— A MINI Cooper water pump replacement lawsuit settlement has been preliminarily approved that has BMW paying affected owners and lessees up to $500 if an owner paid to have the water pump repaired or replaced. Affected MINI Coopers include the R55, R56, R57, R58, R59 and R60 built between October 2006 and November 2012.
Filed in 2014 by MINI Cooper owner Trish Herremans, the complaint alleges BMW manufactured 2007-2013 MINI Cooper cars with defective water pumps that constantly need replaced.
Plaintiff Herremans claims her water pump failed twice, once after the warranty expired which caused her to shell out $1,700 for repairs. Herremans says her MINI Cooper engine overheated due to the defective water pump that leaked and made loud noises.
Herremans claims the water pump problems were concealed from consumers for years while BMW and its dealers made money not only from selling the cars, but from the cost of repairs and water pump replacements.
The MINI Cooper water pump replacement lawsuit was dismissed twice after the judge said the plaintiff didn't prove accusations of fraud, so the lawsuit couldn't proceed because the water pump failed after the statute of limitations. The judge also said the plaintiff didn't provide enough information to show BMW was aware of the alleged pump defect. However, the judge allowed the complaint to be amended.
The court said the settlement terms looked good and notice of the proposed settlement should be sent to owners and lessees.
A hearing is scheduled in front of the judge on November 28, 2016.
The Mini Cooper water pump replacement lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court of the Central District of California - Trish Herremans v. BMW of North America LLC.
The plaintiff is represented by Knapp Petersen & Clarke APC, and the Law Offices of Robert L. Starr.
CarComplaints.com has complaints about multiple models of MINI Cooper vehicles.
