That's total BS. You need to have a sit down session with the GM. If that fails just start climbing the ladder via phone and email.

 

i will go as far as i need to go... i was advised not to shell out a dime... b.c i would never ever see it again...

im trying to be understanding, but its hard knowing that there are other dealerships out there that would readily fix the problem... im going to keep my faith...

on a sad note, i planned on getting coilovers, wheels, and some other goodies... now im afraid that any hint of modification and a dealer will tell me that all warranties are null and void... anybody with experience as it relates to this?

 

They have to determine that your "mods" directly impacted the part failing. Period. Google Magnussen Moss Act.

 

My dealer is DEF becoming more militant about 2nd party mods and add-ons, a position they never had with the 02s-06s. hell, before I got my Cravenspeed dipstick--one a non-german can read--I ran it by my SA. Gotta be careful out there anymore.

good luck on yr. clutch issue. BTW feel lucky U have other dealers to choose from in the area, Irvine, Long Beach, even the San Diego dealer. DONT GIVE UP!

 

I hope you get it taken care of. Make sure you talk to the service mnge and get your sales man involved to. Make sure they know you are out there on the web and you are keeping every one up to date on how the dealer handles your problem. Or it might be time for a road trip to another dealer(after a phone call). Good luck.

 

at this point i dont care anymore... i've lost faith in the system... if they want to blame me, fine. im willing to go as much as $1200 out of pocket for this... hopefully we can negotiate this amount. they are quoting about $2800 for parts and labor... after all is said and done, im going to look for a new car, i dont want to go through this any more...

 

I feel your pain. I went through a similar thing with my '05 Mini. The clutch was rattling in neutral and the clutch pedal was squeaking abnormally. The dealer repeatedly told me that they couldn't replicate the problem, even though I replicated the issues in front of the service manager. My warranty was about to go out in a couple months, and I didn't want the headache anymore, so I traded the Mini in. It was still tough, and I still miss it ALOT, but it was time to let go and move on.

 

It's a shame how one fraked-up dealer can sour you on a brand forever. Altho my 05 S had a lot of problems, inc the clutch--twice--there were never any warranty denials nor stonewalling, and because of this I continued on with my ten times better built 09 MCS automatic.

sorry to see you go thru the wringer. dont give up tho, lots of folks have complained about Crevier's service, and have take their cars elswhere after letting MINI-USA hear what it is up. Be lucky U have multiple dealers to choose from there in S CA. We only have 4 in the entire Mtn time zone...

 

spoke to crevier this morning, and they will be replacing everything under warranty. i am more than please with this "goodwill" gesture...



they did a thorough job explaining to me everything about the situation... that they weren't trying to blame me, but what they saw in the clutch wasn't something that they (crevier) nor mini usa as a company would cover under warranty. im glad they fixed the item, but i still worry about future clutch problems. i cant say that my full faith is restored, but we'll see over time... i just want to get back into my car soon...

 

That is so great to hear! Soon you'll be back motoring and hopefully (knock on wood) worry free!

 

Glad to hear this, man.

 

I hate to be a worry wart, but this forum has me more concerned about my car than when i ordered it. I checked on Consumer reports and all of the Auto Byers guides and reliability for the MINI was always excellent since 2006 up until now. The new guides came out and has the reliablity down to average or slightly above. I got 160,000 miles out of my first clutch and had 115000 on the 2nd clutch when I sold my first car. My 2nd/current car has 140000 miles on it and the clutch is still like new.

Is there anyone out there who has a 2nd generation MINI that hasn't had clutch problems?

 

Im sure there are, but remember not all MINI owners post to this forum, and I doubt someone would post just to say all's well with the clutch.

And I wouldnt worry too much-- Schomp service dept, unlike Crevier, always gives their customers the benefit of the doubt re possible clutch and flywheel issues.

 

Well I haven't asked MINI that question but when I went to change the clutch on my other car the mechanic told me that an average clutch lasts 80000Km but I managed to do around 150000Km.

