RECALLS ON PAPER AND TO MY DISMAY I WAS FORCED TO PAY OUT-OF-MY-OWN POCKET! I HAD NO CHOICE BECAUSE OF MY CONCERN TO DRIVE A 'SAFE' VEHICLE. TO MY DISAPPOINTMENT I HAD TO RETURN BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP WITH THE SAME AND ADDITIONAL ISSUES THAT WERE NO REPAIRED! THE NEXT DAY THE MANAGER ASSURED ME THAT ALL WAS TAKEN CARE OF AND THE CAR WAS FINALLY SAFE! WRONG AGAIN! WITH ADDITIONAL CALLS TO BOTH THE DEALERSHIP AND BMW I STILL DID NOT HAVE A SOLUTION NOR A SAFE CAR! . THE ISSUES WERE: 1.BRAKE LIGHT BEING REPLACED MULTIPLE TIMES AND THEN CAUSED A FIRE. 2.STEERING 3.STABILITY CONTROL ULTIMATELY, I HAVE CONTACTED NHTSA SEVERAL TIMES TO ASSIST AND THE RESPONSE WAS TO CONTACT THE DEALER. I'M AT THE POINT I NEED TO NOW TAKE THIS TO A NEW LEVEL TO RESOLVE THIS SITUATION. *TR

PLEASE REFER TO MY PREVIOUS COMPLAINT 10443238 FOR THE INITIAL INFORMATION. THIS COMPLAINT IS THE FOLLOW UP. THE CAR WENT IN TO THE DEALER FOR THE DIESELING SOUND THE CAR WAS MAKING. THE DIAGNOSIS WAS THAT TIMING CHAIN WAS STRETCHED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. OTHER ASSOCIATED COMPONENTS SUCH AS THE CHAIN TENSIONER WOULD ALSO HAVE TO BE REPLACED. TOTAL COST IS $2200. I STARTED RESEARCHING THIS ISSUE ON THE INTERNET TO SEE IF OTHERS HAVE HAD THIS ISSUE. THIS LED TO A WEBSITE 'NORTHAMERICANMOTORING.COM'. USING THE SEARCH OF TIMING CHAIN, THERE WERE 15 PAGES OF COMPLAINTS FROM PEOPLE WHO HAVE HAD THIS EXACT SAME REPAIR DONE ON THEIR CARS. SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE BEEN BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP WITH THESE TIMING CHAIN REPAIRS OR EVEN COMPLETE TIMING CHAIN BREAKAGE, THAT BMW HAS ISSUE A SERVICE BULLETIN TO OUTLINE THE REPAIRS NECESSARY TO SERVICE ALL THESE CARS. THE BULLETIN NUMBER IS M11 02 07. ABOUT A DOZEN PARTS HAVE TO BE REPLACED UNDER THIS SERVICE BULLETIN. WHEN THE TIMING CHAIN STRETCHES TOO FAR OUT OF SPEC OR JUST BREAKS, AND THE CAR IS UNDER WARRANTY, BMW WILL FIX IT. IF IT'S OUT OF WARRANTY, THE $2200 COST IS THE CUSTOMERS PROBLEM. BMW WILL NOT ADMIT THAT THESE PARTS WERE UNDER ENGINEERED, BUT THEY ARE. THE REPLACEMENT TIMING CHAIN AND TENSIONER ARE MORE ROBUST TO HANDLE THE ENGINE LOADS. IF THE PARTS WERE PROPERLY ENGINEERED IN THE FIRST PLACE, BMW AND IT'S CUSTOMERS WOULD NOT HAVE HAD TO MAKE ALL THESE EXPENSIVE REPAIRS. IN SOME CASES WHEN THE TIMING CHAIN BROKE WHEN THE CAR WAS STILL WITHIN WARRANTY, INTAKE AND EXHAUST VALVES RAN INTO THE PISTONS CAUSING THE NEED FOR ENTIRE ENGINE REPLACEMENT. THE COST FOR THAT WAS $9000. IF THIS HAPPENED WHEN THE CAR WAS OUT OF WARRANTY, THE CUSTOMER HAD TO PAY THE $9000. BECAUSE OF THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE AFFECTED, THIS ISSUE JUST SCREAMS RECALL BUT BMW WILL NOT STEP UP TO IT. PLEASE BEGIN AN INVESTIGATION AND HELP US!! *TR