Accidentally posted this in the 2nd gen forums so figured I would post it here along with the issues that I have had and are still having.

Issues
1. rear trim was dismantled and reassembled prior to delivery and was a train wreck = resolved but still ticks me off

2. transmission continues to shift hard was first only in manual mode under sport now occurring even in green mode = still ongoing and in the shop for this issue again right now

3. oil filler cap is always leaking oil now it's third time in the shop for that issue
= still ongoing and in the shop for this issue again right now third time now

4. Hankook Opitmo H426 WTF is mini/bmw doing with these craptastic tires no grip in dry,wet,cold,hot,old,new and tires are just about at wear bar indicators at 7700 miles!!!! = still ongoing and in the shop for this issue again right now already got called for this and was told theres no wear warranty for this crap escalating to mini north ameraca

So as a former mini owner I have waited some time on this as I wanted to give the car a chance for the newness to pass before commenting on it.

As a whole the new car is nicer but also much more mainstream then the Mini before it (r56) here is the pro / con list

Pros

1. seats are much improved and feel like actual sport seats this time around
2. steering wheel is formed much nicer and electric power assist is tuned much better too
3. one touch for sunroof
4. flat load floor (with storage package option)
5. folding rear headrest


Cons

1. smaller gas tank do not understand why they did this
2. quality quality quality have a leaking oil cap, fuel door not working correctly, rear cargo trim not assembled correctly on delivery
3. bluetooth with base HU wont work with siri or audio streaming?
4. nickel and dime to death with options some of these packages are getting to be a bit much ie storage package required to get trunk light!!!
5. still seems like there is the big question of long term durability as the recent report from Car and Driver confirms.
6. hankook Optimo tires .... fail.... suck in the dry and in the wet
7. Comfort Access system both in charging 250.00 to add a button to each of the external handles but also to functionality requiring you to push the button for both locking the doors and unlocking really should work like Lexus and Toyota.


My biggest issue is the loss of soul in the new Mini the old car R56 justa was much much more fun to drive and toss around more of a "drivers car" Where the new one is much more sterile car gone is the fun of pushing the car and getting rewarded from doing so. Feels much more like a (new) BMW loads of power but easy to drive fast.

Please chime in with what you think esp if your a former owner of a R56


Chris

 

My brand spanking new F56 JCW 2DR HB was delivered to me...

1) A tear, in the Rear Seat, on the drivers side backing, where your back meets the seating area, between the split in the seats. Obvious? Well, yes and no. It left the factory that way, so I can't blame the dealer.

2) The JCW Emblem on the front drivers side fender, has black outline missing from the emblem. Obvious? No. I only noticed it when waxing the car (but it is peeling more).

3) Front Passenger rotor developed a score. Prior to installing my wheel spacers, I took apart the front caliper and cleaned it out. Scoring is no longer evident. Obvious? No. It only occured after 400km or so.

4) I find the drivers side power window 50% louder when it goes from down to up than the passenger side. Obvious? Not sure the dealer pays attention to that.

5) Drivers side windshield washer jet does not work. Obvious? Not even sure if the factory checks for that. Why the dealer can get away with the $1K pdi, delivery and inspection is beyond me. Obviously it is not money well spent by the buyer.

6) After driving the vehicle (I park indoors), and parking it in the garage. The F56 reeks. There is a foul odor that emanates as the vehicle is cooling down in the garage. Oof, it smells like sewage. I have cleaned out my sewer in the garage, inside and out TWICE... thinking it was my sewer LOL. I now let it sit 30 minutes outside before bringing it in to my garage.

Cheers,

 

LormaD.
Looks like 1-5 should be warranty items. 6 is most likely the relatively new CAT convertor. Some CATs give off a sulfur odor that smells like rotten eggs. Could be mistaken for sewer.

 

But the smell occurs, after I passed the 750km range. Yeah, come to think of it, it does smell like rotten eggs. I would think it would of started up when new and went away and not the other way around.

I will add that to my to do list for when I bring it in to the dealer.

 

Wife recently picked up four door ht, only complaint from her is the quirky voice navigation. It is ridiculously complex and doesn't work most of the time. I hate most of the tech features on the car, especially navigating the music selection while driving. It handles well, has plenty of zip for a three cylinder engine. I have not used it enough to form an opinion. For low end grunt and acceleration it doesn't come close to the VW TDI.

