I am a Quality Engineer working in the automotive industry, and I just received a report on the J.D. Powers survey concerning quality ratings of vehicles both foreign and domestic. I am deeply concerned about the rating that the Mini received. It was rated next to last among fifty different automobiles. The ratings were based on mechanical quality and body and interior quality. What really concerns me is that the KIA was rated better than the Mini. Everybody in the automotive industry knows that the KIA is a piece of junk. I have a Mini on order, and now that I have read this report, I'm not too crazy about getting it. If anybody out there can make me feel better about the Mini, please help me. :???:

 

Don't listen to what a stupid survey says......listen to the people that already own MINIs and base your opinion on that. Your MINI is bound to have some quirks....they are just now going into the second year of production. I LOVE my car. I am totally sure that I have made the right decision. If I saw some survey that told me that I was not making the right decision....well screw them. I have been completely happy. I love the way the MINI looks and performs. You need the opinions of people that actually own and drive MINIs every day.....I do and I have no regrets. Where is this survey? I want to read it and show it to other people I know that work in the automotive industry and see what they think.

 

And by the way....welcome to MiniCooperOnline.....if you want to feel good about your decision, you have come to the right place to do just that.....you will learn alot on here!

 

Only time can truly tell how well a car is built. I wouldn't stop my order on a MINI because of a JD POWERS report. You have to also remember the Mini has not built up a reputation in the car community as of yet, its too new. That is most likely why it is low on their list. After 2-3 years being in the market I am sure you will see it climg in the ranks.

just my 2 cents.
__________________________________________
Black MCS, All Options, Nav, 17's, Lapis Blue Leather

 

Heres a link to JD Powers

http://www.jdpa.com/studies/search.asp?CatID=1

some awards and stuff

 

I never listen to those reports. Remeber a few years ago when VW was getting accolaids for the build quality in the new jettas and bettles. Well if you talk to a jetta or new bettle owner, they will problem start on a tangent on how thier car is just falling apart, litterally (happended to a friend of mine) Also JD power and associates is a big supporter of chrysler and jeep products, has anyone here owned a chrysler or jeep and would say it was problem free? Don't get me started, I had a grand cheroke that had the engine replaced at 15,000 miles, and the nightmare continued. Don't worry about the reports, esp if your car hasn't even been built yet, it seems like mini is working out thier quirks on a daily basis

 

MINI_S_ALL_BLACK is right.....JD Powers is sending a survey out to MINI owners....I just completed mine the other day. It asks you all sorts of questions about the car. They are trying to gather as much information as they can....as time goes on it should affect the rank of the car in their surveys.....

 

I find this truly hard to swallow. I've got almost 8k on Molly, and although that is not many miles in the grand scheme, I think it is certainly enough to get pretty familiar with the car. I don't know that I can honestly say that it has the BEST quality, especially for some interior items, but I can say that it FEELS (feels includes the whole gammit from performance to ergonomics and the rest.) much better than many of the SLEW of other cars I have ever been in. I am very happy with the MINI.

Although it is likely that BMW used some cheaper parts to contain cost, I would be surprised if they would have gone so far as to risk their reputation for quality by producing a vehicle as sub-par as that survey seems to suggest.

Time will tell.

By the way, here is a quote from J.D. Powers 2002 APEAL study (Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout) which should give you a better real-world opinion:

_________________
Molly is a PS/B MC, with all 3 pkgs, CVT, + NAV system - and that little shark-fin antenna! (too much fun!)

 

Another thing to consider; the MINI has a unique owner base that is VERY interested in their MINIs. Just look at the forum and you will see that owners get excited about any little quirk. I believe that some of the "problems" reported by MINI owners would be overlooked by less enthusiastic owners. It is almost like a MINI is a pet or child. We overreact and take them to the doctor at the first sign of trouble!

I think you'll be more than pleased with your MINI...maybe not your dealer, but that's another story

 

It seems most of these surveys and reports look at an entirely different set of criteria than we do - like Consumer Reports saying that every car I've ever owned was unsafe - Yeah! Right! Sure! ... what do they know?!

 

>>I think you'll be more than pleased with your MINI...maybe not your dealer, but that's another story


HERE! HERE!

 

Interesting fact:

JD Powers is heavily sponsored by auto manufacturers. The data they produce is not standardized and their tests are not run in controlled environments. i.e. NOT Scientific whatsoever.

In other words they are a marketing company, not a consumer reporting company like "Consumer Reports".

I would bet that any JD Power rating is proportional to the amount of advertising space that was purchased in that particular month.

JD Power is a crock of ***** in my opinion.

Kesh

 

>>Interesting fact:
>>
>>JD Powers is heavily sponsored by auto manufacturers. The data they produce is not standardized and their tests are not run in controlled environments. i.e. NOT Scientific whatsoever.
>>
>>In other words they are a marketing company, not a consumer reporting company like "Consumer Reports".
>>
>>I would bet that any JD Power rating is proportional to the amount of advertising space that was purchased in that particular month.
>>
>>JD Power is a crock of ***** in my opinion.
>>
>>Kesh

Interesting indeed, but I would venture to guess that the funding drives WHAT they study more than HOW they study it. Since money talks, however, I'm sure there is some bias involved.

 

I don't recall where, but a week or so ago I saw the MINI rated as one of the most loved cars in the U.S., as rated by owners. I think it was featured on the Microsoft home page one day. All I know is I LOVE my MCS. I have two other nice cars and all I want to drive is the MCS.

 

I have to say, being one of the few people who has experienced an accident in a MINI, it handled fantastic, despite the short time I had to react to the situation (< 1 second), and the fact that the car held up great in the actual collision. Ufortunately for me, the car held up too well, no damage to the frame or engine but over $12K in damage to the superficial exterior parts. For what it's worth, I didn't end up in a gulley 10 feet down on the other side of the guardrail b/c of the stearability of my 03 MCS. This really is a great car.
-Chris

_________________
R.I.P. October 22, 2002-October 23, 2002, just 18 hours old, 133 miles...

 

I was one of the respondents on the JD Powers survey too.

While I am very satisifed with my MC overall,
I do have the slight sunroof rattle, other minor rattles/noises, etc and minor issues that everyone else has. I responded with this info in the survey, while at the same time indicating my positive :smile: satifaction overall.
So I guess that I (and others that responded similarly) contributed to this lower rating.

 

>>So I guess that I (and others that responded similarly) contributed to this lower rating.

Don't beat yourself up about it! I think Babs' earlier post summarizes this phenonmena pretty well. Or, said differently, your post validates Babs' hunch!

"MINI....owners get excited about any little quirk"

 

After reading through all of the posts on this thread today, I'm struck by one fantasy. I imagine, twenty years from now, to be at an old (new)MINI show or rally and see all of us sitting back and chuckling at the sunroof rattle or the missing boot release ring and loving our MINIs even more. "It's all in the quirks!"

Mustang, Corvette, Beatle even Edsel owners cannot be swayed from their passions. (Talk about quirks!)

_________________
Indi Blue Cooper w/ Black top & mirrors, sport seats and Prem. Pkg. Christened "Ringo".

 

Most Appealing Compact Car MINI Cooper

Above was copied and pasted from the J. D. Powers site...