Is anyone having an issue with the paint being rubbed off the door pillars on their F56s? This issue of mine is currently with BMW but it's taking a bit of time for them to come back with a fix as they reckon they've not seen this before. I know of other owners how have this rubbing although not necessarily through to the undercoat. I know one lady, also in Scotland that has an EXACT photo mirroring the image of mine.
It appears to be the door seals on are extremely abrasive and you can see the flaking paint on the seal as well. I also have the issue of wet/smeared windows (drivers side particularly bad) and my service manager thinks the weather strip and door seal needs replacing but the replacement door seals will be equally rough. Now ...... I've had problems with my rear shocks for the last 5000 miles or so that are thankfully being replaced this week and I'm now wondering if the faulty shocks could be responsible for this (the other lady has a suspension issue too that is currently unresolved). Could the fact the shocks are goosed be causing excess vibrations or even a floorpan twist? My service manager has been through all the F56s in the dealership and looked at F56s coming for service but can't see others with the same severity of paint rub ..... none of these might have suspension issues though. What I'd like to know is, can you guys check your door pillars and let us know if you have this problem too? I'd be particularly interested if you have suspension issues aswell.

https://www.dropbox.com/sc/7uqhexyv5...9J5g9aB07gwJHa

https://www.dropbox.com/sc/2u2opvmsz...pLozBKIMIJ01da

the passgengers side is heading the same way, although not through to the grey undercoat yet....

https://www.dropbox.com/sc/eigg24u20...9sKSEYDpeTtrea

 

I believe this issue will be showing up on everyone's cars. The only thing you can really do is keep the door jam clean and waxed and maybe lube up the seal with some sort of vinyl protectant.

The cause is simply an abrasive door seal that rubs on the paint as you close it. You can see the direction of the wear. I don't have a clue why they used such a hard, rough material.

 

You mean this?

Too bad you didn't catch it before the problem became apparent. It's not your fault, and it's a bad design. I put a 3M automotive film so it doesn't rub the paint off.

 

That's exactly it. I'm actually sitting in my dealership as I type this (getting my new rear shocks fitted). Service Manager has just told me he's still had no response from BMW about a fix for this. He's reckons "every F56 is exactly the same" and "BMW are heading for problems with this" "the need to redesign the seals". My car is the worst one my dealer has personally encountered/reported as its already through to the undercoat. So paint protection is a little late for me. I don't 100% agree with you however, my car is 6800miles/8months only and showing considerably grey undercoat.....that WILL inevitably wear through to the bare metal. At least I'm not alone in this. I do keep my F56 spotless and regularly feed the seals with Swissvax seal feed, not that it's really helping :(

 

OMG just looked that the dealer's exdemo for sale (9000miles) IT'S EXACTLY THE SAME ..... now all the salesmen and like bees round a honeypot checking all the cars!

 

That's a bad design flaw. I wonder that percent of R56's are having this problem. Too bad it's the driver's side, probably not be noticed on the passenger side.

 

The only reason you see it more on the driver side is probably because it gets used more than the passenger side. They do use the same material, so it shouldn't differ too much.

 

Interesting. I have had lots of problems but this is not one of them. No marks at all.

 

Just checked mine-no marks at all either.

 

I noticed mine they other day while drying it off. It's on both the passenger and drivers side. It doesn't look too bad, it may buff out. I'm concerned it'll continue to happen until there is no paint left. Other than a clear 3m film, has anyone heard of any solutions from Mini?

 

They have a revised part for the seal. I don't know if it's for the whole door or just part of it, but it's softer than the original. I had mine at the dealer for about two weeks waiting for the part to arrive. I had the loaner for the whole time and had lots of fun driving hard on the loaner, lol.

 

When I had the clear bra put on my car two days after delivery in June 2015, I asked them to cover the pillars with the 3M, so I haven't seen any scratches. I inquired at the Dealership about replacement seals, but they said I'd have to show damage before they replaced them. So, I'm going to leave well enough alone, because I've heard that the replacement seals aren't that much better than the originals.

 

Good to know. I was studying the seal. It looks like it runs the length of the door along the top. I'm afraid the dealer will take my doors apart to fix it. Not sure I want that done. I'm afraid it might create rattles and what not.
I took some meguires scratch remover to it. It took most of it off. I think I'll cover it with 3M tape and call it done.

 

.....has anyone tried sanding down the seal?

 

It's kind of inevitable. My thick 3M automotive film was getting scratched and I was getting worried the seal might get too hard over time. I tried using silicone based weather strip cleaner but I think the residue made it to turn white and ugly. This is when I decided to just get it replaced with the updated part.

 

Hmmm so did you have any issues with rattles afterwards? Everything went smoothly? I'm going to bring it up with my service advisor. The trim on my roof looks like it may have a small crack in it anyway. Might as well have them do it all at once

 

I don't know.. rattles were there already before the fix. I can hear some rattles even after they did a rattle fix, and I even took the door panels off to add some anti-rattle tape on each of the snap in clips but there's still some rattle coming from somewhere. It might be the door speaker grill area, but I haven't had the time to deal with it yet. This is one of those things that I really dislike about MINIs... Service advisor was joking that it's a feature. haha.

 

I put 3M film on my door jams last summer...other than a few of my fingerprints getting on the sticky side (LOL!) my install went fine! My car's black so they are basically invisible. I don't even think about it any longer until I see a new thread on the issue. I would not want the dealer doing any more to my car than absolutely necessary, as I prefer to do things myself. If I screw something up, it's my fault!


It will be interesting if the 2017 F56 MINI's have this issue?


Cheers,


John

 

Well I just got back from the dealer. The service manager said he's never seen this before. He told me it needs to be treated with a lubricant. He said he could switch the whole seal out but that it wouldn't change anything. I mentioned this thread but his demeanor was indifferent.

I told them to try the lubricant and then I'll see how effective it is. I may have them switch them out later if it continues.

 

Does anyone know if MINI USA has a SI number for this? I have this (minor) problem on my newly purchased used 2014 F56 (worn through down to the primer) but I'd like to get it taken care of while in warranty.

Apparently in the UK it is "PUMA #61343182", but I'm not sure if that's how US service can look it up.

 

Someone on one of the Mini forums gave me this New Seals part # in US. I don't know if it is still valid or not. New seals part: LH 7.299.993 & RH 7.299.994
I didn't bother having it applied since I had the 3M film applied right after picking up my 2015 MCS.

 

My car is currently in the shop for this issue as well as an unrelated engine squeal/whine. I'll update with any numbers from the paperwork once I get it back, hopefully before the end of the week.