I have a 2006 R50 but think this would apply for R53 as well. We bought it used this spring and have been getting it ready for our daughter's first car. However, we have some extremely intermittent electrical problems that I am wondering if they might be connected.

When we bought the car, the previous owner told me the right side window would not always go up, so not to put it down. I bought a used motor and regulator, but never installed it because the window started working. It has worked since then, but just stopped today. It does not even do the adjustment when you open and close the door.

This car has the automatic climate control. From time to time -- probably 20 times since we have bought it -- the control panel will just lose power, meaning no AC or any HVAC. If you disconnect the battery then reconnect it, the panel comes back up and everything works. I have seen some suggestions of a short, but no one but the dealer is willing to really try and it never seems to consistently act up to show mechanics any way. I have a batter switch inline with the ground terminal, so disconnecting the battery does not even require tools for me. I can live with this.

Occasionally, the door locks will unlock the car while driving, usually in traffic. In fact, it is like a ghost in unlocking and locking.

So ...

Is there any chance all of this is connected? It has a new battery and the alternator checks out fine.

If not, any easy suggestions to fix any or all of these?

Thanks for the help!

 

Try hitting the door above the speaker Fonzie style. Might get it working again. Taught my daughter that and it works for her R50.

 

The window motor is probably dirty and cleaning the motor and brush dust should get it working again. There's a fix called the "Fonzie" technique of hitting the door panel at the motor to get the motor working again, sometimes for months or years. This is just getting the contacts with the brushes and motor going again by jarring the dust and connection at the brushes.

The auto adjust on the window sounds like it just needs to be reset. To do this, roll the window completely down and keep holding the switch for about 5-10 seconds. The roll the window up and hold the switch again. After this, the window adjustment when the door is open should start working again.

Also, how old is the battery? For some reason, MINI's are really sensitive to battery fluctuations and can have electrical issues even if the car starts fine. Many times a new battery fixes these strange issues.

 

Thanks for the suggestion on the Fonzie technique -- I will definitely give that a whirl tomorrow morning.

 

I really appreciate the window reset procedure. If the Fonzie technique can get it to roll down, I will definitely reset it and look to reset it in the future if it starts to get flakey (sort of pre-emptive reset).

I put a new battery in about a month ago, so I do not think it is the battery. Incidentally, I thought I would save money (was considering going Optima), but ended up buying a battery from O'Reilly's. The next day I ordered an Optima for my R52 from Amazon.com and it cost less than the conventional battery from O'Reilly's. So if anyone else is due for a battery replacement and can wait a few days, you may pay less for an Optima battery online.

Thanks for the help!