This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
The contact owns a 2010 MINICooper S. the contact stated that the vehicle stalled without warning and there was a failure with the auxiliary water pump and engine the contact was able to coast the vehicle over to the side of the road and, upon opening the hood, excessive smoke emitted from the engine and auxiliary water pump. The vehicle was towed to a repair shop and the mechanic stated that the engine and the auxiliary water pump needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and indicated that the vehicle was excluded from NHTSA campaign number: 12V008000 (engine and engine cooling), although the contact was experiencing the failure related to the recall. The failure mileage was 89,000. Updated 06/01/17
Timing chain issues that would make car randomly rattle then just turn off in the middle of traffic or at a stop light. Car would skip gears as well. Our 2009 has the same issues and MINIhas told us it is the timing chain as well. We spent over $1800 fixing this issue that apparently has been an issue with other MINIcars.
Car shut down enroute to hospital. There was no warning (as characterized by many owners). I had the car towed to a reputable repair facility. They informed me that the timing chain tensioner had disintegrated and caused the timing chain to "slip". they ran a compression test on the 4 cylinders. Two of the cylinders have 0 compression and the other two have seriously low readings. They told me that any additional damage is indeterminate. The exact sequence of events beginning with the timing chain tensioner has been documented in great numbers. This resulted in recall for this problem up to the 2009 model year. Why wasn't this extended to the 2010 model year?
Leaving for work, heard a snap and lost power to engine less than a mile from home. Pulled over, then coasted (with no power steering or brakes) downhill to a safer spot. Towed to mechanic; issue is broken timing chain. This vehicle is just a few months outside the final recall dates for skeen V BMW. I believe the class was too narrowly defined; this 2010 Cooper S (69K mi) has the same N14 engine and problem as described in the recall. (can't tell but from some of the early reporting on that case it sounds like this car may have been included an earlier version/draft??). very upset that this car has the same engine and issue covered by the recall, and yet we have no recourse!
Motor has rattle was told it was timing chain by mechanic and will need to be replaced or motor will need to be replaced/ MINIsold a defective car and knew about this defect. Now I am out 10K if the car breaks and have no car for family
- Cheshire, CT, USA
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Purchase previously owned (by 1 owner, low mileage) 2010, MINICooper from dealership 2 years ago. Currently has only 70K miles. Last week while driving, timing chain failed subsequently causing $3100+ in estimated damages. First issue I have is how does a timing belt last only 70K miles on a supposed high-end, high-performance vehicle like MINIBMW? every other vehicle I have ever owned (foreign and domestic) recommends changing timing belt around 100K miles, so the thought of changing a timing chain was for at least 20K more miles never crossed my mind. Second issue is a class action lawsuit has been awarded to MINICooper owners (same make and model) on or about 2010 for this very problem. However, MINICooper corporate headquarters customer service, and the only local MINICooper service center in san antonio Texas has informed me that my VIN # was not affected by this settlement...even though the cause and affect of the timing chain failure is exactly the same problem my MINICooper experienced with only 70K miles.
During normal vehicle operation, vehicle lost power. Pulled to the side of the road, turned vehicle off, and vehicle would not restart. Had vehicle towed to local mechanic. Problem was diagnosed as a broken timing chain.
Timing chain evidently broke with little warning and car died in middle of road. BMW MINIhas known of this and settled a class action lawsuit without ever issuing a recall or notification to owners. The car had less than 30,000 miles on it.
The contact owns a 2010 MINICooper S. upon inspecting the vehicle, a technician heard an abnormal noise and stated that the timing chain needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The VIN and failure mileage were not available.
Tensioner broke causing timing chain sheared the camshaft gear and destroyed engine...had car 7 months...bought used at Toyota of nicholasville in nicholasville
The timing chain guide rail, chain tensioners, slike rail friction wheel etc all had to be replaced and it only has 13000 miles I know that BMW is being sued and habberstad said that we would be informed of the suit if our vehicle is part of the suit. Please help us with this matter.
The contact owns a 2010 MINICooper S. while driving approximately 70 mph, the vehicle overheated and the temperature gauge warning light illuminated. In addition, smoke and a burning oil odor emitted from under the hood. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. After the vehicle was serviced, the turn signals and windows failed to operate. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, but the diagnosis was unavailable. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 66,568.
