Less than 1 month of ownership and first major problem hits. My wife tried to get into the passenger side this morning and she couldn't open it. I take a look and the part of the handle that you squeeze in to unlatch the door is popped out. It looks like a black plastic part has been sheared off. You squeeze the door handle and nothing happens. (Did not check to see if it opens from the inside yet.)

With APEC in town (and the attendant street closures which creates some mad traffic jams) we jumped in her car to hurry off to work. So I didn't get a real good look at everything, but I didn't notice any obvious exterior damage that someone hit the car or tried to break in. I will conduct a more thorough inspection when I get home.

I've already called and made an appointment for repair Thursday next week. Bad news is because I have comfort access serviceperson said she had to order the "coded" part and that it should take about a week. Not happy about the wait.

 

I don't think a door handle is really a major problem, but it still sucks.

Could your wife not ride in the back seat?

 

I disagree. It may not be a major mechanical or electrical problem (yes, the car can still be driven), but not being able to open the oft used passenger side door from the outside is, IMHO, a significant failure (if it is indeed a failure and was not done by someone trying to break in or something). Not being able to get in and out of your vehicle through the appropriate door is a bigger problem than, say, a cosmetic failure like the peeling chrome trim which everyone here seems to dread and get pretty upset about. BUT to each his own, maybe I feel its "major" because I've never had a door break on me before. In the end it is a problem and issue that needs fixing.

Yes, wife could have sat in the backseat, but why not take the car that's working 100%? She'd probably fit in the boot too...

 

Maybe I've just been driving MINIs too long and have gotten used to random things breaking. I had the driver handle disconnect from the door pull in my R50, and a door lock actuator break in my R53. It's an annoyance, but the car is still safe to drive.

It always amuses me when people complain about rattles, random noises, and other minor annoyances that MINIs have had for years. Just tell yourself it's all part of the MINI charm

 

I checked out the door handle thoroughly and no other exterior damage. It just broke on its own. I guess this isn't a surprise to the experienced MINI owners. It does not inspire confidence in the rest of the build.

Chrunk's I understand your perspective based upon your experience having owned multiple MINIs, but I can't help but think that becoming acclimated or tolerant to such failures isn't where I want to end up. Door handles shouldn't fail, sunroof shouldn't rattle, chrome trim should stay in place, fuel gauges should be accurate, OEM accessories shouldn't fall apart after one use (cell phone holder), software features should function as advertised, etc.

Not arguing with you at all, I'm guessing MINI will eventually beat it out of me and I'll see things the same way.

 

It's only a major problem if you want to open the door. Now, if the driver's side does the same thing, THAT would be a seriously major problem! Then again, I guess you could leave the sunroof open and get in that way. This reminds me of the old "economists joke" about the difference between a recession and a depression. When your neighbor is unemployed it's a recession; when YOU are unemployed it's a depression. When someone else's door won't open, it's a minor problem. When YOUR door won't open, it's a major problem.

 

Maybe if fewer people found these things "charming" MINI/BMW would decide they need need to pay more attention to these "small details".

 

Luckily it is not a common issue as I do not recall seeing a single thread about a door handle breaking here.

 

Nope me either. I think its a rare occurrence.

 

Anyone who thinks they should accept door handles breaking off as being part of the 'charm' of owning a car, needs to have their head examined. But, then again, it falls in line with "why complain about the trim falling off the car.. after all, its a Mini..." mentality. What it is to me is a poor quality vehicle. One that I will never buy again.

Mark

 

Nobody here truly thinks this acceptable and most were referring to how it is no problem for the driver, because it does not directly impact their use of the car. The joking part was that it impedes the wife, not the driver.

Sounds as if your MINI experience was soured, sorry to hear that. This particular issue is very isolated and as previously stated, rare.

 

Maybe I missed the joke, but I'm so fed up with waiting for simple repairs, I'm really dreading the day I have to bring the car to the dealer to get something of significance repaired. Believe it or not, my dealer actually offered to replace the bad trim with ones off a car on their showroom floor, until I showed them the trim on that car was failing also. So now I wait. Maybe next month...

Mark

 

This reminds me of the time recently when JD Power and Associates rated Mini at the very bottom for initial quality and the CEO of Mini USA came out and said that's why Mini owners love their Minis, it's the charm of it.... That's why Mini quality will never improve. http://www.motoringfile.com/2009/06/...uality-survey/

 

I'm not saying you shouldn't complain--quite the opposite. You should make sure your dealer fixes it (and it really shouldn't take a week, especially now that we're in the second model year), but it's not something that should sour the car for you. Manufacturing defects happen, things occasionally break, and life goes on.

I guess what makes it a minor problem to me is that you can still drive the car while you wait for the part to come in. If your car was stuck at the dealer for a week or more, that would be much worse. I think it's absurd that the chrome trim problem went on for so long and baffles me from a QA perspective, but it's still a minor problem in my book.

 

I wouldn't call it minor but then I wouldn't call it major, somewhere in the middle I guess. It could just as easily have been the driver's side door, then what, I would call that major.

