I recently figured out that you can buy a maintenance contract anytime you want from a MINI dealer for about $1999.00 for 3 years.

My clutch went out recently and my maintenance contract had expired.

The new clutch and flywheel installation on a JCW is $4000+.

The dealer recommended I buy a new maintenace contract for $1999 for 3 years. Sounds like alot BUT I did it and I got a free clutch and flywheel, new brakes free front and rear, (all labor included) and other free items that would have cost far more than the $1999. AND I still am covered for 3 more years.

It can pay for itself 3 times over instantly. Something to think about.

It worked for me.

 

Great that they helped you out, but a few questions:

Did your maintenance agreement (3 yr, 36K miles) expire, or was it your MINI warranty (4 yr, 50K miles)? If the latter, the clutch would have been replaced under the factory warranty if you had less than 50K miles. Did you purchase a MINI extended warranty, or a commercially available car repair plan?

In my (non-MINI) experience, a dealer can usually sell you a factory extended warranty (you'll get offers in the mail) if you are within 90 days of the end of your original factory warranty. The dealer can sell you a non-factory repair contract (essentially an insurance policy which may be used at specific repair centers) almost any time. I just heard a radio ad for a commercial warranty available for any car with "less than 120,000 miles". I don't have experience with non-factory repair plans, but it seems they can be helpful in covering some major repairs in older cars.

 

The clutch is in the same class as the brake pads and oil changes -- it's not covered under the warranty, it's covered under the maintenance plan. Unless the clutch is actually proven to be faulty for some reason, it was probably just normal wear and tear then what he would have needed was the maintenance plan.

 

No, the clutch and flywheel are covered under the MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT, not the warranty. Check it out...it's true.

The 2010 JCW Mini Cooper comes with a 3 year Maintenance Agreement and a 4 year warranty. Mt Mainterance Agreement had expired four months before all this happened. My warranty is still good until next March. Even though the Maintenance Agreement had expired, they sold me a new one covering the next 3-years.

This was all done by South Bay Mini in California, by the way. The nicest people and most professional...and they don't mind if you have your wheels dipped or painted or any other external goodies on the car.

By the way, I have a free sports car and exotic car photoblog that I work on for fun. I have over 15,000 of the best car photos in the world on it to date (8-19-13) and 414,000 views currently. If you like car photos, come take a look!
Click here: http://www.lotustalk.com/forums/f23/...ml#post2380713

 

My new JCW clutch is working flawlessly!

 

Glad everything is back working as it should! I have a automatic trans in my current MINI S Convertible, and haven't had to think about replacing a clutch for about 25+ years.

I'm waiting on delivery of my 2014 JCW Roadster, was considering the need for an extended warranty and/or extended maintenance agreement... Can I ask what the cost was to extend your maintenance agreement for 3 more years?

 

The cost was $1999. If you have to replace brakes, rotors, or a clutch...it's worth it. Keep an eye on it through, and get your Mini in to the dealer for a go through before it runs out in 2017...