I did the search - the good news/bad news was that there are pages of messages with "automatic transmission problem". After three pages of threads I couldn't find the one that resembled what I am seeing with this car and hope I can get some helpful info (or a thread id) and forgiveness for asking what I am sure is a very common question. Actually I was surprised it was not a sticky.

We just bought a 2006 Cooper with Automatic. 18.6K miles. No visible problems/leaks. I read the automatic trannys are a disaster. Here's my symptom. Do I have a problem?

When I drive the car at slow speed - car idling and moving without much gas - it seems to be a little herky-jerky. It's not really smooth. When I turn corners at this speed (think Wal*Mart parking lot) it's a little more jerky. If I give it some gas, it seems to go away. Under normal driving conditions when you just start off and accelerate to cruising speed, it's fine, actually surprising for such a small engine. But I am concerned this might be a problem/early symptom of a problem? Or is this more related to normal behavior, or front wheel drive vehicles?

 

I've got a 2005 MCc and it does the same thing -- it seems to be common from what I've read, though whether that means "normal" I can't say. I thought the '06 had a different auto tranny though, so that issue went away? (Or was that in 07?) At any rate, as someone at only 72k but already 15k into their replaced CVT, I fully empathize with the fear you've got a[nother] bad one...

 

ppro,
Welcome to NAM.
Your CVT should not be acting that way. This problem could be as simple as a programming upgrade for the transmission control (I believe it is handled by the ECU). It any event, although early, a fluid change at an authorized MINI service center would not hurt (except for your wallet).
Continuing to drive this way could put extra stress on the drive chain. That is just my opinion though.