MiniTorque.com banner
Cancel

F56 Ownership: My mini was worth the wait! or did it. I am about to find out.

7730 Views 35 Replies 12 Participants Last post by  xBigVernx, 
Ramaya
My MINI was worth the wait! Or did it? I am about to find out.

Apologies for the long following post but if you have some time please read it as I am very worried and requiring advice urgently. There is no ranting involved, do not be mislead by the title just a very worried owner.

Yesterday was the day that after a few years of hard work I was able to afford an approved used MCS (F56 14 Plate) which I got to my desired speck and with only 7300 miles on the clock. I leave in Aberdeen and yesterday I drove down to MINI Stratstone in Leeds to collect my new car and hand in my old MCS as a part exchange. All went smoothly and the car was beautifully presented so I was delighted and soon on my way back to Aberdeen.

About 50miles in the journey while exiting a roundabout and changing from 2nd to 3rd gear my clutch never returned it stayed 2/3 of the way down and I was unable to gear up the car. Initially, I thought it was the floor mat which I removed immediately. Long story short this occurred 2 more times by the time I reached Aberdeen. On three occasions, the clutch remained stuck to the floor and I was unable to change gears for approximately 10 to 20 seconds, by which point the clutch would go back to normal.

As I am sure you understand, I got really worried and as soon as I returned home, I researched the aforementioned issue. The first result I got was of the following website: Intermitant clutch fault - Page 32 - 2015 Mini Cooper Forum Mini Cooper owners record similar & almost identical incidents happening to their cars.After that I went for a drive and tried the “right turn second gear roundabout” to recreate the problem which happened every time.

As I am posting this, I am waiting for the car to be collected by Mini Emergency services and I have been granted a 9 seater for the next 3 days until they try to diagnose the issue.

The reason I am posting this is to ask for advice from people that they have been in this situation before me.

What my grounds are if this is truly the clutch issue that requires engine and gear box replacement?
1) I don’t want to have the engine replaced without some serious compensation towards me as this will undoubtedly affect my resale value. Let alone the fact the car will never fill the same having its engine replaced.
2) Do I have grounds to ask for a like for like replacement? Or even a new car? I am the first physical person to own the car, as MINI UK owned it initially.
3) Will it be best to ask for a full refund and walk away from the brand altogether (the car is partially financed)?
PS: I love everything about the car bar the aforementioned issue, but I need something reliable as it is vital to my daily commute. (Site Engineer)
Again sorry for this long post, any advice would be much appreciated.
See less See more
Reply
Save
Like
1 - 20 of 36 Posts
martyxke
You seem to be looking at this incident like it was the end of the world. It sounds like a sticking master, or slave cylinder, from the limited information you have posted. You will not be getting the engine or gearbox replaced, so don't worry about that. Worst case scenario would be having to have the full clutch replaced, but this would only involve the removal of the engine or gearbox, and as this would be by Mini trained technicians, its not going to affect the value of the car.
Reply
Save
Like
LJColeman
I would be taking it back mate, Ive seen several faults the same as this & its the Crank end float has too much side to side play. Causing the clutch to stick down. Get it checked, its a known fault.
Reply
Save
Like
LJColeman
P.S if the engine is replaced it can only be a benefit to yourself. knowone has to know its been replaced if you sell it & you know you've got a brand spanking new engine. You may get a small amount of compensation from MINI, But you need to let them diagnose/fix it first!!
Reply
Save
Like
Ramaya
martyxke said:
You seem to be looking at this incident like it was the end of the world. It sounds like a sticking master, or slave cylinder, from the limited information you have posted. You will not be getting the engine or gearbox replaced, so don't worry about that. Worst case scenario would be having to have the full clutch replaced, but this would only involve the removal of the engine or gearbox, and as this would be by Mini trained technicians, its not going to affect the value of the car.
Click to expand...
I am sorry, but i don't see it like that. When i put a certain amount of money on a nearly new car I expect it to be at least spot on. Maybe if you where in my shoes and you had the car for less than 100 miles in your possession when all this happened you would see it differently.