 

I have 27,000 miles on my Hankook H426 ( 205/45x17) and they have at least another 20,000 miles left. Besides being very critical of the F56, you must be very hard on tires.If you don't like the new Mini, why did you buy one?

 

Why did I buy .... having came from the 2011 that I loved figured things could not have changed that much also 15 min test drive does not give much insight.

As to the tires I drive the car no harder then my 2011 mini and gentler then i drive my Miata the hankook tires have most defiantly been a problem many people on this board have been claiming the same thing that they're garbage.

The car just came back from the shop for the third repair to the oil fill cap there solution, Change out the acoustic motor cover blaming that on holding the oil from the old leak?

Transmission clame other year mini's shift just as hard.

 

I have yet to own a new vehicle, and that I have been happy with the factory tires... ever.

My M5 came with michelin pilot summer only tires, and they were horrible after the second oil change. The car was undriveable (noise).

My RX 400H came with such undersized and poor tires, that they would wear unevenly.

An Acura TL came with such lousy sealing tires, that I had to add air every week on one of the 4 tires, or the tire sensor monitor would blast away.

etc etc etc...

So yeah, the JCW with the Hankook tires were not the best choice by far, imho. And tires can really make or break a vehicle. IT, is something you can change and improve upon. Very rarely does someone complain about a lousy air filter, and not bother to wait for it to wear out and swap in a K&N air filter. But tires, it seems, nobody wants to swap them out before they are worn, YET, they are the only contact between you and the road.

 

My Hankooks got swapped out within the first week that I had the car. The HK's are stacked in my storage building and will likely be there dry rotting 20 years from now.

 

Dealer and MINI usa are working something out for the tires so kudos to them on that.

In other news got my first check engine light this morning U019D no luck finding any info online going in next Tuesday.

Chris

 

Getting the 1st maintenance on my JCW tomorrow so if you could give me a quick reply on what your dealer and MiNi is doing for you that could possibly help me.
Thx

 

Tires swapped, Mini USA and the dealer worked out a fair deal for all involved and here's to hoping that there learning and will fit better quality tires on the 17's.

Oil leak still not fixed now getting usual and customary per other 2015's to have a oil leak around fill cap.

Check engine code was caused by a failing environmental sensor for catalyst coating on radiator, Solution replace radiator however in there replacement of the radiator they did not top off the coolant reservoir.

Went back to the dealer to point this out and the service adviser and one of the mechanics removed the cap with the motor still hot causing the coolant to boil and checking the fluid in the tank while still hot was above the max fill marker.

The service adviser and mechanic gave the car five min to cool down and the fluid was still above the max fill line so they sent me on my way. With the service adviser saying "don't worry about it your under warranty"

I have reached out to Mini USA about this (coolant not being refilled and the incorrect checking of fluid level) and the still not resolved oil leak and there not willing to take the car back even with me offering for a full refund minus 2500.00 (lemon law would put the refund @ full refund minus 500.00 for mileage at first occurrence 1800 miles.)

At this point I am sending all documentation to Mini USA for a final attempt at buyback for the car and if the response is still the same I will secure legal representation.

 

I've has my 2016 S for one day so I am an expert. The car is perfect. I traded a BMW 428i on it. The 428i had more wind noise on the highway and less room.

 

Next problem!!

got a yellow triangle on the display, Radio system check is stating

"Headlamp vertical aim control:
Malfunction. Road illumination may be reduced or interfere with on-coming traffic. Consult your local dealer

This is getting really old

 

Mine are stacked in garage w/ the tentacle wheels in favor of Enkei F1 wheels and Conti DW non-runflats. I shed 32 lbs. of unsprung weight with this upgrade which in turn gave me approx 10 more Whp and 11 more lb ft of torque at the wheels plus a more spry handling package.

 

i can see the tossability of the previous generations ...

before my current car, I had a 13 clubman justa mt.. the car felt raw and so great to drive.. prob because i had the little 15" wheels and it was manual transmission... lots change with 18" wheels and sport auto..

wish I could put my current powerplant in the old 13 clubman (its sold now) lol

 

Agreed. I like the 16 inch wheels on my S. On little cars like these I think huge sticky tires while they might provide better lateral stick do take the nimble feel out of the car. Many a car journalist has talked about this over the years.

