I noticed a sudden exhaust leak in the middle of the vehicle. Inspection revealed above a square plate, in the middle of the chassis, a bracket welded to the stainless pipe had apparently broken at the weld causing a leak. Is this event unique to me? If not, has MINI taken responsibility for the defect? I ran over nothing, no damage noted at the site.

 

If you're still under warranty they will fix it for you, otherwise just take it to a good muffler shop, they can weld it right back up for you.

Seems to only happen to JCW's. My buddies '06 did the same thing in the same place, and there have been several threads discussing this issue.

 

Thanks MINIdave. Did the previous owners with the problem attribute the weakness (in JCWs) to the fact that it's a stainless piece?

 

I don't think it had anything to do with being made out of stainless, I think it's just a weak weld somehow - they all break in the exact same place.

My buddy's car was still in warranty so they replaced his with new stuff.

Most of the other guys who's pipe broke just had it welded up, no biggie...

 

Same thing happened to my JCW. I was on the extended warranty, so it was NOT covered.

 

Everyone remember: If welding on the car, disconnect the battery first or you may fry your ECU and/or other highly sensitive electronics.