Model year record

2006 MINI Cooper S

1 recall campaign on file for this model year. 243 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.

Component	Complaints	Median mileage
Air bags	65	56,000 mi
Steering	48	62,000 mi
Electrical system	21	69,000 mi
Power train	18	70,000 mi
Seats	15	59,000 mi
Engine and engine cooling	12	27,076 mi
Unknown or other	9	53,000 mi
Visibility: windshield	9	6,000 mi
Engine	7	67,500 mi
Fuel/propulsion system	4	94,233 mi
Vehicle speed control	3	300 mi
Air bags: frontal	2	24,000 mi
Air bags: sensor: occupant classification	2	53,000 mi
Electrical system: instrument cluster/panel	2	9,500 mi
Engine and engine cooling: engine	2	5,000 mi
Fuel system, gasoline	2	7,308 mi
Power train: manual transmission	2	19,500 mi
Seat belts	2	53,000 mi
Suspension: front	2	500 mi
Visibility	2	46,600 mi
Air bags: frontal: sensor/control module	1	42,000 mi
Air bags: sensor: occupant classification: front passenger	1	53,000 mi
Electronic stability control (ESC)	1	70,000 mi
Engine and engine cooling: exhaust system	1	—
Equipment	1	19,500 mi
Fuel system, gasoline: storage: tank assembly	1	23,805 mi
Power train: automatic transmission	1	—
Power train: clutch assembly	1	3,000 mi
Service brakes	1	49,000 mi
Service brakes, hydraulic: antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip	1	9,500 mi
Service brakes, hydraulic: foundation components: disc: rotor	1	86 mi
Structure	1	13,000 mi
Suspension: front: macpherson strut	1	11,000 mi
Wheels	1	78,000 mi

The 2005 model has about half as many complaints as this one. The 2007 model has roughly the same number of 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.