Owner-reported complaints naming the powertrain system, filed with NHTSA
Data refreshed
Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2005 MINI Cooper S submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 11 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
TAKATA RECALL. TRANSMISSION WOULD NOT SHIFT GEARS INTERMITTENTLY WHILE IN AUTOMATIC. SPENT $5,600 TO REBUILD TRANSMISSION. STILL HAVING INTERMITTENT ISSUES.
TRANSMISSION PREVIOUSLY REPLACED AT 48K MILES BY MANUFACTURER DUE TO NOISE. MY TRANSMISSION IS BROKEN. MY TIRES CHIRP EVERY TIME I PUSH ON THE GAS BECAUSE THE TRANSMISSION DOES NOT KNOW WHAT GEAR TO BE IN DUE TO THE BAD BODY CONTROL VALVE. THE TRANSMISSION NEEDS TO BE REPLACED BECAUSE I CANNOT VERIFY HOW MUCH MECHANICAL DAMAGE HAS TAKEN PLACE DURING THE TIME THAT THE VALVE BODY HAS BEEN BROKEN. ONCE THE VALVE BODY BREAKS DOWN, THE MECHANICAL UNIT ALSO BEGINS TO BREAK DOWN. MINI NEEDS TO ISSUE A SERVICE BULLETIN TELLING THE DEALERS TO COMMENCE SERVICING THE AISIN TRANSMISSIONS EVERY 40K BY REPLACING THE FLUID. BMW/MINI'S TRANSMISSION FLUID IS NOT LIFETIME. VOLKSWAGEN ISSUED A SIMILAR BULLETIN A FEW YEARS AGO BECAUSE IT ALSO USES THE AISIN TRANSMISSION. THE INDEPENDENT REPAIR SHOPS MAY NOT REPLACE THE FLUID RIGHT BECAUSE THE TRANSMISSION FLUID IS HARD TO DRAIN AND IN MANY CASES IF IT'S NOT DONE RIGHT, GREAT DAMAGE IS DONE THE ENGINE. THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE WAS UNDER POWERED UPON ACCELERATION. THE VEHICLE WOULD JERK, AND BUCK. THE VALVE BODY IN THE TRANSMISSION BEGAN TO BREAK DOWN BECAUSE THE SHAVINGS FROM THE TRANSMISSION GEARS BEGAN TO CLOUD THE FLUID AND INHIBIT COMMUNICATION FROM THE VALVE BODY SOLENOIDS TO THE MECHANICAL COMPONENTS. UPDATED 03/23/16.*JB
THE AUTOMATIC CVT TRANSMISSION JUST DOWN SHIFTED AND NOW WON'T GO INTO HIGH GEAR. THIS WILL HAPPEN ON THE FREEWAY AND WILL SHIFT AND CLUNK INTO GEAR. BMW IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM WITH THIS TRANSMISSION BUT WON'T STAND BEHIND THEIR PRODUCT. IT IS VERY DANGEROUS TO DRIVE. *JS
PROBLEM WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION ON 2005 MINI COOPER S. NEEDS REPLACEMENT $8000+. ONLY 90K MILES. HUNDREDS OF COMPLAINTS ON LINE REGARDING CVT TRANSMISSION DEFECT. MINI COOPER/ BMW NOT ADMITTING PROBLEM TO PUBLIC. *TR
I AM THE CURRENT OWNER OF A 2005 MINI COOPER S. I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE IN 2006 FROM MINI OF IRVINE WITH 3,000 MILES. I HAVE RECENTLY BEEN EXPERIENCING ISSUES WITH THE CVT TRANSMISSION. THE CAR JERKS WHEN CHANGING GEARS AT ANY SPEED, AS WELL AS WHEN SWITCHING FROM DRIVE TO REVERSE. I HAVE TAKEN THE CAR TO MINI OF SAN DIEGO TO BE DIAGNOSED AND HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED THAT THE TRANSMISSION NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AT A COST OF $8,000. THE VEHICLE CURRENTLY HAS 73,000 MILES AND FIND IT COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE THAT THE TRANSMISSION IS FAILING SO EARLY ON. *TR
