My names Greg, my wife Allison owns a 04 Mini Cooper bought from Assael in southern California, I'm fairly well known on the southern cali forums as S2000 owner:
05TurboS2K @ s2ki.com usually posting on southern cali sub-category <A fairly reputable car forum>

I have probably the worst mini cooper story EVER...honestly I don't know if there's a bigger lemon then this car. Please read this full story I would VERY much appreciate the help from this community. We have over 48 Warranty Repairs done in the 2 years of ownership!!!!! I have the repair pages in front of me...all 27pages!!!

BMW has refused us warranty labor!!! Prior Crevier BMW told us that we were out of service at 40,500 miles!!!! They denied us warranty tow and any service whatsoever, I had to jump the car myself, with my wife on the side of the freeway!!!! Later I get home to find out we had 10,000 miles left on the warranty! James Haydon in svc dept.!!!!!! This is the same guy that prior lied to my face, and I straight up caught him. He was the one that if you read below says that the problem with the car engine stalling on the side of the freeway the first time was tested EVERY WAY possible. He told me 30 min of idling...then a 1.5 hr test drive...and of course batt. harness etc. all checked out clean. LATER.... i get the paperwork I ask my wife to see how many miles they put on it. They only put 6 miles on it! in a 1.5 hr test drive? I bring it up infront of his manager. Who basically tells me I must have heard wrong, and when i make it clear thats not the case. Calls me a liar to. Read on... it GETS way more exciting as the BMW north america rep test drives our vehicle and hits a pothole in construction that mushrooms the shock tower out for 3,000 dollars damage! Then deny's the whole thing even though there are 3 witness...one was the BMW tech who said " holy **** I just hit my head on the top of the car ". Please ....continue reading though. Oh and in arbitration... the reason for these window failures= window tint is too heavy for window motors!!!!


In 2004 my wife (before I met her) purchased a 04 Mini Cooper non S for 26,000 dollars. We are now both 22 years of age. I'm the proud owner of an S2000 Turbo that's been problem free thus far except minor things I manage to fix on my own.

When my wife rolled 8,000 miles on the odo the first warranty issue began. The headlights pointed in crazy direction and the dash was loose and rattling, in addition to this the spray nozzle stopped working in the front.

The next time in the lock button stopped working. Also the passenger window didn't roll up or down properly, it worked but it was obvious there was some kind of binding occurring, they lubed it... then when that didn't work replaced the regulator.

Then Driver side window stops working all together. Window motor is deemed failed and replaced. Collateral damage occurs and regulator is replaced as well.

Car has trouble starting, sometimes on a cold start it'll start, then die a couple times in a row before running normally. (unable to dublicate...THIS IS WHERE THE UNABLE TO DUPLICATE BECOMES EVERY VISIT)

Cust. states pass side rear handle is loose.... they find it and resecured rear grab handle

Fuel gauge failure. vehicle ran out of gas at 25% tank left. removed tank sensors 1 and 2 reset cluster....reading correctly.

Pass. window failure... window does not drop or snug up when door is opened. window stays up and gets jammed sideways...then motor fails."could not verify customers cocern at this time" <<< how much more clear can it be...the window doesn't seal!!!! it was obvious, a 10 year old could see the problem.

Rear pads and rotors are prematurely worn and replaced.

Tech noted rattle in dash... centering pin is damaged... replaced fixed.

headlight needed adjustment again, headlight pointing downward sharply.

Cust. states drivers side window now not dropping as should, causing door to hit paneling, could not duplicate.

cust states pass. window is squeeking and binding again, nec. to replace same , silicon then regulator replaced.

vehicle was shut off and would not start.... batt. replaced problem fixed.

customer states vehicle stalls while driving....would not restart for 20 min.
everything checked possible, harness, batt., ecu normal... could not duplicate. This is where Jim Haydon in service at Crevier Mini says that he test drove it 1.5 miles while when I look at the svs papers...only 6 miles was put on the car. I call him out on it, he calls me a liar to my face, and says he never said that. Though I know he did, cause he said it to cool me down about the fact that the car left my wife stranded on the freeway.

vehicle making "puttering" sound from exhaust. could not duplicate ((( THIS IS cRAZY U SHOULD HEAR THE SOUND, it sounds like a valve isn't seating or something is very wrong. It doesn't seem to be exhaust loose or anything like that.)))

