Table 1 shows one common seat belt related problems of the 2010 Mini Cooper.
| Problem Category | Number of Problems |
|---|---|
| Seat Belt problems |
Passenger airbag sensor is off even when passenger is in the seat and airbag should be on.
Passenger seat occupancy sensor failure. This is a very common fault in the r56 series Mini Cooper. The manufacture has not initiated a recall. There are vendors selling "bypass" kits which will cause unsafe air bag deployment in an infant is in the seat.
Passenger seat occupancy sensor has failed, rendering the airbag system permanently turned off until it is replaced. This is an issue that is so common that people are purchasing bypass units off of ebay to trick the computer into thinking the passenger is there. A quick google search will confirm this. It cannot be condoned that a company as large as BMW gets a free pass on refusing to fix this while companies on ebay profit on a device that is clearly not safe to use.
Lights come on & off for airbags and or seat belts - randomly - unknown as to why - or if they are working - sometimes stay on - for 2 weeks - then go off and not on for quite awhile (weeks) brought up as to -why? with no resolution except may need repair? does not seem to make sense - no accidents or even close to an accident ever occurring- local driving - car maintained.
The passenger seat occupancy detector is broken. This is apparently a common problem with bmws and Mini Coopers. Some models have been recalled. But many have not, including mine. The symptom is that seat belt and airbag warnings light up.
Airbag warning light and seat bell light remains on entire time. There have been recalls on 2009 and earlier models but not 2010�s, however it's the same issue. I recently purchased the car however the original owner had the replaced in 2015 but now the lights are back on.