As many other mini owners have reported, my SRS light is on and the passenger side airbag is continuously off (light stays on). I have no idea if I am driving with or without airbags. *js $1,500 to fix at dealer. Mini did a recall on models up to 2005.
2006 MINI Cooper airbags complaints
Page 3 of 5: complaints 41 to 70 of 111, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Passenger airbag light on my 2006 mini cooper, above rearview mirror stays illuminated constantly, whether the passenger seat is occupied or not. After calling the nearby mini cooper dealer, and talking to the service manager he said yes we have a lot of problems with them. However there is no recall out for 2006 mini airbag problems but there has been for other model years. Said the sensor and the whole seat may need to be replaced, bring it in and it will run you about $1200 to $1600. I asked does it mean my airbag will not function if I have an accident. The service manager laughed in a cavalier manner "well you always have your seat belt." after months waiting for an official recall, called the national mini customer relations who acted very non chalant and got no where. Went to a local european car repair specialist who used a computer scanner that said the passenger seat sensor is defective. He then used a brand new scanner and this time it said the driver side is defective. Said go on the internet I'm not the only one with the mini airbag problems. Was shocked to see thousands, many who did spend the large amount of money and the problems keeps recurring. Mini needs to extend the airbag warranty to 150,000 miles at least for 12 years. Someone is going to suffer severe injury or death in a small car that definitely needs all the airbag protection available. $1600 is lot of money for a dealer fix that does not seem to work.
My occupancy sensor 2 mat is bad on the passenger's side. My mechanic told me that he thought there was a recall on this part, otherwise it will be about $1400 to replace. This is a major safety issue because the sensor is unable to read whether or not a passenger is in the seat.
Occupancy sensor mat bad and passenger air bag disabled light on. A known issue and bmw autos and suvs have been recalled for this issue. I believe the mini passenger seat occupancy sensor mat is the same design as the bmw 3 series and should also be recalled. From what I understand, this disables the passenger airbag putting a passenger in danger. The bmw recall campaign is no. 13v‑564.
Passenger seat occupancy sensor stop working- causing air bag in passenger seat to shut off. No way to override and seat sensor cost over $1300 to replace. I understand this very common with coopers in this date range. Very similar seat sensors for the bmw model has been recalled but not the version for the mini that is failing. Seems like design flaw that should be recalled.
Airbag sensor failure in passenger seat. Passenger airbag light is on.
Air bag light came on after small pass used the seat and did not go off. After that the light would go off for a while and then come back on. I had it looked by my mechanic and was told it was the seat mat. He cleared the light and it lasted for a couple of weeks. The cost of the part to him was 1400.00 plus labor. I received a safety recall for the same problem for my 2006 bmw. I received another letter from bmw and miss read it thinking it was for the mini cooper. I made an appointment with the mini cooper dealer in my area (raleigh nc) and was told when I showed up that the part was not under recall. I did not have the seat replaced at my cost since it is clearly a safety issue caused by a factory defect. I do not understand how it can be a covered defect in one bmw product and not in another when it is the same problem.
Passenger seat occupancy sensor SRS light failed while one of my friend was trying to be seated in my car.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 mini cooper. The contact stated that the air bag sensor illuminated intermittently over an extended period of time. An authorized dealer stated that the failure was caused by the floor sensor mat. The vehicle was scheduled for diagnostic testing and to be repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 84,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 mini cooper. The contact stated that the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who performed a diagnostic which located a failure code at the front passenger seat sensor. The passenger front seat needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 65,000 and the current mileage was 89,200.
Airbag warning light on dash is illuminated after moving passenger seat back and forth. Unable to clear the light.
Passenger seat airbag sensor has triggered the red airbag light on the dash board instrument cluster. Currently I am driving a vehicle without operating airbags as it is $1,000 for the part. It was already replaced twice in the past under warranty. I read that bmw just issued a recall for the passenger seat airbag sensor for their cars but not the mini which is owned by bmw. Hopefully I am not going to fast when the power steering motor burns out...
