This is the story of my broken 2012 Cooper S. Here she is...





I picked her up from Long Beach MINI (SoCal) on Monday September 12th. I drove the 100 miles to get home from the dealership, followed by driving to work the next day. On my way home from work, she died.

I should also start off by saying that this is my second MINI. I owned a 2009 Hardtop previously and never had a problem. I also have not had any significant problems with my 2007 BMW 328i or my 2009 BMW 128i. I have been a good BMW/MINI customer, and BMW/MINI has been good to me.

But all good things must come to an end.

So as I drove home from work, having owned the 2012 S for less than 2 days and having driven less than 200 miles, the "half engine" light came on and the car went into limp mode. I was able to continue driving home with reduced power. The next morning, I watched my brand new S leaving on a flatbed tow truck, courtesy of MINI Roadside Assistance. It was towed the ~100 miles back to Long Beach to get checked out. I should also note that I had driven the car very gently up until that point.

Of the now 7 days which I have owned the vehicle, Long Beach MINI has been in possession of the vehicle for 5. They originally diagnosed a HPFP problem and told me a new HPFP had been ordered. The next day, they changed their minds and decided it was a wiring problem. By the end of that day, they claimed there was a "chafed" wire leading to the oil pressure sensor, and that a replacement wiring harness for the sensor had been ordered. The following day, they said the work was done. Although strangely, they would not let me have my car back. They kept it all of Saturday with no good reason, then it was kept on Sunday with the dealership being closed. They told me that they wanted to do more testing Monday, and that I may or may not receive my car today.

Needless to say, I am not a happy customer. This kind of experience has a way of ruining the new car buying experience. I've bought enough new cars in the past to know that this isn't normal or acceptable at all.

So here I am, waiting patiently -- with patience rapidly running out -- and carless.

For the record, Long Beach MINI is also doing nothing to make me feel better or remove the sour taste. I look forward to receiving the official survey from MINI so I can give them a piece of my mind, although I'm not sure how important those surveys really are to dealers.

Oh well...

 

Did you ask for a loaner? Seems to me like they want to make sure its 100% up to build-spec before handing back to you.
In all honesty (and this goes out to several owners), unless they are charging you for what is considered warranty work that not attributed to negligence, abuse or poor ownership, be happy. They're fixing the car on their dime and they want to make sure to completely operational (especially with such a new model) and pass quality control.

Because unless the engine absolutely hand-granade'd or other serious powertrain / electrical issues occurs, relax and chill for a bit... seriously.

- Erik

 

I sympathize; I know this is not what you expected when you bought a "brand new" car -- you kind of expect to have at least some trouble free driving before the car needs repair!

But it sounds like the dealer is doing the right thing -- fixing whatever problem it has and making sure there is nothing else wrong before releasing it to you.

I hope for your sake this is a one time anomally, a glitch, and that the car will be trouble-free when returned to you! (Keep us updated on progress).

 

True, true. You're both right that the dealership is doing the right thing by keeping the car as long as necessary to fully address the issues. It's still frustrating as hell though.

This is my 8th car, and none have spent this long in the shop before. Maybe I was lucky. Even after going beyond 100,000 miles on multiple different vehicles, I've never had to be without a vehicle for more than a day or two for repairs.

I didn't ask for a loaner because I have my trusty 2007 328i available in the meantime.

Here's hoping that this is a one-time factory defect and not a longterm issue. And here's hoping that MINI quality hasn't gone downhill...

 

Will cross my fingers for you!

 

Just think how pissed you'd be if you drove the 100 miles to pick it up and then had to take it back a week or two later if the same problem or a related issue came up. I'd rather have it right when I got it back than have them rush it back to me with issues. Hang in there. I think you're always taking a chance purchasing the first few production models of a new production year, and taking an even bigger chance when there has been a significant change in the model from one production year to the next. We have two Ford plants in town and I know from talking to production workers that there are always glitches in production whenever there is a change over like that.

 

They should give you a loaner.

 

These cars are easy to fix! The problem we are seeing is that few technicians have a background in diagnosing problems. Not knowing how to diagnose leaves it to a guessing game - the solution, throw parts at it til it runs right.

This is not limited to MINI's, or even to cars. And the answer is not simple because things change so fast. What can we do? Cross our fingers and hope for the best.

I hope your car is finally a car that you can enjoy owning.

 

Thank goodness for MINI Roadside. They have already said they'll bring the car back to my house on a flatbed. I certainly would be pissed if I had to get someone to drive me 100 miles to pick the car up.

I hear you on the risk associated with the start of a new model year. In the past I've always waited and let other people be the guinea pigs.

 

I guess they see so many HPFP issues that they automatically assume a HPFP problem whenever an engine light comes on. I am familiar with this phenomenon from the 135/335 scene.

And who knows, this may yet prove to be a HPFP problem with my 2012. It's about time BMW fixed the pumps once and for all.

 

Just an update...

