2006 Mini Cooper S

UPON STARTING MY CAR, AFTER BEING IN A STORE, THE PASSENGER AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON WHILE A PASSENGER WAS IN THE SEAT. THE INDICATOR STAYED ON AFTER TURNING THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON. I RESEARCHED TO SEE IF THERE WERE ANY RECALLS FOR A FAULTY PASSENGER AIRBAG COVERING MY YEAR, MAKE AND MODEL, AND FOUND NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 15V205000. I CONTACTED MY LOCAL MINI DEALER AND WAS TOLD THAT THERE WAS NO INFORMATION PERTAINING TO MY CAR AND THAT I NEEDED TO CONTACT MINI USA DIRECTLY. I DID SO AND WAS TOLD THAT THEY ALSO COULD NOT FIND ANY INFORMATION PERTAINING TO MY CAR AND THAT THEY NEEDED TO OPEN AN INVESTIGATION IN ORDER TO DETERMINE THE STATUS OF MY VEHICLE. I WAS TOLD THAT BECAUSE MY CAR WAS PURCHASED THROUGH AN OVERSEAS MILITARY PROGRAM THE SYSTEMS WERE NOT THE SAME AND THAT A SUPERVISOR WOULD HAVE TO TRY AND FIND THE INFORMATION AND MANUALLY ADD IT TO THE MINI USA SYSTEM. I WAS ALSO ASKED, REPEATEDLY, IF MY CAR WAS A CANADIAN SPEC VEHICLE. IT WAS NOT ORDERED AS SUCH. AFTER SEVERAL WEEKS OF WAITING, I CALLED MINI USA TO INQUIRE ABOUT THE STATUS OF THE INVESTIGATION. I WAS TOLD THAT I HAD ALREADY BEEN NOTIFIED THAT MY CAR WAS NOT INCLUDED ON THE RECALL FOR THE AIRBAG SENSOR ISSUE. WHEN I INQUIRED AS TO WHY MY VEHICLE WAS NOT COVERED FOR THE EXACT PROBLEM FOR WHICH THE RECALL WAS ISSUED, I WAS TOLD THAT MY CASE WAS NOW CLOSED AND IF I HAD ANY OTHER QUESTIONS I NEEDED TO CONTACT MINI CUSTOMER SERVICE.

I OWN A 2006 MINI COOPER S, WHICH I PURCHASED NEW IN OCTOBER 2006. ABOUT A YEAR AGO, I NOTICED THAT AFTER SLOWING BY STEPPING OFF / RELEASING THE GAS PEDAL, THE CAR WOULD JERK FORWARD - AT THE TIME, I DID NOT THINK IT WAS SERIOUS BECAUSE IT HAPPENED A FEW TIME AND IT WAS NOT ENOUGH TO CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. AFTER LAST MINI SERVICE IN MARCH 2015 - LATELY, I NOTICED THAT IN STOP & GO TRAFFIC, SOMETIMES AFTER BRAKING OR SLOWING, THE CAR HAS A HARD TIME GETTING UP TO SPEED - SOMETIMES GRADUALLY STEPPING ON GAS PEDAL AS USUAL TO START OFF AGAIN, I HEAR THE ENGINE REV UP PRETTY LOUD SO I LET UP ON THE GAS PEDAL, AND THEN TRY TO STEP ON GRADUALLY AGAIN - SOMETIMES, IT WOULD TAKE A WHILE FOR THE CAR TO GET UP TO SPEED. ALSO, LATELY, AFTER I BRAKE AND SWITCH FROM DRIVE TO REVERSE TO BACK INTO THE DRIVEWAY, THE CAR JERKS BACK WHEN I AM NOT STEPPING ON THE GAS PEDAL AT ALL. I TOLD THE MINI DEALER ABOUT THIS LAST WEEK WHEN THE CAR WAS TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP BECAUSE IT WOULD NOT START - THE DEALER FOUND THAT THE CAR DID NOT START DUE TO FAULTY CIRCUITRY IN A FUSE BOX, WHICH WAS REPLACED WITH A NEW FUSE BOX. THE DEALER SAID THAT WHAT I DESCRIBED SOUNDED LIKE A TRANSMISSION PROBLEM, AND AFTER THE NEW FUSE BOX WAS PUT IN, THE DEALER TOOK THE CAR ON A TEST DRIVE TO SEE IF ANYTHING ELSE WAS WRONG. THE DEALERS DIAGNOSIS WAS TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION AT A COST OF $9,000. MY CAR HAS AROUND 55,000 MILES AND HAS BEEN MAINTAINED WELL. IT IS UNREASONABLE FOR THE TRANSMISSION TO REQUIRE REPLACEMENT AT SUCH LOW MILEAGE AND IN SUCH A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME - THE CAR WAS BARELY USED IN THE FIRST YEAR - IT WAS DRIVEN MOSTLY WITHIN THE LAST 7-8 YEARS. AS A RESULT OF THIS INCIDENT, I HAVE BEEN MADE AWARE THAT MANY MINI COOPER OWNERS HAVE ENCOUNTERED THIS TRANSMISSION ISSUE, WHICH HAS THE POTENTIAL TO RESULT IN COLLISIONS SINCE THE CAR WILL NOT ACCELERATE AS EXPECTED.

I WAS DRIVING ON THE ROAD MY I TURNED THE AC ON AND ABOUT 20MIN OF ME RIDING IN THE VEHICLE ME AND MY INFANT SON MY MY VEHICLE STARTED SMOKING UNDER THE HOOD HEAVY WHITE SMOKE UNDER THE HOOD OF THE 2006 MINI COOPER S. MY CAR BEGAN TO LOOSE POWER WHILE ENGINE BAY STILL HEAVILY SMOKING I MANAGED TO GET CAR IN A NEARBY DEALERSHIP GET MY SON AND I OUT OF THE CAR I PUT WATER ON THE SIDE OF THE ENGINE THAT WAS BURNING TO KEEP THE REST OF THE CAR FROM BURNING UP.THE REST OF THE CAR I HAD TO CALL MY INSURANCE COMPANY THE CAR WONT DO ANYTHING AT ALL THE ELECTRIC SYSTEM OR THE WIRES BURNT UNDER THE HOOD.

WHILE DRIVING THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT CAME ON AND PASSENGER AIR BAG LIGHT TURNED OFF. AT THE SAME TIME THE SEAT BELT LIGHT CAME ON. HAD BOTH CHECKED AND WHEN CAR WAS RETURNED BOTH LIGHTS WERE OUT. PASSENGER SEAT BOTTOM WAS REPLACED. I WAS TOLD THAT THIS IS COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE SEAT BOTTOM. NO PROBLEM NOTED FOR THE SEAT BELT LIGHT. 1/2 MILE FROM DEALER BOTH WARNING LIGHTS AGAIN TURNED ON AND THE PASSENGER AIR BAG LIGHT TURNED OFF. AT THIS POINT I AM NOT SURE IF THE CAR IS SAFE TO DRIVE OR NOT.

MORE OF A COMMENT RATHER THAN A COMPLAINT. YOU HAVE OMITTED MINI COOPER FROM YOUR DROP DOWN MENU SELECTION OF VEHICLE MAKES. THESE VEHICLES ARE MANUFACTURED BY BMW, BUT I COULD NOT FIND MINI COOPER LISTED UNDER BMW AND ITS NOT LISTED BY ITSELF AS A SEPARATE VEHICLE MAKE. THANKS FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION AND ATTENTION TO MY COMMENT. *JB