My 2006 mini cooper air bag lights (passenger seat light as well as dash board air bag system lights) are intermittently coming on and staying on when I start my mini. The dashboard light apparently comes on when a fault is detected in the airbag system, and as a result the system is deactivated. This is very serious since I'm now driving in a mini cooper with no airbag protection. The seat light indicates the passenger air bag is turned off due to someone of light weight sitting in the passenger seat. This light is now coming on with any average adult or no one at all sitting in that seat. I decided to check the internet for this issue and was shocked to see how many people had the same issue. Even more shocking was repair cost for this issue. Dealers are charging customers $1000 to $2000 to replace the passenger seat sensor which appears to be the most common culprit. Instead of replacing the sensor itself, the entire seat needs to be replaced. Even saw some customers had the same issue reoccur 1 to 2 years after this fix. Spoke to my local bmw/mini dealership who acknowledged that bmw had the same issue which is now under recall, but mini does not have a recall. This issue needs to be recalled and fixed ... Someone is going to get killed because of it! I love mini but am highly disappointed with how this issue is being handled. My daughter wants to buy a mini ... I will strongly recommend she does not.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 mini cooper. The contact stated that the air bag light intermittently illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was 75,000.
The seat sensor is faulty. It reads that someone under 30lbs is in it (disabling the airbag) the dash light verifies it is off. This problem is intermittent to this day. So if a crash occurs the sensor won't read correctly if anyone is in the seat or not, the airbag may not deploy and if it does will do so possibly with too much force.
The red air bag warning light came on. It won't go out. The mini dealer in birmingham said it's not covered under warranty. Mini USA said the same thing. However, bmw recalled their 2006 models for the same problem. Several other mini owners are reporting the same problem. The owners' manual states that the air bags may not deploy properly in the event of a crash if the warning light is on. This is a safety issue, and mini USA needs to address it.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 mini cooper. The contact stated that the front passenger's seat was occupied when the air bag deactivated warning message displayed. The contact stated that the dealer replaced the seat mat sensor but the repair did not remedy the issue. The contact took the vehicle back to the dealer for a diagnostic test, which confirmed that there was a defect in the seat mat sensor. The dealer did not replace the seat mat sensor. The failure mileage was 45,000.
The bmw mini cooper 2006 has the same safety problem as described in the federal safety agency action number : ea08001, the federal safety agency recall campaign number : 08v384000 but was not included in the vehicle recall list. There are many many owners having to pay $1000 - $2000 for repairs concerning defects to the front passenger seat air bag occupant detection mat. The broken circuit can lead to the deactivation of the passenger air bag and the illumination of both the air bag warning light and the passenger air light. The repair of the detection mat forces the replacement of the passenger seat. My vehicle is now one of the increasingly large number of mini coopers with the failed safety system. Many states have yearly safety inspections and the airbag safety situation needs to be corrected before the inspection passes. The mini cooper "r" series vehicles need to be added into the ea08-001 the federal safety agency recall 08v384000.
The air bag light is continuously lit on my 2006 mini cooper. Initially the light was intermittently on; however now it remains permanently light. The dealer has indicated that the passenger oc3 mat is faulty and will be require a $1,000+ fix. Internet searches have found that this is a common problem with this vehicle and the same issue has occurred multiple times on some vehicles, even after being repaired with new parts. Additionally, bmw, the parent company of mini, had a similar problem with their bmw vehicles and a recall was issued. Mini often uses bmw parts in their vehicles so it is possible and quite likely that similar parts were used. This is a genuine safety issue and one that is wide spread with this particular vehicle.
The airbag warning light came on. The sensor under the passenger seat was broken. This is a very well known problem with mini's beginning with the 2002 model, but especially with the 2006. Bmw which owns mini had the same problem with the same year car and issued a recall, but mini never did. The dealer wants $1500 to fix the problem, but others with the same car have had the part break as many as three times. The sensor is to detect that there is a passenger and the weight of the passenger so that the force of the airbag can be regulated if a child or child car seat is in the passenger seat. It is unscionable that mini would jeopardize safety after they have known of this problem for years. Customer relations at mini USA was unwilling to resolve this issue.
