I am curious if anyone else is running into the costs i have in the last 15 months of ownership. I leased brand new 16 months ago.

So far the windshield sparkled after three months and had to be replaced
The front brakes were shot after 19000 km and had to be replaced

A gasket on the turbo intake was defective from day one from the factory and blew out apprx 15000 km and had to be replaced as it was melting other parts of the engine and affecting the air intake for turbo.

To do an oil change and flush and air filters will cost 400 plus? oil changed already once at 10 km. That needs to be done now at 19800 km?

the sway bar rattled away and had to be adjusted.

To me the quality of this brand is below standards out there considering the price of these cars. I'm on a 39 month lease and wondering what other surprises of regular maintenance and unexpected are coming in that time.

I had to ask the service shop to layout the maintenance schedule /apprx costs for this as it is not in any manual i can find.

 

Obviously, I'm right in the same boat. At least you didn't buy yours. When I spoke to MINI USA they said that sometimes there's a buyback program on leases if you're really unhappy with it or if it proves to be unreliable.

 

Sorry to hear that, i don't even know how to get in touch with mini canada or who that even is? BMW Lease? Ill update when i know more.

 

Everything you listed is covered under warranty or maintenance. Where is the cost to you at this time? Am I missing something?

 

As a counterpoint to the OP's experience, I note that my 07 MCS now has 26K miles. I change the oil and filter every 5K miles, and to date the sum total of problems I have had with the car amount to:
- one fuse blown from a loose (easily corrected ) connection at the cigarette lighter socket.

Otherwise, the car has been impeccable. I find the quality outstanding.

 

crap windshield not under warranty. brakes replaced not under warranty. thank you.

 

The brakes should have been, they are here in the US.

 

19000 km (<12,000 miles) for a front brake job?

Your daily commute must suck.

 

Brakes are covered under warranty in the U.S. Also, the windshield is covered in the U.S. through your insurance, because it's a safety hazard and will not increase your deductible. I would give BMW CA a call to see if the brakes should have been covered and call your insurance to see if they should have picked up the tab for the windshield. I don't know the laws in Canada, but the worst thing that can happen is they say no.

 

I had my rotors and pads changed under warranty @ 35,000miles. But that was in the US.

I am on my fourth windshield, one from something thrown off another vehicle, one from a stone, and one because the company that installed the third windshield did it incorrectly. All covered by my insurance or the glass installer's, all without increasing my premium.

All scheduled services are covered under warranty for the first 36,000 miles, including oil changes.

Overall very happy with my 2006 MCS. Certainly no issues of quality control.

 

Mini Canada never covered maintenance like in the US.

You get a 4-year warranty covering mechanical components but nothing like oil changes, filters, or wear items like brake pads or wiper blades are covered.

As an added "bonus" a Mini Cooper S starts at $27 K US dollars in Canada.

 

I’ve had a new clutch and flywheel at 5000-km, headlight leveler wiring harness failed in the first year, rear fog light wiring corroded shortly after the headlight issue, intake tube kept blowing off until finally replaced, hood release cable broke as did the left hand hood latch, unfortunately not at the same time so it meant multiple trips to the dealer, timing chain replaced in june and I’m convinced my clutch is on it’s way out, I’ve been smelling burnt clutch at 4000 rpm in 4th gear.

Do I think there are build quality issues with these cars… of course I do. It is quite unfortunate because it is fantastic car otherwise. If BMW can’t get a handle on their manufacturing problems I fear the mini will go the way of Chrysler or Lada, it will become a joke in the auto industry.

Fortunately my car is leased so I’m not stuck with it and there has never been an issue concerning warranty coverage, but it is always 2 trips to the dealer for every issue, one to identify the problem and the second for the scheduled repair. At 150 kms round trip, and the 2.5 - 3 hrs away from work it starts to add up.

I really want to get another one when my lease is up but I’ll have to get my head examined first.

Having said all that… I do love my mini.

 

Actually brakes are covered under "Maintenance Program" in the US, not the car's warranty. Unfortunately we have no such program in Canada.

Yeah--windshield should be covered by comprehensive insurance (which is a smart move IMO on a new car). My dad's windshield cracked and it was replaced same day we called, and they never asked for the deductable.

 

No way I'm getting another Mini when I sell this one. It has been a headache-inducing car from day one.

Sure, when it works, it's a beautiful thing to drive. But everyday I find it more and more true that it should be regarded as a weekend toy, not a daily driver.

 

That said.

The car does have it quality issues but it the most unique car out there and nothing is more fun to drive. i'm stuck on mini hopefully but the quality has to improve. i still have the rattle which sucks and another trip to the service department. Im in vancouver so its stop and go all day long.

I was not offered a maintenance program. just the standard 80000km warranty at time of lease.

My car was 34000 cad dollars all in.

happy motoring.

 

2007 MCS: immediately needed a software update to get voice activation working, had to have the timing chain tensioner replaced due to design flaw, tail pipes were moved inward slightly to reduce risk of burned legs. I don't recall any other problems that I didn't cause.

IIRC, my 1990 Acura Integra (also the first year of a major model change) had more teething problems. However, it is still going strong at 20 years (this October).

My expenses have mostly been modifications I chose to do.

I chose to replace the brake pads with Carbotech 1521 Bobcats to eliminate brake dust, and get rid of the grabby feel of the OEM pads.

I chose to upgrade the HIFI system (and am enjoying the process). I chose to remove the rear seat, and add a lot of soundproofing.

I chose to replace the heavy OEM wheels and runflat tires with light-weight wheels and non-runflat tires.

Added a ScanGaugeII because I think it is important to have a coolant temp. gauge.

Changed the oil myself at around 1,500 miles, and again at 6,800 miles because I don't believe MINI's 19,000 miles is often enough.

I chose to replace the funky plastic shift **** with a more ergonomic wooden ****.

I chose to add a 19mm rear sway bar (probably a mistake).

I chose to add adjustable lower rear control bars to be able to adjust rear camber.

I may add front camber plates, and an Alta PRS to reduce the jumpiness on rough pavement while turning.

Yes, I've spent much more money on this car than I did with my last two cars, but I've had fun doing it.

 

Robin,

I am curious about your comment on the rear sway? 19 mm is just about right in my opinion. Just wanted to hear yours.

Also, the fixed front camber plates are good enough for most situations. I have the adjustables but rarely adjust them because it is difficult for me to measure toe. More negative front camber can help with the jumpiness.

 

I have an 07 MCS and there is only 2 warranty items that have had to be done on it. One was the tailpipe recall. The second was the clutch pedal was binding and kept sticking so they took car of that.

 

Mine is the H-Sport 19mm. I started with it in the middle position and it got rather tail-happy. I've now got in the minimal position and it is more civilized, but I'm not sure it was the right mod to do. Might have been better off with adjusting camber front and rear. I'm just learning, so...

Thanks. The jumpiness is really starting to bug me, but I don't want to add NVH (noise, vibration, harshness) after doing so much sound insulation work.

 

I like the MINIs because there are no unexpected costs, at least here in the US. We did have one windscreen go, so we got the windscreen insurance with the current MINIs, and the extended maintenance. At this rate there should be no unexpected costs for at least 4 years.

So far the current 2 have cost us nothing extra, apart from tires.