2003 MINI Cooper S problems
Owners have filed 258 complaints about the 2003 MINI Cooper S with NHTSA. Steering accounts for 51.6% of them — far more than any other system, ahead of visibility at 12.8%.
Complaints258
Crashes16
Fires28
Injuries11
Deaths1
What owners report breaking
Steering 51.6% · 133
Visibility 12.8% · 33
Electrical system 5.4% · 14
Engine and engine cooling 3.9% · 10
Service brakes, hydraulic 3.1% · 8
Power train 3.1% · 8
Suspension 3.1% · 8
Air bags 2.7% · 7
Severity
Of those complaints, 16 describe a crash, 28 describe a fire, 11 report an injury and 1 report a death.
Reading the numbers
Across the 8 model years of the MINI Cooper S in this data, 2003 sits 4th by complaint volume. 2005 draws the most.
Filings have fallen off, 9 in the last three years against 14 in the three before. That is normal as a generation leaves the road.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 70,000 miles.
In owners' own words
Occasionally the steering over my MINI Cooper S is becoming very hard. It seems like the power steering is failing. The car then can only be steered with a lot of difficulty. I can no longer risk to have my daughter or wife drive this car. I checked the steering fluid and it is at optimal levels. It usually happens at lower speed, but I have not driven it on the freeway since this issue started to appear. Steering · reported at 82,790 miles
The contact owns a 2003 MINI Cooper S. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 15v660000 (steering) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Vin tool confirms parts not available. Steering
The contact owns a 2003 MINI Cooper S. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 15v660000 (steering) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Vin tool confirms parts not available. Steering
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…