Vehicle serviced regularly for maintenance. Pre-incident zero warning via on-board sensors/indicator. Last maintenance performed at 52k. Vehicle had 56k miles at time of incident. Incident occurred in the morning: timing chain snapped upon start up. Due to this failure the engine was destroyed requiring a complete engine replacement. A serious issue requiring a recall.
2007 MINI Cooper S engine complaints
Page 5 of 7: complaints 101 to 130 of 173, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 mini cooper s. The contact stated that the timing chain damaged the engine, rendering it inoperable. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who inspected the engine and advised that the timing chain needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 54,000.
On cold starts, it has become a documented issue that 07-11 "s" models have an issue with a horrible rattle upon starting. This can become a catastrophic failure for many people who have experienced this issue. This is due to a tensioning mechanism which allows too much travel in the timing chain. This can allow the chain to jump or break which can cause a complete engine failure. The fix involves replacement of the timing chain and a redesigned tensioner. Bmw acknowledges this issue, but will not help out mini owners even at a reduced rate. With just a short search on the internet, it is easy to find thousands of owners who have experienced this issue and are asking for help to resolve the issue, with no luck.
I brought my mini in for the electrical water pump recall issue and I explained there was a ticking sound coming from the engine compartment and to please let me know if there were any issues. They called and said it was the timing chain and the cost was substantial. This is a large problem with this vehicle as I now know after seeing numerous complaints. Please have a recall issued for this problem and not have other owners have to pay for a service that is a known problem and very dangerous to occupants and other drivers since this can cause a major accident and the potential to harm more than the vehicle operator.
Timing chain broke at 80000k after replacing tensioner at 60000k from oil leak. Also replaced water pump & thermostat due to car overheating. Now at 82000k have a burnt out valve. Big problems on my mini cooper s '07.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 mini copper s. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency campaign id number: 12v008000 (engine and engine cooling) and took the vehicle to the dealer for repairs the contact was advised that the parts needed for repair were on back order until april 13, 2012. The contact made an appointment for the that date, but continued to drive the vehicle. The vehicle later stalled without warning and towed to a mini specialist who determined that the electric auxiliary pump failed. The failure destroyed the engine. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but denied any assistance with repairs to the vehicle. The failure and the current mileage was 50,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 mini cooper s. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled without warning. The dealer diagnosed the failure and determined that the timing chain was separated from the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but denied any assistance with repairs to the vehicle. The vehicle was repaired. The VIN was unavailable. The failure and the current mileage was 34,481.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 mini cooper s. While driving 15 MPH, the contact noticed smoke coming from under the hood of the vehicle. The contact called the fire department who was able to extinguish the fire. The dealer serviced the vehicle under the federal safety agency campaign id number: 12v008000 (engine and engine cooling) one day prior to the failure. The remedy however, failed to prevent the vehicle fire. The manufacturer had not been notified of the failure. The vehicle was destroyed. A police report was filed. The current and the failure mileages were 59,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 mini cooper s. The contact stated that the vehicle would lose power abnormally and would sporadically stall. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was determined that the spark plugs failed. The failure recurred and the contact discovered that the failure was caused by a failure with the timing chain assembly. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and the current mileages were 65,000.
I was driving on the highway, I slowed down, and I heard clunking rock like noises. My car rolled to a stop. My mechanic has verified that the timing chain is broken, which is highly unusual and should never happen. The mini cooper forums have many complaints about the same problem in 2007 mini cooper s models. I could have been killed. Mini has not issued a recall, but they need to. Immediately.
Cold start issues and eventual "check engine" triggered by defective high pressure fuel pump. Dealer replaced under warranty. Additional problem with excessive heat from engine causing warping of plastic hood scoop (3rd replacement).
