I should start by saying that I absolutely love(ed) my 05 R53. It just passed 50k on the dial & now its starting to fall apart?!?!?!?!

1st it was the driver door actuator...I refuse to believe a car manufacture that has pride in their product would find this acceptable at mearly 50k(dlr wanted $850 to replace)

2nd was the head cover gasket...this is somewhat acceptable @50k miles for a car that has beed properly cared for & serviced, i guess...(dlr wanted $300 to replace)

3rd was the control arm bushings...this has nothing to do with the way you maintain or drive your Mini, they are simply made to only last about 50k miles....(dlr wanted $1100 to replace)

Now...the power steering pump is failing... (refuse to find out what the dlr wants for this)

These all seem to be very common problems for Mini's & I just dont see how the manuf can claim this to be a quality product. A quality product would be a product that is built to last, and not just last to the end of the warranty period. I feel like they give you that great 3 yr 36k warranty because they know that it wont fall apart till 50k & then they will bend you over with parts that are marked up 40% & labor that is so expensive it should be illegal.

When I told the local dealership(South Bay Mini of course)my frustrations with these issues, one reply is that if you cant afford a BMW, you should have one...WTF?!?!?!?! One would think that a person who buys BMW, would do so because they believe they are buying a quality car, built with quality parts, that are going to survive the 50k mark on the dial. For other manufacturers, 50k is almost a break-in period & their car goes 200k!

I cant believe I am alone on this issue & really dont think/expect there is anything that can be done, just thought I would share my frustrations...
Thanks for reading my rant...
Minipitt

 

What do you expect from the Stealership... Get it checked out by a certified Mini mechanic. Just to give you an idea on price differences

I thought that my AC compressor was crapping out so I called the Dealership and they quoted me $1800 to get it changed, I didn't like the price at all so I called a Mini specialty shop that does AC as well and they quoted me $690 including part, labour and refill.

Shop around or put the owners kid thru college, it's your choice.

 

Those are mighty high quotes for repairs. I wonder how they sleep at
night (actually, I'll bet they sleep just fine as most amoral people do).

The door actuator can be had for about $120, and it took me less than
2 hours from start to finish to replace it, and one hour of that was looking
for a dropped screw and figuring out how to align the actuator with the
door lock rod correctly. That should be less than a $200 job for parts and
labour by someone that knows what (s)he is doing.

I can see $300 or more for a head gasket, but a head cover gasket
(aka valve cover gasket) should be less than half that.

I had my MINI dealer replace the front control arm bushings a few years
ago, and they only charged about $650 for both, and this was at the dealer, mind you. Some dealers just want an extra 100% profit, I guess.

Now, a power steering pump and the accompanying labour will add up to
some $'s even at a friendly non-Stealer mechanic, but I'd hate to see what
the Stealer would charge.

I guess the regular BMW owners don't flinch at this kind of lynching,
but it is a bit appalling.

 

I don't care what brand of car you drive, it's expensive to get it worked on anymore - all of em, even Toyota's and Honda's.

The issue I have also is why these parts are failing like this, but it's always been that way with German cars in my experience - they may have fantastic engines, supensions and handling, but they're really let down on the periferals, especially electrics and electronics.

I've only had a couple of problems with my wife's Audi - a blown air suspension bag, and a secondary air pump that ate one of it's $20 bearings. I found a place in the US that makes replacement air bags for 1/3 the cost of OEMs and replaced the front ones myself - then I took the SAI pump apart and replaced the bad bearing - $20 instead of $700.

My '03 Cooper S JCW only had a couple little problems in the 65K that I owned it - a brake switch that kept the cruise from working, and later an ign switch for the same problem, plus I had both window motors replaced under warranty. But all the problems were electrical also.......

I think unless you want to continue to buy new cars so as to stay in warranty, you either need to find a reasonably priced shop and budget for repairs or learn to do them yourself.

 

I have taken my car to a VERY good Indy to have the work done for about half what the dealer quoted me but thats not my point. My point is that these parts shouldnt be going out at the very small mile mark of 50k...

A friend of mine has an R50that he just replace the automatic transmission on and it had 55k miles on it. Is that what I should be looking forward to next and is it reasonable to think that if I find a cheaper mechanic to repair it, its ok?

It seems crazy to me that this is acceptable to BMW as a company. The only thing I can think is that they lease a lot of their cars so they arent in the original buyers hands when they start to crap out.

Sorry again for the rant but please understand, this isnt about the price they charge for the repairs, its the fact that the repairs shouldnt be needed for another 50k or more...

Thanks to all for your time and replies
Drive safe
Pitt

 

So you think that because your buddy had a problem with a transmission that your car doesn't even use that now yours is suspect also?

I know you're frustrated with the problems you're having, but I think you need to get some perspective here. Not every car is having problems. I had three small problems with my '03 in 65K. Many many people on this forum haven't had any problems to speak of in well over 100K, we even have some folks who have gone over 200K......

