A tale of two F56s:

In June of 2014, my wife and I each ordered an F56. Hers would be a 3 cylinder automatic and mine a 4 cylinder manual. They were both scheduled to be built in early July and would be the first of the 2015s. They would become victims of the EPA hold and sat at the port until October.

Mini gave us $600 worth of free accessories to apologize for the delay- very kind of them. We only got about $500 off MSRP since there were no deals to be had at that time and Pittsburgh only has one dealership. ouch.

We took delivery of the wife's car first in the 2nd week of October and mine the following Saturday. The dealership ignored my request to not detail the car and instead did their best work with what I assumed to be a Brillo pad. Very disappointing since I reminded them many times that I enjoy detailing my own vehicles. Someone also managed to get a nice scratch on the center steering wheel spoke. They gave me some money to get it detailed (I put it towards supplies since that's what I enjoy doing) and said the wheel would need replaced.

The problems for mine started less than a thousand miles in with an annoying clunk at low speeds. Of course the first visit resulted in a "this is normal, they all do that". I pushed back and they replaced the control arm bushings and also the steering wheel that was scratched before delivery.

As the weather got colder, my car developed a clunk in the rear end and the new steering wheel also had play in it. I figured they probably just had to tighten it, but they had to replace the upper steering column shaft. My car and the wife's both had an annoying squeal at low speeds also.. seems to be a common problem with still no fix.

Again, I was told the rear suspension clunking was normal. While they had it, I also asked why mine didn't rev match the 3->2 downshift like the 2014 that I test drove. They told me that this was "not a feature". huh?

I pushed back again regarding the rear suspension noise and they had a BMW/Mini tech come look at it and take some sort of data (audio/video? i dunno).

A month later I was asked to bring it in for a procedure to fix the noise. This was supposed a insulate the shock boots somehow. It was a band-aid fix and didn't do anything. They did update the software so it would rev-match the 3->2. They ended up ordering a new set of rear shocks which made it slightly better but definitely didn't fix it.

The dealership also left some greasy fingerprints on my white door panels and a fresh chip in the paint on the edge of the driver's door. They gave me some touch up paint. thanks guys.

I also noticed around this time that the door rubber was wearing away at the paint in the door jam. This is the kind of issue that I didn't even knew existed and required some real creativity from Mini. I don't believe there has ever been a fix for this.

I ended up trading my turd in after a little over a year.

The wife was enjoying hers though and racked up 40k miles in 27 months. It never stranded her, but one time she started it and she said it made a horrible racket like there wasn't any oil in it. The dealership said turn it off and on... it seemed ok but they brought it in to check for codes and update software.

The key cover fell off the door handle regularly and the button on the shifter would fall off sometimes too. The black plastic trim was fading quickly, especially the wiper tray piece. One of the windshield washer nozzles also weeped a little bit of fluid so there was always a trail coming from it. Her black front bumper was also starting to get the white splotchy spots.

The suspension rattling and clunking didn't bother her, so we never jumped through hoops with the dealership to get it fixed. We did have another unplanned visit when it said it needed new brake pads. The dealer said it was just a faulty sensor. Oh and the passenger seatback squeaked. EDIT: forgot the mirror gel pack leaked and had to be replaced.


These F56s looked and felt so much more refined than the R56s and I thought they would be better with BMW being more involved. Guess I was wrong! The cars were a blast to drive and the F56 is EXACTLY what I want in a car- a premium hatch that is fun to drive and good on gas. I just couldn't handle this many quirks.

The end.

 

I own my third MINI , an F56S and thoroughly enjoy driving it. BUT, I just can't imagine owning it past warranty expiration. The latest fix ( covered by warranty ) would have cost me $1500 at the dealership.
These are great cars to drive, but 3 years and 50,000 miles is about as far as my ownership will last. And because of MINI's depreciation, these can be very expensive to own even with the maintenance and warranty coverage.

 

If a car doesn't do what you want, get rid of it and get a car that does. So many cars, so little time!

 

A tale of two F56s and an R56.

