So I dropped my car off at Lauderdale MINI yesterday because it has been pulling to the right once again. It originally did it with the factory run flats...because after about 9k miles, the front right tire had worn so bad the car was pulling. So we decided it was a bad tire, and I went on my way.

So I bought brand new Kumho tires about 3k miles ago, and the car is pulling again. I bring it back, and they say it's because the front right tire is so badly worn. I tell them this is the exact same problem I had been having before, and that the something must be wrong with the car. They respond with...and get ready for this...A NON-BMW APPROVED TIRE. That's right...my tires aren't approved, therefore they will not look into the issue any longer. Does anyone have ANY ideas what I can do!?!?!?

 

1-866-ask-mini

 

sounds like a camber problem to me.

 

Sounds like you have an alignment issue, and warranty will not cover it after 2000 miles. Go get yourself a good alignment and move on.
(ask me how I know this )

 

Ditch the non-runflats!

 

Gotta do an alignment. Thats the only way to see whats going on with the rt. front.

 

i think it's a toe mis-alignment.

 

close enough

 

sounds a bit overdoing it to me. There's no way non-runflats have anything to do with this problem if they're properly mfr'd.

 

i guess.

 

As its been said, alignment. The thing that is tremendously disturbing here, is that this assessment isn't rocket science given the symtoms you describe. That the dealer's mechanics didn't note this the first time around and suggest an alignment when the RFs worn improperly is shockingly incompetent. I'd have the alighnment done at a quality shop and if theres another MINI dealer around I'd switched over to them from the one your with now.

 

that's a bad alignment, plain and simple. I don't think it would be covered in the warranty, though.

 

Alignments are non-warranty items. I am not sure what you were expecting?

 

Actually Lauderdale MINI is the best dealer in Florida in terms of sales and service. I have bought 3 new MINis from them since 2002 and my sales/service experiences have been top notch. I know everyone in the service dept and those folks are very professional, hard working people.

The rest of the MINI dealers in the area, who shall remain nameless, are absolutely terrible. So going elsewhere may actually be a bad move.

 

Also he made a bad decision by purchasing new tires and not checking the state of the aligment on the car first. Now he has ruined 2 sets of tires as the original problem persists. How can this be a warranty related item @ 12K miles? Gimme a break!

Whenever you put new rubber in the car, the tires need to be balanced and the car aligned that way you can save yourself from bigger and costlier headaches down the road.

Also, when it comes to tires, rotations, balancing and aligment, you are not obligated to use the dealership. First, their service charges are astronomical and second you are better off going to a reputable tire shop to get these things taken care of. We have 2 well respected members from Minis of Miami that own very reputable independent shops that can help you with your current problems. If you are interested, I'll be happy to give you their names and contact information. These folks are Mini/MINI owners themselves with many years of experience under their belts and are considered to be "pros" on what they do. Again, if you want to have your aligment problems solved right away, I'll be happy to show you in the right direction. it is up to you.

A good aligment is around $75-$85 and well worth the expense. If you have never done it, well that's the cause root of your premature and uneven tire wear.

Juts a reminder: Aligments and general tire services are not covered under the 3 year/36K mile scheduled service.

 

Actually, I've had the alignment done six or seven times over the last year. Not once have they helped. After showing MINI that documentation, you would think that they would then admit that there is a problem.

I called MINI USA, and the rep says he will call the dealer and see what he can do for me. He admits that something sounds fishy, as the dealer should have replaced the original worn tire...and that since no suspension mods are done to the car, that blaming the tires is just ridiculous. We'll see what happens.

 

The point I was trying to make is that they are denying me service because I am using what they call, "aftermarket tires." There is an obvious suspension issue that has not only been present since I purchased the car, but documented as well.

 

I'd say this little tid-bit changes the whole dynamic of this thread....

OK, you had your car aligned (the first time). Did they just check the alignment with their machine, or did they have to make an adjustment? On the return visits, did they make changes? Are they always the same changes (toe, camber, etc). Where and how is the tire worn? (Inner edge, outer edge, middle of tire?)

I'm not being critical, I'm just thinking about potential reasons this car won't hold an alignment and trying to narrow down my thinking...

If you've had a half dozen alignments done and you've chewed up two tires, something's rotten in Denmark.

Rawhyde

 

Everytime I have gone, no changes would be made to the car. I once went three times in one week, and even took the manager in a ride in my car to show him it was still pulling. He then showed me all the paperwork to show me they had done all they could, and the car was already aligned.

 

If you had the need to re-align the car 7 times during the whole year obvioulsy that raises a big red flag!!!!

Talk to Joe Sparacino (Good friend of mine BTW) he is the service manager @ Lauderdale BWM/MINI. To me it is unbelievable that the dealer has agreed to perform an aligment that many times (I assume under warranty) and still haven't find the root cause of the problem.

Was you car in an accident? Possible frame damage repairs? I just can't see how the car can't hold the aligment unless there is something totally gone wrong with it.

 

I'm not that familiar with the MINI suspension, but maybe some structural member is loose and shifts somewhat under a dynamic load (braking, acceleration, or cornering) thereby throwing off the alignment only when subjected to a dynamic load. Maybe there's a bushing that is badly worn or overly soft. This is a real head scratcher. Personally, I'd like to get this thing up on a lift and poke around under it...just to see if I could figure it out.

I'll poke around with my TIS CD and try to come up with some likely culprits.

Rawhyde

 

Isn't the title, "warranty fiasco"? No non-runflats, no warranty problem. It's just logic.

Allow me to repeat myself. Ditch the non-runflats!

 

The only thing adjustible on the front of a stock Mini is toe in. But there are many other diagnostic angles that a good quality alignment shop can check {but most don't unless you request} such as steering axis inclination. These diagnostic angles can tell if you have a bent suspension part.
I also wonder about tire pressure. I had the left front tire losing air pressure & causing a pull. I diagnosed the problem being a leaking wheel valve stem. As it was time to get rid of the run flats, I had the tire dealer install all new wheel valve stems with my new tires.{something else you have to ask for to get} end of problem.
That may be why they can't find anything wrong with the alignment.
Yet after changing tires, you still get damage on the tire in the same possition on the car.??
Good luck my friend, and be sure & let us know the results.

 

I noticed in your modifications list a "MyMini strut tower brace". At the risk of being called a dummy for asking this, what is the benefit of this and why is it needed?

 

is the ride height the same on both sides at the front?