2006 Mini Cooper Convertible problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Steering (10) · Seats (5) · Air Bags (5)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Mini Cooper Convertible model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
22 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (1)
Air Bags:frontal 2015-04-06 · campaign 15V205000 · 91,800 vehicles
Defect: 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.
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.
Fix: 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.
Service bulletins (20)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Electrical System 2023-10-25 · M610607 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
mini electrical systems have continued to develop over the past few years. as a result, the demand on the batteries has increased. breakdowns due to an empty battery or problems in the vehicles electrical system can have various causes, most of which are not due to the battery itself. for this rea
Steering 2016-03-01 · M320214 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this service information bulletin supersedes si 32 02 14 dated august 2014. subject installation of right-hand drive steering spindle in left-hand drive vehicle is no longer required. left-hand drive steering spindles are currently available.
Engine 2015-07-01 · 12 09 15 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
mini: faulty software for the tank ventilation control displays engine throttle reaction when temperature is high outside, and more obvious if the tank is only partly filled. *ma
Engine And Engine Cooling:engine:other Fuel Types:turbo/Supercharger 2014-12-01 · SIM-11-10-14 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
mini: some vehicles have turbocharger noise and a lack or loss of performance, due to restriction of turbocharger oil supply, resulting in oil starvation and seizing of turbocharger assembly. model all. *pe
Steering 2014-11-01 · M010113 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
electro-hydraulic power-assist steering pump (ehps) and cooling fan: limited warranty extension to 13 years/150,000 miles. on affected vehicles, the electro-hydraulic power steering (ehps) pump can fail.
Power Train 2014-10-01 · M010514 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
mini cvt replacement parts warranty extension: additional 12 months with up to 50,000 accumulated miles. a mini vehicle's cvt assembly or component that was previously repaired and/or replaced by an authorized mini dealer or bmw center may experience a subsequent failure.
Showing the 6 most recent of 20 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2024-09-10 · Steering“power steering pump grinding. this was a recall on the 2002-2005 model but not the 2006. the same issue is happening with this car that happened with the recall vehicles and i would expect bmw to fix this problem. thanks…”
2022-08-23 · Steering“power steering pump went out while driving the car. car was extremely hard to steer. almost hit a guard rail. had the car towed home and then to a garage. this is a known problem with mini coopers from year 2002 to 2006. websites and mini cooper forums are loaded with power steering pumps failing. no warning. pump was confirmed to be the problem …”
2022-03-21 · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification:front Passenger · 125,000 mi“the contact owns a 2006 mini cooper convertible. the contact stated that the front passenger’s seat occupant detection mat was replaced under nhtsa campaign number: 15v205000 (air bags) three years ago; however, the front passenger's side air bag warning light had been illuminating intermittently. the contact stated that the front passenger's side …”
2021-05-18 · Air Bags“passenger air bag light went on and i took it to mini dealer who diagnosed that ht passenger seat matt sensor failed and recommendedreplacement of seatmatt sensor i called mini about safetyrecall nhtsa15v20500 of 4/6/2015, and they informed me my vin/vehicle was not part of thatrecall…”
2020-11-23 · Steering“i drove the car earlier and it was fine. i returned home and then hours later tried to pull out of my driveway to find i couldn't turn the steering wheel. thank goodness i wasn't driving when it went or i wouldn't have been able to turn the wheel. apparently after reading online quite a bit this is a problem and there is no recall or even a campai…”
2017-03-09 · Steering · 122,000 mi“power steering goes out while driving down the road, without any warning. very stiff. hard to control. can't turn. scary!!!…”
2016-05-11 · Steering · 122,000 mi“power steering randomly when out while in motion. thankfully, i was on a local road going slowly when it happened. pulled over to the side, turned off the car and turned it back on. power steering came back.…”
2015-05-27 · Seats · 42,000 mi“the passenger side airbag light will not turn off. seat cannot detect passenger and disable airbag. there is a recall going on, but it did not include my vin number. mini usa representative gave no answer, no timeline, no additional information. just told me to wait. i cannot believe that's bmw/mini. …”
2014-10-13 · Steering · 100,823 mi“february of 2014 driving my 2006 convertible on curvy highway at 50 mph. loud shrieking noise and then steering became very difficult to turn. towed to mechanic. had steering pump & fan replaced. total cost $1,038.54. 2005 mini's have been recalled for this exact default. called mini and they will not reimburse me because mine is a 2006. how…”
2014-06-02 · Seats · 43,001 mi“passenger seat air bag warning indicator shows air bag disabled intermittently, even when seat is occupied by full sized adult (over 140 pounds). this means my passenger is at risk of severe injury in case of crash, as the air bag is disabled. in addition to the above, the light is off and on intermittently even when the seat is not occupied…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.