2006 Mini Cooper

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 NHTSA SHOULD COMPEL BMW TO ENSURE THE SAFETY OF MINI PASSENGERS. *TR

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. *TR

AIR BAG LIGHT ABOVE REAR VIEW MIRROR ILLUMINATES WHEN A PASSENGER IS SEATED. I HAVE RESEARCHED THIS AND FOUND MANY OTHERS HAVING THE SAME ISSUE, BUT HAVE NOT DISCOVERED A RECALL OR ANY INFORMATION TO MAKE THE NECESSARY REPAIRS. SEEMS IT SHOULD BE FIXED AS THEY DID WITH THE 2002 MODEL, COVERING THE REPAIR TO 10 YEARS OR 150,000 MILES. *TR

I HAVE AN '06 MINI COOPER AND NEVER HAD ANY ENGINE/TRANSMISSION ISSUES PRIOR TO TODAY. ALL SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE WAS DONE BY THE MINI DEALER. TODAY LEAVING TO GO TO WORK, I STARTED THE CAR, PUT MY SEAT BELT ON, CHECKED THE MIRRORS, ROLLED DOWN THE WINDOWS, PUT THE CAR GEAR IN "D" AND STARTED MOVING FORWARD OUT A PARKING LOT, AND AFTER A FEW SECONDS WHILE DRIVING, THE CAR LOST ALL ACCELERATION AND CAME TO A STOP. THEN THE CAR WON'T REVERSE NOR MOVE FORWARD WHILE IN ANY GEAR. TOWED TO THE DEALER AND LATER WAS TOLD IT'S THE CVT TRANSMISSION AND IT WILL COST THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS TO REPLACE THE CVT TRANSMISSION. *TR

PASSENGER SIDE AIRBAG FAILED. SEAT PASSENGER DETECTOR FAILURE IS CAUSE. A REVIEW OF ON LINE TROUBLE SITES SHOW THIS TO BE A VERY COMMON PROBLEM WHICH MANUFACTURER DENIES AND DELAYS REPAIR. THOUGH MINI HAS MULTIPLE REPORTS OF THIS, THEY REFUSE TO REPAIR AS THEY STATE "OUT OF WARRANTY". THIS IS A BASIC SAFETY FEATURE WHICH IS FLAWED AND SHOULD BE SUBJECT TO IMMEDIATE AND BROAD RECALL. *TR

DURING THE PAST COUPLE WEEKS, THE AIR BAG INDICATOR LIGHT WOULD COME ON. AT TIMES IT WOULD STAY ON FOR A LONG PERIOD, OTHER TIMES NOT AS LONG. THIS WEEK THE SEAT BELT INDICATOR LIGHT CAME ON AFTER A PASSENGER LEFT THE CAR AND THE ALARM SOUNDED FOR APX. 10 MINUTES UNTIL I STOPPED AND SHUT OFF THE CAR. THE AIR BAG INDICATOR ALSO CAME ON. I TOOK IT FOR SERVICING TODAY BUT THE GARAGE COULD NOT GET ANY CODES FROM THE SRS CONTROL UNIT. *TR