While the valve body seems to be the culprit, people please make it a habit to replace the transmission oil and filter every 30K-40K miles. It won't hurt anything. Cheap insurance.

My 2008 Clubman S automatic will have its ATF and filter replaced next month. Car only has 29K miles.

 

I've read here that the filter is just a coarse strainer, couldn't you just clean it and save some money?

Dave

 

MisterClean,
True, you can find other vehicles that have poor transmission history, but most of them aren't on a 35K machine or cost 11K to fix...

 

Price doesnt equal reliability.

 

As a suggestion, everyone with an "Auto" MCS please register your car with
Baron and Budd as they may add the "6 Speed Auto" into the lawsuit later.

contact: Baron and Budd at 1.866.844.4556 or visit the firm’s website: http://baronandbudd.com

I just registered as I don't want to miss out if BMW/MINI has to replace all of them !

 

I couldn't figure out how to register, so i sent them an e-mail to assist in registering me. Even if they were to win this, what would be the end result? Everyone gets new transmissions at no charge? an updated kit that may, or may not work, or a coupon to a free ice cream at Dairy Queen? lol. I just hope that BMW/Mini would resolve this ,and set things straight.

 

add me in to the list of ones having trouble. Mine has started with problems in the 3-4 shift.since mine just started to act bad two months ago im gonna try to do fluid changes. If i can't fix it with repeated drain and fills im gonna get rid of it. What a joke after all the care and work i put into it. I have never had a trans fail on me even owning a 330 whp evo...and i babied this damn mini's transmission.

 

I spoke to the people at Baron & Budd.

I just want to be on record that their is a problem with these transmissions; just like the problems with the fans, and everything else. ( keep every receipt )

Mini can't just make believe its not true if we make enough noise about the problems !

Buy the Damm cars back from us if they can't be repaired once and for all !

 

i just can't believe a company like aisin would build something that would have problems after just 60k easy miles. My wife has a corolla and has the aisin a131L three speed and with regluar maintinence has lasted so far over 200k without a single issue.anyhow, im gonna use the latest maxlife atf in mine and see what happens.

 

To everyone else who is having this problem, go to http://baronandbudd.com/contact-us/ and enter your info. The case manager will call you, gather more info and take it from there. They are seriously considering adding this to the CVT class action. If this was not a real issue, there wouldn't be so many of us with the problem. Hopefully, there will be enough info to force Mini into at least subsidizing the cost of fixing our cars.

 

I spent a TON of money taking it to the dealer religiously, for all the recommended maintenence PLUS extras. Everyone here did the same, that's why their actions toward us have us angry.

 

The problem is believing that nonsense outright. Would you drive your engine without a single oil change for 100K miles because the manufacturer told you so? Of course not, right?Same thing with the transmission. Expecting it to last with absolute zero maintenace in part of the owner is asinine. I understand the frustration surrounding the problem and the huge costs/inconvenience. But seems to me also that changing the ATF fluid every 30K miles is simply cheap insurance for peace of mind.Folks that have flush/drained their AISINs after using the factory oil for far too long are reporting enhanced driveability. This is assuming that no damage has been done to the internals with cooked fluid.Never believe the term "Lifetime" on anything. Manufacturers build products to last through the warranty period and a little longer than that in some cases. Manufacturers don't want you to hold on to your car forever. they want you to come back and buy a new one. That is the core of their business.

 

I am interested in this subject because I own a 4 year old Clubman S (Since new) but with very low miles (29K). We plan to keep this car for many more years so any outcome in this situation is of great interest.For now, I am going to stick to rigurous 30K mile intervals to change the ATF fluid. Interesting that our first MINI, a 2002 Cooper, had the dreadful CVT ZF transmission. We kept that car for 6 years and never had a problem with the CVT box. I believe one contributing factor was changing the ATF fluid every 25K miles. Coincidence? Don't think so, but there are tons of failed CVTs outhere, hence the upcoming class action suit against MINIUSA.I do not wish to troll or engage in mindless debates. I wish for everyone with a problematic AISIN slushbox to receive prompt and fair compensation.

 

Well, when there is a big sticker that states changing the fluid will void your warranty, that tends to make you believe what the Manufacturer (the supposed subject matter expert) tells you. Not asinine, just ill-advised trusting. Just wait, your Mini will fail all of you eventually, but then I don't want to hear any griping, since you don't think it is warranted...

 

Where does it say that changing the transmission fluid will void the warranty?

 

My '05 R53 S has been out of warranty since Dec 2008. I never purchased an aftermaket extend warranty and decided to have my well trusted and reputable independent MINI shop to handle all maintenance and repairs. In this interaction I have learned quite a bit from him, including, not to trust vague claims in part of the manufacturer regarding over extended or "hands off" maintenance approaches.Now I maintain a "pre-emptive" approach to maintenance. Chaging the enegine oil every 7K miles instead of 15K miles. Detecting problems from early own and replace/repair components before they become even bigger problems.For better or wosr, when you are still covered by warranty you are at the mercy of the stealerships and their lousy service departments. The amount of lies and deception that tends to run in most of those places is mind boggling and yet, owners have to trust the ill advice coming from these clowns all because of the warranty.The mindset of the European car manufacturer is to build parts that will last most of the warranty period if not a little more after that. German cars had a past reputation of racking up high miles with not much fuss. Today manufacturers concern themselves to ensure future sales. They don't want you to hold on to your car for 10 years. They want to see you back the day after the warranty expires or at the sign of a looming big bill repair, so you can trade in the "defective/old" car for a new one.

 

Let's keep the personal quibbles out of this, and the topic on 1st Gen MINI automatic transmissions.

 

For those of you who have experienced these issues: What percentage of your driving took place in "Drive" and what percentage took place in "Manual". I drive in Manual 99% of the time and just wondered if there is any connection I could be avoiding And at 51k miles I am hell bent to start the ATF flush

 

Agreed MotorOn. To answer the question about where it says changing the fluid will void the warranty: it's on the sticker plastered not less than 2 inches from the drain plug. Look at that bad boy, and it'll make you think twice about servicing it while in warranty. Hence, my frustration when I had problems at 43K miles, and when given the run-around until after out of warranty. If they would told me to disregard and change the fluid, I would have done it before suffering permanent damage. I still have great days with the Mini, but somedays, it slips and drops the tranny, and the bad thing is I never know when it is going to happen, so I now have to drive like a granny due to the tranny...

 

I would advise you to change the fluid anyway. The only difference between driving in manual mode and leaving it in Drive is the shift logic. In manual mode, you control it (to a degree), in Drive, the TCM controls it. The components within the transmission operate the same way, regardless of the shift mode.

 

As a community, why haven't we attempted to contact a company to maybe build an upgraded set of clutch packs, they would literally corner the market, and have a continuous customer base. Sachs, Febi, etc. I'm sure one of them would take it on.

 

Check this thread: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-change-9.html page 9 post #211. I have a pic of the warning sticker. I know a bit about this topic

 

And YES, ABSOLUTELY change the tranny fluid at every 30K. That should save your Mini the fate of many of us...

 

I'm sure it's been said many of times, but, where is the official fill hole for our transmissions. I have the fluid and filter, but I'm a little confused at where the inlet is located to fill.

 

Check and read that whole thread. It meticulously details the entire process.