Today is the 1-year anniversary of the day I picked up my Clubman S from the dealer after the usual excruciating wait between order and delivery :-)

I've enjoyed the car, but it's not flawless. So to celebrate, it's making its very first visit back to the dealer for its scheduled maintenance, but also to fix a few issues under warranty.

Curious, anyone else having these concerns?

- Clutch chatter; drives me nuts
- Slight but definitely present vibration when idling after a 5-minute highway stint
- Overhead console rattle
- Exterior mirrors squeak loudly when folding
- SiriusXM reception is awful, much worse than my other 2 cars (one with XM, one with Sirius, but I assume that SiriusXM should behave the same!)

And then, it's getting the side-curtain airbag recall done and the reprogramming for the key fob behavior.

 

Congrats to you and your car, GDGR. You were a courageous early-adopter and led the way for us all to follow.

Since the folding mirrors are a particular fetish of mine I must admit that I, too am experiencing the loud squeak when folding -- particularly on the passenger side mirror.

I have experienced intermittent rattles, perhaps overhead, perhaps from the center, not yet sure. Also the passenger seat back appears to have an internal rattle which seems to be influenced by the lumbar adjustment.

I have had occasional idle vibration, which I find noticable when it happens because usually the idle is amazingly smooth and steady. I have noticed the vibration, when it happens, is more pronounced in Sport than in Mid.

Overall, the HK sound system is not as high quality as I had hoped, but it's good enough. I did not bother with Sirius-- found I rarely used it in other cars. I'd rather listen to the car.

No clutch chatter from my 8 speed sport automatic .

And my later production car had the airbags resolved and the key fob corrected from delivery.

Hope you have a positive experience with dealer service.

Motor on!

 

I'm working on a little over 3 months with my 2017 Clubby S All4. I too have experienced the rough idle. I haven't had a need to visit the dealer yet, but will bring it up when I need service. I already changed the oil myself at 2,000 miles. I agree with 2017ALL4 about the HK. I like it, but feel like it could have a bit more oomph to it.... I do love the seemless bluetooth connection....no other complaints to share at this point. Oh as far as rattles.....good or bad, I'm half deaf and usually have the stereo cranked....don't hear any rattles.....

 

My loaner is an automatic-equipped 2017 Clubman S. It vibrates at idle also, but it's a different sort of rattle -- and it goes away if I shift it into neutral. That's not the case with my own car.

 

I'm at 9 months and about 12,500 miles. I've had three and a half issues:

1. The car was delivered with the A/C drain clogged, and my foot wells were flooded with water. It took the dealer two attempts to fix, but it's now fixed.

2. The car was delivered with faulty rear side window trim. It was replaced, but that took two trips too. One to look at it and order the part and another to install it.

3. Driver's seat cushion is crushed under my enormous 145 lb weight. The car is now in the shop for the 3rd attempt at fixing this. First was to look at it and order parts (after I already sent photos and was told that parts always arrive in a couple of days). 2nd was to install the cushion and then discover that the leather had to be replaced too (should have been very obvious from the initial evaluation), 3rd (replacing the leather) is being done now.

3.5 The left rear door doesn't open due to the strut not being powerful enough. They "fixed" it, but it still doesn't work. It's not worth worrying about.

Overall, the car has been in the shop for close to 3 weeks total. I hope this is the end of the issues rather than the beginning.

This Mini reminds me of my 1986 Alfa Romeo GTV6. So far the nit picky issues have been about the same; the dealer service has been about the same; they are both unique, fun cars; and the dealers were/are both far away. I drove the Alfa for 17 years and still regret selling it. Overall it was very reliable but quirky and in need of constant attention. The Clubman is bringing back memories. I thought that after 30 years, I'd have to buy an old car to rekindle those memories. :-)

 

I just heard from the dealer -- turns out there is a bulletin for lubricating the folding mirror assembly. I didn't get a bulletin number but you should ask for the same service.