The motor also ticks very loud when cold... hasn't been brought in for it as were no longer welcome at Crevier or Assael BMW.

There are more issues then just these. We've been through 2 arbitrations. I'm a 22 year old guy, I really can't afford thousands in lawyers...

PLEASE FOR GODS SAKE if you have some advice, fill me in im all ears.

Thank You Everyone for your time in reading.
-Greg Wheat and Allison Wheat (who sadly still loves her mini)

 

also, consider the fact that we've taken off SOOOO many days of work, were risking our jobs here just to get this damn thing in to service. We had our whole family with picket signs a month ago in the rain, explaining how terrible this was, they never even came out to ask us what the problem was, instead their employees made rude comments to us and to other customers who came back and repeated what was said about us..... sad.

What I will say about BMW/mini north America..... is nothing good.

 

Wow.
Cut your losses and just get rid of it.
FWIW all the problems you list are pretty common, and generally minor with the exception of the ticking sound recently.
I think you have a dealership that is incompetent and it sounds like you two aren't getting along (you and dealer). Unfortunately they hold all the cards so you have two choices. Drive yourself to drink and continue to fight it, or just dump the car and get something else. When you trade it in just keep tight lipped about your hatred for the car. Mini has great resale value, so cash in on it. Most other dealerships won't notice half what you talked about here.

 

What is your desired resolution?

From the sounds of it, you're not going to be happy with this car. As chpsk8 said, sounds like selling/trading it in would be your best bet. If you feel it's not safe, trade it in to a dealer and let them 'deal' with it.

You've got lots of details in your post, but in reality most of the items are small. The arbitration issues are key - i.e. what they were for, what the resolution was, and why you're being denied coverage. Sounds like lots of bad blood - if you were picketing them, it seems they know what your issues are, but are not willing to accomodate you.

If your job really is at risk due to this car, by all means sell it - you couldn't possibly lose as much on the car as your job. Also, as mentioned, resale value on MINIs is good.
Sorry you're having such a bad experience.

 

Did you say you bought it new?

At 40k miles the only way it could be out of warranty is if it's out on time.......

I agree tho, it's time for you to sell it and move on.........buy her a Honda Civic Si or something she'll like but won't let her down.

Good luck!

 

Several issues you list I had to have repaired under my warranty and like posted above are very common problems.

I haven't seen my '03 MC for for over 4 weeks now. She went in for her 60k service and now it looks like a new transmision and clutch is going in. Luckily for me the tranny is covered under my extended warranty.

Two things I've learned about MINI Coopers. There built with junk parts, are very unrealible and will spend a lot of time in the shop. Secondly, I'll never own one without warranty coverage. Now that I've come to accept that I just look forward to the day I get to drive her again, hopefully soon.

Sorry to hear of all your troubles. Ditch the car and get something else.

 

I'd love to hear the lemon law kicks in here ....and walk with a new mini like she deserves.... i mean we got 8,000 miles trouble free....and its been problems ever since. and ya we bought brand new. total in ownership its been out of service a month and a half to our usage....thats crazy in a new car. She hates civics...that was my exact suggestion. She loves her car... i wish BMW would just man up. :(

 

i guess we'll just sell it to some other unfortunate soul.... ...terrible.

 

If I had a car with that many problems I would have cut my losses and run, I would have sold it some time back. Sometimes dealers will work with you and sometimes they won't. In your case it looks like they want to cut their losses too. Sell it and get something else, Minis are great but if you have a bad one, it's not worth loosing your job for it. We all have enough stress in our lives without having to deal with car stresses too. SELL IT!

 

You can see the full text of the Lemon Law here.
Many attorneys come up if you google California Lemon Law if you want to take that route.

excerpt:
Given that you've already gone through arbitration twice, you may or may not get relief through the lemon law as you're well beyond the 18K mark. It really depends on the details of the resolutions to date.

Are you thinking MINI should give you a new car after you've put 40K on this one?


Given the below, even a judgement in your favor would not provide for a new vehicle.
If the dealerships are truly refusing warranty, you may want to contact the State Attorney General. Sounds like there's some serious history there.

