I understand BMW may have found the "root cause" on why so many owners have had to replace stress cracked windshield glass! Check ou the web site bridger.us/mini (sorry, don't know how to hyperlink this) and scroll down and read the article. It MAY be related to weak A pillars (flexing).

 

here is the article

While attending the MINI/Bimmer Fest in Limerock, CT, yesterday I spoke with a factory MINI rep (the ebullient Tanya), and was informed that MINI has now isolated and solved the pathological and diabolical windshield cracking problem.

According to the rep, the problem was due to flex in the A-pilars (!), which have now been reinforced. The rep couldn't provide an exact date as to the implementation of this change, but told me that it was presently in effect for cars being built currently. She also wasn't sure what would be involved in retro-active implementation of this fix to afflicted cars.

As a side note, Tanya told me that the solution was deduced through involvement with MINI race teams: despite their much more extreme use, there had apparently been no incidence of cracked windshields on cars modified for the track. It was eventually concluded that this was because these vehicles had been reinforced with cages, which eliminated the causal A-pilar flex.



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Thanks red03mcs!!! This has been an ongoing issue with the Mini on every website I visit. I hope this issue is solved and handled properly by BMW.

 

As a counterpoint to this, even during my crash, which bent the unibody, none of my glass cracked from the torsion. Perhaps the way the car bent wasn't typical of the common stress-crack. I am glad to hear of A-pillar reinforcement, but am baffled that chassis flex was the culprit, being that the MINI's body is one of the stiffest in the world. Perhaps the shape of the windscreen was such that its' tolerance for flex is virtually zero.

In any case, I'm pleased to hear of head-way.
Cheers,
Ryan

 

ur welcome speltzer

my min has been problem free so far, but i hardly drive it. so 6 years down the road, when the windshield cracks, i wonder if bmw will pay for it, or i will have to pay for it?

if thats the case, i might take a hammer down on my windshield, and have bmw fix it, if they decide to do it

 

Here's the official hyperlink of the article on my site: Windshield Cracking Issue Resolved?

 

As people commented on Gabe's site, the soft easily-pitted glass has nothing to do with A-pillars, and how does inadequate A-pillar support explain the numerous windshields that have spontaneously cracked while sitting in a garage overnight?

A-pillar reinforcement may indeed contribute to the windshield problem, but I really doubt that it's the only factor.

 

yep, thanks for pointing that out scooterboy.

As I commented on Gabe's site, I would be very hesitant in headlining a newsclip (or a thread here on MCO) as: 'Windshield Problem Solved', even when followed by a question mark.

I would say it is fair to state that apparently MINI has acknowledged the issue, and may have found one of the elements contributing to the many windshield problems experienced by owners. That is very good news indeed.
However, I remain sceptical about this until we have evidence that the A-pillar mod actually reduces the incidence of windshield cracks. As mentioned on Gabe's site, I have some doubts including those related to the fact that many have reported the cracks occuring on cars sitting in the garage overnight. In addition, IMHO one of the several probelms associated with the MINI windshield is the soft glass, which is an issue not addressed by any A-pillar changes.
Two things to point out: there have been three instances in the past where it was reported that the windshield cracking issue was solved: 1st, the supposed 'spur' on the shield frame - a production problem, and 2nd, the thickness of the glue layer, and 3rd, the positioning of the shield during installation. None of those 'fixes' has solved the cracking, to my knowledge.
The other thing is, if the A-pillar is truly one of the culprits for windshield issues, what does that mean for those of us who already have cars? Can a fix be retro-fitted?
Kudos to MINI for beginning to address this issue, but let's hold our breath for a bit until we know this is an improvement.
In the meantime, we also need to post as much about this as we can, in order to exchange and disseminate information, and also to keep up the pressure on MINI to continue to sort out these and other problems with MINIs.
All that aside, I want to point out that I truly love this car (even though mine is in the shop right now, and I am driving a Dodge Neon , the Anti-MINI!!!!).

Markus

 

Ok,

Yesterday morning, before reading this post, I noticed a creaking sound coming from what I can best describe as where the front of the door meets the a-pillar. I have just under 1,500 miles and thought, boy that wasn't there yesterday, or at least I didn't notice. Last night I read that mini has identified a problem with the a-pillars.

The roads here in Michigan or not smooth, they are rutted, broken and constantly under repair. The trucks run way overweight on there way too new construction and road repairs, neccessary because of overweight trucks, a endless cycle.

