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2006 Mini Cooper

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Cooper years

Owner complaints for the 2006 Mini Cooper are substantially higher than the model-year median of 40.5.

About this comparison →

How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

Compare all Cooper years →

Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

166 reports with mileage · 34 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Air Bags. Review the 111 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Steering. Review the 53 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 20 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

9 crash reports8 fire reports8 injury reports

Steering complaints

53 reports
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56,250 miles · Feb 25, 2011
Steering

MINI COOPER 2006 - POWER STEERING PUMP FAILURE. FEB 2ND WE HAD A MAJOR WINTER STORM IN KANSAS CITY , I WAS DRIVING LESS THAN 10 MILES /HR WITH ABOUT 2 FEET SNOW MY CAR STOPPED AT THE CURB NEXT TO APT. SINCE THEN MY STEERING WHICH IS SOMEWHAT MILDLY STIFF FOR YEARS(MY FRIENDS HAD PREVIOUSLY WONDERED IF I EVEN HAD POWER STEERING …

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MINI COOPER 2006 - POWER STEERING PUMP FAILURE. FEB 2ND WE HAD A MAJOR WINTER STORM IN KANSAS CITY , I WAS DRIVING LESS THAN 10 MILES /HR WITH ABOUT 2 FEET SNOW MY CAR STOPPED AT THE CURB NEXT TO APT. SINCE THEN MY STEERING WHICH IS SOMEWHAT MILDLY STIFF FOR YEARS(MY FRIENDS HAD PREVIOUSLY WONDERED IF I EVEN HAD POWER STEERING ) WAS VERY STIFF , AND MADE A SCRATCHING NOISE. I MADE AN APPOINTMENT AT THE MINI DEALERSHIP AND WAS TOLD I HAD A MECHANICAL BREAKDOWN POWER STEERING PUMP FAILURE AT 56000MILES , AND MINE WAS THE SECOND CAR HE HAD TO CHANGE THE PUMP ON . IN AUG 2010 I WAS TOLD EVERYTHING WAS PERFECT AND IN THE PAST WHENEVER I MENTIONED THE STEERING WHEEL - THEY SAID ITS FINE , NO PROBLEMS DETECTED . THIS TIME THEY TOLD ME THE FLUID WAS LOW , PROBABLY LEAKING . IF THIS HAD HAPPENED ON THE HIGHWAY I DREAD TO THINK WHAT THE CONSEQUENCES MIGHT HAVE BEEN , GIVEN FROM WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE FROM THE CLASS ACTION SUIT THAT MINE IS NOT AN ISOLATED INCIDENT AS I WAS LED TO BELIEVE. MY INSURANCE COMPANY PERSON WHO INSPECTED THE CAR ALSO STATED THIS WAS UNRELATED TO THE WINTERSTORM , AND LIKELY MECHANICAL ERROR. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10384545

60,000 miles · Nov 4, 2010
Steering

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 MINI COOPER CONVERTIBLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH THE POWER STEERING COMPLETELY FAILED AND THE VEHICLE WAS DIFFICULT TO CONTROL. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO CONTINUE DRIVING. THE VEHICLE WAS DIAGNOSED BY AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO ADVISED THE CONTACT OF THE PRICING AND IT WAS TOO COSTL…

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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 MINI COOPER CONVERTIBLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH THE POWER STEERING COMPLETELY FAILED AND THE VEHICLE WAS DIFFICULT TO CONTROL. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO CONTINUE DRIVING. THE VEHICLE WAS DIAGNOSED BY AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO ADVISED THE CONTACT OF THE PRICING AND IT WAS TOO COSTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 60,000.

NHTSA ODI #10364027

49,000 miles · Feb 12, 2010
Steering

POWER STEERING PUMP FAILURE @ 49,000 MILES. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10308969

Official recalls

1

15V205000 · Air Bags:frontal

Apr 6, 2015

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.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: 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.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.