BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 MINI Cooper Hardtop 2 door vehicles manufactured February 25, 2014, to May 16, 2015, 2014-2015 MINI Cooper S Hardtop 2 door vehicles manufactured March 28, 2014, to May 9, 2015, 2015 MINI Cooper Hardtop 4 door vehicles manufactured October 17, 2014, to June 2, 2015, and 2015 MINI Cooper S Hardtop 4 door vehicles manufactured November 24, 2014, to June 11, 2015. During a service appointment, the affected vehicles received replacement front passenger seat cushions (which contain integral Capacitive Interior Sensing (CIS) functions). The CIS functions may have been incorrectly calibrated, and if so, would cause impaired occupant classification and thus inappropriate air bag activation/deactivation.
Safety risk
Inappropriate air bag activation/deactivation can increase the risk of occupant injury in the event of a vehicle crash.
Manufacturer remedy
MINI will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the front passenger seat cushion, free of charge. The recall began on December 28, 2015. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525 .
Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
Manufacturer
BMW of North America, LLC
Vehicles affected
6,073
Reported to NHTSA
2015-10-07
Owners notified
2015-11-25
Defect description
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 MINI Cooper S and MINI Cooper two-door vehicles, 2015-2016 MINI John Cooper Works and MINI Cooper S and MINI Cooper four-door vehicles and 2014-2015 BMW i3 vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error, the passenger frontal air bag may not deploy properly in a low speed crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
Safety risk
In the event of a vehicle crash, an air bag that does not deploy properly increases the risk of injury to the front seat passenger.
Manufacturer remedy
MINI and BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall began on November 25, 2015. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525 and BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 MINI Cooper and MINI Cooper S Hardtop 2 Door vehicles and 2015 MINI John Cooper Works Hardtop 2 Door vehicles. The affected vehicles do not meet the side impact performance requirements for the rear seat passengers. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 214, "Side Impact Protection."
Safety risk
If the side impact performance requirements are not met, rear seat passengers may be at a higher risk of injury during a crash.
Manufacturer remedy
MINI will notify owners, and dealers will install additional energy absorption material between the rear interior side panels and the exterior vehicle body, free of charge. The recall began on September 4, 2015. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525. Note: this recall supersedes 14V-815.
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 MINI Cooper Hardtop two door vehicles manufactured December 1, 2013, to December 14, 2014. The affected vehicles may have been manufactured with an incorrect maximum capacity weight stated on the Tire Information Placard. Thus, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 110, "Tire Selection and Rims and Motor Home/Recreation Vehicle Trailer Load Carrying Capacity Information for Motor Vehicles with a GVWR of 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds) or less."
Safety risk
The maximum weight listed on the label is incorrect (too low) and therefore does not comply with Federal Regulations.
Manufacturer remedy
MINI will notify owners, and dealers will replace the incorrect labels with corrected labels, free of charge. Owners were mailed interim notification on March 18, 2015. The recall began on October 15, 2015. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525.
Power train: automatic transmission: control module (TCM/PCM/TECM)
Manufacturer
BMW of North America, LLC
Vehicles affected
1,928
Reported to NHTSA
2014-12-15
Owners notified
2015-02-04
Defect description
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 MINI Cooper Hardtop 2 Door, and Cooper S Hardtop 2 Door vehicles manufactured January 6, 2014, to October 17, 2014. During service appointments, dealers may have inadvertently reprogrammed the transmission control unit with software that may allow drivers to exit the vehicle when the transmission is not in Park. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention."
Safety risk
If the driver exits the vehicle without the transmission being in Park, the vehicle could roll away as the driver and other occupants exit the vehicle or anytime thereafter. A vehicle rollaway increases the risk of injury to exiting occupants and bystanders.
Manufacturer remedy
MINI will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the transmission control module with the correct software, free of charge. The recall February 4, 2015. Owners can contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525.
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2015 MINI Cooper Hardtop 2 Door vehicles manufactured August 12, 2014, to September 2, 2014. In the affected vehicles, the driver and front passenger seatback adjustment mechanism may not be fully engaged.
Safety risk
If the seatback adjustment mechanism is not fully engaged, the seatback may fold during a rear impact collision, increasing the risk of injury to the seat occupant.
Manufacturer remedy
MINI will notify owners, and dealers will re-align and re-tighten the seatback adjustment mechanisms, free of charge. The recall began December 29, 2014. Owners can 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
Engine
15
37,499 mi
Fuel/propulsion system
12
35,600 mi
Power train
11
25,000 mi
Electrical system
10
14,000 mi
Service brakes
9
4,000 mi
Unknown or other
5
800 mi
Suspension
3
9,000 mi
Visibility/wiper
3
2,000 mi
Equipment: appliance: air conditioner
2
1,670 mi
Steering
2
150,000 mi
Air bags
1
—
Electrical system: horn
1
22,000 mi
Electronic stability control (ESC)
1
1,447 mi
Engine and engine cooling: engine: engine control module (ECU/ECM)
1
78,000 mi
Parking brake
1
14,000 mi
Structure: body
1
4,500 mi
Tires
1
—
Vehicle speed control
1
4,000 mi
Vehicle speed control: cruise control
1
—
Visibility
1
62,000 mi
Visibility: rearview mirrors/devices: interior
1
—
The 2014 model has about 1.5 times as many complaints as this one. The 2016 model has about 1.5 times 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.