 

You would think these cars are only meant for 50k. For the past week, i'm only registering 9 psi of boost. That's alot of difference from the usual 13-14 of normal get up and go and 17 at WOT. The engine runs fine and the s/c seems okay, so my guess is belt or boost leak somewhere. The thing is, and I hate to bring it up again, but my 14 year old Suzuki Sidekick is still running and on the original clutch after all these years of abuse. I would just think that if you are going to advertise the car as "sporty", it should be built a little tougher.

 

Im obviously not basing the opening statement on my friends auto trans alone, I listed all the problems that ive had with mine as of late & we happen to have the same mileage so i thought it was worth a mention.

After doing some research on this forum & others, these are common problems that we shouldnt be having is all im saying. Sorry if I struck a wrong cord with you but a power steering pump, door actuator & control arm bushings should last more than 50k. Let alone a transmission on any make or model car.

Again, dont mean to rub anyone the wrong way so i'll end it there. Thanks for listening...

 

Didn't rub me the wrong way. I agree with you 100%!!

 

I agree. I've had my '03 MCS (had 39K) for 2 months/3000 miles (42K now), and since I got it I noticed mushrooming strut towers, cracked strut mount, funky sunroof grinding noise, driver window chatter when hot outside, rust in the 'expect rust here' area, and faulty passenger side lock actuator.

It's certainly a trade-off. I *knew* I was getting into something that might end up being more costly to maintain. I had a BMW 528 that was similarly flaky. However, I love the car, mpg, and the driving experience. I do have some pity for those who expect Honda/Toyota reliability.

Last car was a '97 Hyundai with 180K and no unexpected issues.

 

i have all of those problems too. im 17 and bought a used mini as my first car becuase its made by bmw and expected it to hold up. i just hit 80k and ive had transmison problems and lots of others including a steering pump. a new one from my dealer costs around $1000, thats not even for the instalment. i try not to go through the dealer, i dont trust them. they replaced a very expensive part on my mini and it still didnt work. i go to other places or have my other mini friend fix it.

 

I'm in 100% agreement. Except mine is at 100k and it's coming apart the seams. First it was the driver side power window at 50300. Dealer replaced it free although it was just over. Next at about 75k my passenger side power lock will lock but not unlock unless you pull the handle. Then at about 90k I had a leaking transmission line which drained all the fluid from my transmission. Didn't notice until my transmission started grinding. Thankfully, a local mechanic, a new $200 transmission line and $120 worth of mini transmission fluid later fixed it. Now my power steering fan may be shot and keeps blowing the fuse so I have to replace that before it kills the motor unless it already did. So yes, I will be thinking twice before I buy another Mini.

As an engineer the problem doesn't seem to be an engineering problem, the basic mechanics of the platform seem sound, albeit somewhat unorthodox. I suspect they haven't properly done longevity testing on many of these components. A lot of times engineers get lazy and assume that the supplier has done proper testing of the components. That and it could have been rushed.

Honestly though, the Power Steering Pump was just a bonehead move. It's like building the super vulnerable ventilation shaft in the death star. They should have either placed the fan in a non vulnerable position or created some kind of natural ventilation of the PSP with heatsinks.

 

I know they work past 50k. I just turned 233k miles, and I have had some of the problems you've stated, but w/ over 200k I would expect some things to break. I'm replacing my steering pump today, but it's about time. Heck, still on my original clutch!

Nik

 

I agree with what the others said here. Check a MINI specialist on the pricing of these items. I only use the stealership when I need an oil filter or cabin air filter. I am about to cross 99000 miles on my 03 DS/W Cooper S and I have had nowhere near the problems you have. The only thing I have had done is buy new tires and keep up with my service schedule. With my MINI specialist of course. Not saying that the problems are not around the corner, but I guess I have been fortunate.

 

at 49k I had 10k dollars worth of repairs done by the the dealership! Only one problem, very minor since then. Now im almost at 90k and everything is running great.

 

What would that be? 10k is kind of a lot of repairs"

Nik

 

Im going to have to check in my glove box, I saved all the receipts. lets say knowing the owner of the dealership really helps when you have a few problems with your car. The service writer made my car "a project".

 

Yours don't count... it was built on the date the German chancellor visited the Oxford plant!


Minipitt:

I hate to say this but NEVER expect European cars to be anything but costly! In fact, they only hold their value well within the time frame of the factory warranty. After that, it's cliff diving! They only way not to get robbed is to have an independent (but specialized shop) work on your car. Even better is to learn and do most of it yourself.

Before the warranty on my Mini expired at only 33k, I requested Mini fix/replace the motor mount, trans fluid, LCA bushings, convertible rubber moulding, and thermostat housing. Costs about $2000 in parts and labor. Except for the leaky thermostat, none of the other items would have been replaced had I not point them out to the dealer. BTW, they refused to replace the dented emblem on the horn cover! At the moment, they're trying to figure out a small leak, which looks like it's coming from the oil pan gasket.

Although I hope they won't break, I've already planned for imminent failure of the following items before 75k: Supercharger, PS pump and fan, radiator fan (resistor), and more motor mounts. So far I've picked up a spare S/C.

