2005 Mini Cooper Body problems

Driving at approximately 10-15 miles an hour entering a parking lot when I noticed flames coming out of the hood scoop of my 2005 Mini Cooper S. After brief inspection from my mechanic, it is believed to have been caused by the wiring harness for ABS or possibly the power steering unit since the fire originated from the rear/right hand side of the engine and those two components. I have a claim opened with USAA but during simple research, I have found tens, if not close to a hundred issues with similar...

I have had a new problem every week with this car. I took it to the car wash just to find out that the convertible top leaks on both sides, at the 1st bend. The water was dripping at a fast pace. I had the top checked out for any problems prior to purchasing at which I was told nothing appeared to be needed. The weather stripping and top had no cracks are sign of wear. Just another headache within a month of purchase.

While turning into a shopping plaza parking lot the steering wheel locked up and I was not able to control or complete the turn. Thank god I was driving at a slow speed and pedistrians were not near by. I experienced the same thing when I was leaving to return home and two more times after that. Something needs to be done ,innocent lives are at risk. *Tr

Traveling at approximately 40mph. Finger was cut 2mm deep by defective peeling/flaking chrome accent on manual transmission shift knob. As a result, finger was bleeding and experienced a shock from the affected nerve throughout the body while vehicle was in motion. Attention to the road was lost for a moment causing me to nearly get into an accident. *Tr

Right inside door release failed so that passenger could not open door from inside. Passenger would be trapped inside vehicle in an emergency. Mini dealer repaired by replacing rotary latch lock at cost of $447. *Tr

Hinge on rear hatch began bending until door would not close at all. Finally, the hinge fractured and the whole door nearly fell off of the vehicle, leaving the vehicle in an unsafe and undrivable condition because the hatch was now hanging over the rear bumper by only one hinge. These events occurred over the course of two days and with very little warning. *Tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 mini cooper. The contact stated that the passenger and driver side door would not open manually or with a key fob from inside the vehicle. She was only able to open the door by opening the window and using the door handle from the outside. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to diagnose the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and offered no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 34,816.

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 mini cooper. The contact stated that the hinge on the rear hatch fractured and the entire rear hatch was detaching from the vehicle. The rear hatch would not close due to the broken hinge. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the mechanic advised the contact to take the vehicle to an authorized dealer. The contact did not take the vehicle to a dealer. The failure mileage was 54,000.

Driver's side door would not open. Door would only open manually with a key from the outside of vehicle. I had to enter and exit the vehicle from the passenger side door. *Tt

Trunk door opened while driving around 50mph. Items in trunk flew out. Another driver pulled up alongside me to notify me of the situation. *Tt

Power steering stopped working. Power steering replacement, trunk repair and driver's side door repair. Updated 07/26/11 *bf *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 mini cooper. The contact stated that the interior driver side door handle would become inoperable due to the boden cable guide becoming dislodged from its retention clip. The dealer was contacted who informed him that there was a design update but the dealer could not say when the design update had taken place. The manufacturer was contacted but provided no assistance. The dealer was contacted again and stated that all problems and questions should be directed back to the manufacturer. No assistance was offered by the manufacturer or the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 85,000.

2005 Mini cooper s with 42k miles. Driver side door fails to open from the inside. I can only exit the car by using the outside door handle which requires opening the window. If an emergency occurs which requires rapid exit from the car and there was a failure of the electrical system I would not be able to exit vehicle. 42K miles is fairly low and the car has not been abused. Mini cooper claims this is 'normal' wear. It is not 'normal' wear and is indeed a manufacturers defect which apparently happens to many mini coopers. *Tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 mini cooper convertible. Whenever she pressed the button to open the sunroof or convertible, the drivers side opened but the passenger side did not. The dealer stated that it was a lapse in the cable and she'd the entire unit needed to be replaced at the owners expense. The manufacturer stated that they could not offer her any assistance. The contact stated that the failure is a defect that should also be a recall. The current and failure mileage was 55,000.

Both door handles are inoperative from the inside. Dealer per phone call diagnosed "common problem" as the ballard cable disconnecting from the latch. After removing the door panel it was found to be intact. Problem is yet to be diagnosed. It is my assumption that there is a problem with the security system since the doors do not unlock when the ignition is turned off and the doors do not appear to try and lock when the vehicle reaches the set speed of 15 mph. This is a defect of grave concern since the occupants of the vehicle cannot immediately exit the vehicle in the event of a crash or fire and would be totally unable to exit in the event of an electrical failure. *Tr

Strut towers deformed. This is a result of standard equipment run flat tires hitting pot holes. The fix is a reinforcing plate attached to the top of the strut tower. Either the run flats should not have been available or the strut towers should have been of sufficient strength. *Tr

(1) I recently traded my 2003 mini cooper in for a 2005 mini cooper s at a private dealership. (2) Upon inspecting the 2005 cooper s, I noticed that the strut towers were deformed, but since this was not a mini dealership, nothing could be done by them. I bought the car thinking this could be fixed under warranty. After calling the closest mini dealership which is 200+ miles away, I was informed that this was considered abuse to the car and it would not be covered under warranty. The previous owner must have hit...