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Mini Cooper

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Jessica of Midlothian, TX April 1, 2009

Jessica of Midlothian TX (04/01/09)
Bought a 2006 Mini Cooper, brand new. Ordered it, waited patiently, it finally got here and had the wrong tires on it. We thought fine we'll deal with it but it should've been a warning. We bring it in for the first oil change and they did a little warranty repair work. They changed the brakes. It had only been 11000 miles! And shortly thereafter, we had to change the tires-that should've lasted about 3 times as long as they did. Since then, we've had several problems getting the car worked on by Mini or just with the car itself.

During our second oil change/1 year inspection, they gave us a [bad] Chevy Cobalt to drive because they had to keep it a few days because they were so busy...probably fixing so many other Mini problems. Anyhow, the rental car they gave us got a flat while we were trying to go back and get our car. Last summer, our car started overheating and so we had to take it to Mini. 150 right in the door, once we finally got someone to talk to us on the phone and set up an appointment. Once they finally looked at, they told us the thermostat went out. That was another 200 just for a 50 pump.

So we leave there, everything seems cool, and now the airbag light is on. We don't know(and hopefully won't have to) if the passenger side airbags work or not. Once in a while, it acknowledges that there is something large enough to warrant the use of the airbags on the passenger side, but 99% of the time, the light just stays on and the no airbag light is lit as well. We've also just put on another set of brakes (front and back), changed the oil, and bought another set of tires (they're 500, 85000 mile touring tires... yeah).

Also like to mention the incredible stupidity that we're up against with our local dealer. We've had receptionists hang up on us, service men who won't call back, people hand us off to other people with no result, and everyone acts all peachy when you walk in like there's nothing wrong. They're like robots with happy faces.

Around 1500 so far on repairs, tires, brakes, oil changes

Tamara of Raleigh, NC March 29, 2009

Tamara of Raleigh NC (03/29/09)
I bought a used 2002 Mini Cooper about 2 years ago and it has been the worst purchase I have ever made. Since purchasing my car, I have had so many problems with it that I can't even keep up with the maintenance costs. Here's the skinny on my problems with this car: 1) My driver side door no longer opens with the inside door latch so I have to bang on it to get it open; 2) my sunroof is broken and will not close!; 3) tire pressure light will not go off; 4) driver-side window will not roll down; 5) windshield wipers stopped working (500 to fix!); 3 flat tires since purchasing the car on two years ago!; and 6) driver side seat would not lock. Needless to say after I get rid of this car I will never buy another one. And I will advise anyone who asks to never buy this car!

Angelo of Covington, KY March 29, 2009

Angelo of Covington KY (03/29/09)
I've had my 2006 MCS since Nov. '06, and have been happy with it, until 2 days ago, when I came home, parked the car in my incline driveway (just like EVERY other day), pulled the handbrake all the way, unloaded groceries, and went inside my house. Fifteen minutes later, we heard a loud crash coming from outside. The car rolled 30 feet downhill before crashing into a wooden jungle gym. The car is near-totalled.

 I took the MINI to the dealership, and service specialist Nick contacted me later to tell me that they've checked the parking brake and nothing was wrong with it. I found several other people online with the same exact problem, but their email addresses are no longer valid. Nick is trying to tell me to contact my insurance company, but I KNOW the parking brake was fully engaged, meaning this is a manufacturer's defect and neither myself nor State Farm should have to pay one red cent. There's a lot of talk on this forum about maybe we could join forces or we should band together and file class-action against BMW. Let's do it, Let's Sue (a play on MINI's Let's Motor mantra).

The entire right side of the car is scratched or dented. The windshield is fully broken. Glass everywhere in the interior. I can only imagine the damage to the undercarriage, as it took a lot of physical stress.

Betty of Cornelius, NC March 20, 2009

Betty of Cornelius NC (03/20/09)
I made arrangements to purchase a 2009 Mini Cooper S. The sales rep. would not negotiate price with me. He said the Cooper is the most desired vehicle on the road and favored. Therefore, BMW had no need to negotiate on the Mini prices. Iwas not doing a trade in; I was doing cash down. I read the multiple negative reviews. I emailed the link of the negative reviews to the Mini rep; he says BMW corrected all these problems as of 2007. I noticed many of the complaints came regarding the 2007s. As much as I love that Mini Cooper S, thanks to all of you. I have withdrawn my offer to purchase one.

Brenda of Toronto, ON March 15, 2009

Brenda of Toronto ON (03/15/09)
Our May 2006 BMW Mini has 124K mileage and a 10,940 cost estimate to have this magically sealed transmission system repaired! Apparently the Mini transmisson is sealed and requires complete replacement. Why would I spend that same book value today for repairs on this car? This transmission issue is an un-heard-of engineering catastrophe. If we had not previously owned and enjoyed trouble-free 3 series, 5 and 7 series, then this would be hard to believe of our once beloved BMWs. But it is true. The transmission issues are absolutely huge on the Mini, a far greater problem than my 525 i tire rims that kept producing flats

Consequences: just might leave the little beast with the dealer. This is an unresolved mess. BUYER beware. They do not tell you that this little 'engineering' marvel is a sealed system. My question: who would design a transmission that is SEALED? Not repairable? Seems like built- in obsolesence? You tell me? Out-raged in Toronto. ps. And Customer Service is exceedingly loath to admit and deal with the problem, at the dealor and head office levels. Hello call waiting... I shall be ill if I hear another pre-recorded message of warranty, quality and genuine parts.

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