I expect my Mini to go beyond 200k (like xsmini's), let's hope I have a pocket of miracles!

 

Yours don't count... it was built on the date the German chancellor visited the Oxford plant!


Minipitt:

I hate to say this but NEVER expect European cars to be anything but costly to maintain/repair! In fact, they only hold their value well within the time frame of the factory warranty. After that, it's cliff diving! They only way not to get robbed is to have an independent (but specialized shop) work on your car. Even better is to learn and do most of it yourself.

Before the warranty on my Mini expired at only 33k, I requested Mini fix/replace the motor mount, trans fluid, LCA bushings, convertible rubber moulding, and thermostat housing. Costs about $2000 in parts and labor. Except for the leaky thermostat, none of the other items would have been replaced had I not point them out to the dealer. BTW, they refused to replace the dented emblem on the horn cover! At the moment, they're trying to figure out a small leak, which looks like it's coming from the oil pan gasket.

Although I hope they won't break, I've already planned for imminent failure of the following items before 75k: Supercharger, PS pump and fan, radiator fan (resistor), and more motor mounts. So far I've picked up a spare S/C.

I expect my Mini to go beyond 200k (like xsmini's) cause I have a pocket of miracles and magic potions!

 

Kinda always figured mine was a Wednesday build

I must say - If I didn't do the majority of the maintenance/ repairs on this car, I probably wouldn't still own it. I've done the valve cover gasket, oil pan gasket, power steering pump, power steering fan, lock actuator, window mechanism, cv joint boot replacement (cause its lowered :D ) axel, bushings, super charger , tensioner and probably a few other things. As well as quite a few mods. If I had to pay a shop or dealer for these repairs, I would probably be complaining instead of saying its doing great. Most of the items are just maintenance to me.

Keeping my wife's 74 mini daily driver is much more work (at times) than mine w/ the high milage.

Nik

 

This thread makes me feel a lot better! #1 you MUST replace the lower control arm bushings with the Power Flex urethane bushings! They will out last the car. The stock one are horribly manufactured. I also have a 1982 BMW 320I and the rubber bushings in the LCA also work on the sway bars and act as Brake reaction rods. (If left as they were 20K miles would be max) I used large steel washers to stop the madness.

You guys are a little lucky because none of you have had to replace the Cylinder Head! (They use a Chrysler Neon Engine made in Brazil with VERY Short valve guides. The wear out and the car starts to throw codes and you will not get through emissions inspection

If my wife did not like the car it would be LONG Gone. I realized long ago that If I could not do everything it would break us! Speaking about the dealers attitude nowadays, (Please do not get upset) but like the Republicans repackage what they say when people get mad at them! The Dealers are now "ALL" saying "This is a High Performance car and you have to Pay to Play. The only difference is you do NOT need to do the amount of work they do on a RACE Car but you can have Race Car fun with a lot less expense.

They now are not even TRYING to tell you that these are well made cars that will last for a long time!

Last, one of the things everyone needs to do is get rid of the Run Flat Tires. Between the Harsh Suspension and the Harder tires the poor little car really takes a beating specially on City Streets. I made a 2x6 rack that I put in the trunk and remove the shelf to carry a full sized spare when we hit the road along with the green slime, I tubless repair kit and compressor! Where does 50 miles get anyone out in the middle of no where?

Now to replace my Supercharger

 

105,000 on the daughter's MCS with only minor issues. I replaced the supercharger and other normal wear items at 100,000 and expect the car to make it to 200,000 before we go through it again. The plan is to keep both our R53's for a long time to come. As others have said, it helps to be able to work on the car yourself, and as the MINI is an easy car to work on I don't mind working on ours.

 

Thank you, that is where I found also in Fla that I am seriously looking at! The Best thing I bought to work on the car was on E-Bay for about $35.00. The "Pins" that the factory sells for over $200 that you bolt to the sub frame and slide the modular front out! It is not a Difficult car but the word "Easy" is not something I think I would use either. All of the work I described above I did it all myself and agree to one thing 100%! It is not a car to own for a long time "IF" you cannot do the work yourself!

 

I have a couple of relatives that work in the auto sales industry. They both agree that German car sales rely much more on "leasing" as oppose to Japanese brands. The primary reason is to minimize the cost of repair after the expiration of the factory warranty. Brands like Acura and Lexus have a more linear depreciation curve (even after warranty) than Audi, BMW and MB, which take a steeper angle depreciation curve after warranty is gone.

A few things I took into consideration as a recent Mini onwer...

Budget for the possible early failures: Supercharger and/or coolant pump, PS pump & fan, radiator fan, A/C, motor mount, coolant tank and LCA bushings. (Note: LCA bushings on BMW and Mini are consider to be wear items... and they wear fast; expensive to replace.)

Gang-raping the customer is a corporate mandate of any German car brand (maybe except VW)... so buy a service manual and pick up a wrench.

 

Don't leave VW out of the picture. They're pretty good at screwing the post warranty customer as well.