Used 2016 MINI Cooper Consumer Reviews
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BMW doesn't honor its warranty
Mini Cooper provides a 3 year warranty on the car, but BMW refuses to honor it. BMW makes the engine, clutch, and transmission for Mini Cooper. To simplify logistics, they use the same clutch on all their Mini drive chains. As an engineer, I know that the first rule for choosing a clutch for a car is that it should be able to handle the torque produced by the engine. The Mini clutch was designed for the standard 140 HP Mini engine. The JCW comes with 208 HP. To make matters worse, the Mini clutch is backwards from standard clutches. During shifting, the clutch disengages the transmission and not the engine. That means that the thrust bearing continues to rotate while handling a lot of load. The standard half inch steel bearing cannot hold up to the 208 HP engine. There is an easy fix to this problem which engineers know about. You replace the half inch steel bearing with a three quarter inch ceramic bearing made to handle the horsepower. To save less that $10 per car, BMW decided not to do this. Therefore their clutches wear out. The last time my clutch failed, about 2 years after purchase with a three year warranty, BMW refused to pay for my warranty repair, and I am out about $2000. I asked my dealer to use a heavy duty clutch which I would buy during this last repair. But their contract with Mini Cooper doesn't allow them to use any parts but BMW parts. BMW tells me that I do not know how to drive a clutched car. I have driven Saabs with standard transmissions and clutches for over 20 years and have never had a clutch failure. I currently drive a 1999 Saab 9-3 convertible with 150,000 miles on it, with the original clutch still working fine.
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Princess and Always in the shop
This is the worst car that I have ever owned. I have had a alpha romeo spider veloce, honda crv and one other car for over 10 years each with over 150,000 miles on them. This car is cheaply and poorly made and was more expensive than both of them. In the first year that I owned it all of the electrical wiring went and I had to have it towed in, less than 7,000 miles. Covered by the warranty $8,000 plus. The following winter the water pump went and I had to have it towed in yet again. In year 3 the drivers seat started to frwy whith less than 20,000 miles. Last year the brakes were falling apart and they had to be changed when the car only had about 24,000 miles on it. I am at the dealer yet again 6 months later and although I purchased an extended warranty most of it isn't covered. $600 plus to have the hood fixed because it won't open because the original cheap parts have rusted in 4 years. Another $400 plus for new spark plugs and something else because the engine is malfunctioning with only 31,000 miles in the car. Another oil change because all the oil leaked and I couldn't get to it since the cable broke to open the hood. Inferior parts and quality. Run from this vehicle and buy a Honda, Toyota or Subaru. I can not recommend this car to anyone and will never buy another. But at least it's paid for!
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pleased
I am very pleased so far. Build quality and design make it a great deal to own. It came with 16 inches runflat tires so the ride is on the firm side but more compliant than the previous model I had. I must admit that on deteriorated pavements at low speed it is not where it shines, otherwise the drive is rewarding. The options include most packages except HK radio, connectivity and gps, the leather seats are really nice and comfortable. I used to drive in a more spirited way, the green setting made me zen to some point so I get an average of 35 mpg in mix driving so far. After one year and 10000 miles, I got a real average of 33.6 mpg on a mostly city driving which is impressive, the computer indicates around 35. The sports seats with leather option are comfortable but non tilt adjustable which is a major issue, since leather and sport seats are a 2000$ option. Technology is very basic, there is no back up camera etc, I would have expected more on a car with that price tag. Keep on driving, at the wheel you are in another world.
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Why I love/hate my Mini
Love first: Driving it is awesome, quick ,fun ,real sports car feel. Very easy to see out of, no blind spots at all!! Love the sound system, Harmon Kardon. Now HATE !!! gauges are impossible to see ( small letters n numbers) without reading glasses ! yes I'm over 50. poor contrast at night ,dark red on black when the lights are on. Oh but during daylight hrs, its white on black. What the @#$% are you thinking ? Clunk noise in suspension making me nuts , The dealer cant seem to "replicate", I have to take service tech for a ride to show him . Oh yea I hear it . Assured me everything is indeed A OK. Still clunks over bumps. $30,000.00 clunker I guess. I think they want me to go away and just make my payments and be quiet. Gasket coming out of side window !! Really ? BMW product ? 10k miles the windshield shows pitting ! No dipstick to check oil ? The radio is impossible to navigate , to complexed. That could be the over 50 issue, I'm sorry. 1/29/2017 Dealer replaced rear shocks , I told them that I was not going to take the car back until it was fixed at first oil change . Guess What , they found the problem !!!!!!! Update : July 2017 : Traded the Mini in ! Took a little beating , but I think it was for the best . No regrets.
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The little machine that could ...
It is a blast to drive - ALWAYS !! Handling is superb... we have the base trim with 3 cylinder, but the 172 max torque makes a quick spin and cornering capability. 16 inch sport wheels and tires provide just the right amount of road holding ability and stopping power. We have the 195/16 runflat tires as part of the sport package. Navigator is great, clear instruction and great voice command functions. Rear view camera and parking sensors work perfectly for tight parking spots. The seats are very comfortable. We love the dual sunroofs as well, and the Harmon Kardon sound system with unlimited tweeter sound and bass. The exhaust note is sporty. Our out-of-the-door price was $27,350 with $5,500 discount right around 2015 X'mas time. Dealer even gave us rear tinted windows for free. Nice!! Thanks. I and my wife both enjoy driving it every minute. Great commuter and sporty little machine.
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