I returned my 2007 Mini Cooper S off lease today, finally!

Everything that could go wrong on my car did. frozen intake, melted hood scoop, broken sunroof, broken timing chain pulley, etc... my car had been in the shop for very nearly the same amount of time it'd be on the road. No surprise that I decided to return it rather than buy out the lease.

Many of the problems with the vehicle have existed since new and have never been fixed. Mini / BMW's outright refusal to honor the terms of the support agreement and warranty are frankly appalling. I don't think I have dealt with a more dishonest company in my life, actually it is a tie for BMW and the dealership. Some of the issues are related to build quality but most are basic engineering issues that a high school physics student could easily figure out. Don't put plastic on top of a hot turbo, if you make the sunroof bigger put in a bigger sunroof motor, if you put in every electrical doodad known to man you might want to put in a bigger battery to handle it, and so on. If you want to read a horror story go through my old comments, I won't bother to rehash all that's past.

But on a fall day in the Canadian Rockies with a twisty road in front of you, you could almost forget everything that was actually wrong with the car and enjoy yourself. My mini was so close to greatness in some ways, yet fell far short in areas that most drivers take for granted. My mistake was assuming that BMW was able to make a reliable car for year round enjoyment above the 53rd latitude. Simply put, they can't or at least they won't for me.

I've bought a Nissan for day to day driving. The cost was less for a new Nissan than the lease buyout on my mini, the only threat I have with my Nissan is being bored to death. So, I'm also saving my pennies for something special in a few years, a sportscar that I can forgive strange issues with just because it is so good and so exotic that the issues are part and parcel of ownership... a Lotus Elise (as a weekend car). No question my Mini got me hooked on sporty driving and I want more, allot more.

My thanks to many people on this board for their patience, sympathy and assistance. And best wishes to all, you're a great group of folks.

 

Goodbye and goodluck, sorry you had so many problems. A Lotus Elise as a weekend car is a good thought, but make sure your AAA towing is in force before getting to far out in the boondocks.

 

The saddest part of your story is that BMW/MINI didn't go out of their way to satisfy you. Being on a lease should have nothing to do with quality of service.

If you are considering spending Lotus-type money, you might look at the Porsche Cayman/Boxter. They are exceptionally well built, get good gas mileage, and perform better than most cars.

 

I know exactly how you feel. I cannot wait till the day my wife tells me she is ready to get rid of hers.

 

I love how its always the people who average less then a tenth of a post a day who come out at the end of their ownership to complain about the brand. Had they posted throughout their ownership they probably would have gotten the advice needed to make their MINI more enjoyable to them.

Alternate dealerships that will go above and beyond, who to talk to at MINI, where to write a letter, etc. There is so much information here to those who want it that it is really hard to not get a good lead to have your issue resolved.

 

I've always felt pretty much the same way as the OP though- owning my MINI the past 2 years has been extremely frustrating at times, and the dealer is never any help. 90% of the time I want to get rid of it as soon as I can. Somehow, when I get the car out on the old twisty country roads, none of that seems to matter.

 

True Jeremy, but some folks feel they must take one last parting shot.

 

Just one question - Who is got almighty!

 

The mini is a car just like others, yea maybe sometimes someones gets stuck with one that needs extra care, and yes there are dealers that are not the best. However, sometimes we need to look at ourselves, how we maintain the car, how much we beat on it, or Mod it, or do with it things that it was not really designed to do. The Mini in my eyes is not a car that is for everyone, it has its quirks, but trashing it here does not serve anyone. Just my thoughts, with almost everything in life. I would rather fix or work out any problem, then sit and complain about it. Just my 2 cents

 

I'm sorry to hear that your relationship with MINI/BMW has been so frustrating. I hope that your future Lotus or other sports car turns out to be trouble-free and wish you the best of luck with the new car.

As one poster mentioned above, you may want ti give some honest consideration to a Cayman or Boxster.

 

For everyone who thinks that buying a Porsche is going to be the best experience they can imagine, a little advise. I worked PT for a Porsche only repair shop for 10 years. it was a real learning experience, 99% of the customers came there cause the dealers were the worst they ever dealt with when it came to repairs and pricing. As mentioned above there is good and bad in everything, but dont think for a second that Porsche dealers give the best service out there. I owned 1 for 17 years, and i can tell you what i was told on more then a few occassions, while at dealerships, "We are here to sell new cars, not repair old ones"

 

No dealership has quality "MECHANICS." Most quality mechanics reside at Bosch authorized service centers or good garage and restoration repair facilities. The thugs that walk around dealerships just wait for the computer to tell them what to do next and what size wrench to pull out.

