2006 MINI Cooper S: complete transmission failure

Filed Nov 25, 2018 · Transmission · 66,000 miles · TN

2006 mini cooper s with 66000 miles had a transmission failure that resulted in unsafe driving condition due to loss of forward propulsion while driving on highway.

Filed Jun 26, 2015 · 55,000 miles · CA

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.

Filed Jun 13, 2014 · Airbags, Transmission · 38,000 miles · NY

38,000 miles: air bag warning light for passenger side seat stays illuminated. Air bag warning light remains on after vehicle has started and does not turn off. 54,900 miles: aisin automatic transmission - automatic transmission failed thereby making the car inoperable. The car showed signs of gear change slipping between 2nd and 3rd gears. Transmission diagnosis, catastrophic failure of manual valve body and internal gears. Required a complete transmission rebuild.

Filed May 27, 2014 · Transmission · 94,500 miles · NC

I am current owner of a 2006 mini cooper s. I purchased the car new around april 2006. Over last 2 months, I have started to see a problem with power train. The car jerks horribly while trying to accelerate when it tries to change to higher gears. This happens either in the "drive" mode where the car automatically changes the gears or while driving in "m/s" mode where the driver gets the option to change the gear. Over last 1-2 weeks, the vehicle jerks when I switch from park to reverse. I took the car to mini cooper dealership and their diagnosis was to replace the transmission at a cost of $8500. My car has around 96,500 miles and has been maintained well. When I talked to the dealership, they indicated that they have seen about 2 to 3 cars having problem (just within that dealership) in recent times (the person I talked to was relatively new). It is unreasonable for transmission to require a replacement at such low mileage. In addition, it looks like this seems like a systemic issue given just one dealer has seen a few of these and a quick search indicates a number of other owners of mini cooper s encountering this issue over last 12 to 18 months (translates to transmission systematically breaking after about 7 to 8 years of operation). The problem has the potential to result in collisions since the car will not accelerate as expected.

Filed Jan 16, 2014 · Transmission · 70,000 miles · NM

Transmission starting bucking and causing uncontrolled acceleration the only "fix" is to replace the transmission at a $9,000 cost.

Filed May 28, 2013 · Transmission · FL

In september 2012 the automatic transmission began slipping. I had it checked out and was told that the transmission was fine and that mini says it never needs to be serviced or have the fluid changed. Over the next several months it got worse and I was finally told that the transmission needs to be replaced. Fortunately I never had an accident or any other serious consequence as a result of the failing transmission. This car has been traded in because the transmission would cost $10,000.00 to replace.

Filed Nov 15, 2012 · Engine, Transmission · 93,000 miles · CA

Driving on the freeway when I felt the car jerk forward and then it felt as if the automatic transmission was slipping in and out of gears. Managed to pull off the freeway and drive to the local mini dealership, which was luckily about a mile down the road. Was told by dealership the problem was transmission failure and was quoted $9,000 repair cost. When I asked the mechanic why the transmission had failed this early, told me they had no idea. However, when I asked another employee how many other cars had they seen with transmission problems, he reluctantly admitted "quite a few".

Filed Aug 25, 2012 · Transmission · 61,482 miles · WA

My mini cooper s 2006 has been randomly banging into gear and was diagnosed by northwest mini as needing a transmission replacement for $8361.00 (before tax). Problem causes car to loose acceleration and power.

Filed Apr 27, 2012 · Steering, Transmission · 108,000 miles · MA

Purchased 2006 mini cooper s brand new at a mini dealer in boston. The vehicle has 108k highway miles. I had serviced the vehicle at the dealer until warranty ran out and transitioned to a national car care chain. I began to notice the vehicle slipping between second and third gear when traveling in stop and go traffic. I brought the car to my regular mechanic and they indicated that I should bring it to a transmission shop. Delivered the car to the shop and have been informed that my CVT transmission had failed and would need to be re-manufactured. I was also informed that my power steering pump is leaking and failing. The power steering fan had seized and was likely the cause of the power steering failure. The mini dealership quoted me over 10k for the transmission replacement only did not inquire about power steering and there were no programs for customers in this situation. This cost is more than the car is worth. The transmission shop will do the repairs for 6k.