 

That's quite a blanket statement you make here. My 10/03 MCS now has over 127 THOUSAND miles and has spent a total of about 8 Hours in the shop.
AND I'm still on the original clutch!
So for you to make a statement like that is pure crap.
Jim

 

It really does not look to qualify for the lemon law, too many factors against you. Basically as listed above for a vehicle to qualify in Ca, it has to be a non repairable safety defect, been more than 4 unsuccessful repair attempts for the same defect and/or more than 30 day in a authorized dealer for the same unrepaired defect. You also need extensive documentation of everything listed above (all repair invoices, receipts, dates in the shop), and that you have been in contact with the manufacturer regading trying to resolve the ongoing issues, and it should be all in writing by certified mail.

Right now your best options would be to trade it in something else, or sell it privately or wholesale, or ask Mini USA for some trade assistance toward another Mini, but they would need a dealer involved in the last scenario. If you have burned your bridges with local dealers and Mini USA you probably should sell it privately or trade it and take your lumps and move on.

 

I have an '04 MCS and have only had some of your issues. Why did you keep going to the same dealership? You have 10k left on your warranty, take it somewhere else.

 

Yeah I'd say find a laywer for the stuff the BMW guy did and refuses to fix and have all the work done at a different dealer (the dealers do make money on warranty stuff)

I was in the dealer every 2 weeks for warranty work, they actually where suprised and missed me if I was gone for more than that, after I turned 50k two minor issues from that last vist, one fixedmyself the other is a fairly quiet clutch rattle that needs a different than OEM desgin to fix, but is still plenty dirveable so I'm not giing to worry about it for at least antoher 25k mi.

 

Guess I've been really lucky. 58000+ and while I've had a couple of window problems (once on each side needed new motors) one electrical harness issue (early on and long resolved) and a rattle in the rear (elusive, but finally tracked down and taken care of) nothing the stealer refused to take care of in warranty, and the car has generally been as easy to own as any other with the one exception of my 1979 Toyota Celica. THAT was easily the most trouble free and reliable car I've ever had. However, the Toy was not half as much fun as the MINI.

I'm sorry that your experience has been so crappy. Crevier sounds pretty bad. I dealt with Long Beach MINI. Have you tried LB MINI, they are reasonably close to you aren't they? If you are still in waranty, maybe they would help. Might be worth a phone call?

They were okay as long as the car was in warranty, but now they are just overpriced and disinterested. I'll never go there (or any dealer) again for service out of warranty. They are just insanely expensive. I use Steve's in the SF Valley now. They are twice as good at half the price.

 

you're pretty much hosed. You can try to escallate further, but the chances are slim.

$3k for a shroom repair is just ludicrous. It's much easier to fix if they won't give you satisfaction.

While there is little good news to give you, there is a very important message here. Only get really confontational if you can go the distance. If there are more dealers around, go to them when you have the chance. If it's out of pocket, run as fast as you can to get away from the dealer, as the rates and the time quoted are usually both high. Document EVERYTHING!!!!! so that they can't screw you later. Get everything in writing.

This all sucks, I know. Also do what you can to let others know that your experience sucked, get in touch with the authorites to lodge complaints and the like. But this won't get you a new car, or a good relationship with Mini of whereever. What really sucks is that there will be enough customers to keep them in business....

Also, see if there are local service forums that review dealers and the like, and post there as well.

Sorry there's no magic bullet here...

And for all you claiming that your car is relatively trouble free, that's good. But if you look at the systems failure rates on a lot of major subsystems, it's a lot higher than it should be, that's for sure. When you combine that with Mini/BMWs less than generous attitude to customers, you're bound to get a buch of bad blood in the owners pool, even though universal statemets of all kinds are inaccurate.

Matt

 

Just an observation about the denial of warranty service at 40,500 -- OP said he had to jump start the car on the side of the freeway. Could it be that the service denied was actually MINI's roadside service warranty, which is exhausted at, what, 36K?

 

Our paperwork states until 50,000 that it includes tow etc. as long as the problem is warranty related. Dying for no reason should have been, and later after I pointed it out they didn't deny it further.


.....this .....blows.

 

Then you have a different warranty -- as I was never offered a tow on warranty-related issues once the 36K Roadside Service period was exhausted. I've also never heard of anyone receiving a tow for warranty items past that time frame, but iit could be that I have a different warranty (03) or that I just haven't been paying attention.