Long Beach MINI wants to continue to hold onto my car. They did the wiring replacement and now have decided they need to replace the "EME" - an acronym I'm not even familiar with. Obviously this means I won't get the car back today. It also sounds like they really have no idea what is wrong. The new part has been ordered and I am left waiting once again...

 

I have been reading this site for a couple months now and the problems with these mini's is just insane. I like the car and all. I would like to continue with my plan to buy my justa in a couple months or so, but GEEEZZZZZZZZZ.

Not steal your thread, but how can you sanely buy one of these cars and back it out of the garage and hope it will get you to work or home???

 

FYI- surveys are VERY important to dealerships! My husband has worked at a Toyota dealership for many years and would get fired if he received too many bad surveys. I dont know about Mini but Toyota takes their surveys very seriously. Im sure Mini does too. Good luck with the repair, i hope they get it fixed for you real soon. Fill out that survey very honestly. Thats all you can do.

 

If you go on any forum for any car there will be many problems, not just Mini! Thats what these forums are all about!

 

I will definitely answer the survey honestly. The overall sale was fine and cannot be faulted, but the experience immediately afterwards has been awful.

I also forgot to mention in this thread that I had the 2012 missing paddle shifters issue. Hoping to get that one resolved.

 

OK from the title of this post I was expecting that your engine seized or something catastrophic. You're dealing with a random problem and you're under warranty. Yeah, it stinks, but you're being taken care of. These rampant complaint posts are pointless. Tell us about problems when you're out of warranty

 

AGAIN....thats what these forums are for. If you dont like them then why read them? They bought a brand new car and its been broken since the day they got it. Why cant they write about it???? Yes, its goona be taken care of but why cant they share their frustration with everyone?

 

I have owned A LOT of new cars. The nightmares I read here are not even close to the problems (very very few) I have had with the car I have owned. So that is why I posted this reply.
I owned a SVT Focus in 02, sweet car, lots of funny issues, but it sill ran. The main problem with the car is that it had a lot of issues and it required me to visit the F'in deal more often than I would have dreamed.
With these coopers, I read of bent valves due to broken timing chains at ten's of mile after the warranty expires and the dealer say, "ah, we so sorry". The fact that valves get damaged during a timing chain issue shows the company doesnt care AT ALL about reliability. Other manufactures have seen valve issues in the past due to broken chains and have redesigned the heads so this will NEVER happen. I mean this is 2011, they need to wake up and build a motor that runs. I know you will say, oh it happens with other cars too (Please name the make and model). I really want to buy a mini, but reading this forum day after day tells me NO, NO, NO.
Please help me change my mind. Like the car, like the price, like the MPG, like the options, like the colors, the wheels, the looks, the Zenon headlights, Like the 6 speed tranny (same one in the SVT Focus), like the comfortable sport seats, the Blue-tooth, the spare on the justa, LOTS of likes. But that reliablty issue is just killing me. help.
again, sorrry for the Hijacking.

 

Sorry if you felt the title was misleading. Guess it depends on your definition of "broken". According to my definition, my car is broken.

 

I just can't believe that a dealer would leave you hanging. I have to commend you R*C for being a more patient than I would ever be.

 

I don't see the "flaming a hole" part. I'm just a frustrated new owner of a 2012 who should be out there enjoying the vehicle, but am instead being jerked around by a dealership who cannot diagnose the problem and has repeatedly given me a false ETA for the return of the vehicle.

It wouldn't be so bad if the dealership hadn't told me I would have my car back on Wednesday, and then Thursday, and then Friday, and then Saturday, and then Monday, and now Tuesday. The "it'll be ready tomorrow" line doesn't really fly after the 6th time.

 

I wasn't referring to R*C but got carried away with another thread where a person acted inappropriately. R*C has a right to complain in the manner in which it is being handled. My apologies if I offended anyone.

 

Thanks. I just wish I had some recourse other than ranting on an internet forum. I have complained to the dealership manager, but he doesn't seem particularly concerned.

I also ran across a couple of old threads here on NA Motoring along the lines of "Long Beach MINI sucks" and "horrible service experience with Long Beach MINI" - so I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

 

R*C
I think it's time to call MINI. (866 ASK MINI) It needs to be escalated.

 

hey R*C, sorry about your MINI.

I've had 3 MINIs and have had each of them at the dealer for repairs for several days at various times. Sometimes, they didn't really know what was going on, other they knew immediately. Also, don't forget that Long Beach didn't build your MINI, Oxford did

Did you get a MINI loaner? If yes, then let the dealer figure out whats going on, better to have your MINI back in good shape. Take a long road trip the MINI loaner.... pile up the miles on their MINI. If you're still unhappy, next time you need service, go to another dealer.

Regarding the survey... for my second MINI, I had a bad experience with the dealer financing dept not getting their paperwork to their own bank. So I left a less than 5 on the post sales/financing survey question. My MA told me she lost her bonus and didn't speak with me again.