A driver drove head on into my drivers seat door hard enough that his front bumper completely detached from his car and my door could not open, close, or lock, and my car was not drivable. My car has side airbags. No airbag deployed. I had to go to the hospital immediately after the accident. There is no open recall on my 2020 Mini 2 door hardtop. Shouldn't an airbag have deployed?
MINI Cooper no deployment problems
19 of the 2,237 owner complaints about the MINI Cooper describe airbags did not deploy in a crash, most of them for the 2006 model year.
- owner complaints
- 19
- worst model year
- 2006
- typical mileage
- 43,500
Is there a fix? There are 6 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
- 20211
- 20203
- 20181
- 20173
- 20161
- 20102
- 20091
- 20081
- 20071
- 20063
- 20031
- 20021
Often reported together
What owners say
The contact owned a 2010 Mini Cooper S Hartop. The contact stated that while driving at 25 MPH with the two sunroofs open, the vehicle caught fire. There were flames underneath the rear of the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact opened the hood and threw baking soda on the flames but sustained burns to her hands and face, and medical attention was provided. The neighbors had used a fire extinguisher to put out the fire. The fire department was able to extinguish the fire. The airbags did not deploy. A police report was filed. There was no crash. The vehicle was previously taken to an independent mechanic who replaced the footwell control module. The vehicle was towed to a tow lot. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V337000 (Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. Parts distribution disconnect. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000. The insurance deemed the vehicle a total loss.
Driver left the roadway to the outside of a curve to the left, sideswiping a telephone pole and spinning at least one time back onto and off the roadway again before coming to rest. Impact to the passenger front wheel, and entire passenger side, without impacting front or rear end of the vehicle. C pillars deployed, as well as seatbelt pretensioner. Impact was at 55+ mph. No air bags deployed. Dash now indicates fault or error in air bags.
Run out of lane over raised median hit 2 road signs head on they flew over the car into opposite side of traffic and into a ditch at 45mph. Airbags did not deploy despite broken frame, collapsed suspension, all 4 no flat tires were flat and front end damage.
On October 4, 2022, the Mini Cooper hardtop 4 door was hit in a head-on collision by a driver who was going at least 40 MPH, possibly more. The car that hit the Cooper was a Toyota Prius. All the Prious' airbags deployed. No airbags deployed on the Mini Cooper hardtop 4 door. None. The Mini Cooper, after assessment, was considered to be a total loss.
I was stopped at a red light. A Buick SUV traveling at an admitted 65mph rear ended me and pushed my car into the car in front of me. My seatbelt was on. My head hit the steering wheel resulting in a massive brain bleed. I have ruptured and herniated disks and severe whiplash as well as a fractured skull. My airbag did not deploy although My car was announcing a loud message over the speakers “we have alerted emergency services”. I can’t find a lawyer to take the case because there hasn’t been a recall on this year yet. It was a 2020 Mini Cooper S.
Blindsided Drive side impact car ignited I was cut from my car suffering emence Injuries due to the malfunction of the airbags . No air bags deployed.
Tl* the contact called on behalf of her son who owned a 2016 mini cooper s. The contact stated that while her son was driving approximately 45 MPH, another vehicle ran a stop sign and crashed into the driver's side door sending the vehicle 10-15 feet head-on into a tree. The contact stated that the air bags failed to deploy. The contact stated that her son sustained a dislocated right ankle, the right heel was fractured in 5 places, the l3 and l5 vertebrae were fractured, his left collar bone was fractured requiring extensive medical attention and surgery. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to from the scene to a tow lot. The vehicle was deemed a total loss by the insurance company. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was contacted and informed of the failure and a case was filed. The approximate failure mileage was 43,500. ## VIN passed ## mini 2016 ##
Tl* the contact owns a 2017 mini cooper. The contact called on behalf of his wife and stated that while driving at 20 MPH, the contact crashed into another vehicle. The air bags did not deploy but the contact mentioned that the other vehicles air bags deployed. A police report was filed. The contact sustained back and neck aches that needed medical attention. The vehicle was towed to a salvaged yard waiting to be diagnosed by the insurance company. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer for a diagnostic test or repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.
Tl* the contact owned a 2017 mini cooper. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, when another vehicle failed to stop at a stop sign and impacted the front passenger side of her vehicle. The contact stated she was collided into a fire hydrant. The air bag did not deploy. The contact stated the passenger from the other vehicle sought medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was not drivable. The vehicle was towed to impound lot. A dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed as of yet. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer had not been informed of failure. The failure mileage was unknown. *tr
Related recalls
Air bags: side/window: curtain
- What is wrong
- BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2020 X1 xDrive28i, X1 sDrive28i, X2 xDrive28i and X2 sDrive28i, 2020 MINI Clubman Cooper S All4, 2021 MINI Hardtop 2 Door (Cooper, Cooper S, John Cooper Works and Cooper S E) and MINI Hardtop 4 Door (Cooper and Cooper S) vehicles. Due to a problem with the rollover sensor within the air bag control unit, in the event of a rollover crash, the head air bag, seat belt pretensioners and other safety systems, may not activate.