In addition to my previous post, more information on this situation, this note sent to miniusa.com, my 2006 mini cooper has the airbag light illuminated above the rear view mirror and is generating an error 71, passenger occupancy sensor fault. It is my understanding this is due to a faulty sensor mat under the seat. From my research I see that this has been covered under an extended warranty for the oc3 seat mat sensor which is used in bmw as well as mini models. I am requesting that this sensor be replaced in my mini cooper as I fear the passenger airbag will not deploy in an accident due to the documented faulty sensor. The recall is stated at http://www.bmwusa.com/standard/content/contactus/voluntaryrecall.aspx,
The airbag warning light is on and dealer has said the sensor in the passenger seat is bad and the pad and sensor must be replaced at a cost of $1400. I cannot believe that a car this popular has this kind of safety issue. I would expect mini to at the very least to cover the cost of the pad or sensor. Unbelievable.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 mini cooper. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the passenger's side air bag light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnosis and the contact was informed that the front passenger's side seat cover would need to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The failure and current mileage was 43,160.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 mini cooper. The contact stated that the front passenger side air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the front passenger seat air bag sensor needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure and current mileage was 65,000.
I had to go ahead and have the air bag sensors in the passenger seat replaced last week, because I will have a passenger on a trip to utah soon. When I complained to one of the service people, that the passenger seat was rarely used, he started bloviating as to how heat can break down the materials in the sensors.
Recently purchased a 2006 mini cooper for my teen child. We now discovered that the passenger airbag notification should not be on. We took it to a bmw dealer to have this looked, and we were told that it's due to a faulty passenger occupancy sensor in the passenger seat bottom requiring a replacement at a cost of $1700. After further investigation, I see that this is a common problem. This could be safety concern, and I believe that bmw should be responsible to have this problem corrected. I am not sure if the airbag will deploy if a passenger is seated. This is a situation that needs to be remedied through a recall. Mini should extended their airbag system warranty.
From my research, the 2006 mini has a faulty passenger occupancy sensor in the passenger seat bottom requiring a replacement at a cost of over $1000. Since 2006 was the first year for this requirement, I believe they did not properly test the device before releasing them into production as I have researched and read on many failures of this device. I cannot determine conclusively if the airbag will or will not deploy in this situation and mini will be liable in a situation if it does not deploy the airbag properly with a passenger seated. This is a situation that needs to be remedied through a recall. Mini extended their airbag system warranty on the 2002 - 2005 models to 10 years or 150,000 miles and should do the same for the 2006+ models.
Air bag light went on for no reason, it is due to a faulty sensor that mini is aware of the problem but refuses to correct. I don't have 1700 dollars to replace passenger seat - so all passengers will be at risk when I drive, as the air bag won't deploy or will deploy at full force.
My car is a 07/2006 mini cooper with only 22,900 miles as of 06/2013. When someone is seated in the passenger seat, the passenger airbag warning light and the passenger airbag disabled light are intermittently illuminated. The mini dealership said that the fault codes indicate an issue with the passenger seat occupancy sensor--which should be replaced. The cost cited for that operation was $900. The dealership speculated that, despite the indicator lights, the passenger airbag should still deploy if the passenger was wearing his seat belt. However, when bmw, manufacturer of mini, announced a recall in north america of front passenger air bag seat sensor mats involving approximately 200,000 model year 2004-06 bmws, affected owners were warned that they should contact their dealer "if the air bag warning lamp and the passenger air bag 'on-off' lamp are illuminated simultaneously." in that situation, bmw recommended that customers not use the front passenger seat and have the vehicle serviced immediately, warning that "a possible defect may keep the front passenger airbag from opening in a crash." thus, it seems evident that faulty seat occupancy sensors should be regarded as a significant safety issue. Yet, despite the fact that there are numerous, well documented problems with the sensors in the mini, bmw has neither extended the warranty to financially compensate owners for an obvious manufacturer defect, nor issued a recall. The federal safety agency should compel bmw to ensure the safety of mini passengers.
From my research, the 2006 mini has a faulty passenger occupancy sensor in the passenger seat bottom requiring a replacement at a cost of over $1000. Since 2006 was the first year for this requirement, I believe they did not properly test the device before releasing them into production as I have researched and read on many failures of this device. I cannot determine conclusively if the airbag will or will not deploy in this situation and mini will be liable in a situation if it does not deploy the airbag properly with a passenger seated. This is a situation that needs to be remedied through a recall. Mini extended their airbag system warranty on the 2002 - 2005 models to 10 years or 150,000 miles and should do the same for the 2006+ models.
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