You don't have to put up with that. The turn signal volume is adjustable in our 2009 model cars. Maybe it is in yours as well. You access the volume control through the radio.

 

I don't experience this in my wife's car at all. I think the auto is a great transmission. He car hauls you know what. It is very quick for an auto. I am very surprised every time I drive it. She gets an average of 31.6 MPG and my car which is a stick is getting slightly less. (I drive more aggressively than her.)

 

The more I drive my 03 MCS, the more I'm starting to really hate the HORRIBLE throttle response right off of idle. It feels like there is a 2 second delay between what the gas pedal does, and then when the engine responds.

 

+1 on the crane my neck at traffic lights to see if its red or green, I stop so far back when the lights are close together. Im 6'2" its a big pain
+1 on sliding armrest quite annoying

And brake dust is impossible to keep under control

 

Thinking better, I hate the almost useless curtain beneath the sunroof, I´d like much more a solid lid in order to keep away the sun rays.

 

I ended up buying the "Light in Sight" (I think that's what its called) to help me see the traffic lights. I'm 6'1" and was always struggling to see.

+1 on the sliding arm rest, it almost useless and I'm tempted to glue it shut.

+1 on the brake dust as well.

Other than that the only thing I don't like about my MINI are the run flat tires.

Percy

 

Dumb question, but how does one do that. My blinker drives me crazy it is so loud. I sometimes turn it off when sitting at a a light becuase of all the noise.

Thanks,
Spencer

 

Brake dust but I fixed it. My '09 had silver wheels, always dirty, my new '11 i got with graphite color wheels now the dust doesn't show all the time!

 

Can't get the drain plug off without getting hot oil splashed on yourself , and on the ground. Also hard to get oil filter off without making a small mess :(
Rough ride with Runflats.
Still love driving it though

 

http://lightinsight.com/work.aspx
I'm 6'1". I feel your pain. I'm not sure if this gizmo is still available, but you might want to check it out.
If you ever decide to replace your factory wheels, consider gloss black Rota-rb's- between washes I just dust off the polished lip with a Viva paper towel moistened with Griot's Speed Shine. As long as there is not a large build up, you could use it to clean any kind of wheels in very little time.
I was very apprehensive about not ordering the armrest- don't miss it a bit. They can be removed.
I hope at least one of these hints might help.
I don't "hate" anything about my Mini, just a very few itty-bitty dislikes

 

i hate where the air conditioning vents are located. i end up freezing my hands on the steering wheel while the rest of me is hot. and once you have them almost resonably adjusted they won't stay put!!!

also, how easily the windshield chips. looks dirty all the time but they are all tiny chips!!! similar thing happens to the paint on the hood.

 

Use a polish on the wheels. I use RejeX and it makes the wheels much easier to clean.

 

As far as the drain plug goes....it's the same with every other car out there

For the oil filter...just unscrew it a few turns a let it drain for about 5min before you take it off.....I can change the oil and not get a drop on the ground

As far as the runflats...yeah, they stink!!

 

Where in the world are you driving? I don't believe MINI has anything to do with the making of the windshield, fairly certain they get it from an outside vendor who probably makes windshields for many car brands. This sounds like a cause from the type of roads you drive on.

And if they are all tiny chips...you need to replace that ASAP. especially if there are as many as you say. One of those chips just need a decent size pot hole and it can easily spread out.

 

Same thing happened to both of the windshields I had in my '09 MCS. Pits, cracks, chips...everywhere.

 

Kind of curious as to why an entire thread was made for everything you hate about your own car? Confusing to me.

I've driven plenty of gen 2 MINI's and never really found any of the "problems" everyone is calling problems here...

The sunroof? Of course having a sunroof is going to be louder than not having one at high speeds. That's simply because you can't put any sound dampening material on glass.

Brake dust...it's kind of a fact of life with any car with actual rims, and not steel wheels with hubcaps.

Windows? Fixed with the gen 2's. They have auto windows.

Rough ride with run flats? What in the world...this one just really boggles my mind. I've driven through the pot hole infested roads of DC in a MINI and never once thought the ride was rough. Does it ride as smooth as a 7 series? Heck no. But then again I don't want it to. It's a MINI, I want to feel the road.

Throttle response was apparently fixed in the gen 2's as well. At least I have never noticed poor throttle response off the start.

Anyways...I think it's quite odd that a group of people on a forum about their cars would want to start an entire thread about hating their own cars.

 

Because nothing's perfect, and most of us feel that, for all the fantastic things our MINIs have, there are also some pretty annoying--or even asinine--design flaws and issues.

Like the front drink holders in the Countryman that are about worthless.