- Risk
- If the safety systems do not deploy as intended in a roll over crash, it may increase the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the air bag control unit, free of charge. The recall began July 17, 2020. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1‑800‑525‑7417 or MINI customer service at 1‑866‑825‑1525.
Recall number 20V283000 · Recall details
Air bags
- What is wrong
- BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2017 BMW 640i, 640i xDrive, 650i, 650i xDrive, M6, 535i, 535i xDrive, 430i, 430i xDrive, 440i, 440i xDrive, M4, X1 sDrive28i, X1 xDrive28i, i3, i8, Rolls-Royce Dawn, Mini Clubman Cooper, Clubman Cooper S, Cooper All4, Cooper S All4, Mini 4-Door Cooper, Cooper S, Mini 2-Door Cooper, Cooper S, John Cooper Works and 2016 BMW 528i, 528i xDrive, 535i, 535i xDrive, 550i, 550i xDrive, M5 and 535d vehicles. The affected vehicles have seat- mounted side air bag inflator initiators that may fail to ignite during a crash.
- Risk
- If the air bag inflator initiator fails to ignite, the seat-mounted air bag will not deploy, increasing the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the air bag modules, free of charge. The recall began February 6, 2017. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1‑800‑525‑7417.
Recall number 16V914000 · Recall details
Air bags: sensor: occupant classification
- What is wrong
- BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 MINI Cooper Hardtop 2 door vehicles manufactured February 25, 2014, to May 16, 2015, 2014-2015 MINI Cooper S Hardtop 2 door vehicles manufactured March 28, 2014, to May 9, 2015, 2015 MINI Cooper Hardtop 4 door vehicles manufactured October 17, 2014, to June 2, 2015, and 2015 MINI Cooper S Hardtop 4 door vehicles manufactured November 24, 2014, to June 11, 2015. During a service appointment, the affected vehicles received replacement front passenger seat cushions (which contain integral Capacitive Interior Sensing (CIS) functions). The CIS functions may have been incorrectly calibrated, and if so, would cause impaired occupant classification and thus inappropriate air bag activation/deactivation.
- Risk
- Inappropriate air bag activation/deactivation can increase the risk of occupant injury in the event of a vehicle crash.
- Remedy
- MINI will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the front passenger seat cushion, free of charge. The recall began on December 28, 2015. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1‑866‑825‑1525 .
Recall number 15V739000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
- What is wrong
- BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 MINI Cooper S and MINI Cooper two-door vehicles, 2015-2016 MINI John Cooper Works and MINI Cooper S and MINI Cooper four-door vehicles and 2014-2015 BMW i3 vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error, the passenger frontal air bag may not deploy properly in a low speed crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
- Risk
- In the event of a vehicle crash, an air bag that does not deploy properly increases the risk of injury to the front seat passenger.
- Remedy
- MINI and BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall began on November 25, 2015. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1‑866‑825‑1525 and BMW customer service at 1‑800‑525‑7417.
Recall number 15V628000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal
- What is wrong
- BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2005-2006 MINI Cooper and Cooper S vehicles manufactured January 5, 2005, to November 28, 2006, and 2005-2008 MINI Cooper Convertible and Cooper S Convertible vehicles manufactured January 5, 2005, to July 31, 2008. Due to manufacturing, installation, and exposure issues, the front passenger seat occupant detection mat may not function properly and, as a result, the front passenger air bag may not deploy in a crash.
- Risk
- An improperly functioning mat may cause the passenger frontal air bag to be inactive when the seat is occupied, and in the event of a crash, the air bag will not deploy, increasing the passenger's risk of injury.
- Remedy
- MINI will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger seat occupant detection mat, free of charge. The recall began on October 12, 2015. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1‑866‑825‑1525.
Recall number 15V205000 · Recall details
Air bags: frontal
- What is wrong
- BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling a certain model year BMW i3 vehicle manufactured March 31, 2014, and certain 2014 MINI Cooper Hardtop vehicles manufactured February 2, 2014 to May 30, 2014. The affected vehicles may have been manufactured with an air bag inflator that was not assembled correctly. This could cause the air bag to not deploy properly in the event of an accident.
- Risk
- If the air bag deploys improperly in the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the air bags, the seat occupant may be at an increased risk of injury.
- Remedy
- BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger side air bag, free of charge. The recall began in September 2014. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1‑800‑525‑7417.
Recall number 14V422000 · Recall details
Questions about the MINI Cooper no deployment
Which MINI Cooper years have airbags did not deploy in a crash problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2006 (3 complaints), 2017 (3 complaints) and 2020 (3 complaints).
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