Well, I just got a big surprise. Someone asked on another thread where the automatic transmission is manufactured. The consensus opinion was that it is a Aisin Agitronic made in Japan. When you you look at the Configurator, it too says that the automatic is an Agitronic.

I was looking at the window sticker I removed from my 2009 MCSa this morning. I was surprised to see that it said (upper right corner, labeled "country of origin") that the transmission is made in France. Then I noticed on the left side (under "options and additional charges") that it is a Steptronic automatic transmission. It also says "Steptronic" on my online production order, not Agitronic.

When I looked up "Steptronic", that appears to be BMW's proprietary form of a manually shiftable automatic transmission. I have no idea if this change from Aisin to BMW is a good thing, a bad thing, or just different, but it sure suprised the heck out of me!

I'd appreciate some feedback on this change from anyone who is familiar with both transmissions...thanks.

 

yep

 

Yep?

Yep what?

That Agitronic and Steptronic are different names for the same transmission? If so, why would they use "Agitronic" on the configurator and "Steptronic" on the production order and window sticker?

Or, yep, they have changed transmissions?

Confusing...

 

Thanks for the actual information regarding your transmission. It was I that posted the concern that the automatics in the 2009 Minis were no longer from Japan (Aisin). Most of the follow-up posts pretty much indicated that I was crazy for gathering information from the Internet and disputed my statement.

I actually saw a 2009 on a dealers lot in Columbus, Ohio that indicated that the auto tranny was manufactured in France also.

So.....I'm with you in your concerns and questions. Why would Mini now change suppliers? To save costs?....to improve reliability?.. Is there something wrong with the existing automatics? Will the new automatics be as reliable? For me, as a person about to order a new 2009 Mini, I would have preferred to have the automatic from Japan. I went through the whole CVT issue with our 2005 and do not want to repeat that again.

Looking forward to other comments....

 

Ay yi yi here we go again: rest assured MINI DID NOT DUMP AISIN!! I have confirmed this not only with both SAs at my 'ship, but with MINI-USA as well. Aisin World Co. products are made all over the world, including France, Germany, UK, etc etc etc. Steptronic/Agitronic = same freaking thing in theory and practice. AGGH! Quit reading between the lines!!

Oh to have the powers of a moderator to lock repeated threads like this. Wait: does NAM even have mods??

 

 

 

No before the thread is locked tell me about changing my oil.

 

:trolling: Should've got a manual :trolling:

 

Amazing! The friendly intellectual responses here are truly to be admired. YES Mini Moderator, please delete this thread as it has offended several individuals that are all knowing and have IQ's that rise far above the rest of us. "yep".

How ridiculous is to believe that an Aisin transmission made in Japan may be of higer quality than one made in France? I wonder how many individuals would buy Mini Coopers made in the USA using GM, Ford or Chrysler quality control standards? Anytime I spend 25 plus grand on a vehicle you can bet that I WILL read between the lines especially when there are changes such as "country of origin". If you don't like it I suggest you simply skip the thread and let the moderator do his or her job. I've had one bad experience with a CVT transmission and I'm going to do my best not to encounter another.

 

I still don't get it, though. When you look up Steptronic (Wikipedia), it says that it is BMW's proprietary transmission. Another variety (apparently the most common) is Tiptronic. Aisin makes the Agitronic.

If BMW's is proprietary (and it apparently is used on all of the recent BMW's), that sugggests to me that it in some way is engineered differently from the other types of manual-shift automatics. If it were merely a brand name for the same transmission, that would not be proprietary. And why would Aisin allow BMW to use their brand name of Agitronic interchangeably with Steptronic?

I'm not really concerned about reliability, and I surely don't care if it is made in France, Japan, or Outer Mongolia. It just seems unnecessarily confusing. Whoever makes store brands for Kroger, Walmart, Penneys, etc., sure as heck never allows their brand name on the products (e.g, you never see "made by Hershey" on Great Value chocolate bars at Walmart, assuming they're made by Hershey). They are able to sell their proprietary brands for more than store brands, just because they have invested heavily in brand advertising. There may or may not also be quality differences.

Again, I'm not suggesting right-wing or left-wing plots, black helicopters, or BMW skullduggery. I just don't see other instances of BMW using two labels for the same product (the engines, for example, are not labeled with the manufacturer's name).

 

You must first let the "Hot Air" out of your tires.

 

You are REALLY treading on dangerous territory here. You are thinking far too much. This thread is being monitored for thought provoking comments and questions such as yours and will be shut down, locked, etc.. You have absolutely no right to know why your auto tranny all of a sudden is now coming from France instead of Japan .

P.S. I have an email out to MiniUsa asking your same questions. Perhaps we'll get an informed civil response there.

