Yeah, every Honda I've owned has too.

My point was quit nitpicking about the little stuff, and enjoy the car. MINIs are the funnest (not a real word, I know! ) cars on the road, and their build quality is every bit as good IMO as other cars on the road in a similar price range. Even at $30,000, you're not gonna get the quality of a Lexus, BMW, or Mercedes. People expect WAY too much for these little bundles of joy.

If you really want to see **** poor build quality, go check out a $40,000 Chrysler 300C!!!

 

Good point, and especially true if you consider that the MINI isn't even a $30,000 car. Granted, you an option a MINI to $50,000 and beyond, but at its heart, it's a $20,000 car, and if you compare the MINI build quality with other cars you can get for $20,000, I think it compares pretty favourably.

 

The price of the car seems to have little to do with the quality level.

Check this out. You'll be surpised at what is getting lemon lawed...
http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/ap...=2007710250332

 

Let's see--$285,579, plus TTL, invested at xx%, would be...

Love the part about how it's out of warranty...after sitting idle a year!

 

Sure, the Mini is really a 20K car at it's core. That said, there are many cars out there that are under 20k that don't exhibit half the issues our Mini has. This is not the seventies. I can't believe that car owners have the same tolerance level for such things anymore.

 

Just an Update:

Took in our car last week…the Mini’s going to be in the shop for another five days or so. Apparently the Regional Mini Manager took a look at the bonnet and recommended that it be repainted. Hopefully this will mitigate any future corrosion.

 

Just got the car back today after two weeks in the shop...

Well, only half the items on the "fix" list were addressed the others were dismissed. The Mini continues to make a knocking noise even though the dealer claims that there's nothing wrong. Also...when they replaced the dashboard the service techs neglected to place the a-pillar covers correctly. And to add insult to injury, one of the decals on the repainted hood is already coming off...I just picked the car up today! I called them back to schedule another appointment and didn't get an apology for their sloppy service. They just told me to bring it in yet again.

Finally, the service manager that was handeling my Mini left the dealership today to work for another car company (an american car company infact). My Mini experience so far has been such a comedy of errors. I really wish I were making this up.

When it comes to our Mini, I feel as though I'm in some strange Monty Python skit. I am now beyond words...

 

You have my sympathy - I would be extremely frustrated in your shoes. Anybody thinking of buying a Mini should really be evaluating their local service departments as much as the car itself, especially if there is only one. Hopefully the departure of that service manager is a sign that someone at Mini is taking a positive action. Good luck.

 

I mini in your general direction (not towards North American Motoring Readers of course).

 

I'm very happy with my R56. I've only had one issue with it and that was a leaky washer jet that ended up staining one of my bonnet stripes. There is a service bulletin out on it and my dealership will be replacing the washer jet as well as putting on a new set of stripes. I've put 6000 miles on it in 3.5 months. I couldn't be happier.

 

I've got 15000 miles on my 2007 MCS. It's my daily driver. 25 miles to and from work on a heavily traveled rural highway and I'm getting 38-40 mpg. This summer I pretty much left the motorcycle in the garage and took the Mini out for pretty aggressive roadwork on my days off. I was dumb enough to miscalculate the mileage for my initial service and found out when I got there (160 miles one way) that the service wasn't due for another 8000 miles. The service manager at my dealer (Ralph Schomp in Denver) comped me the oil and filter change without any encouragement from me. I've got the upper glove box rattle but it only shows up when I'm driving down washboard dirt roads. I've experienced the diesel sounding clatter a couple of times when I've started up in really cold weather. In these forums I've read that it's probably the hydraulic cam chain tensioner. I'll mention it to the service manager when I take it in for it's next service. I'll make sure they document my concern for future warranty coverage if needed. Basically, I've never had so much fun with a car. It was a birthday present to me from my wife. She had saved up for three years after I kept raving about how cool every Mini I saw was. When I ordered it the only extra I got was the winter package because I live in the Rockies. I feel fortunate that I'm not having many of the issues that some people are having. Well, gotta go. The roads are dry today so I'm out to wick it up before I put the snow tires on.

 

Our Mini went in for another round of fixes last Wednesday, some old and some new. It’s going to be in the shop for at least another three days because of the weekend. This is the 5th time I’ve taken the car in since October. Hopefully they will be able to get to the bottom of the remaining issues.

I have to say that I’ve NEVER owned a car with this many issues until now. Mini’s are just poorly made cars, that’s all I can say after all this ridiculous nonsense. We’re actively considering replacing our Mini with the new BMW 1 Series...we definitely learned our lesson.

I wish the rest of you better luck with your Mini(s).

 

The sales staff at any Toyota dealer will be happy to sell you a stripped Yaris hatchback for under $13k out the door, and you'll be trouble free, high gas mileage and BORED. But I guess I've been lucky?? However, most of the Mini owners I meet out in the world, outside of this forum...they're just driving and enjoying their cars.