To the OP....sorry to hear about your bad experiences. I can't say that I am surprised. This appears to be the cause quite often. BUT...you will be very bored, very quickly with a Nissan.

 

I'm the owner of a relatively trouble-free MCS with over 36k miles and finally got my dealer straightened out to where that part of the ownership experience is not so bad. I finally got the tensioner replaced and there have been no other problems with the car. No major complaints, but I still want to move on to the next vehicle. That is not MINI's fault. I probably need a 12-step program for my automotive addiction.

So without knocking the MINI, the only cars of the almost 30 I have owned that I would buy new again would be a Jeep Wrangler (I have owned 6 Jeeps and shopping for another) and a Miata (I owned an '07). For anyone looking for a replacement sports car other than the MINI, I highly recommend the 2009+ Miata... very dependable, very simple compared to the MCS, RWD, and a blast to drive. My MINI ownership lesson is that I prefer simple, purposeful designs in my vehicles going forward.

 

IMO he deserves a parting shot. His MINI was a piece of carp & he is glad to be out of his lease, no harm no foul. I don't understand how some folks seem to take offence when a person comes here not singing the praises of MINIdom. Some are wonderful cars & some are not. The OP was in the latter group.

I'm also the owner of a relatively trouble free 80,000 mile MINI. I'd buy another new one if they still built R53's.

Good luck oneway.

 

....having said that I agree with some ppl here. Ive had my 06' r53 since Jan. Its relatively low mileage i think(33k). And since owning it ive had just about every issue go wrong with it. Mushroomed strut tower, my PTO gears are shot, I got the Chewwy clutch. BUT, I love the car to death. I wanted one since they were released. Did my research and knew what i was getting myself into, just didn't expect to all happen before i owned the car for a year. Maybe some ppl should do a little research before buying a new car. They are a costly investment. And if you did the research you would know that they are quirky little things. So i blame the consumers not the cars. Just my 2 pennies.

 

Here's $0.02 in change. Research prior to a purchase is a good thing... and one would find and could even assume buying a MINI is not going to provide the same ownership experience as a Honda. However, the problems that a lot of owners have experienced are either design, quality, or service related. These types of "quirks" are entirely the responsibility of the manufacturer and its dealer network. Sure the potential buyer should research.

In the real world defects are defects, not quirks. Defects cannot be blamed on the buyer. A quirk might be the awkward radio controls or the fact the toggles work in either direction. A quirk is not a poor-design timing chain tensioner going bad and the dealership making you jump through hoops just to replace it.

I agree with you in that I tell anyone interested in a MINI to do the research and realize that MINI/BMW products are lots of fun to drive, generally very good cars, but may have some reliability issues that have to be ironed out. If I know the person, I cannot offer a blanket recommendation to buy a MINI without the disclaimer.

 

You got a crap car. Sorry to hear that. Good bye and good luck with your Nissan.

 

The Elise has a 4-cylinder Toyota engine - they're very reliable little cars. The things that break are stuff like a loose trunk seal, or the AC glitching out. The engines are designed to be thrashed at the track, can easily handle regular driving on public roads.

 

Sir:

You complain of reliability and manufacturer issues with our Mini, then tell us your dream car is a Lotus.

This is almost an oxymoron.

I've had Lotii. I've had collapsed suspension in an Elite because the metal parts were bonded to flimsy fiberglass. I've had electrical nightmares with both an Elan and a Europa. I've had shifter mechanisms disassemble themselves under a Europa S on the Hollywood freeway on the Friday before Labor Day.

I've had the dual remote master cylinders freeze up on I70 in Colorado so that I had no brakes over Vail Pass.

I've driven through Kansas thunderstorms with windshield wipers that tore themselves loose from the plastic firewall and ripped part of the windshield cowling away when they did.

I have had the Turbo in an Esprit simply explode and fragment itself through the rear deck. Try buying turbo Esprit motor and rear deck.

And what did the manufacturer do with all of this? They went out of business so that the only parts to be had came from the one Lotus dealer left in the nation and he was in Santa Barbara.

I bought a $79K car and sold its remains three years later for $15K and considered myself lucky to have gotten that much.

