So when taking my car to the dealer for a oil change yesterday, my SA said as of September MINI was discontinuing free free annual maintenance for anyone who drives over 6k miles and has to use the OBC to determine free changes. I was paying for the service anyways, so it isn't that big a deal, but does anyone know if this is true or not?

Kind of sucks for MINI to void our free services if it is!

 

It is true...

However, we paid for a service and they have taken it away. Voided our contract. So I think sooner rather than later the policy in effect at date of purchase will be the rule. What they are doing is like changing the warranty from 4/50 to 3/36, AFTER you bought the car. It's at least unethical, at worst illegal.

 

Maintenance issue, not warranty issue.
I was told the same @ dealer the other day..

 

Do we have a PDF or a link to this announcement? I am confused by the OP, if we drive over 6k miles a year (very likely) and we go by the OBC (supposed to), then our long OCI of 15k or so is no longer paid for?

 

Bullshite........they haven't voided any contract. No where in any of your service, sales, or warranty information does it say they will service the car on an annual basis - it says maintenance will be performed according to the computer - period.

You havn't "lost" a thing except a "free" yearly oil change - which is recommended by your service manual but not required, and that's because they think the car only needs an oil change when the computer says it does - I happen to disagree with this, so I change my own oil periodically in addition to what the computer tells the dealer it needs.

Much ado about an oil change, that's for sure.....

 

Oh so if you don't drive enough in a year to get the oil change to set off the OBC that says to get it serviced, then you wait until the computer says so. Seems reasonable, just drive the car and there will be no worries. I know I will hit the number to change my oil in 12 months. Heck I am used to changing my own oil every month or two depending on my amount if driving, just too many places to go to and lots of miles in between them.

I guess I am ok then.

 

-If you drive less than 6k a year, you get a free annual oil change.

-If you drive more than 6k a year you have to wait for the OBC to reach 0 to get a free one now.

What I was doing was getting my annual one free and paying for one in-between and getting one free when the OBC reaches 0. Ended up being about 5-6k in-between each.

I think this sucks because we did pay for this service with the price of the car ultimately. These things are factored into the price of the car at purchase...

 

So my car, everytime I start it up, says service at 2/1/2011. I will be over 6k at that point, but well under the 20k miles. Will it just start annoying me in Feb until I reset the light or wait until oil change at 20k?

 

Page 5 of the 2010 Service and Warranty Information booklet says "Note: Change oil at least once per year." When I talked to them MINI USA would not say this is only a recommendation and not a warranty related requirement of proper maintenance as defined on page 27.

 

It's confusing. MINI better send an official supplement to all owners ASAP.

 

It's a requirement per the 2010 MINI manual. It's a requirement per my 2008 GMC Duramax manual. It's pretty much across the OEM board a requirement.

MINI just will no longer pay for this part of our "FREE" service, even though it's a requirement.

Deal with it.

 

The MINI dealers used to call it an annual "low-mileage" oil change, but I suspect that they realized that almost everyone who doesn't drive 20k miles a year was qualifying for it because the OBC stretches out the change interval so long (I average about 21-22k miles between OBC-recommended oil changes.)

The new change sounds strictly like a money-saving move, but if MINI isn't making annual oil changes a requirement for warranty coverage, they may be within their legal rights.

 

not just mini, this policy is in effect on all bmw cars. grrrhhh!

 

Personally I could care less since I change my oil every 5K anyways. HOWEVER, if they sold the car with that policy in effect when you bought it, I would think they have to legally stick with it until you're out of your warranty

They can't change midstream. Many people bought these cars based on warranties, free oil changes, etc, etc. It would be completely and utterly unethical (at very least, illegal) to change mid-stream.

In fact, when I talked mom into buying her new 2010 MCSa, one of the selling points was the fact she had full maintenance.... (of course, I told her she still had to change her oil sooner)

Mark

 

Deal with it? Oh, I'm going to change every 7,000 miles and the dealer is too far away for just an oil change, free or not. I had at least one BMW in my garage between 1970 and 1998. Having ordered my MINI five months ago, I now have no good will left for BMW.

 

I'm still going to change my oil at the same intervals, 5-6k, but that's not the point. I bought this car assuming I get free 1 year service + whatever the computer says. It's only going to end up costing me some $65 for 1 more oil change...

If my car wasn't 6 months away from the free maintenance being up anyways, I'd get one of those bavarian autosport tools that lets you adjust the intervals manually!

My main problem with this, is that it's a little shady... Or unethical may be the better word to use.

 

That's flat out illegal. You can't sell a product saying it comes with this warranty and maintenance program and just change it midstream.

Of course, who's going to fight it?

Personally, I don't want the damn dealer changing my oil anyways, they always break something.

Mark

 

Hm, the text on miniusa.com says (in part):

"Our Boot to Bonnett Maintenance Program is one of the most comprehensive maintenance programs in its class, covering all factory-recommended maintenance for the first 3 years or 36,000 miles....And it comes with every new MINI at absolutely no cost.

Just a few of your covered maintenance items:
-Engine Oil Service
<more follows, tired of typing>...."

That language is very clear. There is only one way they can do this, and that is to say the annual oil change is not "factory-recommended maintenance".

So, a charitable interpretation would be MINI/BMW has been analyzing years of data and learned the annual oil change is unnecessary, only the changes recommended by the OBC are necessary.

A cynical interpretation would be they want to save money and believe missing the annual oil change won't result in anything major breaking before the 4 year, 50,000 mile warranty is expired.

 

I might.

Technically it's not illegal, but it would be a breach of contract which is a civil wrong or Tort.