Let's keep this thread warm, I want a retrofit !! I want to no what mini's plan's are for all of us who may have this problem. Midwestern owners who aren't experiencing this problem yet, might in a year or 2. If they have no plans or cannot do a retrofit, mine is either going back is for sale !!! If I've noticed creaking at 1,500 miles, what will have at 75,000 ? Cracks in the pillar ? I want mini to state when new cars began coming down the line with this fix. Be honest and open !! And for god's sake test your vehicles in the Big Three's backyard and the AZ desert before sending them over here for sale, or loose customers forever.

my $.02, what do you all think ?

 

Is no one else worried about this, or have we been through this so many times now we just don't care. Hello MINI ? What you are going to do for the people that have had multiple windshields replaced ? When did the fix go in ? Update my car ?? When ? :evil:

 

>>
. In addition, IMHO one of the several probelms associated with the MINI windshield is the soft glass, which is an issue not addressed by any A-pillar changes.
>>>>Markus
>>
Exactly Markus!

As noted in my earlier post, my windshield was marred by the windshield wipers, soft glass indeed! The dealer replaced, no questions asked.

:???:

 

will there be a recall??????

btw: i'm on my 3rd windshield

 

Exactly my point, this no minor issue. My brother works at a glass shop and a reservist working at a near by Air National Guard base came in for his fourth windshield !!!

I hope we here something from Mini on this soon. Or do I have to start a rumor that the stumble is related to the torque steer sensors detecting flex in the a-pillar and cutting back power to get people excited about this !!!!

 

>>Is no one else worried about this, or have we been through this so many times now we just don't care. Hello MINI ? What you are going to do for the people that have had multiple windshields replaced ? When did the fix go in ? Update my car ?? When ? :evil:
>>

Take it easy, gmack - you'll spurt!

No need to get so excited just because nobody responded to your post within 2 hours.

Everyone wants resolution for this issue as well as others such as the stumble. But we'll do much better acting as concerned customers than we will by acting as children throwing tantrums. Yes, the wheels of bureaucracy turn slowly, but remember this: they don't HAVE to listen at all. Sure they would develop ill will if they didn't, but what would you rather have - no response and no resolution, or slow response and eventual resolution?

I'm not saying that they don't owe their customers explanations or fixes for these problems - just that they're more likely to listen and respond to reasoned inquiries than a bunch of screaming on an internet forum.

 

I still have the original factory windshield on our 1 year old Cooper CVT with 14K miles. No cracks, no problems. In road trips, rocks have hit it (I have 2 tiny pit marks) repeatdly and the windshield has never given us a problem, yet. I don't buy the story about body flexing caused by the supporting A-Pillars. If that was the case, our windshield would have cracked a long time ago.

Yesterday I was lurking in the PT Cruiser and Subaru Forester discussion forums and interestingly, both of those cars have also registered a fair amount of complaints surrounding their factory windshields. Same complaints with stress cracks, rock chips, pits on the glass, etc.

Is this becoming an industry wide problem?? I think the glass manufacturing companies in thier quest to cut costs and weight on windshield glass, they are also making some uncalled for compromises in terms of durability and integrity. The windshield is the most critical safety part in the car as it provides structural support and enables the SRS airbag system to work properly when the bags deploy.

This is the reason why changing a factory installed windshield is such serious business.

 

I had windshield #3 installed last week. This time I filed with my insurance and paid a $50 deductible just so I could get PP&G glass instead of that crap MINI tries to pass off as windshield glass. I'm really hoping the better glass quality will result in no more cracked windshields. I also really hope owners keep the heat on MINI until they admit the problem and find a fix... it's gotta be more than an A-pillar issue and flexing, though that may be one problem. For one thing, windshields really shouldn't crack from a pin-point pit from a grain of sand.

In my case, the latest windshield had to be replaced when the glass cracked entirely on its own while parked overnight in my garage. C'mon, MINI: windshields don't spontaneously crack unless there's a problem with the quality and installation of the OEM glass.

My uneducated guess is that MINI is struggling not only with a fix, but also with the liability exposure when they "confess" to the problem and get hit with a pile of claims from all of us who've paid for multiple replacements (or claims from our insurance companies going after MINI to reimburse them). Hell, they deserve the exposure after being such rats with most replacements, doing all they could to avoid covering them under warranty.

Just my $.02 worth, or as Dennis Miller used to say, "I don't mean to get off on a rant here... I could be wrong." (NOT)

 

Sekurit-St. Gobain is the manufacturer of the stock MINI windshield glass. This is a very well established (And old) auto glass manufacturer in Europe and they make glass for many cars including heavyweights from BMW, Mercedes, Audi, etc. They also make glass for buses, motorcoaches, trucks, etc.