Engine made excessive rattling on cold start up. Took to bmw and they told me that the timing chain tensioner, rails, and chain had to be replaced. The dealership charged me $2,031.97. As I drove the car off the lot I noted that the engine did not feel nearly as smooth as before and was noisier. Brought the car in twice for them to fix. On the second trip to dealership, 7/18/11, they told me the water pump needed replaced. They charged me $980.04 though a typical charge of for this job was $1315.51. The car to this day at >70,000 still does not feel smooth and continues to sound loud. Obviously this is due to the "band aid fix" approach for the timing chain. I printed out all the complaints from the federal safety agency database regarding the noisey cold start of 2007 mini cooper s due to timing chain defect, 33 out of 110 (now 34). This is a pattern of defective engineering and not a randon quality problem that deserves a recall. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)
Vehicle produces loud metallic sounds from the left side of the engine on cold start. Mini USA has repeatedly stated this is okay, however now at 25000 miles the noise is constant and loud. Reading data from other mini owners this problem is now extremely common on all mini coopers with the 1.6l produced after 2007. Mini has quietly replaced numerous belt tensioners to fix this problem but refuses to admit this is a large issue over the entire fleet of vehicles. Issue results in a $3-4k labor bill to repair.
Turbo oil supply line from engine to turbo leaking excessive oil requiring replacement. Poor engineering design of compression fitting LED to premature failure. Continued operation of vehicle with this condition would result in catastrophic engine and or engine turbo failure.
While driving in heavy traffic following extended highway speed, stopped at traffic light and engine died with no warning and would not restart. Car had to be towed a considerable distance to original dealership. Learned that the vacuum pump seized / locked up, causing a chain reaction of catastrophic results that totally destroyed engine. Car needs complete new engine at 74,000 miles (out of warranty)and mini USA attitude is that such engine failure is not their responsibility even though this particular mini was impeccably maintained beyond mini servcie requirements, but to no avail as engine blew at a very young 74,000 miles of age and there are repeated instances of same engine failure on internet bmw/mini blogs. Note: this catastrophic damage follows last year's large out of warranty expense of replacing the entire electronic steering lock system as vehicle could not be driven safely and again mini felt no responsibility for equipment failure even though the problem was subsequently acknowledged by the fact that electronic steering lock is no longer installed in new mini coopers!
As a background, on november 25, 2011, I delivered the car, a 2007 mini cooper s to a mini dealership where I always have it serviced. The reason I brought it in for service was due to the overheating light and engine light being triggered while driving. When I picked up the car, the service advisor assured me that it was in complete working order and the repairs made the car as good as new. On that november 25th, visit, I had paid $1,817.40 for a new water pump, thermostat, spark plugs, and water pipe replacement despite the fact they are commonly 100,000-mile services. My car has less than 41,000 miles. 10 days after my car was serviced, the same overheating light and engine light came on again. In response to this repeated issue, on december 11, 2011, I spoke with the service advisor who told me to bring the vehicle back to the mini dealership. During this second visit, I brought the vehicle to the mini dealership in order to attempt to resolve the overheating issue for a second time. During this second visit, the mini dealership replaced the fuel pump and flushed the radiator several times, again, in an attempt to solve the overheating issue. When I picked up the car, the service consultant assured me that it was in complete working order and the repairs made the car as good as new. This was the second time that I have been assured that this car was in proper working order. Now, for the third time in the past 24 days, the overheating light and engine light has came on again while I was driving on december 18, 2011. Frustrated, at the least, I promptly returned the car for further service by your dealership. I was shocked when the service advisor contacted me on december 21, 2011 to inform me that an engine replacement was required. The car has fewer than 41,000 miles and has only ever been serviced by licensed mini dealerships.
I have had previous issues with the panoramic sunroof, I had to get it replaced. Then I had issues with the chain and chain tensioner and had to get that replaced too. Now the steering has failed on me, I can't start the car or even move the steering wheel. My steering is locked now; I had the car running, everything seemed to run fine and the steering worked fine. Once I shut the car off I couldn't start the car back up and my steering locked up. I had to get my car towed home. I wish bmw would do some kind of a recall on this car so we wouldn't have to pay so much money out of our own pockets!
The engine began to make a large rattling noise and the check engine light eventually came on. I stopped the car and checked the oil to see if it was low and discovered that I was not able to get the dip stick back in. At this point I called a tow truck and took it to a local mechanic because there isn't a mini dealer within 100 miles of my location. Turns out it was the timing chain tensioner which is a common problem for the cooper s and mini has released three fixes and claim the latest tsb will fix the problem. My car has less than 40,000 miles and I had to spend $1,700 dollars for a $26 dollar part that was faulty to begin with. Mini knew they had a problem and tried to fix it but failed on two separate occasions there's no telling how long this new fix will hold up. Not to mention my car is still louder than it use to be before the problem and it sounds like a diesel engine at idle. This noise doesn't give me confidence that the latest fix will last and mini needs to seriously take a look at the problem and send out a recall before the timing chains start causing life threatening problems.
