Known Recalls

Model year record

2008 MINI Cooper S Convertible

1 recall campaign on file for this model year. 12 owner complaints on file.

Recalls

Recall campaignNHTSA 15V205000

Air bags: frontal

Component
Air bags: frontal
Manufacturer
BMW of North America, LLC
Vehicles affected
91,800
Reported to NHTSA
2015-04-06
Owners notified
2015-10-12

Defect description

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.

Safety 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.

Manufacturer 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.

Owner complaints

A complaint is one person's report to a federal agency. It is not a finding.

ComponentComplaintsMedian mileage
Air bags327,330 mi
Seats330,000 mi
Electrical system127,330 mi
Engine and engine cooling19,000 mi
Service brakes, hydraulic: antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip1—
Structure132,000 mi
Suspension164,000 mi
Unknown or other132,000 mi

The 2007 model has about 1.5 times as many complaints as this one. The 2009 model has about half as many complaints as this one. These figures reflect raw complaint counts, not failure rates. Higher-selling model years naturally receive more complaints.

Safety recall repairs are provided free of charge by franchised dealers, regardless of vehicle age or mileage. This page displays aggregated data for the model year. To check recall status for a specific vehicle, search its VIN at nhtsa.gov.