 

+1

 

advise: start a thread about why you think people that start threads about what they hate about their car is pointless because everything about the car is perfect and forums are not meant for talking about their cars

 

The run-flats and brake dust are easy to fix, step up to 17s or 18s and save the old wheels for winter tires, and then swap out for ceramometallic brake pads, 90% less dust, one hour or so home-grown labor, and about $50. Problem solved. Got mine at Advance Auto, very good for parts store pads, stop great w/o being "grabby" like the old ones, and ......... so so so much less dust its absurd. Bust out the wrenches .............
Now, for the sunroof too bright, the windows wash you when it rains and you try to order at the drivethrough and the sucky cupholders, well ........ +1s on all. :(
Are you listening, BMW?

 

I hate that I work until midnight!
I can not Fully Detail my Mini Properly, nor work on it..

Clubman S Turbo, you mentioned changing out to ceramometalic brake pads.

Some pads are hard like glass and will last forever but do not grip.. (But they will lock up if pressed hard enough)
Some are soft (Like pillows) and have a very smooth and consistant (easy to control) sensitivity which will stop you so fast your eyes will stretch beyond your driving glasses.
So, what brake pads do you (or anyone else) recommend for maximum braking?
Is there one that works best for normal city driving? Not roadracing, but fun, spirited less than 50 mile days playing in traffic and some additional miles out on the Highway?

 

It's really quite easy. I have the up level stereo system in our cars. If you look in the Operating Instructions for the Radio Boost CD you will see the directions. It a black multifold folder.

On one side it says overview, radio, satellite radio, USB/Audio Interface and then if you turn the folder over you will see Settings, CD, Computer CD changer.

If you open up the portion that says settings you will see a yellow heading that says adjust tone. Under Adjust tone you will see Lows (bass), Highs (treble), volume distribution left/right (balance), front/rear (fader) PDC volume, CHIME.

There you go. The CHIME is the way that you set the turn signal volume. So according to the directions on my sheet you will push the bottom on the radio that shows the music note. Then you press briefly the (I can't describe the picture) then you turn the main volume know below and press it briefly and then go back to press the button that I can't describe.

The simple answer is to get out the book from the books you got when you bought the car. If you do not have up level radio then this may not work. This is for the up level radio in the 2009 car.

There is all kinds of things that you can change and adjust. You just have to sit in the car with the book (folder) and try to follow along. It drove me nuts too because it was so loud. I just kept reading the owners manual, didn't see nothing in there so then looked at the radio directions thinking it just has to be adjustable. It's simple if you have the book.

If you don't have it I can scan a picture of this and try to put it online but I can't do it tonight. Not up to it. Got a bug and I'm kinda sick.

Hope that helps.

Pat

 

On all my other 4 vehicles, the drain plug is on the bottom side of the oil pan. You can unscrew it to a point , and then quickly pull the plug away. On the Cooper ( well mines anyway) the drain plug is on the bottom of the pan. As you loosen the plug, hot oil runs onto your hand. No way to pull the plug away without the "Splash" Unless you loosen the plug, then wait for 10-15 mins. to slow drain. As for my oil filter , it drains onto the other engine components to the drain pan. Is your Cooper engine oil plug/filter setup different from my 2011?

 

I think you got the wrong interpretation of this subject. I believe all of us adore our Mini's. Its just our ( well mines anyway) hope that maybe some of these "small" complaints can one day reach someone up in the Mini design section, and be taken cared of, just as you stated were repaired on the 2nd gen. cars. Then you'll have a better designed Mini. Just my opinion. As for the runflats, my back hurt when I first got my new Mini,but now I'm getting used to it. I don't know if the ride is rough because of the runflats, or my sport suspension from the factory.

 

Well I certainly don't think MINI's are perfect. I just don't get the use of the word "hate" on a car that you are willing to join a forum about. I certainly am not looking to join a forum about the 97 toyota corolla I currently have before my own MINI comes in, which I certainly have a list of things I hate about that car.

What cars are people comparing their MINI's to? Just curious. Because I guess in my immediate comparisons I would be comparing it to the 97 corolla (which the MINI is better in ever single way possible...other than maybe reliability), a jaguar, and a BMW. All have terrible cup holders, so that's certainly not an issue with me. I'm certainly not thinking that a MINI should have as good and smooth of a ride as a BMW and Jag. And brake dust, well...BMW's are just as bad. So honestly, yea...I have nothing to complain about with a MINI. It's the most fun car I have ever driven, and that certainly trumps any "problems" it might have.

I'll just take it that all of you see the glass half empty. That's fine. So many negative nancy's out there...

And really...the problem I have is the word "hate" in the thread title. that's all.