I have a 2009 JCW and my husband has a 2010 S. Besides the fact that I have 28,000 more miles on the clutch, there is a noticeable difference between them. The JCW has a lot more resistance than the S does, even comparing what it was like to drive it originally to driving the S. Plus our SA even made a comment to us that the S will feel a lot lighter than the JCW.

In regards to the issues... I have the click as well. Talking to the SA it sounds like they have replaced every bit of quite a few JCW clutches, including mine, and it seems to always come back. It's something about the unfortunate design of the clutch.

 

If they try the ol' "abuse" excuse tell them that they are going to prove it in the courts since the burden of proof is on them in the courts eyes being that you are a consumer. I bet they will fix it......

 

My 2009 JCW has 63,000 miles on it with no issues. My 2011 JCW has 1,400 on it so far with no problems.

Don

 

Stiffer springs in the pressure plate. For some reason I was thinking more about the shift action and not the clutch action. Stiffer springs increase the loading of the between the clutch and the flywheel. It's one of the first things you do to uprate a clutch. I've driven an S and the JCW that I bought, but they were over 3 weeks apart. I guess all I could say was that both were lighter than the truck that I traded...

 

They have to replace it. The warranty is bumper to bumper. It does not say bumper to bumper except the flywheel.
You should complain.

What was their excuse??

 

+1

 

Had a nice talk with my service adviser and I was very up front about my concerns about MINI/BMW trying to blame drivers for clutch issues. He assured me that it would be covered under either the warranty or the maintenance plan, depending on what they found when they opened it up.

He also said that if it is the clutch, the new plates that they put in are better than what is in there now, so I guess they are addressing the issue!

And I guess he believed me when I said I know how to drive and don't ride the clutch because he sent me home in a manual loaner

I did pay VERY close attention to my driving on the way home with the loaner and didn't catch myself using any sloppy techniques other than holding the clutch in while I push the sport button when I first start the car.

I can't imagine an extra second is hurting anything, but now that I know I am doing it, I will be more careful to take the time to put it in neutral, push the sport button and then put the car in gear when I start it up

 

Why would that matter?

 

I was wondering the same.

 

I don't think that holding the clutch in those extra few seconds will hurt anything, I was just thinking of it as a sort of "slippery slope" to developing other lazy habits, such as holding the clutch in at lights or stop signs.

The dealership has not been able to get the clutch to act up for them.

The put it on the lift and there is no sign of leaking fluid anywhere, they drove it -- including to get lunch and a tech who lives 15 miles from the dealership drove it home to see if it would happen on a longer test drive.

Very frustrating -- I know that my clutch slipped and I know that I smelled something burning, but if they can't find any signs that there is something wrong, there is no justification to open up the clutch.

Hopefully they will find SOMETHING today because I cannot imagine that the clutch would slip and smell burnt for no reason

 

There is nothing in the manual when I read about what the Sport Button does. Has this been confirmed? Or is it a sales guy making up something?

 

The sport button changes which software settings are active. It "tightens up" the steering by decreasing the amount of power assist, it changes the throttle response, and if you have an automatic transmission, it changes the shift points.

It does not change the total amount of power available, but changes its distribution -- I am not sure if that is the right technical description?

I do most of my driving in traffic in the suburbs where there are a lot of lights and stops.

I keep it in "sport" mode most of the time because I don't do enough highway driving to need the additional power at the top end and enjoy it in around town driving.

 

My 09JCW had a total clutch failure at 16000 miles it just started slipping and I couldn't accelerate at all with out it slipping!!

The dealer replaced it under warranty and said there was a recall to cover it because there was a problem with the clutch!!

 

I think it's a shame that a new car with only 16,000 miles would need a new clutch.
Mini needs to step up and fix the issue. Or do a recall.

 

Please tell us what page of the owner manual says the word bumper in regards to your warranty.

While it could possibly be a bad part from the manufacturer I'm sure far more clutches are killed by the owners than by faulty parts. Why would MINI recall the clutch when this thread has "proven" it is not a wide spread problem?

 

I'm sure there are more clutch problems that are not reported here.
A new car with 16,000 miles should not need a new clutch, period.
If it's the drivers fault, Mini would have to prove that?

Do you work for Mini??
If you do tell them that a $30,000 plus car should NOT have any clutch issues under 50,000 miles.
Also tell them to put a temp. Gauge in their cars

 

No I don't work for MIni and I agree that you should not have clutch problems on a car with 16K miles. BUT if there is a problem in production it could happen in 100 miles!!

 

and if there is a problem with the driver it could happen on one hill.

 

Just took my 09 JCW Clubman with only 14K miles off the rollback at the dealer. The clutch just failed and left me on the side of the road. This problems has been going on for the last 1-2 months and dealers would say everything was normal. Now after today things are not normal.
Hopefully now they have no choice but to replace the clutch or tear our the floor board so I can use my feet and peddle around town ..... fred flinstone style )

 

I think I will be emailing my SA and referencing this thread tonight!

I understand that they can't replace the clutch just because I said it slipped once, but I do NOT want to end up stuck by the side of the road!

 

just wanted to chime in and say my clutch has started significantly slipping as well at around 17k miles.
oh, and yes, it started slipping before i bought my alta accessport.
i have never raced in this car/beat on it heavily/burnouts etc.
just use it for my daily commute to school and work. there is no reason why a car's clutch should be slipping at this low of mileage and will definitely be calling my dealer to see what they have to say.
will keep you guys posted!

 

Makes me want to go back to owning a Honda. I have owned five Hondas with NO major problems. Very reliable cars.

 

+1

 

Mini just did my clutch at 33200 miles. The bill was $0. The new clutch feels a lot lighter than the first one. Bites down low and engages well.

 

I did have some problems with my Clutch at ~10K miles. It still worked fine and held strong but, once the car was warmed up and you were in heavy stop and go traffic it would groan/squeal if you let the clutch out slowly. Dealer replaced it and I haven't had that problem since.