After a couple days of hearing some rattling under the hood after cold starts, my engine light came on. I took it to the dealer and the mechanic said that a faulty tensioner had caused the timing chain to stretch out excessively and if it's not fixed, my engine could seize up at any time.. It's a $2,500 repair. This is ridiculous, considering the car is only 4 years old and has just 30,000 miles on it. I did some research and found that many many owners of my same year, make and model are reporting the exact same problem. It is a known issue, yet mini is doing nothing about it. I called mini cooper to ask about it and they only grudgingly took my complaint. They said they will not do a recall unless the federal government demands it, so I'm asking you to do so. I think this is a serious safety issue (who knows when the engine could seize up) and it seems to be so widely reported, I can't believe mini is ignoring it. I would think this is about to be a very serious problem, considering other 2007's are just starting to have these problems. Please investigate and make mini do the right thing.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 mini cooper s. The contact stated that there was an extremely abnormal odor that entered the cabin of the vehicle, similar to eggs. The vehicle was maneuvered off the roadway and upon further inspection, he found a small fire had erupted under the hood. The fire department was not called. The contact called the manufacturer and filed a complaint. The manufacturer suggested taking the vehicle to the dealer for inspection and possible repairs. The failure mileage was 52,000. The VIN was not available.
Oil return line exiting turbocharger leaks engine oil, which drips directly onto hot engine exhaust downpipe, this leads to smoke from the engine bay and will eventually cause a fire if not remedied promptly. Bmw should quickly recall and repair this design defect before a lot of private property goes up in flames.
As I approached the street on where I live, the car started to severely shake and jerk , as if power was not going to the engine. I was able to park it on my driveway, but the next morning, the car had to be towed to the dealer because it would not start. When the car arrived at the dealer after being towed in, the car could not be jump-started, even after several attempts. Two weeks prior, I had brought my car in for service because the check engine light came on. They replaced the timing chain and found several misfire faults, which were supposedly corrected. The cylinder head was removed and disassembled and found to have carbon build up. The intake valves and exhaust valves were cleaned. Since the incident, the car is still at the dealer. An extended road test is scheduled to be performed within these next few days. No word on what has caused the car's engine to die.
My wife and I both noticed a burning smell inside our 2007 mini cooper s last week while traveling on an expressway in either tennessee or north carolina on vacation. I opened my window for 3-4 minutes, suspecting the smell might be getting into the car from a pickup truck running approximately 40-50 yards ahead of us. There was no sign of smoke or fire around the pick-up truck. This smell happened very briefly twice on the same day; I opened my window for a few minutes in both cases, and the burning smell did not return after that. We drove 2200 miles in 9 days and did not have any problems with the car.
I almost had a timing chain/tensioner failure. Took my '07 mcs into the mini dealer for its 4 year service. They found that the 'timing chain tensioner is weak and needs to be replaced' or 'tensioner worn and causing excessive chain slack and chain noise'. I bought my mini new, it now has 35464 miles and this should fall into the category as 'unusual'. This should not be a part that wears out or suffers failure with so few miles. As I checked out this failure on the web I quickly found out that this is not unusual but is happening quite frequently. I missed this being covered under the warranty by 2 weeks. My lose? Maybe; maybe not, at least I did not destroy the engine. According to the service department paperwork they replaced the chain tensioner with an updated 551 tensioner, p/n: 11 31 7 607 551, @ $26.21 ($146 for installation). It appears that mini/bmw knows about the problem and redesigned the part to prevent problems in the future, hopefully. If this is true why don't they recall the cars and just take care of it. Had I had the bad luck of destroying the engine my opinion on all their products would have drastically changed. I also own a '11 bmw 335xi.
The heater core is placed next to the accelerator pedal in the foot well. The car design has the heater core on all the time. The only insulation between the heater core and the foot on the accelerator pedal is a plastic cover which becomes too hot to touch.
