You guys should read up on the rear subframe woes BMW has with its 3-series. I hope mine doesn't do that. BMW just can't fess up to their mistakes!

 

My 03 MCS is at the dealer getting the strut towers repaired/replaced and adding M7 reinforcements and a front end realignment to the tune of about $1100. I am also having them install new Koni FSD struts (at no add'l charge). They said Mini says this is road hazard damage and is NOT covered under warranty. It seems as though this is a genuine defect, poor design or at least insufficient strength in the design and should be covered under warranty. My car has 42K on it. I had planned to drive it forever but this gives me pause. My car is only driven on paved roads, although occasionally somewhat aggressively, like most of us. I'm just very disappointed at Mini's response. I've seen this problem all over the US, not just the snowbelt as they seem to imply.

 

The dealer just replace my mounts under warranty. 2002 MCS. Even though I have Eibach springs on my car they still did it under warranty.

In my own experience in the last couple of weeks in the two other MINIs I have changed out these mounts on a few things stand out, one was a Cooper that we installed the Helix adjustable camber plates on (sweet), the other was a bone stock MCS with over 60,000 miles on, just a daily driver, not driven hard at all and neither one had mushrooming issue with the body work. The rubber bushings on these mounts will crack whether or not your body work is mushroomed.

It also doesn't matter whether or not you have suspension modifications, as one of the MINIs had Koni's on it.

I had thought it might have something to do with heat as here in Phoenix it gets quite hot. But it seems to be happening in other parts of the country also.

Funny thing is I look over at my 1960 Mini and look at the rubber 'donuts' and wonder how they got those things to last 45 yrs without cracking.

The dealers and MINI USA are using driving or better yet 'bad driving habits' as an excuse for this issue. This is a failure of their manufactured part and up to now cannot be pinned on anything else. I do think that there will be a recall on these parts, but unfortunately, not until more cases are documented or worse yet the part completely fails when someone is driving their MINI.

 

You should have given me a call. i am sure i could have cut that price in half.

 

Thanks. I will keep that in mind. I have had a few similar offers. However this keeps all the responsibility with the selling dealer, just in case, at least until the 50k warranty is up. Probably in less than 6 months
They chewed on me a bit because I was having VIOC do my oil changes, and refused to reset the engine service light because they didn't do the work. I change my oil every 5000 miles and only once did I pay them the $125 price tag. The VIOC I go to uses Mobil 1 at my request and MINI filters. At the last oil change we discovered the dipstick had broken at the first bend in the tube. I took it to the dealer the next day and they blamed it on VIOC. I bought a new dipstick for $24 and fished out the old one and replaced it myself. I'd like to know why it was broken in the first place!. Of course it could not have been a design flaw, just like the strut tower issue isn't a design flaw. BMW's arrogance is getting very frustrating. I spent over a year dealing with Ford on the alledged 320 HP in my Cobra after it ran a dyno of 242 at the rear wheels. Ford engineering spec was 270 +-1HP at the rear wheels! After almost 2 years I gave up and told them I was buying a German car. I have since owned 3 VW Passats, which I've never spent a dime on and this MCS which was great, until now.

 

I replaced both of mine at between 45 - 50k miles. Looks like a regular wear item to me, designed as such to be replaced like the serpentine belt or radiator hoses.

 

well im installing these babbies to help, hope i wont have any issues.

M7 Strut Tower Reinforcement Plates

http://www.m7tuning.com/main.m7/store/10036

about $110 M7 makes realy good quality stuff.

 

With mushroomed strut towers or with cracked strut mounts?

I can see how the SRP's help with the mushrooming problem, but if you stiffen the strut towers so they are less compliant, how does that make the strut mounts less prone to cracking?

 

more with mushroom, i guess, i currently have no issues, but these supports will help keep the mushroom undercontrol.

 

So, aside from missing the bumps & potholes, what's the best way to prevent the mounts from cracking? Do any of the camber plates replace the mount with a stronger piece? As for coilovers, I think the PSS9s use the stock mount in the front. Others come with an integral camber plate, but require mods to the tower for adjustment. Seems like there should be a bullet proof fix for this.

 

just found a large crack in my pass side mount, no mushrooming yet. so how hard is this to get the new mount and replace?

 

If i were to install Helix Camber Plates and then put an M7 STB over the top, would this keep me from getting anymore cracks? I know that the STB will keep the mushrooming from happening, but... I want to make sure if i send the money for Helix camber plates and M7 STB i dont have to change anything else and dont have to worry about the upper strut plastic part cracking or the upper strut mushrooming.....

 

I took a closer at the Helix plates and it looks like they replace the stock shock mounts. If so, I would think they are considerably stronger and would be covered under their warranty(?), if they did break. I'd like to hear from someone who has them though, or maybe I'll call them if no one chimes in.

