Structure Problems of Mini Cooper S

Rear hatch has no inside release, although shown in owner's manual.

See all problems of the 2002 Mini Cooper S 🔎.

Strut towers deformed. This is a result of standard equipment run flat tires hitting pot holes. The fix is a reinforcing plate attached to the top of the strut tower. Either the run flats should not have been available or the strut towers should have been of sufficient strength.

See all problems of the 2005 Mini Cooper S 🔎.

Driving on highway about 60 mph. Extremely loud screeching burst of sound occurred. Sound was similar to smoke detector test sound, lasting about a second, but horribly loud, especially in a small enclosed area with the windows up. Nearly had an accident. Our ears hurt badly (I still feel some soreness a day later, as I now write. Similar occurrences for Mini cooper noted in web forums, referencing a possible stereo amplifier problem. Our radio was not on. Fortunately the dealer was open (on Sunday) and we have an appointment scheduled today. From what I've researched on the internet, we are not the only ones victimized by this issue. We are actually fearful and uncomfortable driving the car, worrying that at any time this could occur again. This is an unnecessary hardship and distraction that keeps us from paying full attention to safely driving the car. Until the dealer can specifically explain what the problem is and perform whatever work is need to guarantee it won't happen again, I do not feel safe driving this one-year-old car, being concerned that I'll have an accident if it happens again. This is without question a serious safety issue. If I still feel soreness in my left ear later today, I plan to contact my doctor.

See all problems of the 2006 Mini Cooper S 🔎.

(1) I recently traded my 2003 Mini cooper in for a 2005 Mini Cooper S at a private dealership. (2) upon inspecting the 2005 Cooper S, I noticed that the strut towers were deformed, but since this was not a Mini dealership, nothing could be done by them. I bought the car thinking this could be fixed under warranty. After calling the closest Mini dealership which is 200+ miles away, I was informed that this was considered abuse to the car and it would not be covered under warranty. The previous owner must have hit a pothole. The problem I have with this situation is there is a serious design flaw in the Mini cooper's shock towers. This is the first time I have seen this happen to a car. I have owned many cars in my lifetime, and never have seen this happen. I am not the only owner to experience this and it is a pretty common occurrence in Mini coopers. I'm concerned because this situation causes the car to wander on the road. After doing research, I'm getting feedback from other owners. Some say their dealership is fixing the deformation, others, like myself are denied. I'm a little frightened at what could happen to the car over time from this. Will the sheet metal get even weaker as time goes on? I believe BMW should address this issue. (3) I have not fixed this problem on my car yet, but the fix is to either pay money to have the shock towers cut out and have new ones welded in, or pound down the old ones until they are flat, then buy reinforcement plates from a vendor to keep the already stressed metal from bending again.