My mini cooper spontaneous caught on fire. Thursday 8/25/11 before all this happen, I took the car in for service. I stated to the service advisor([xxx]) the car was not driving right and I'm sure some services needs to be looked at (oil change etc....). My service tech ([xxx] vista mini coconut creek) puts the key into the card reader nope nothing showed up you good to go I exit with some doubt on my face never thinking twice, could be my mind playing car games. I'm really admit about funny noises, and since the dealer isn't far from my job. I'd just stop on by for a check up. I do have extended warranty service. Saturday 8/27/11 (10:30p) car sitting from a short drive to have dinner. Came home (10pm) parked the and didn't hear or notice anything. I usually take a quick walk around the car. Sunday 8/28/11 (4:00p) police came knocking " are you the owner of a black mini cooper " your car was on fire and the plantation fire dept are in the process of putting out the fire/flames. As I walk out the shock of my car burning. After speaking with the firemen. He couldn't pin point where the fire started and the cause unknown but he said when they started to hose it down it looked as if the fire was coming from the driver side engine compartment another fire dept guy said from the looks of this incident, what's seems to cause this was electrical malfunction. Flames were shooting 8'ft in the air. The car is damaged and not repairable,there's no engine there's nothing left besides the some ashe, melted metal, there's no windshield, the headliner is completely gone, side glass are blown out. All I can think about is my baby daughter in the car while I was driving. Bmw you have caused some damage, leaving me second guess you integrity of your craftsmanship/flagship auto. Someone please contact me about this situation. Updated09/07/11 *bf [xxx] *tr updated 2/23/12
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 mini cooper s convertible. The contact stated that after a rain storm, the vehicle would not start. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer and the diagnostic test indicated that the engine hydro seized. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 42,000. The VIN was unknown.
2007 mini cooper s: cold start rattle had been an on-again, off-again problem, but since I'd had the timing chain tensioner changed while the car was still under warranty, I didn't make the connection. At 81,000 miles, I was driving when the red oil light came on. This was the first and only indication of a problem. I stopped at the next gas station, got some synthetic oil, and put in 2 quarts. I continued on my way, but the oil light had not gone off. Within about 1-2 miles, as I was entering a highway, the car began making a very loud rattling noise and then stalled. I was able to get to the shoulder. I called mini roadside assistance, but after about 15 mins. On the phone, they finally figured out that they were not authorized to tow off this interstate. I got an authorized towing co. To come, and I let them tow it to their local garage. The next day they told me that the engine had ceased and would need to be replaced. The following day I had the car towed to prestige mini to determine if this was, in fact, what had happened. They diagnosed the same thing, said there was no way to know the cause, and quoted me $6400 to replace the engine (which they ultimately brought down to $5600). At 81k miles, there is no reason this engine should have ceased. Plus, I had no warning that there was something wrong with the car--no "check engine" light, no "check oil" light until it was too late. Based on what I've read, now about the 2007 mini, I am certain this was defect related. How do I prove that? I'm at the mercy of the dealership.
Have had problems with my mini since it was new. In nov. Of 2010 the chain tensioner was finally changed after many complaints of the noise. On mon.6-6-11 my check engine light came on. Called the dealer & set up an appointment for that sat 6-11. On wed. 6-8 my car died with no warning. No computer lights came on. Had to tow it to the mini dealer on sat.6-11. They told me it was the vacuum pump causing major catastrophic engine failure. My engine only had a quart of oil and that was why it went out. I had documentation of my oil change. It still had 3,000m to go before it needed to be changed. Was also checked 2 wks before this incident and it was fine. I am now needing a new engine at a cost of 6,087. The regional team at mini customer service decided there would be no assistance because I let it run out of oil, which is not true. They said there was no appeal process, their decision was final. My car has 64k miles on it. The chain tensioners and vacuum pumps are known failures but mini refuses to acknowledge that there is a problem. Easier to blame the consumer. A vehicle that costs nearly 30k dollars should not have an engine failure at 64k miles. There are countless complaints out there. All you need to do is check the web. Mini should step up and do the right thing. This could have caused a major crash with fatalities if I had been traveling on the interstate highway which I do every day.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 mini cooper s. The contact stated that the vehicle would not start in cold weather until after three to four attempts. There were also noticed rattling noises coming from the engine while driving at various speeds. On another occasion, the vehicle stalled while driving 70 MPH without any warning. The vehicle was then inspected by a dealer and they advised her that she needed to replace the vacuum pump, timing chains and the high pressure pump. Each part was replaced within one year of the failure. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 50,000. The VIN was unavailable.
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