That said, I FEEL YOUR PAIN. I'd be P*SSED to the moon if I had the problems you have faced.

"We take our own chances and pay our own dues." - Kris Kristofferson

 

Hmm, so you're thinking about going from one low-end BMW product in its first year of production (the R56) to another low-end BMW product in its first year of production (BMW 1-series).

Yeah - you've really learned your lesson...

 

I haven't owned my R56 very long but I can't see any issues with it. The only problem I had was that the dealership scratched my bumper putting on the driving lamps but they are going to fix that for me next week. It's been pretty hassle free. I also have an issue with the tire pressure monitoring system but I've never seen one of those work well in a vehicle, including my mom's $45,000 Pacifica.

Also a BMW 1 series? Why would you buy that overpriced thing? Seriously a Volkswagen R32 is the way to go if you are looking for something like that. Top Gear did a comparisons between the two, I believe you can find it on YouTube if you have not seen it yet.

 

I thought the 135i starts out base at $35,000. I would invest the extra five grand and get a 335i

 

We're not going to buy the 1 (if we buy it) until it's third year of production.

 

We're actually opting for the non-turbo engine which should start around the high 20's.

 

Also a BMW 1 series? Why would you buy that overpriced thing? Seriously a Volkswagen R32 is the way to go if you are looking for something like that. Top Gear did a comparisons between the two, I believe you can find it on YouTube if you have not seen it yet.[/quote]



Thanks, I’ve been looking into the R32 myself. I’m a real fan of VW’s DSG. That said, VW’s in general seem to have a worse track record than our Mini. The interior trim and vanity mirrors of my friend’s new beetle fell off during a warm summer day. The glue that was holding the vanity mirrors and trim pieces literally melted and got all over the front seats.

 

Just for the record I've never been a fan of Toyota's. However, if Honda ever brings the three door Civic here to states I would seriously consider buying it.

http://www.leftlanenews.com/honda-un...r-concept.html

 

I worked as a tech for VW for a while, there's a certain amount of job security in those buggy beasts, water leaks, wiring nightmares, disintegrating water pumps & camshafts, and the monthly brake light switch updates.
plus, just like the BMW 1-series, the cars are pig heavy which means poor gas mileage around town (that's just plain physics).
If you're really feeling like you're stuck with a lemon, talk (nicely) with your dealership about lemoning it & re-order. Unless you want a completely boring Toyota camry, you're unlikely to find another brand that doesn't have it's occasional problems as well.
you can buy a $120k Porsche and you're still going to face some squeaks & rattles, cars are WAY more complicated today then they've ever been before.

Of course if you're just a miserable whiny person and a rip in a mini can't put a smile on your face, seek prompt medical attention

 

plus, just like the BMW 1-series, the cars are pig heavy which means poor gas mileage around town (that's just plain physics).
If you're really feeling like you're stuck with a lemon, talk (nicely) with your dealership about lemoning it & re-order.


Thanks for the reminder...torque steer is plain physics as well my friend. As far as I can tell, lemon laws are pretty useless in this country (unlike the UK). You need to have the same problem at least four times and at each incidence the dealer needs to make an attempt to fix the problem.

http://ag.ca.gov/consumers/general/lemon.php

Mini knows this so they won't log in some the issues I have with car even though they're acknowledging the problem. Unless you're an attorney (which I am not), there's really no easy way to get your car replaced.

 

It's not as bad as you might think. Read the link you posted to find out what has to happen before you can invoke the "Lemon Law" provision. If your car's been in the shop for 30 days total, and it's been less than 18 months and 18,000 miles since you took delivery, you've triggered the Lemon Law - you don't have to show that the car's been in the shop for the same problem(s) each time, there's no minimum number of attempts you have to give them to fix the problem, and it doesn't have to be a safety-related defect.

Basically, if the car can't be fully-sorted after spending 30 total days in the shop, it's a lemon, and the law acknowledges that.

 

I hope you're not confusing torque steer with LSD engagement, but clearly if the torque steer on the mini's bothering you, it's probably the same limp wristed attitude that's making you a doorstop at the mini dealership. No, an inexpensive fwd car is not going to drive like an expensive rwd car, that's just common sense.

There's a big difference between a lemon car & just regretting a poorly researched impulse purchase.

IF it's a real lemon, CA is one of the easiest states to get a car lemoned in.
If the service writers aren't writing down your complaints, start firing out some letters, to the dealership, to your attorney generals office, mini usa...

Point is, if you have a legitimate complaint, do something about it instead of whining away like a miserable little child. On the forum I run, we had a kid like you & the dealer sent us a cease & desist to remove his slanderous posts & took him to court (and they won).

 

A bit harsh, I'd say, but I agree a little bit. No need to bad mouth a brand because you had a bad time with it. Attempt to lemon it... it seems like it has been in the shop for a while now?