 

But isn't the chrome trim problem indicative of a much larger issue of how BMW/MINI doesn't seem to be overly concerned about quality?. Sure things go wrong, turn out to be poorly designed (melting hood scoops anyone?) and just plain break. The test of the company's commitment to quality is how they handle these things when they happen. How many times have we read here that "this is a known problem"? Well if we know about it so does MINI so why does it continue to be a "known problem". Does it really take a year to fix plastic trim? How many hood scoops were replaced more than once for the same issue? A company that was committed to quality and that cared about its reputation would quickly find a permanent fix. If they don't care about their reputation, they do the financials on a permanent fix versus a band aid and often just apply the band aid.

 

I agree 100% with what chaswyck posted above. Yes, I can drive the car. Yes, it functions. But it isn't what I paid over $30,000 for. The problem is MINI believes that what they provided is good enough, and, as long as people come back to buy their product, they aren't going to get too concerned about 'minor' defects.
Interestingly, this is the same attitude that nearly put the US auto companies out of business. As a comparison, when a minor issue arose on my wifes Honda Fit, we got a letter in the mail telling us what the defect was (another minor issue) and told us the fix, and the procedure to get it done. Then, when we went in to have it repaired, they offered her a free loaner, even if it was only for the hour or two it took to fix the issue. The fix was done, and there hasn't been a problem since.
Nothing like than from Mini. No communication. No parts. Broken promises on the 'fix', and 5 months later, I still have an embarassing to look at $33,000 car.

Mark

 

So no fix yet. Apparently the part is in limbo somewhere in Missouri.

 

How can this be going on for 5 months? That's ridiculous. You can buy aftermarket door handles and have them in a couple of days. Have you tried emailing other dealers throughout the country to see if they have one? My suggestion: order the door handle, bring it to your dealer and have them put it on (for free of course) and present them with the bill for the part. Have you tried going to another dealer, or is this the only one that's a reasonable distance from where you live? This one seems like a bad joke.

 

Isn't Mark talking about the chrome trim problem?

 

I think he was talking about trim, but on a side note he did say he had comfort access which means special for handles with electronics built in. I really do not think there are aftermarket door handles that would offer this.

 

It took about a month, but my door handle mechanism was fixed last Thursday. Taking my car in for the repair was a breeze. Dropped the car off in the morning, got myself a cappuccino from an awesome and magical machine in the waiting room, and was shuttle to work about 5 mins away. I got a call it was ready that afternoon, was picked up by the shuttle, and picked up my car. One of the best service experiences I've ever had.

Glad to have a fully functioning Countryman again!

 

I guess they put the part on a ship from Europe!

 

Cuprum is an R56, not a Countryman, but its driver's side started working intermittently around 7,000 miles. Finally got it repaired under warranty and back from the dealer yesterday (9,200 miles). Cuprum's build date is June, 2011.

To work around the problem, remember that you can press and hold the unlock button on the key fob to roll down the windows, then reach inside and open the door. (Not recommended during snowstorms. Do you get those on Oahu? )

 

Interesting...
I haven't gotten a MINI yet (looking at a Countryman) so forums give me a view of ownership prior;
It looks like BMW doesn't do accessories well. I have an X3 currently. Mechanically, it is rock solid. No major issues at 140,000+ miles.
Generally, the trend I notice is that BMW cuts a corner or two in the incidentals. I dealt with a leaky sunroof, my windows are starting to show signs of needing Viagra, my bluetooth hands free doesn't work anymore, etc.
MINI seems to cut a couple more corners, eg. Trimwork, squeaky interior, etc.

What really does concern me however is this:
BMW has ALWAYS been a great dealer for me to work with. I dealt with a BMW dealer in Erie for years, and the one I'm with now, south of Pittsburgh. I was under the impression that MINI dealers were no less in their service. Am I wrong here?
I would think that despite the relatively minor issues people deal with, their dealer network would go out of their way to make sure you're taken care of. Be it valet service, loaner vehicles, etc.

I would think that comparing them to US auto companies is a bit unfair since I never saw this kind of dealer service in any domestic manufacturer (based on my experiencs). Granted it's been years since I would look at one based on the quality of vehicles I dealt with years ago. I've since had a Nissan (better quality than the last domestic) to an Audi (about the same quality if not slightly more temperamental than the Nissan but WAY better dealer service, plus more fun car) to the BMW (better quality than the Audi, but even more fun to drive and the dealership service to beat so far)

I get people can get angry a bit if they spent "$30,000" on a car to have to worry about chrome trim peeling, but heck, I remember spending well over that on a '94 Grand Cherokee at the time and had a much worse dealer service AND a vehicle that could barely last me 80,000 miles without major mechanical issues.

Maybe the expectations have been raised while I wasn't paying attention? Frankly, these days, I still don't expect a Chrysler vehicle to be all that great even if I spent $40,000 and last I knew their dealers aren't as nice to deal with.

Are you guys generally happy with your dealers and their ability to fix or take care of your issues?