The car sale constitutes a contract between the buyer and MINI. The terms of that contract are stipulated in the paperwork you all signed. I haven't read all the fine print but the maintenance/service program is part of the contract. Unless there is a provision in the contract that specifically allows MINI to unilaterally change the maintenance/service program they can’t without providing some form of “corrective relief”.

Essentially, we could all go to small claims court to secure that “relief” in the form of some monetary settlement. In this case each “petitioner” could file a claim for like $300-$500. Mini would have to have an attorney actually show up to answer the court. Problem with this is that Mini would probably dispute jurisdiction unless they actually had a business presence in the court’s jurisdiction.

Best and most effective way for MINI owners to address this problem would be to file a number of individual claims and get a “Class” certified. A “Class” is certified when a significant number of similar claims arise out of a similar set of facts. Then we all pursue a single “Class Action” against MINI. This would be something that MINI would most certainly not like. Not only would they probably loose (damages in the Millions), but this would also extend the “bad news” for MINI in the ugly press coverage they would get.

Anyone up for a fight?

 

" Unless there is a provision in the contract that specifically allows MINI to unilaterally change the maintenance/service program "

There is.

Again, page 5 of the service and warranty information booklet:

The mainenance requirements for your vehicle are determined dynamically by the Condition Based Service (CBS) system. The mainenance items stated herein reflect the latest information available at the time of the printing of this Statement, and are subject to change. The most current maintenance recommendations are available from your authorized Mini dealer.

The performance of certain subsequent mainenance elements, as required by the MINI New Passenger Car Limited Warranty, will be specified at intervals computed by the MINI Service Level Indicator as follows:
Oil Service: Enging oil should be changed with the enginge at operating temperature. (in bold): Note: Change oil at least once a year.

end of quote

So your warranty requires annual oil changes, and MINI provides free maintenance for three years but they won't change your oil annually anymore even if the dealer told you they would as part of the sales pitch. They will, however, make a note of your concern if you call them.

MINI customer service in the US sucks. It's the American business model.

 

The passage sighted by Hsautocrosser may allow MINI to make some reasonable and justifiable changes to the maintenance program, but that doesn't necessarily relieve them from providing reasonable compensation to the car owners. The issue is the change in value or “consideration” to the car owner that any change would represent.

Under our law, a contract is viewed to be an equitable balance of value... Each party provides something of value (the consideration) to the other that is determined to be acceptable to the each other. This is called the "meeting of the minds", it is actually a necessary component of a valid contract. If one side unilaterally changes the value of what is exchanged... you no longer have a meeting of the minds, which results in a breach.

If Mini decides to make a change in the maintenance program on a retrospective basis that results in a reduction in value of what is being provided under the contract, then MINI must provide compensation for that reduction in value.

The fact that they may have the right to make changes doesn't mean they can do so without providing reasonable compensation for the reduced value being provided to the car owner.

In fact, a court may find that the change in the maintenance/service program would cause an even larger reduction in value to the purchaser/car owner. If you want to extend the thought process you could reasonably say that the simple change in the maintenance/service program could cause the car to be significantly less valuable to the owner in the future. Further, that the reduced maintenance could be reasonably expected to cause more and earlier component failures to such an extent that the useful life of the car is compromised. You know what they say …You can pay me now, or you can pay me later.

 

I decided to dig out my Service & Warranty Information booklet and RTFM for myself. I realize everyone may not have the same version. Mine is labeled
"2010 MINI".

Based on my booklet, I would say MINI is on solid ground with this new policy, although it is *not* what was represented to me by the dealer.

Under "Coverage" it says:
The MINI Maintenance Program covers all factory recommended maintenance, as determined by the Condition Based Service (CBS) system (emphasis mine).

A little further in it says:
Exclusions from the coverage include the following:
(many items listed, but this one is particularly relevant)
-Oil changes performed outside the recommended maintenance intervals as indicated by the CBS (emphasis mine).

On the next page under "Special Note" it says:
The performance of certain subsequent maintenance elements, as required by the MINI New Passenger Car Limited Warranty (emphasis mine), will be specified at intervals computed by the MINI Service Interval Indicator as follows:
-Oil Service: Engine oil should be changed with the engine at operating temperature.
Note: Change oil at least once a year.

I interpret this to mean MINI will only pay for oil changes indicated to be necessary by the CBS. If I drive my car an insufficient number of miles in a year to trip the CBS, I will have to pay for an annual oil change myself.

I also interpret it to mean at minimum an annual oil change is a requirement of the warranty.

I would argue the CBS should be programmed to take into account it has been a year and indicate it is time for an oil change, but apparently it does not.

Again, it may be different in the warranty booklet others have received and this is definitely not the program described to me by the dealer.

 

I pointed all of this out a few days ago in the other thread on the same exact topic - I also quoted the exact same passages from my owners and service manuals, however some people believe they are OWED somehow by MINI, even tho no one ever said a word to me either in the sales process or at any of my service appointments about a 1 year free oil change - ever. I wonder how many folks complaining about it actually "heard" it right here, from other members who are absolutely convinced they've been wronged?

Class action suit? Over an oil change?

Somebody just wants to make some dough, I think.....

 

I wonder if the whole service interval policy/process has changed. When I had my first MINI scheduled oil change (had done others before) it was at about 17,000 miles. They reset the change interval and now based upon the changing interval the next service will be "scheduled" around or less than 27,000 miles - or about 10,000 miles. I wonder if they are also changing the maintenance interval?
Who can tell what they are doing.

 

If it is like mine, the next service that it is counting down to does not include an oil change. For me it effectively was nothing more than a look over of the MINI by the tech. If something were needed they would have addressed it.