2017 MINI Cooper S Clubman All4, 6MT

My wife, my daughter, and I took a short road trip today. We stopped to take a look at a waterfall and got an error on the screen about the electronic parking brake malfunction. It said to ensure the vehicle doesn't roll away. I put the car in 1st (6MT) and the car stayed in place. We checked out the waterfall and came back to the car. The car fired up and the electronic parking brake malfunction light lit up telling me to ensure the vehicle doesn't roll away. I try to reverse and you can tell the brake is stuck on. I turn the car on and off a few more times and pull the switch a few more times and it finally releases. We park the car 2 more times with no issue. We just pulled in the garage, parked, and the malfunction light is back.

Does anyone have a schematic of the parking brake system? Is there a way that I can force the servo to release the parking brake? Being a manual, I can make it not roll away by leaving it in gear. The brake stuck on is much more inconvenient than the brake stuck off. Should I just call MINI on Monday and have them come pick it up? The nearest dealership is 150 miles away. We are passing by a dealer in 3 weeks on another road trip, but I don't want our trip to hinge upon them diagnosing the problem correctly and having the parts on hand.

TIA.

 

I know on the auto's the parking brake auto-disengages if you give it some gas when in gear. My guess is that your manual doesn't do the same. Regardless, there is something wrong in the circuit somewhere that isn't letting it release. I suggest giving your dealer a call first thing Monday to see what they recommend. Until then, I would not engage it and just leave it in gear when you park it. Good luck.

 

Apparently several BMWs come with a manual release that requires a special tool to pull the release. The Clubman appears to neither come with the tool or have the release. I'll see what MINI says tomorrow.

 

Actually the manual tranny cars auto-release too, if you are in gear and you actually try to move the car.

 

I had a loaner F54 with an automatic trans. I noticed twice that the warning message you described came on. In both instances I set the brake and was ready to leave the car, when the warning told me that the brake was not set and that the car could roll away. I assumed that the timing between setting the brake and opening the door was just too fast and the computer gave the warning because the door was open and the brake wasn't yet fully engaged. I just disengaged it and reset it at both occurances without further issue.

I've never seen the warning in my 6 speed manual car. Perhaps, you too opened the door prior to the brake being fully set? If not, there must be a sensor that is malfunctioning in your car.

 

Check page 70 of your owner's manual. This 'smart' brake seems to have a mind of its own in certain situations.

 

I'm glad my car doesn't have an electronic E brake. That sounds like something that could render the car unusable, as the OP nearly experienced.

 

I agree with you, was a bit surprised when I first looked at the F54. Even with an auto, I still use it as a habit from my 30+ years driving manuals. I will continue to use mine, but will keep this thread in the back of my mind if I run into something similar.

At least with the auto-release this car won't be accidentally driven by the wife with it on Yep, wife borrowed my former Legacy and drove ~4 miles before realizing the parking brake was on...glad it had the separate drum brake rather than the caliper brake setup. Quite amazed that they survived the 'test' and still had plenty of pad left, but the e-coat on the rotor was toast. She stated the car felt 'peppier' without the brake on...

 

Roadside assistance sent a rollback to my house in WV and towed the car to Cincinnati. The dealer found a no good caliper and ordered a replacement. 2 weeks later the part arrived and they fixed it yesterday. I'll report out on Tuesday when they bring the car back. Luckily, we have 3 cars, so my wife drove my 4Runner and I drove my FR-S.

 

these things are a solution to a problem that did not exist

 

Yes, its strange seeing it in a MINI and its new for the F54. Other makes had it for years. No more E-brake handle power slides.

 

I have to agree with you on that statement. I guess the automotive engineers out there never found a great solution to prevent the cables from eventually seizing up and took the 'easy' but more complicated way out, which isn't a guarantee to trouble-free operation either (i.e.- bad caliper for Quentin).

 

You can still handbrake-slide -- just hold the switch up while driving. There will be beeps and things but it WILL engage while driving. It's not just a parking brake -- it's also an emergency brake.

 

Nice, I have not tried this yet. Wonder how if feels when doing this, I bet its full engagement. Handbrake you can feather.

 

Certainly test it in a 'safe' area, as I would have to agree it is either full on or full off since the activation is simply an on/off switch. Good info to know as well, hadn't read that you could still use it in an emergency situation.