 

Maybe if your a repeat customer. But I would get that in writing. If you search you will find various pricing. 1400.00 is the lowest I've seen. Had my clutch replaced under warranty as a 1 time courtesy, after 21,000 miles. Worst case senario put away some cash just in case. Next time I will be looking into an upgrade.

 

My 1988 Suzuki Samuari has 160,000 + miles on the original clutch. I'm on my 3rd fuel pump and 2nd alternater. Only replacements were plugs, brakes & tires. I'm hopeing my 2009 JCW is as good.
Ronnie948

 

ronnie, wow that's almost a classic! I have a 86 Toy PU that's been to the moon, made one orbit, and on the way back to Earth on its 2nd clutch. And it runs cleaner smog tests than a lot of newer vehicles. Cash for clunkers, indeed

 

$1400 sounds like clutch minus dual mass flywheel. No reputable dealer would do that for it's not a good idea to do one and not the other. U cannot turn/true a DMF, has to be new. So... parts for that about another $900 give/take some and the additonal labor rates /disposal, +/- $300, takes it between $2,500-$3K, depending on market. Whew! Prrrriceyyy...

 

I just read through this thread and its got me terrified about my 2010 that is arriving shortly. I hope I don't have any clutch problems with mine.

 

Just remember the forums are mostly for questions and problems. When was the last time you saw a post about please list all the stuff that is working on you car. MINI usa sells around 5000 cars a month(give or take a recession and good times) say 1/2 have clutches so around 30,000 cars a year in the us. I think the r56 came out in 2007 so say 50,000 to 80,000 cars are out there. It it was a wide spread problem affecting most cars you woud hear more about it for the media. The MINI S still gets a recomended from Consumer Reports with no mention of clutch problems that I have found. I have 2 MINI one with 15k and one with 6.6k so far so good. No point in making your self crazzy over this. I don't think I have read one post where the clutch went out and the customer had to pay for it. There might have been some work involved but I think MINI fixed them all. That made me sleep a little better when I ordered the second car.

For those that have had a clutch problem I wounder what was the result on the second clutch were?

 

Prior to 2006 mini had a consumer rating of excellent. Now they are average. As far as posts, were owners are made to pay for the clutch and DMF or partially pay there are many. If you have about 3 hours to spare you can go to consumer reports and read all the complaints. Dont expect any honest solutions. Its too costly for that. I had my clutch and DMF replaced at 21,000. Why would I expect the same clutch to last any longer ? Way too easy to blame the problem on the owner. Just my opinion.

 

If it were a problem with the clutch design you would not expect it to last longer but if it were a problem with a single unit or run of units you would.

 

I'm sure there are a lot more Gen2's with good clutches than bad. You can't go by the complaints contained in a single topic, that's not a large enough sample size for a meaningful average.

And the problem with who to blame for a clutch failure is that ANY clutch can be burned out in a few minutes, no matter how good you, or the clutch, are. I had a Beetle who's clutch lasted 10 years, then I burned it out on one trip up Lombard St. in SF. The Mini has a lot of torque, so you have to be careful with it.

 

It seemed OK, but despite being fully covered beyond the expiration of the OEM warranty--and a host of other problems and issues related to overall build quality--I traded it in my 05 and went the JCW Stage 1 automatic route, and have NO regrets at all. Nice to push a car to its limits on the road and track and not having to worry whether the plastic throwout bearing will hold up.

However, it seems that BMW's contractors who make their parts and components have a long and checkered history of good batch/bad batch problems, not just with clutches, but with other parts like window mechanisms, etc. I think the only D/T component they've NOT had issues with are the Aisin automatic trannies, but then Aisin Intl. is majority owned by Toyota, and their BQ/QC is a lot more demanding.

 

The Mini has a lot of torque, so you have to be careful with it.[/quote]

So the clutch problem is due to the massive torque created by the motor. Drive slower and it will last longer.