STARTED VEHICLE IN THE MORNING OF 11/14/2012. THE SHIFT INDICATOR ON THE DASH SHOWS EP MODE INSTEAD OF D,R,N,ETC. THE CAR SEEMED TO DRIVE FINE BUT THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG WITH THE SHIFTER ELECTRONICS. THE CAR DOES NOT SEEM TO KNOW WHAT DRIVE MODE IS IN. PUTTING THE AUTO MANUAL TRANSMISSION INTO SPORTS MODE DOES NOT CHANGE THE SHIFT INDICATOR ON THE DASH. IN SPORTS MODES IT STILL SHOWED EP. IN EP MODE THE CAR DOES NOT REV BEYOND 3000RPM AND DRIVES ROUGH AT CERTAIN SPEEDS. THIS MAY BE A MANUFACTURER DEFECT WITH A TRANSMISSION SENSOR, OR THE SHIFTER ELECTRONICS. *TR
THE TRANSMISSION HAS FAILED AT 66K MILES - AS I AM RESEARCHING THIS PROBLEM, I CAN SEE THAT MANY PEOPLE HAVE HAD PREMATURE TRANSMISSION FAILURES WITH THEIR MINI COOPER AND BMW HAS NOT BEEN WILLING TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEM. THE COST TO US WILL BE APPROXIMATELY $10,000 TO REPAIR. *TR
WHILE PROCEEDING DOWN A NORMAL DRY ROAD I MANUALLY SHIFTED THE TRANSMISSION (USING MANUAL MODE ON THE CVT AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION) FROM 3RD GEAR TO 4TH GEAR. THE SHIFT NORMALLY WOULD BE SMOOTH HOWEVER ON THIS OCCURRENCE THE ENGINE IDLED EXTREMELY HIGH AND THE GEAR KICKED IN AFTER A COUPLE OF SECONDS WITH A LOUD BANGING SOUND WHEN THE GEAR FINALLY TOOK HOLD. THE CAR BEHAVED ITSELF FOR A WHILE BUT THIS EVENT STARTED HAPPENING MORE AND MORE UNTIL IT BECAME A REGULAR OCCURRENCE. MOST OF THE TIME THERE WAS NO LOUD NOISE BUT THE 4TH GEAR WOULD NOT CATCH AND I ADJUSTED MY DRIVING SO THAT I WOULD SHIFT FROM 3RD GEAR TO 5TH GEAR AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE TO AVOID THE OVER REVVING. I BROUGHT THE CAR IN TO A LOCAL TRANSMISSION SHOP. THEY LOOKED IT OVER AND ADVISED ME THAT THERE WAS NO WAY OF REPAIRING THE TRANSMISSION AND THAT I WOULD HAVE TO REPLACE IT ENTIRELY. I AM CURRENTLY WORKING TO LOCATE A NEW TRANSMISSION AS DURING THE LAST OCCURRENCE (JULY 21, 2012) THE CAR DID NOT GO INTO 4TH GEAR AND I WAS STUCK ON A HIGHWAY WITHOUT BEING ABLE TO MOVE, I.E. THE CAR WOULD NOT GO INTO ANY GEAR. AFTER PULLING OVER TO SAFETY I WAS ABLE TO PUT THE CAR UP TO 3RD GEAR AND RETURN HOME. THE CAR IS CURRENTLY UNUSABLE. I AM NOT WORKING WITH THE MANUFACTURER / DEALER AS PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE HAS SHOWN ME THAT THEY ARE EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE AND FINANCIAL GAIN IS THERE PRIMARY OBJECTIVE. IN ADDITION ALL THE INTERNET BLOGS THAT I HAVE REVIEWED, AND JOINED / COMMENTED ON HAS SHOWN ME THAT BMW / MINI DOES NOT WORK WITH THEIR CUSTOMERS TO RECTIFY THIS BAD, UNSAFE PRODUCT. I AM HOPING THAT BMW / MINI WILL WORK WITH THEIR CUSTOMERS WHO ARE STUCK WITH HIS BAD PRODUCT AND I AM ON A LIST TO SUPPORT A CLASS ACTION SUIT AGAINST THEM. *TR
DEFECTIVE CVT TRANSMISSION! THE DEALERSHIP SAID THAT IT WAS NO FAULT OF OURS THAT WE NEEDED A NEW TRANSMISSION, BUT DUE TO THE WAY THIS TRANSMISSION WAS DESIGNED!!!!!!!! *TR
IN THE EARLY FALL, SEPTEMBER 2011, I ENCOUNTERED ISSUES WITH MY CAR NOT SHIFTING PROPERLY. IT'S AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SO I KNOW THERE WAS NOTHING I COULD BE DOING TO CAUSE THIS PROBLEM. THE CAR HAS BEEN SERVICED REGULARLY AND DRIVEN WITH CARE WHILE IN MY POSSESSION(I'M THE SECOND OWNER. NO SIMILAR ISSUES ON CARFAX REPORT). WHILE THE ENGINE IS COOL AND NOT YET AT ITS OPTIMAL TEMPERATURE THE DRIVE IS FINE AND YOU MAY NOT EVEN NOTICE A PROBLEM; HOWEVER, EVERY RIDE, ONCE WARMED UP THE CAR BEGINS TO SHIFT INCREDIBLY VIOLENTLY AS IT IS OBVIOUSLY STRUGGLING TO SWITCH