I bought my first MINI about a year ago, a 2016 MCS, and I loved that car. No problems at all and a lot of fun to drive. I bought it to commute but I ended up taking a lot of B&B trips in that car with my wife, wine buying weekends in the hill country.

For several decades I had driven nothing but large diesel pickups and I had no idea how much fun driving could be. My 4x4 drw 3500 sat in the driveway loosing value while I drove my MINI everywhere. I was having so much fun that my wife and I went to a Porsche dealer to look at "real" sports cars. What had started as a desire to have a practical, small car, for commuting had become a daily joy.

About three weeks ago I crashed my 2016. I got crushed in an intersection by a full sized Ford SUV, and the car was totaled. The passenger side airbags performed flawlessly and my passenger walked away. Lots of bruising and discomfort but no broken bones or serious injuries. I think my MCS saved her life.

Remembering that I had wanted a sports car, I test drove a couple including a 370Z which had lots of power but not lots of smiles. The big problem was a lack of storage and I was just not blown away and I think the MINI was just more fun to drive, is a better fit for a weekend getaway with my bride, cheaper to operate and insure, and gets much better fuel economy.

So .... I sold my truck, bought a 2008 MCS for cash, and I have order a loaded MC JCW that will be built in February and arrive in April or May. The kids will drive the 2008 MCS after my 2017 JCW is delivered and my wife want's a Countrymen after we boot the children out of the house.

This is my tail of two F56s and an R56. Our MINI adventure is just beginning.

Safe Travels,
Richard

 

g34343greg, you described almost everything that I too had experienced on my 2015 F56 automatic, with less than 9000 miles on it.

-clunk noise in rear or front or both (rear was fixed, now coming from front)
-steering column has some play now (on my to do list)
-door rubber scratching paint on the door jamb (initially I put 3M paint guard film. Later dealer replaced to softer material seal)
-key cover falling off (replaced 3 times for same problem, then they finally replaced with something that stays on)
-windshield washer nozzle weeping (got this fixed)
-minor rattles here and there (attempted twice but still rattles)
-seat squeaking (intermittent so I leave it at it)

on top of some of your complaints, I experienced:
-rain sensor gel pack leaking (replaced gel pack 5 times, they finally replaced windshield. I'm keeping an eye on how things go)
-GreenMode miles behaves wonky (sometimes resets, sometimes doesn't accumulate saved miles. After recent software update, it seems to be working good now.)
-Turbo return oil line leak (they replaced the hose. I'm keeping on eye on this one.)
-Can't smooth start by slowly releasing brake in D. Gas seems to be pumping in as soon as I let go the brake pedal just a little bit, so I always feels a slight lurching forward when slowly releasing brake. I think this is a 3 cylinder version problem. They need to adjust the behavior of the gas being pumped in but I guess it's a very low priority.
-Trunk open button on remote accidentally being pressed (they have a reprograming as a workaround for this. It's really stupid of them to design the keyfob like this, fat and ugly.)

I only have 9000 miles on my 2 year old 2015 F56, but I am being diligent on visiting my dealer hoping that everything can be sorted out before the end of my 3 year lease so that I can decide whether or not to keep the car. On another note, is the depreciation bad for the MINI? I thought they were pretty good because they are in a special category (fun and unique design). Lease end residual after 3 years is 60%. The car was $24000. Do you guys think it's hard to do better buying the car at end of lease and selling it myself or even to a dealer?

 

When I was considering getting a Mini, I had done lots of reading on this forum and others. I knew there were issues, but I had told myself that the internet only brings out the bad and they probably weren't THAT bad. Besides, we would be rid of them before the warranty was up.

But they really are THAT bad. It's a shame because they're neat little cars, but the quality isn't there and they depreciate horribly. Two dumb moves on my part, but luckily we were able to get out without negative equity in either.

I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings if you like your car or convince you to get rid of it. But if someone out there is naive like I was, please do your research.

I'm sure everyone has read this review by now:
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...m-test-wrap-up

The sad thing is, that car isn't a lemon! these are all issues that have plagued many of us here on this forum.

 

And then the final blow is trade-in value. And the parent, BMW, is suffering from the same image. Do you remember how they denied the timing chain problem? They don't give a sh&$.