 

Sorry, MiniDad08, I edited my post while you were replying. It says I don't really care where it is manufactured.

 

show me anywhere on this website the word "agitronic"

http://www.aisinworld.com/products/auto/drive.html

or this one:

http://www.aisin.com/product/automot...ain/index.html

Aisin is like the supreme GOD of automatic transmissions; they hold top global share. The Chevy Duramax diesel PUs I used to sell had Aisin 5 speeds hooked up to the Isuzu diesel pp. Toyota also uses Aisin.

Steptronic (what it says on my build sheet) is BMWs proprietary tech *mechanism* to operate the Aisin's electronic interface. M6s have Steptronic automatics. So do Z4s. And I am almost 100% certain those are Aisins under Steptronic control. My Toytoa mechanic believes they are the best in the world.

Check out the new 8-speed autotranny!!

Now Ive heard of Tiptronic, but only on Hyundai/KIA.

 

I dont like it because it is a repeat thread that should've been topically searched before creation--I think two others were going, at least one, with all this OMG what happened to Aisin? nonsense. NAM has way too many duped triped quaduped threads, I mean how many dealers sell at msrp or how often can I change my oil? I really need to f***ng know right now and I'm too gd lazy to search. So I'll just start a new one.

Good grief.

And rest assured: the Aisin 6 speed automatic used in the MINI is *not* a CVT. BMW dumped them hunks O shitte with the first gen cars.

 

had a VW Passat back in the 90s that had a Tiptronic option. That was so you could manually shift gears like you can now with almost any AT.

 

I recently drove a rental Hyundai Genesis that had the Tiptronic automatic. It's OK, didnt have paddles tho, and what a shame-- the V8 is very torquey and smooooooth.

 

IIRC porsche and Audi also use Tiptronic.
I saw France on the build sheet for the tranny & engine, but it didn't concern me. The whole thing's assembled in Britain. If I was concerned about reputations I wouldn't be buying a British car or an Alfa or a Fiat for that matter

All I know is I like the auto tranny- Steptipagitronic whatever it is, it shifts nicely in sport mode. The shift points in sport mode have more punch than the 3 series when manually shifted.

 

Official MiniUSA response to my question/concern of where the automatic transmissions are currently manufactured for 2009 Mini's..."Only for those who care of course" NOTE: The following answer is right out of a politician's handbook. (In the end....it's not going to matter...we're still buying one regardless. Our configured Mini was rated #1 in the funfootprint configurator) P.S. The Cabrio's were rated #4 - at least in red.

Hi Jeffery,

Thanks for writing MINI. We appreciate your interest and enthusiasm for our vehicles.

We have a special relationship with our network of suppliers to manufacture components that are exclusively built for MINI to meet our demanding quality control standards. While we empathize with your situation, we have are unable to disclose the names of our suppliers.

However, please be assured that our engineering and quality departments work closely with our suppliers to follow a systematic and efficient problem solving/improvement process. This is to achieve the best possible customer satisfaction and to actively control the fault elimination process in order to guarantee high product quality.

If there are further questions I can assist with, please feel free to drop me an e-mail. I will be happy to lend a hand.

LET’S MOTOR.

Jeremy E.
MINI Customer Relations and Services
Representative
866.ASK.MINI (275-6464)




-----Original Message-----

From: JCGray49@gmail.com
Sent: 10/14/2008 12:00:00 AM
To: miniassist <miniassist@internal>
Subject: Questions about our cars

First name: Jeff
Last name: Gray

question/comment:
Dear MiniUSA:

As a former owner of a 2005 Mini (CVT), we are now looking to purchase a new 2009 Mini automatic. Could you please let me know where the current Mini automatics are being made and who is the manufacturer? I understand it use to be Aisin in Japan and now it is made in France? Please clarify so that I can make an informed decision.

Regards,
Jeff Gray

 

That clears things up.

 

PLEASE KNOW that I was being sarcastic. I truly was interested in your post and thought you had good questions and comments. You and I were just getting beat up a little so I it was time to "switch gears" Oops...that's right, we don't have to switch gears......we have or are going to have the Steptronic/Agitronic tranny made by somebody somewhere.

Time for a Mini break from all of this. I'm still looking forward to getting back into a Mini after selling Stewie for CVT issues.

 

Yep....certainly going to make me sleep better tonight. I guess I should just be happy that I'm going to get a real transmission instead of one that runs on a rubber band (CVT) like my old Stewie.... I still miss him regardless.

 

Made all over the world to reduce CoGs, but do Filipinos in Japan make them any worse than North Africans in France? The same melamine sourced from China is used to boost the perceived protein content throughout.

 

What a BS reply Jeremy "E." gave . BTW the first sign of good customer service is accountability. Not providing your full name is obviously a sign of a lack of accountability, ergo poor customer service.