Okay here's the problem I'm having with my new 2008 MCS. Two weeks ago (with 800 miles on it) I started getting a yellow warning message that looked like a door window half down with and exclaimation mark next to it. With the warning light came a chime. I initially thought that one of the doors was open so I checked the doors. That seemed to resolve the problem temporarily. Then the warning started to happening spontaneously when I was driving. I figured it was an electrical glitch since nothing happened and the light would go out on its own. Now I get the warning message and my passenger window will only go up or down in short 1" spurts. It won't go all the way up but it will go all the way down. I've tried turning the car off and restarting it but I'm having the same problem. I've also tried both key fobs. I've tried holding the door lock button down and tried holding the unlock button down. The other window and my sunroof work fine but the passenger window is not working properly and I can't even find the warning symbol I'm getting anywhere in the owners manual. Any ideas or help would be appreciated as my Mini dealer is a 3.5 hour drive away!! Thanks!!

 

Since you obviously still have a lot of the Warranty left, I know the Dealership is a bit far, but by phone, they are quite close, aren't they??

 

Really...call my Mini dealer? WOW that was a really helpful suggestion. You must have woke up pretty early in the morning to figure that one out. The purpose of this forum is for Mini owners to share their experiences, ideas and productive suggestions not to engage in pointless sarcasm.

 

Try opening both windows and sunroof completely.Then disconnect the negative battery terminal and press the brake.Wait about 10 minutes and re-attach and your ECU will be reset.If the problem is a glitch that should correct it.Put your key(unsnap it from inside the fob)and try closing the windows and sunroof by turning the key clockwise in the drivers door.If the problem is mechanical then it won't fix but it's worth a shot.

 

which is something (like) the dealer may have told you, had you called them, carcrazywv. So maybe you should can your sarcasm...

 

ditto. sounds like warranty work. and don't act like a douche to RJ.

 

Thank you Oxybluecoop! I really appreciate your suggestion. I'll give it a shot tonight. As for steaming79 and LynnEl perhaps you should re-read (my post) and RJ's post. "By phone they are quite close, aren't they." You don't think that was sarcastic? Do you really think his post was helpful? Did I say in my post that I hadn't called the dealer yet? If you believe that saying basically "Call your dealer" or "See your dealer for warranty service" is a legitimate response then 90% of the threads in this forum are pointless. I would certainly hope that anyone who has a drivers license and owns a car would be smart enough to know to call their dealer. One of the main purposes of NAM is to share ideas and be constructively helpful to other Mini owners. If you look at other posts, half the time the service techs or dealers have no idea what's going on. I've seen many problems solved on this forum by the help of other members when the advise of Mini service techs have not resolved the problem. That's why this site is so valuable. An example of being truley helpful is a posting like Oxybluecoop left. I'm sure that most people when they have a problem with their Mini and take the time to post a new thread get excited when they see a response assuming that someone out there is going to help them, not just restate the obvious. Just for your information, before I posted my thread, I did contact my Mini dealer and spoke with a service tech. He told me that he had never heard of this problem before and the warning symbol didn't show up in the materials he had available. He told me he would "research" thie issue and call me back. That was Friday and so far no call. So I turned to this site where I have received lots of very valuable help (and tried to give valuable help) when I had my other Mini's. Thanks again Oxybluecoop!

 

Perhaps it's in the way you read it. In any case, someone who comes in with a handful of posts should give the benefit of the doubt to a long term poster, who may or may not have given much valuable advice.

 

Oh I didn't realize that their was now a hierachy depending upon how many times you've posted. I had a 2003 and 2004 MCS but sold the 04 in 2005. I was quite active back then but absent since 2005 and when I bought my 08 MCS had to rejoin under a different screen name. Might I suggest that's it's not the number of the posts that's important but the way you use them!

 

In deed. You're off to a great (re)start.

 

"Indeed" is one word not two (sorry I'm such an a--hole). Really I mean no offense I'm just kidding with you! Obviously with your number of posts you have you been a very active and valuable member of NAM since 2007. Ironically while we were in the middle of jabbing each other my Mini dealer called. The tech said that they have never seen that symbol before ( a yellow window half down symbol with an exclaimation mark). They suspect that it is not an electrical issue but an entrapment issue similar to if you put the window up and it hit resistence (like your finger) and would automatically go back down an inch or two. They think that maybe the window is hitting some type of internal resistence causing it to act this way. I told them that the weird thing is that the problem started before a window was even down. The warning would just go on by itself. Hell, I though it was a door ajar thing so I opened and closed my door. Now it has started interfering with the operation and function of the window. So they told me that it was something I need to bring in for service. There goes 540 miles round trip. I'm going to try Oxybluecoop's suggestion first and if that fails schedule an appointment. I'll post my findings in case this happens to anyone else.