 

While it is very unfortunate that some of you have seemingly endless problems there are countless people out there for each of you that have no issues. Keep in mind with forums the vocal ones are the ones experiencing issues rather then the ones out there enjoying non-problematic cars.

Knock on wood I have a 2013 Countryman with zero issues and a 2016 F55S with zero issues.

 

I only know one person in real life with a F56 and hers already broke, flatbed to the dealer with an ecu problem

 

Bye

 

Can say the same with our last Toyota.
We are on our 3rd mini, 2 previous used ones form 10 years ago. and now a 2015 S.

Best car ever. No issues other than a cracked chrome ring on horn. (replaced).
Our 2008 never stranded us. Normal maintenance (brake pads, oil).
Coded tons of options in that one and our new one.

Like others have posted, those miffed squeak the most.

 

I have found the posts regarding issues people have had with their MINIs to be informative. We are truly enjoying a so-far trouble free ownership experience with our 2017 Clubman S All4, but it is early days.

We made the decision to garage the run flats in favor of tires that do indeed enhance the ride and we ordered the spare in anticipation of this. Discussion of run flat issues on the forum informed our decision and I am grateful for the information.

Yes, some people like to use forums to vent and flame. In the instance of this thread, I found the OP's review of his experience to be honest and fair. And we all know there has been uneven build quality with MINIs and it is true that BMW hasn't always stepped up as quickly or candidly as they should have.

So, I hate whiners too. But I do appreciate those who take the time to report legitimate negative experiences so that we can all be aware.

 

I never said they weren't reliable vehicles, did I? Ours never failed to start or left us stranded on the side of the road.

The quality just isn't where it needs to be. As others have said, forums tend to be the place where people come for help, whine, and vent. I figured the Minis weren't as bad as the internet made them out be be, but I found out the hard way.

Maybe I'm just another whiny person on the internet though?

 

We have a 2016 base hatch auto on a 4 year lease, and we have 5000km on it so far in 7 months.
I've put on a Dinan tuner and I love the extra power and we haven't had any major problems with it thus far, but I already know I'm not keeping the car after the lease.

On one hand it drives really well, but there are already things that bug me.
There's a rattle on the dash that happens sporadically.
The nav/media system can be/is buggy. (though honestly no one seems to have this down)
I get a rattle in the trunk at speed.
I get a really annoying whistling noise in the rear window/hatch area at speed.
Sound deadening is non-existant in the trunk/rear wheel well.
There's no dipstick to check your oil. (No I'm not that confidant in your engines BMW)

Compared to the older Minis, the F5X is a lot nicer, but you can still see where they cut corners. And buying a new car is like buying a lottery ticket, every brand has their problem cars, just some brands happen more often than others. It's a risk that one has to deal with, especially if you want a funner/more thrills car.

 

IMHO your comments were constructive and informative. The intolerance for your report of your experience is a shame. Such is our world today.

 

I don't think anyone was being intolerant. It was a great play by play of the troubles with his car. Unless I missed it no one called it "whiny" like he posts.

 

lol, it's quite alright. Legitimate problems and couldn't blame you for your thoughts on Mini's. Like my Mini MA told us, I'd have 4 years of warranty and 3 years maintenance so like a poster says he/she tries to iron out problems under warranty before the warranty's up. Then, he/she can decide what to do if having a problem child

Crossing our fingers with Jane, she's a beaut and a nifty little kid to spend time with

 

My plan is to trade before I'm out of warranty. So far my 2015 has been okay. Had the smelly AC problem which was fixed. Other than that, car has been good.

I also get an annoying speaker buzz if I have the car in sport mode and the JCW kit exhaust baffle open..on hard acceleration, the passenger side door speaker buzzes (when I have the radio on). Guessing the fake piped in engine/exhaust sound is overpowering the speaker.

Betting BMW will continue to fix those engineering issues as the model ages. I'll likely trade for a JCW in 2018. Hoping they bump the HP and torque in 2018. My MCS w/ the JCW tune provides better torque than the full JCW. And Torque is where the fun is.