2019 MINI Cooper S Problems
Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component
Data refreshed
What this page shows
Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2019 MINI Cooper S, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Reports by component
Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category
- Electrical228.6%
- Engine114.3%
- Exterior lighting114.3%
- Powertrain (other)114.3%
- Steering114.3%
- Visibility114.3%
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
Each component in detail
What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words
Electrical
Reports naming the electrical system — wiring, battery, charging, control modules, infotainment and electrical accessories.
From owner reports, verbatim
Starter started smoking at start up! And clutch failure at traffic light!!!! No accident occurred because of experienced driver!
The contact's daughter owns a 2019 Mini Cooper S Clubman. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, she depressed the brake pedal, but the rear driver's side brake light failed to illuminate. The contact stated that he was driving behind his daughter when he noticed the failure. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, and the rear driver's side brake light bulb was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The mechanic referred the contact to the dealer for assistance. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was jumpstarted by AAA. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist unless NHTSA required that they do so. The failure mileage was unknown.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Engine
Reports naming the engine itself — including stalling, misfires, oil consumption, cooling and internal engine components.
From owner reports, verbatim
Starter started smoking at start up! And clutch failure at traffic light!!!! No accident occurred because of experienced driver!
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Exterior lighting
Reports naming headlights, tail lights, turn signals and other exterior lighting.
From owner reports, verbatim
The contact's daughter owns a 2019 Mini Cooper S Clubman. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, she depressed the brake pedal, but the rear driver's side brake light failed to illuminate. The contact stated that he was driving behind his daughter when he noticed the failure. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, and the rear driver's side brake light bulb was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The mechanic referred the contact to the dealer for assistance. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was jumpstarted by AAA. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist unless NHTSA required that they do so. The failure mileage was unknown.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Powertrain (other)
Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials.
From owner reports, verbatim
175 MILES ON 2019 MINI S COUNTRYMAN. TRAVELING AT HIGHWAY SPEED. DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION INDICATOR CAME ON, CAR SHUDDERED REPEATEDLY AND DECELERATED RAPIDLY TO APPROX. 20 MPH IN 60 ZONE. CREATED INSTANT HAZARD TO MYSELF AS MULTIPLE LANES OF FASTER MOVING TRAFFIC NEEDED TO BE CROSSED TO REACH SAFETY AND NO WARNING TO TAILING VEHICLE.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Steering
Reports naming the steering system — racks, columns, power-steering assist and steering linkage.
From owner reports, verbatim
Loss of power steering on startup or at stop light. A message pops up indicating that the Dynamic Stability Control is re-initializing and that steering may become difficult: Drive carefully. The warning message usually appears shortly after the failure. In fact, the steering gets so stiff, that my wife can barely turn corners. The problem comes and goes unexpectedly. This is my wife's car, and it has happened to her on several other occasions. Sometimes we can reset by restarting the car, but that isn't reliable. We put the car out of ECO mode into Sport mode, so that the engine does not stop at stop lights, but the engine sometimes stops anyway. When it happened at a stop light today, we tried several restarts, but the steering remained out. Steering is worse at low speeds. Today, we stopped at a light. My wife was driving. The engine stopped and restarted, and the error message appeared. She had difficulty steering into a parking lot where I swapped places with her. I drove her home. It was difficult for me to steer around corners after today's lock up, but I drove the car to a local BMW-Mini mechanic with whom I had discussed the problem, but it never appeared at his shop. Today, we tried starting at the shop and the difficult steering persisted without an error message. He ran a quick scan indicating that some modules in the steering column were not operating properly. He said the modules were not available for replacement, and that the entire steering column might need to be replaced. Unfortunately, he was booked up until Friday. I drove home and let the car sit in the garage for a couple of hours. I started it while writing this to try to more accurately reproduce the warning messages. However, no messages appeared and the car steered easily. Clearly, sudden loss of power steering poses a danger for my family and others on the road. I've looked on the internet and discovered that others have experienced similar problems with steering in Mini Coopers.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Visibility
Reports naming windshields, glass, wipers, defrosters and mirrors.
From owner reports, verbatim
The contact owns a 2019 Mini Cooper S. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact noticed that a rock had hit the driver's side of the windshield due to construction work on a local highway. The contact stated that the passenger's side of the windshield was also hit by a rock while driving. The contact stated that the driver's side of the windshield sustained a minor fracture; however, the passenger's side of the windshield was severely damaged. An unknown dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 81,485. The VIN was not available.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
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.
Elsewhere on this vehicle
Data sources
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation — owner-reported complaints and the components recorded on them
Data on this page last refreshed .