 

Thats my thought, exactly! I think they would hold up better than the stock parts (plastic) and allow you to play with the camber (nice to have) also! I would make the assumption that becasue there a stronger metal they should last longer. Im also adding an M7 STB

 

New Koni FSD struts all around with M7 SRP's. Ride is improved. Much softer initial impact on bumps. I don't notice any difference in the handling with aggressive driving. I haven't been on a track but imagine that for track running something more firm would be desirable. But for those who regularly drive on the street I think you would appreciate the more comfortable ride and don't think you'll notice any handling difference. The Koni's behave like a progressive fork spring in a motorcycle. Softer initial impact with rapidly increasing resistance to maintain the handling. The softer initial impact should reduce if not prevent the strut tower mushrooming.

 

No it won't.

The strut mounts to the tower at 3 points. The M7 plate sits above that, not below. So the tower is still taking the full force and passing some of that along to the M7 plates/STB. The M7 STB will absorb and distribute some of that force to the other mounts it's also connected to, as well as the other tower via the bar.

But you're still hitting the strut tower just as hard, and if you hit it hard enough, it will still mushroom, and push the M7 plates up and off of it.

The ideal place for a reinforcement plate, would be under the strut tower, where it could spread the force more evenly among the tower (or something else?), instead of concentrating it on the weak Mini strut towers.

Think of the tower as being weak, like a aluminum foil. Now put the foil under something much more sturdy, like a piece of wood. If you hit the foil with something hard, the wood is going to absorb a good amount of the impact, but you'll still have damaged foil no?

That's not a perfect example obviously, but just trying to relay my point.

Yes, the M7 tower plates help, but not as much as many of you think. And yes, I do have them.

 

I did not hit a pothole. I was on I-95 south of Providence on the passing lane. It was a construction zone and the driving surface was alternate pavement and drainage grate. I was trying to move onto the middle lae and.. BOOM, I bounced on a drainager grate. I did not realize until 2 weeks after that there was the telltale sign of a mushroom. If I had hit a pothole I would not blame the MINI. But I took the same road with my Subaru and it was fine. COST:
380 New front tire
179 Alignment
50 Stru Top Part
250 Strut Top Labor

I have had the front tire replaced and the rest of the work in 2 weeks.

Driving home I was on 208 in NJ and I saw yet another grate and I went to the next lane but my rear went bam. That tire nowneeds to be replaced.

Didn't MINI test these cars in reality test scenarios? If not they need to test their cars on the rotten roads of the northeast!

Can anyone in the NY area recommend a more reasonably priced solution?

I am so mad at the MINI right now I stuck it in the garage and I'm driving my 7 year old Subaru everywhere. This will be my last MINI and I am going to stop recommending the car to friends and business associates.

Too bad though.. cause I like my dealership and their service department is excellent and professional.. best I've seen..

 

I have a '03 MC with 28,000 miles just a every day driver. Only take it on club fun runs and have never really driven it hard like track days or auto cross etc. Today I thought my MINI was leaning a little in the parking lot and wasn't sure if it was my imagination or what so I checked the strut towers. Right side has a big crack.

This will be my second trip to Long Beach MINI this month. Two weeks ago I got the re-call letter for the battery. Well I didn't go right in and one morning it was dead. Really dead...couldn't jump it or push start it. Had to be towed to the dealer. Now this...

 

Here is a pic of the cracked one.

 

I was wondering how many of those who had this problem had run flats on their MINI. Could the run flats be to stiff for this part to handle?

 

Sorry if this was mentioned elsewhere in the thread, but any idea if this remains a potential issue with '06 models, or was a change made?
Thanks.

 

Does this repair have to be done at a dealership? The repair shop that worked on my Peugeot, Audi and Subaru quoted me a repair priceof 50% less than the dealer. Hmm.. no brainer.

Also the tire I was sold by the dealer did not have the colored stripes as the new tire I bought from this shop. does this mean I was not sold a new tire?

 

Only if the dealer (MINI) is going to cover the cost of the repair. If the repair is on your nickel, you can have the repair done wherever.

Presence/absence of colored stripes is not necessarily an indicator of new or not. Check the tread depth for your brand/model of tire on Tirerack.com. If your "new" tire is not at the same measurement (with allowance for the miles you have put on it), then you have an issue with what was sold to you by the dealer.

 

I really hate opening threads like these. I think from here on out I'm going to quite doing so.

I went out and took a look at my 03 MC and my passenger rubber gasket is cracked, but that's the extent of it. No mushrooming at all, everything looks perfect and she handles great. I also took a level and a tape measure and checked about 5 points on both sides and she sits perfectly level, so level it's a bit strange.

I've got over 50k on mine and the rubber surrounds are extremely dried out. I'm going to spray a bit of WD40 to help stop further cracking.

 

Mine went to the CarMax dealer last night, I just got the call that the work is being covered under my extended warranty. All I have to pay is the $50 deductable. That's a blessing and a relief.

The drivers side is fine for now, no cracks, not even tiny ones. But, if it does start to crack at least I know it will be covered under the warranty.