As much as it sucks (and it certainly DOES suck), the problems you've had seem to be very common ones that MINI has either patently ignored or fixed in later models. It's just that you have . . . so many of them. I've posted my list of ridiculousness elsewhere -- most recently in the Wanderlust thread -- so I won't go into it again but, while it isn't as extensive as yours, it's certainly absurd in its own right. Some of them are great, others not so much. It's a crap shoot regardless, but it was particularly so prior to 05MY when they seem to have gotten their act together to a reasonable extent.

Bottom line is that there's probably nothing you can do, being outside of LemonLaw territory (why didn't you attempt to LL it while it was still in effect?). MINI isn't likely going to meet you anywhere near the middle and once your warranty is exhausted, you'll be paying beaucoup scratch for the priveledge of continuing the frustrations. You're certainly not going to get a new car out of it. As others have suggested, prolly time to sell. Just be sure you give the fullest diclosure required by the laws of your state, lest the new owner attempt to sue you once they realize the extent of potential problems they've just inhereted. And then, you know, good luck selling it.

 

I really do count myself lucky to have had so little trouble (knocks wood) after reading more of the "stock problems/issues" forum. I didn't used to do that.

Doc - Do you think as more MINIs come out of warranty and more owners talk/post about their troubles, we will start to see resale values decline faster as the car's halo becomes more tarnished? Or, is the MINI's generally poor reputation a cat that has already gotten out of the bag without doing tremendous damage to our resale market? I'm sure you're carrying a crystal ball today. I don't expect gospel, bu I do respect your opinion VERY much. Thanks.

 

before writing the article on what goes wrong with Minis. I'd say that the major faults lie in transmissions, with many more failures than one would guestimate from the volumes of cars that have been sold. But with the Mini it's the look and driving experience that seems to carry the day so far, and the nagging issues seem to be mostly overlooked. But if you were to start a thread about Mini owners who moved onto other sporty brands, or came from other sporty brands to the Mini, I'd guess that overall, our cars have more issues.

Sad, but that's the way I see it.

Matt

 

Good for you, your one of the lucky few that owns a MINI with very few problems.

At 62k miles I should not be replacing a transmission or have to replace upper strut mount bushings or fuel guage sensors or seat frames. All these should last the life of the car, period. These problems tell me BMW used less then quality parts, or, junk parts as I like to call it.

Now don't get me wrong, I love my MINI and will deal with being MINI-less for quite a bit of time out of the year. These are the most fun to drive of any car I've ever owned but they are, by far, the worst car for realibility.

Maybe the new 2007 models will be better, maybe not. My coworker owns one and is having issues with her's only after 10k miles.

 

You can get used ones for less and less, but it's still hard to find them at KBB pricing, which is surprising. Since they really scream to be driven, uh, a bit, uh, harder than your average Camry, I don't think it will be easy to find a pristine example of a 03 MCS that the proverbial little old lady only drove on sundays. They never were built in high volumes, so I'd guess they'll still sell for a relatively high value.

Look at other BMWs. Same company (really), and same attitude towards a lot of the nagging issues. Yet a Bimmer with a good body/chassis still sells for a lot, even with high mileage. Even with the same electronics gremlins. And the same company attitude at not admitting design flaws....

Matt

 

I agree the transmission should last a lot longer than 62K miles, but some things are considered "wear items"... and the strut mount bushings are one of them. They are often replaced when the struts are... and unfortunately, the Boge struts spec'd by most German car makers have never been known for their longevity (thie common joke amoung VW owners is the struts are blown the moment the car rolls out of the factory - mine lasted about a week, literally).

I feel for the OP, though... this is tough... I know a few MINI owners who've had less than great experiences with their cars... one was a popular member of this site and MINI2... after being left with no other options and a barely running car in her driveway, she traded it in to a Mazda dealer for a new 3.

So far, the '03 MCS has been fairly reliable since new. There was one nagging issue with a malfunctioning cruise control a couple of years ago, but we were fortunate to find a dealer willing to go the distance to fix it. Bear in mind this dealer is over 2 hours away when we have another dealer about 10 minutes away that we NEVER go to. Chosing the right dealer for service can mean everything.

That said, we are still somewhat fearful of the car as our past history with BMW electrics hasn't been stellar... She had a '97 M3 that I nick-named 'the Christmas tree' due to persistant CEL, SRS and OBC faults...

 

darn seeing this makes me have second thoughts!


i am really close to buying a new mini and getting rid of my 05 and seeling the aftermarket stuff, but i did not know they were so unreliable.


what do you guys think, should i get the new 08 and risk having problems??