To me the problem with the cracked windshields is a combination of quality control issues with the glass and the way it is being installed at the factory. Like I said before, I still don't buy the "A-Pillar" flexing argument. The MINI is a very stiff car made with 0.05mm tolerances all over the steel body and it has 53% more torsional rigidity than the current BMW 3 Series E46 body. Maybe the car's structure is too stiff for the Sekurit glass???

 

>>>>
>>
>>Take it easy, gmack - you'll spurt!
>>
>>No need to get so excited just because nobody responded to your post within 2 hours.
>>
>>
>>I'm not saying that they don't owe their customers explanations or fixes for these problems - just that they're more likely to listen and respond to reasoned inquiries than a bunch of screaming on an internet forum.

Your right.

My car was delivered scratched, stumbles, yoyo's and my $500 H/K system has massive static while listening to local FM. Now, it's creaking worse than the wifes mini van with 58,000 miles on it with only 1,500 on the odometer. After selling the car for 2 years, BMW is rumored to have discovered a problem with the A-pillars flexing and has thought the problem serious enough that every car rolling down the line today, has it fixed.
I am feeling a little frustrated. I wasn't really trying to start a riot, just maybe inspire someone, anyone, with new relevant info to spew some details that might make me feel better, and restore my faith in my purchase decision. I am a forum newby, and was trying to keep this thread in the top 5 so someone might see it and have some news to add.

 

Even if the manufacturer on the OEM glass has a good rep. you have to remember that they are making the windshields to bmw/mini specs. Other posts have documented that the oem glass is not as thick as the ppg glass. My guess is that the oem glass is lighter and the spec and resulting problems were strictly as weight saving attempt.

 

Hi everyone,

well I went to nhtsa.gov to see how many complaints there are about MINI windshields...... There are only 17 complaints on the 2003 MINI Cooper S in total. This is a very small number, and it will not get anyone in the government or MINI to sit up and pay attention. nhtsa's motto is "People Saving People". For those who have cracked windshields, please do other MINI owners a favor and file a complaint with nhtsa. You can do it either by phone or on the web.
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/

It will only take a few minutes of your time.

My car is set to sail on Tosca tomorrow; I have my finger crossed and hope that my windshield won't crack.

 

>>My car was delivered scratched, stumbles, yoyo's and my $500 H/K system has massive static while listening to local FM. Now, it's creaking worse than the wifes mini van with 58,000 miles on it with only 1,500 on the odometer. After selling the car for 2 years, BMW is rumored to have discovered a problem with the A-pillars flexing and has thought the problem serious enough that every car rolling down the line today, has it fixed.
>>I am feeling a little frustrated. I wasn't really trying to start a riot, just maybe inspire someone, anyone, with new relevant info to spew some details that might make me feel better, and restore my faith in my purchase decision. I am a forum newby, and was trying to keep this thread in the top 5 so someone might see it and have some news to add.

No worries - this issue has had multiple threads on this forum and others - it won't be going away anytime soon.

I'm really sorry you've had so much trouble with your car. You didn't mention how many times you've taken it to the dealer to fix any of those problems. If you have a lemon law, find out what it takes to make the dealer take it back. There are many many of us who have had none of these problems so the good cars are out there. I've only had mine 2 months and 6K miles, and have no creaks or rattles (I did cause a few with my audio upgrade but I fixed them myself). Mine's a Cooper so I don't experience the stumble like the MCS's do.

Hang in there!

 

I agree with many of you. The Mini has one of the stiffest, most robust inibody designs on the road. Not being an engineer, I feel it is a combination of things causing cracking. I am glad to hear that my 2004 MCS on order will have this a-pillar reinforcement built in. I just wish BMW would step up to the plate on this. I wish the Japanese manufactured the Mini. Just think. If Toyota or Honda built the Mini they would have a 3-4 year waiting list!!!!

 

>> Just think. If Toyota or Honda built the Mini they would have a 3-4 year waiting list!!!!


if toyota built the mini, it would look like the scion Xa and Xb
be careful of what you wish for

p.s. dont think i am a japanese hater, ,i have two other hondas

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My personal theory (although I have nothing scientific to back this up):

The glass is both soft and thin, thus gets pitted and chipped more easily. This we all know.

But here's what I think the major factor is: temperature change.

The spontaneous crackings overnight in a garage are the best cases to examine because many factors are eliminated (stress, stones, HUGE potholes) from the equation.

IIRC, quite a few of garage crackings were right after a washing. That's how the owner was so sure the crack wasn't there when he/she put it in the garage. As the glass warmed up after being cooled with cold water during a wash, the combination of expansion, thin/soft glass, and rock pits/chips caused the cracking.

For those that happened without being freshly washed, perhaps there was a rapid temperature change that evening that caused the same result?

Very unscientific theory, but I'm sticking to it!