Just to update- I *finally* received the second letter and have my appointment scheduled for the recall repair next week. So, letters are going out-- stay tuned!

 

I too got my letter last week, but when I tried to schedule the appointment, the dealer said they didn't have any parts??? After a call to MINI USA, I will be calling the dealer back. There's no reason they can't order the parts when I schedule the appointment.

 

Yeah that doesn't make sense. The MA I spoke with said it took about a week for them to get the part, so she set up the appointment a week out. I got the impression it was a order-as-needed kind of thing, and they weren't going to be keeping them in stock just in case people called-- at least at my dealer. Good luck! Hope you get some answers.

 

Are they planning on replacing the entire seat bottom, or just the sensor mat itself?

 

Just the sensor mat, as far as I know.

 

Got my notice over the weekend.

It sure worries me having a Mini tech take the seat apart and getting it back together so that the seat cover looks right again. I am sure the techs do not have upholstery training.

I do not currently have a problem with the seat sensor and since I have 93,000 miles on the car I do not expect a problem. I hate having Mini work on something that is not broke because the likelihood of the car being returned as good as it entered the dealer is about zero chance.

 

I received my follow-up letter on Monday too. It states that the dealerships are ready to do the seat mat replacements now, and say to schedule the service appointments asap.

Hoping my local dealership will have parts for the service next week. Will follow with a post service update for the community. Hope this replacement fixes the issue for good...

 

I just had my seat mat sensor replaced yesterday and all is well. FINALLY no more airbag light!

 

I don't have the letter in front of me, but I thought I remember it saying that the repair would take 2-3 hours. The dealer quoted me several days; that a software upgrade would be necessary. Is that true? Several days seems excessive to me...

 

Are we required to only use an actual Mini dealer, or can my local BMW shop qualify? Or, there's a really good mechanic who specializes in German cars. I'd rather use him.

 

Damn why not the 09' MCS mine has been on forever....80,000 miles....

 

I had mine done before the recall on a dealer's dime. The seat is perfect, so I would not worry. I think they replace the entire seat bottom, the bill was over a $1000, that seems a lot for a simple sensor.

Now I wonder if they are gonna do the recall differently to save money, and attempt some surgery instead...

I also wonder if there is a new-new part or of the one I got installed 1 month before the first recall letter is THE solution...

 

The letter states the service is aprox. 2 hrs. No mention of any SW update.
Mike: More important than the annoying light is you will finally have a operating passenger seat airbag. It is non-op without the replacement service, so the passenger is SOL in a crash. Glad the Feds finally stepped in and forced this recall.

Hope everyone gets their service without any problems. I hope to get mine done next week.

 

This time around they are not replacing the entire seat cover like when we had to pay for it out of pocket.

Instead they remove your old seat cover (pad), remove the sensor from the pad and glue a new one on, then replace the seat cover.

I just dropped the paperwork off requesting a reimbursement. In 2013 I paid $1200 for the cover (Checkmate seat) and $500 for labor, but not at the dealer. We will see what Mini reimburses me for.

 

Agreed. The safety factor is what is most important.

dongood - let us know how the reimbursement goes. I also had my sensor mat replaced by an independent shop and it worked for a few months, but the light eventually came back on. Also, I have a custom interior, so my guess is they cut out the old and glue in the new. I would not be surprised if they reset/update to the ecu.

 

If anyone has gotten this service done after they received the 2nd letter, please let me know. I have conflicting information on the length of time this repair takes. I've read and heard 2-3 hours, and one source is saying several days.

Ryan

 

just had mine done service record doesn't have time on it by I had my oil pan gasket done at the same time and it was all done in less than 5 hours

 

I got my 2nd letter last week, and will schedule the appointment for next week as I have to take a day off work to get this done, which I'm more than happy to do

I'll try to post results when all done.
I currently don't have a light on but do NoT want to miss this opportunity to avoid major cost in future repairs.

 

The mini in Cincinnati said I can call when I'm ready they have plenty of parts for the recall. They said I am getting a new passenger seat not just the pressure plate. Does this sound right?

 

I just had the recall done on my 2005 R52 at Cincinnati Mini. The job took about 2 1/2 hrs aside from the time it took me to clean the front seat of the stains left by the upgrade.

Of course, Cincinnati Mini did not do the job that I had originally scheduled for...a diagnosis of why my top doesn't close properly sometimes. Said I would have to bring it back. What ever happened to customer service?????

 

I have found Mini dealership repair and customer service to be very poor. In 12 years of Mini ownership, I have never had a good experience at the dealership. That is what scares me about having the seat sensor work done. I do not want a screwed up looking (lumpy or ripples) or a stained seat. I know how hard it is to get simple (light) stains out of the seat fabric. I also do not want one new seat with fabric that does not match the driver's seat (such as different color because the drivers seat has faded).

 

sorry to hear that, I've had pretty good customer service at my dealer.

 

Update: Just had my service done today. Dropped off in the morning and had it back by end of day. Originally they said 1.5 days due to the high number of same services scheduled, but I guess I caught a break. Letter says about 3 hrs, so I have no idea why my car would have to sit overnight. Anyways, glad I got it back same day, and light is off for now. It did take 2 weeks for the first open service day, so go ahead and call for your appointment asap. I am sure they will run out of mats again.
I am in the bay area btw and service was done at Mini of SF. It was a surprisingly pleasant experience! (SF Mini has a lot of neg. comments on yelp, etc. so I wasn't sure how it would go. My experience was excellent)
Best of luck to the rest of you!

 

Just received my reimbursement check today for the full repair amount.

Online process; scanned in copies of my repair and uploaded them. Check arrived 3 weeks later.

Surprisingly painless.

 

Just want to give everyone here a heads up...
I went to the dealership a couple weeks ago (for an airbag light). They typed in my VIN to see if any warranty work was done (all were done before I bought it).
Even though the dealership "fixed" the warranty covered items (O2 sensor, passenger airbag seat sensor, etc), the issues resurfaced (O2 sensor went bad and the airbag light went back on). This was all done in 2016.
Now they will not fix these resurfaced issues unless I paid in full.

It's not a biggie for me (I have jack stands and tools) but its shady that they won't honor their work. After a year of them "fixing" the car, it was worse off than it was before (There were bolts and trim pieces missing).

So, if you have a 1st gen Mini under warranty, you're better off doing your own work.