They say that they were able to fix everything except for the SiriusXM reception, which is not something they feel they can fix, and my clutch chatter issue, because they were unable to reproduce it. But happily, they suggested that I come in tomorrow and drive with the shop foreman to demonstrate it. Any other dealer I've dealt with (for other brands) would always just throw their hands up and give the car back. Color me impressed. I will do that tomorrow.

The other thing I noticed with my loaner that I like better than my car: if I shut down the engine with the toggle and then open the door, the rest of the accessories (wipers, radio, etc) turn off. In my car, they don't turn off until I lock it. It's way more sensible the way the loaner works. People say that the right strategy is to press the toggle twice, but I don't like the pedal dance that has to happen. I'm parking it in gear, which means my foot is on the clutch. You have to toggle, then release the pedal, then toggle again -- or else the engine just starts again. I guess the same would be true with the brake pedal with an automatic. I'm hoping that the software update is what changed this behavior, because it's always awkward that the radio is still blasting and the wipers are still going while I get out of the car.

 

We're 3 months in now, about 1800 miles. A few things to report...

- There are some overhead rattles, but we've driven it extensively down dirt roads (it's an All4, that's what it's meant for!) so hardly surprising.

- One of the rear window wash jets was mis-aligned. Adjusted it with a pin. Despite initial worries about the door pillar(s) interrupting rear view, it's a total non issue after the first drive.

- LOVE the sunroof. It really makes the car feel a lot bigger inside. Great to have all that light streaming in when out driving on a sunny winter day. Rear passengers love it too.

- Gas mileage in Green mode has been great. On a couple of long trips fully loaded and with a roof box, cruising at 75-80, we averaged 33mpg. Without a roof rack and luggage/passengers, it's closer to 38 hwy. In sport mode tooling around town, I'm lucky to get low 20s

- Try as I might, I just can't get used to the iDrive **** thing. Selecting music from my iPhone is a real chore. Navigating through several menus just to display important info' is a real distraction.

- There's a limit on the number of things that can be displayed in the gauge cluster. If I'm navigating I like to see the trip meter so I know there's X miles until the turn. But then I also like to see the digital speedometer (especially on unfamiliar roads with cops around). No option to display both at once is a real problem.

- Comfort access rear doors just seem to work intermittently. Sometimes it will open first time, other times it takes 3 or 4 tries and I just give up and reach forthe key fob. Will probably disconnect it when I fit a tow-hitch this summer.

- Dunno why people complain so much about the Pirelli run-flats. They've held up great in all conditions, including iced-up dirt roads and lots of snow/rain/ice in upstate NY. Apart from the high cost of replacement, I don't see a problem with them. Certainly no handling deficit as others are claiming (although maybe I just don't push the car hard enough).

- Rear clip is getting a bit scratched up loading things in and out of the trunk. Will probably fit a black plastic lip-protector after spring-cleaning/valet. Will probably also change the oil at 2000 miles.

- Overall driving dynamics have been great. The long wheelbase makes it very refined on the highway, but it's still "tossable" around corners. Off-the-line acceleration is not fantastic (we have the base cooper), but adequate for everyday use, and the All4 helps a bit. Probably with 20/20 hindsight we would have sprung for the S, athough this car was already at the top end of our budget.

 

Thanks. I'll get it attended to.

 

Hmm, I am concerned that they don't think they can fix the SiriusXM issue. One wonders if they even tried anything. I have been using Sirius for many years now, and would be quite put out if it stopped working. My current car's radio works fine, except when the garage door is in motion; it cuts out a bit when the door is closed, but not as much as you'd think. Even when I had my rooftop carrier on it worked fine.
If you are having reception problems it is probably a bad connection someplace (or hardware that's broke) but shouldn't it be covered by warranty?

 

Hey Virgilstar, here's what I did to alleviate that issue.....

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...per-cover.html

 

Now that I have my paperwork, I can tell you that it's SI M51 06 16.