 

Wonder how much a cheapy lightweight set of rims/tires go for??

You got me thinking now.

 

I support you spending money.

 

I have a 15 Cooper and have had few issues. Did have the check engine light come on after the first oil change. I reseated the fuel cap and also the oil cap and the CEL went away and has not come back. I suspect that the tech who did the oil change put the oil cap on too tight, the cap makes a click when it is properly put on. I have the Hankook's also, I have only 4000 miles on them but the tread still looks like new. Plan to change them with Dunlop's when these wear out. So far so good, the car is fun to drive, surprisingly quick corners like a go-kart.

 

Update after one year of ownership

Still have the oil leak and expecting it to get worse over the next several months ( cold weather) Side scuttle "S" badges are fading dealership states there fine. windshield trim is starting to show symptoms of UV damage fading.

Two new problems

1. VIN plate was filled with condensation
2. Cruse control malfunction occurred driving up to upstate NY this past weekend car acted like the brakes were applied briefly and cruse control shutdown. Took in to dealership and there solution was blaming the malfunction on my automatic OBD II code reader that was installed. no further diagnostics on there part.

And for a last bit of fun part of the service of my Mini dealership is a multipoint inspection while driving home i decided to check the tire pressure on the on board computer and tire pressures were between 30 to 31.9 even though the door card calls for 35 psi when I asked my service adviser why the tires weren't checked he replied back with "the tires being low are most likely because of the mild temperatures"

I have a lemon law case filed against BMW / Mini USA and you would think they would be doing everything they can to try and make this right but no dice.

My advice to anyone looking to buy a mini is one of two things.

1. Lease Lease Lease these things are a $$$ pit and while fun are not something you want to own outside of warranty.

2. find an excellent independent mechanic or be able to fix your own car and but an R50 or an R56 since the problems are well known and so are the fixes. But even with that would suggest to keep it as a 2nd car.

3. The answer is always Miata! bought a 1991 this summer put almost 4K miles on it and the only repairs to date were an alternator belt @ a cost of 15.00 and a radiator @ a cost of 140.00. Much more challenging to drive quick but much more rewarding.

 

My previous car was also a Miata ('99 LS) and I put over 100k on it with hardly more than oil and brake pad changes. Most serious problems: clutch slave cyl, one brake caliper, and the alternator failed - all of which I repaired myself for cost of parts only. Less than $500 in non-routine maintenance costs in over a decade of ownership.

Hoping for similar experience with my MINI. So far so good.

 

Which dealer are you using?

 

The wife's car is approaching 40k miles and is a little over 2 years old. So far hers has had the following issues:

-stock Hankook tires are garbage and wore out in about 10k miles
-auto-dimming mirror was leaking and needed replaced
-faulty brake pad wear sensor
-cover falls off driver's door handle
-cover falls off auto shifter
-front black bumper is fading despite being waxed multiple times a year and being garage kept
-black plastic wiper tray is faded despite being garage kept and treated regularly
-squeaking passenger seatback
-numerous weird noises from suspension
-squeal when turning on cold days
-leaking washer nozzle on hood
-black plastic trim around fenders just wants to fade no matter what i do

I only managed to keep my '15 Cooper S for about 13k miles but encountered the following:
-defective control arm bushings
-defective upper steering column shaft
-defective/poorly designed rear suspension that clunked over every bump
-door rubber wearing away paint in door jam on driver side
-squeal from steering on cold days

The cars are fun to drive and they do start up every time. Never left us stranded (fingers crossed).

But wow are they GARBAGE!!!

all of the issues that we encountered were not flukes either as others on the forum dealt with the same issues as did Car and Driver with their long term vehicle (Making Lemonade). It's really a shame because my wife enjoys her car and mine was a blast to drive. How has BMW/Mini still not figured this out??

 

Is it unevenly faded, or maybe slightly discolored like an oil slick? If so, they'll replace it — it's a known problem. Mine was replaced without any question by the dealer last month.