 

At the risk of sounding sacrastic to you, have you tried opening/closing the window with the door open? It may be related to that thing that makes the window jump up a bit further after the door is closed.

 

This IS seemingly a new problem to show up on nam and since nobody really knows what to do about it the dealer option most likely will be the best thing.

If it was a common problem the answer would have been to see the dealer and tell them you have *insert any of the problems previously discussed on NAM*

back on topic:

the whole car is pretty much computer controlled so I like oxyblue's idea of resetting the ECU. You don't have anything to lose and it might save a trip to the dealer. If it doesn't work the dealer is pretty much the only option left.

Sorry I don't have anything more than that. This is a first for this problem.


edit:

2008 models have the anti pinch sensor modules for the auto up circuit. maybe the pinch sensor went bad? 07 and earlier models will never have this problem since they don't have the sensors.

 

+1. From the information shared so far, it sounds like the pinch sensor is sending bad information to the computer. Should be a simple part swap, and that seems like a logical first step to a fix at this point. It sucks to be the first to experience a problem. Too bad the dealer wasn't able to offer a good suggestion from the first phone call. And THEY'RE supposed to be the experts Thank goodness for NAM

Best of luck with the repair.

EDIT: Be sure to charge them for your time in diagnosing the problem with your own car

 

Thanks everybody for the suggestions. I tried each of them without positive results. Oxybluecoop, I tried the ECU reset...same problem. LynnEl, I tried your potential fix...that didn't work either. Unfortunately I think that hynohealer is probably right (bad pinch sensor). That idea is consistent with the resistence problem the dealer thought could be the problem. The funny part is that you would expect a resistance problem or the pinch sensor to only cause a problem when the window is going up not down since it isn't facing any resistance when going down. There is no squeak or marks left on the window suggesting that it is too tight plus and here's the kicker....the window is going all the way down by itself whenever it feels like it. I had the windows rolled up yesterday and when I left work the passenger window was all the way down. After trying all the suggestions last night at home I parked the car in the garage again with all the windows (and sunroof closed) and when I left for work this morning the passenger window was all the way down again! Maybe it's a poltergeist! My dealer said that I could bring the car out to them 3.5 hour drive and they would give me aloaner or they have a valet service where they will pick the car up and give me a loaner. I opted for the valet service but they can't pick the car up until April 22. Between now and then, I'm sure that window is going to go down by itself either when it's raining or when I'm parked somewhere where the window shouldn't be down. Anybody else have any ideas? I'll be sure to keep you updated. Thanks again everyone for your help. I'm glad to be part of this forum.

 

In the meantime, if it's separately fused, you can pull the fuse for the window.

 

since you have to wait so long perhaps there is a wire bundle disconnect in the door jam that you can disconnect. Granted this should kill everything in the door.....lights speaker etc....... but the window won't move any more either.....

let us know what the final fix is......

 

Okay here's the latest update on the strange window problem and message. After trying all suggestions from other members, I still had the same problems as set forth above. I was out of town for a few days and when I got back I went to drive my Mini on a warm day and instinctively hit the window switch. The window went down without a problem. Then it went up without a problem. I kept repeating the window up and down trying to reproduce the problem but it has disappeared. I've been able to use my window normally for the last 10 days. However, on warmer days when the sun has been beating down on the roof for a while and the sunroof is in the popped position, I have trouble closing the sunroof. I will try to close it but it will just pop back open. After several tries it closes. I think the car has electrical gremlins but I canceled my appointment for today since the problems are periodic and I was unable to repeat them. All I'd do is wind up putting over 500 miles on my car round trip to find out that the Mini techs were unable to duplicate the problem. So far no understanding or solution to the problem. Sorry. I post if the problem happens again. Wish me luck.

 

Ahhhh.... the migrating glass gremlin disease. Maybe there's a body/door alignment problem???

 

Don't know that the window is an alignment problem although that's certainly a possibility. I just have a feeling that the window is more of an electrical problem. The sunroof probably is an alignment problem since it only happens when the roof has heated up. I've read other postings from owners with similar sunroof issues. Some became such a problem that the had the entire sunroof assembly replaced. Ceratinly as the days get warmer we'll see the the sunroof problem worsens.

 

I know this probably isn't going to help anything, but I have a like problem with my drivers side window working intermittently. It seems to be much more pronounced if it is damp or cold outside. Dealer had no idea what it was, as the switch is good. My husband is a mechanic and found that it was a bad ground. Also, isn't there a pinch sensor of sorts in the sunroof (at least) on the 1st Gen. cars...as otherwise, once during a time of complete brain shut down, I would have broken my hand. Don't ask...like I said, complete brain shut down.
Anyway, maybe its as simple as a grounding problem. My husband explained how all that stuff works, but all I heard was "...blah, blah, window...blah, blah.....ground" (of course I was nodding like I understood).
Hope you get it fixed!