GEARS. THIS OCCURS ALSO WHILE SLOWING DOWN AND THE CAR IS DOWNSHIFTING CREATING AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE "SLUNG" INTO A CAR FROM BEHIND(THIS HAPPENED IN THE MID SUMMER OF 2011). AFTER DROPPING THIS CAR OFF SEPTEMBER 15TH TO THE LOCAL MINI DEALERSHIP, I DID NOT HEAR FROM THEM FOR ALMOST THREE WEEKS. IN THE FIRST WEEK OF OCTOBER I WAS CONTACTED AND TOLD IT LOOKS LIKE MY CAR IS VERY EASILY FIXABLE AND SHOULD BE READY SHORTLY. IT WAS EXPLAINED TO ME THAT A SEAL HAD BROKEN ON THE TRANSMISSION LEAKING FLUID ONTO IT CAUSING THIS SHIFTING MALFUNCTION. WHEN THEY FINALLY TOLD ME I CAN PICK UP MY CAR(APPROXIMATELY OCTOBER 18TH) THEY REGRETTED TO INFORM ME THE PROBLEM WAS NOT ABLE TO BE FIXED AND I WOULD HAVE TO BRING IT ELSEWHERE AS THEY DO NOT REBUILD TRANSMISSIONS. NOW IT IS BACK IN MY POSSESSION WHERE I AM FORCED TO COMMUTE IN IT DAILY, DRIVING WORSE THAN IT WAS BEFORE I DROPPED IT OFF. IT NOW DISPLAYS "PE" FOR ITS CURRENT GEAR FROM TIME TO TIME. THIS IS NOT THE ONLY COMPLAINT I HAVE FILED FOR THIS CAR MATCHING OTHER CONSUMER COMPLAINTS. I AM A VICTIM OF THEIR FAILED POWER STEERING AS WELL. *TR
VIN: [XXX], DELIVERED SEPT. 2004. CURRENT MILEAGE 49,940 THIS CAR WAS ORDERED VIA MINI.COM. THE ONLY DRIVERS ARE A 63 YR FEMALE AND A 63 YR MALE. NO CHILDREN HAVE EVER DRIVEN THIS CAR, NOR HAS IT BEEN RACED, DRIVEN HARD, SIMPLY DRIVEN TO WORK AND BACK LAST WEEK I WAS DRIVING TO WORK, A 11 MILE TRIP MAX SPEED ON A 55 MPH HIGHWAY. THE FRONT END MADE A HUGE NOISE, THE CAR SHOOK, AND I STOPPED. I HAD TO CALL A TOWING SERVICE, AS I FELT THE CAR WAS UNDRIVABLE. THE SERVICE TOWED THE CAR TO MINI OF NASHVILLE, WHERE I WAS TOLD THE "HARMONIC BALANCER" BROKE, AND IT THEN BROKE THE FRONT AXLE. WHAT? I ASKED, IS A HARMONIC BALANCER" AND WHAT DOES IT DO?, AFTER A LENGTHY CONVERSATION, I FIND OUT THAT IF THE CAR IS TOO OLD, THE RUBBER DRIES OUT AND THIS CAN HAPPEN. FOR A PART TO WEAR OUT, I AM STUCK WITH $2,000 REPAIR BILL. THIS CAR IS NOT TOO OLD, IT HAS LESS THAN 50,000 MILES ON IT AND IS ALWAYS GARAGED. IF THE PARTS MINI USES ON A CAR AND IF MINI KNOWS THAT THEY WEAR OUT THEN MINI SHOULD FULLY DISCLOSE THIS, AS CONSUMERS CAN MAKE INFORMED DECISIONS WHEN MAKING DECISIONS ON CAR PURCHASES. THIS IS NOT WHAT I EXPECT FROM A MINI, THIS CAR WAS GENTLY DRIVEN, WELL TAKEN CARE OF. YOUR "HARMONIC BALANCER" IS DEFECTIVE, YOU SHOULD MAKE THE BUYERS OF YOUR CARS AWARE OF THE DEFECT, PUT YOURSELF IN POSITIONS TO MAKE IT RIGHT. THIS CAR WAS UNDRIVABLE, I COULD HAVE HAD A SERIOUS ACCIDENT AT HIGH SPEED IF A BROKEN AXLE OCCURRED WHILE ON A LONG TRIP, LET ALONE THE INCONVENIENCE OF REPAIRS, HOTEL STAYS, AND OTHER INTERRUPTIONS. I AM EXPECTING MINI MAKE THIS REPAIR AS A WARRANTIED ITEM, COVERING THE COST, LABOR TO REPAIR DEFECTIVE PARTS. THE INVOICE IS DATED 29 APRIL 2011, MINI OF NASHVILLE, I AM CUSTOMER # 31442. THE INVOICE READS AS FOLLOWS: THE DRIVER STATES WHILE DRIVING IT SOUNDED LIKE SOMETHING FELL OUT FROM UNDERNEATH THE MINI. 11 - REPLACED DAMPNER. 1035 C THERE ARE MANY INCIDENTS OF THIS ON THE WEB. I FIRMLY BELIEVE THIS IS THE RESULT OF USING INFERIOR PARTS. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORM
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
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