Stick with your Nissan, Sir. You'll find it very reliable. You will also find it has no soul.

I've found Mini in general, and my dealership in particular to be honorable folks who produce a very complex little car and then stand behind it when it misbehaves. And they are still there. I have every confidence that they will not fold and sneak away in the night.

I've also found that one profits from dealing with them professionally. We are in this together, Mini, the dealer and I. I will find no relief from insulting them. They must prosper so that I can prosper. That's the way it works.

Good luck with your Nissan, Sir. And by the way, as we speak, my daughter's Pathfinder has dumped her on the side of the road in Washington, DC. It has a well-known defect whereby the transmission cooler somehow soaks up some antifreeze from the radiator and circulates it through the gearbox. Nissan is aware of the problem. They say is happens to many Pathfinders at about 120K miles. They also say its out of warranty and a new gearbox is about $8K. They sell a kit to fix it. It has a new gearbox, radiator, and transmission cooler. She doesn't have the money to fix it. She just spend $3200 on replacing its catalytic converters -- all four of them.

My Mini will stay with me. It isn't perfect. Neither am I. We're a good team.

 

Sorry to hear that. The worst part about it is now that all those things are fixed its probably gonna be a very reliable car. Good luck with the Nissan!

 

hehehehehe

 

Sincerely I am not dumping on anyone here, I am grateful for the support I found on this board when I first purchased this car and had dreams that it would last longer than three years. Yes I am taking a parting shot... a little but I am ecstatic that this issue is finally over, so are my co-workers and friends who wonder what I'll have to ***** about now that the mini debacle is over.

My new Nissan is working fine, zero defects, just like my last Nissan, and Acura, as I stated my only concern is being bored to death.... cvt transmissions bleach but they get the job done.

My old mini had the personality of Jekyll and Hyde, summertime is lovely, but when winter rolls around watch out, really the issues centered around cold mostly, except the sunroof which would only work when too cold to be of use.My mini was a fair weather friend. The problems I had with the car when new are still the problems I have with the car. I am isolated, the next closest mini dealership is 300km to the south. finding another dealership was never practical.

BMW/mini Canada was made well aware of the problems with my car,they offered aplologies and a 250$ gift certificate. All I wanted was a safe, fun car. Instead I had a car that went into limp home mode on the freeway on ramp, and stalled out during turns. In total it was completely undrivable or in for service for five months of a 39 month lease,. I have no idea how anyone can justify the pathetic pile of garbage that was my car. My dealership even made it clear that they had no intention of reselling the car, it will go back to mini to be a certified pre-owned pile of crap.

One moment made everything clear for me. Stuck at an intersection, madly pressing the start button, with my five and two year old strapped into the backseat. A garbage truck coming at me at 60kph that barely stopped with inches to spare.

From that moment on things changed, I hate Mini, I hate BMW and I hate anyone who agrees with them that cars the quality of mine should be allowed on the road.

I will be happy with my boring Nissan, and happy when I get a Lotus too, Toyota mechanicals and no back seat for kids to worry about.

 

Bravo oneway.... That was a great response.

 

VW, Toyota, and Nissans are crap...I've had nothing but electrical, recall, and engine problems and wasted more money than Tiger Woods playing Hide-N-Seek at a strip club.

I've had no issues with my wife's 07 R56 MCS HB and getting ready to trade it in for her new Countryman MCS ALL4.

I've had no issues with my wife's 08 R55 MCC; just turned it in Feb 10.

I've had some issues with my wife's 07 R52 MCS; but they were all fixable.

I had two choices for cars; HONDA or MINI...I wanted the HONDA. My wife chose the MINIs.

We all have problems with our cars and it doesn't matter what brand they are...but my best luck has always been with HONDA and the MINI.

Good luck and be safe.

 

if that's the case, then you'd have to hate pretty much every auto maker on the planet. while your own absolutely horrible experience was with BMW/MINI, i can guarantee there are hundreds or thousands of equally horrid narratives for every other auto maker out there.

the fact is, it doesn't make any economic sense for car companies to make 100% of their cars completely reliable and with a certain level of performance and personality. hence, we have stories like yours. my stating the obvious doesn't mean i don't empathize/sympathize, of course. it just means that, like a very good number of MINI owners, i thank the stars that my 09 MCS hasn't had any trouble to date and i'll keep hoping/praying it stays that way.