The car just stopped running. We towed it to a mechanic and the engine broke down. It appears to be an issue that has been identified by many others and a class action suit is in the works. I don't have the $5000 to repair it. I'd like for MINIBMW to extend the warranty to 7 years and cover this repair since it's a known issue.
My daughter was driving the MINIcooper on hwy 101W when the car suddenly and with out warning lost all power. She was fortunate to not have been stranded on the highway. We had the car lifted and taken to a BMW dealer. They determined that there is a hole in the #4 cylinder that is responsible for the loss of power. The car has 55K miles on it and is 5K miles outside of full warranty. We have all service records well documented that exceed BMW \mc recommendations. We have since had the car lifted and taken to the mc dealer in camarillo ca. They with out explanation as to what happened state that the car needs a new engine at our cost of $6,500+. this is crazy given the low miles and the fact that it has been well maintained. There is much more information that we can provide however the site seems to time out and this is my third attempt at writing this notification. Please advise or contact me if you can help with this matter. BMW is fraudulently selling these vehicles as reliable and they need to be taken to task. Regards, [xxx] 'information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).'
Purchased car w/50,000 miles on it and have already had water pump replaced and now while driving down the road going about 40 mph the timing belt broke and blew parts into the engine, so it pretty much needs a new engine already now 25,000 miles after we bought it. Lots of complaints about the timing belt/chain on these 2010 models. Seems odd to me.
The timing chain tensioner came loose causing an oil leak and the timing chain to slip/skip which in turn caused damage to the motor and now my car needs a new timing chain & new motor which is costing around $9K. This car only has 35K miles on it & this should not have happened! I was driving on the freeway when all my oil leaked out, causing lights to flash & loud noises. Once pulled over to a gas station and found all the oil was gone, a mechanic there noticed the tensioner coming out, tightened it, then refilled the oil. The car held the oil at this point but then the car would not start. After towing it to a shop, they saw that it would need a new timing chain but didn't want to do a full break down of the car since it is very involved and there could be motor issues so he suggested I contact MINIusa & a MINIdealership. The dealership said they had to have it there to determine the issue & see if the manufacturer would cover the costs. So I towed the car again to a MINIdealership & they said it needs a new motor since the valves were damaged also. After sending this info to MINIusa (the manufacturer), they reported to me that they would pay $4K of the $9K in costs (not even half). Getting advise from a lawyer, this entire issue should be covered by the manufacturer and I already paid too much just by having it towed twice when this is a flaw in the car. The car only has 35K miles & this tensioner should not have come loose in the 1st place causing all this damage. In the end, I am still fighting with MINIusa (after being without my car for almost 4 weeks) to cover all costs of repair for this and asking that this be reported as a "known issue" on the tsb so other people do not have the same problem I am having!! I have attached the email I got from seattle MINIfor the diagnosis to give you an idea of what they see happened!
The water pump and thermostat in this vehicle failed. After getting it replaced at the dealer I learned later there is a recall (that had already been completed). I also learned that the thermostat may have been covered by the federal emissions warranty (the dealer said it wasn't because the light wasn't on).
Driving on freeway when timing chain breaks and causes thousands of dollars of damage to engine. Compression to engine stops and car stalls out. One moment totally fine, the next wrecked on freeway.
Purchased car April 2014 w 46,000 miles. Warranty history showed valve gasket replaced. At 64000 miles dealer says it needs to be replaced again. Not told at purchase - at MINIdlr - that car consumes a quart of oil every 700 miles which I was just told by local servicing dealer that they consider that normal. Leak at gasket contributes to air infiltration and poor oil consumption I was told. I would not have purchased the car knowing this. It adds considerably to the operating costs. After telling servicing dlr this weekend that I knew the car had already had valve cover gasket replaced, he said he would cover 75% of over $800 cost. He obviously knew that it didn't or shouldn't need that work so soon after being done. The MINIdealers are thieves and withhold vital information. The strut mount apparently is also "domed" which speaks to structural integrity of this car. I would never recommend a MINIto anyone and feel their practices are completely unethical and the build quality is substandard to what is considered normal. Who needs to have the valve cover gaskets replaced twice in under 65,000 miles" who has to go and buy oil every month and a half" the last car I owned that needed that was a 20 year old 1975 Pontiac with over 100K. Miles. Garbage.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Myrtle Point, OR, USA