Going forward, wonder if you guys with the old design can retrofit the cup holders with the new solid rubber insert so you can at least use the cup holders for their intended purpose.

 

I find this thread particularly interesting. I have a 2009 Mini Cooper and also just had my shift gear assembly replaced because the dealership found it to be defective and there was "foreign fluid" upon inspection.


Now, I almost never drink in my car, so those cup holders don't really get used, and I certainly have NEVER spilled anything around my automatic gear shifter.


I was outside of warranty by 9 months (and only have 45k miles on it), so I just paid over $1k for repairs, which I was happy to do to have a working car again, but I want to understand more about the problem and what can be done to prevent it in the future.

 

I think this thread is interesting, too. I don't think it applies to me, because I have a manual transmission, but my thoughts...

The linkage between shifters and transmissions is a lot more complex than it should be (thanks a lot, Audi unintended acceleration lawsuits from the 1980's).

Back when I learned to drive, there was just a lever that was connected to the transmission. No release switch, no brake interlock, no key interlock.

But it does seem that if the linkage between the lever and the transmission in a mini costs $1,100 to replace, they've made it overly complex. Or maybe they are forcing the replacement of the whole assembly, rather than an individual failed component. My Subie indy mechanic told me that's common now.. it's hard to get some individual parts for some cars now, you have to buy whole assemblies, which includes lots of parts that didn't fail. It makes logistics easier (read: cheaper) for the supply chain.

And the fact that a leaky cup can cause such damage?! I hate to say it, but I don't think Honda and Toyota engineering would make that mistake.