As to what the problem with the car is, to be honest I still don't know I am waiting for mini to diagnose it. But regardless of what the problem ends up to be the fact remains the same: I got an almost new car and less than 100 miles since I collect it, it breaks down.
Reply
Save
Like
Ramaya
LJColeman said:
P.S if the engine is replaced it can only be a benefit to yourself. knowone has to know its been replaced if you sell it & you know you've got a brand spanking new engine. You may get a small amount of compensation from MINI, But you need to let them diagnose/fix it first!!
Click to expand...
The VIN number will not much the one on the car, if they do an HPI check I think they will be able to see it. Regardless changing the enginee in a car is not a simple job and it will never be the same as it was after it left the factory, that is my personal opinion. I know for a fact that MINI themselfs have values less a F56 that had its enginee replaced by more than £3000. You can find this information in the forum I posted above :)
Reply
Save
Like
Loui
Ramaya said:
The VIN number will not much the one on the car, if they do an HPI check I think they will be able to see it. Regardless changing the enginee in a car is not a simple job and it will never be the same as it was after it left the factory, that is my personal opinion. I know for a fact that MINI themselfs have values less a F56 that had its enginee replaced by more than £3000. You can find this information in the forum I posted above :)
Click to expand...
If the f56 is anything like the previous generations the only way of checking a mini engine number is really to take an engine out. I know where I work wouldn't value a cooper s that's had the engine swapped any less than one which hadent.
Reply
Save
Like
martyxke
From the responses that you have posted, it would appear that you have already made up your mind about what you want to do with your car. Your best bet therefore would be to get some advice on where you stand on being able to reject the car, and get your money back, especially if this is a known issue with the later models.
Reply
Save
Like
tweedbean
For me, I would wait to see what mini say. As loui said, if they change the engine that isn't a bad thing and will be done to a high standard. However for me if you constantly have engine trouble with a car, it's sucks the joy out of driving it hard as you are just waiting for the next thing to go bang. See how much work needs to be done, if it's just clutch related then that wouldn't bother me in the slightest, I would let them do the work and I'm sure it will be fine going forward and I wouldn't even consider getting rid. If it's an engine replacement job, you just need to be happy in your head, I can't see it affecting resale so it's just your personal feelings towards the car you need to consider.
Reply
Save
Like
LJColeman
Before you can Reject the car you need to give them at least 2 attempts to rectify the problem. You wont have a leg to stand on otherwise. £100 says it needs a new engine :) I've seen this a few times now...
Reply
Save
Like
Loui
LJColeman said:
Before you can Reject the car you need to give them at least 2 attempts to rectify the problem. You wont have a leg to stand on otherwise. £100 says it needs a new engine :) I've seen this a few times now...
Click to expand...
Totally agree
Reply
Save
Like
Ramaya
Update 28/10/15:

I got informed by John Clark MINI that the car has the crankshaft issue and needs an engine/gearbox replacement.
I am not very keen on having the engine replaced, as tweedbean I have just lost confidence in this car in my head/heart. It is always going to worry me.

If I had it for 2-3 years then it would have been a different story but not after 100 miles.
Reply
Save
Like
Ramaya
I am pretty sure that if the vehicle is not road worthy so early into ownership, I am entitled to reject the car. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 confirms this, if I am not mistaken.
Reply
Save
Like
Mike8080
Why would you not want a brand new engine and gearbox? Sounds like a good deal to me.
Reply
Save
Like
LJColeman
You still need to give them a attempt to repair it before you have grounds to reject it, there's a few F56's that have had this fault now, I've done 2 myself, so you could buy another F56 and have the same problem. I don't see why them replacing the engine is a problem. You get a brand new engine, surely that's a good thing!!
Reply
Save
Like
Ramaya
On a car that I just bought? A good deal? I don't think so.
The question is why MINI did not check the car prior to reselling it? It is an approved used car after all.
The problem was clearly there and a simple check would have confirmed it, hell even a drive around a roundabout would have done the trick. The moment I took the car and went to refuel it the gearbox was hard, at the time I thought the car was just cold. The issue was there long before I got the car.

I don't get your point of view guys, why should I take the fall and be good with it? I quote this bellow from another forum member:

"Our mcs cost £26k it was 4 months old with 1500 miles on the clock and mini valued it after it was rejected and having to declare the engine replacement to future buyers at £14k thats a £12,000 pound loss in 4 months due mainly to the engine thank god it was mini that took the loss"

You are telling me that he is lying? I don't think so.

The car for me is a tool above all, I hold it for 3-4 years then I resell it and recover part of the money or else it has no purpose as I could have gotten a company car. Instead, I opted for something I enjoy only to be faced with a huge problem after HALF A DAY of ownership. Please don't tell me this is a good thing.
See less See more
Reply
Save
Like
keano
Ramaya said:
I am pretty sure that if the vehicle is not road worthy so early into ownership, I am entitled to reject the car. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 confirms this, if I am not mistaken.
Click to expand...
It may not currently be roadworthy but they have to have the opportunity to repair any fault. You cannot just reject it just because something went wrong so early.

When I had a problem with my R56 - after only 5 mins and less than 3 miles from the dealership before it broke down just FYI - I had to let them repair it. Once they had done so, if nothing was wrong I couldnt then reject it. I was only given compensation since the problem may have had a future impact on the engine that may not raise its ugly head (potentially) for years. Since youre getting brand new engine and gearbox, that wouldnt apply to you.

In short, on your car, once the parts are changed the car will be like brand new. It wont have affected any other part on the car that isnt changed as part of their fix....

Other than a goodwill gesture for inconvenience caused, Im not sure you will be entitled to any compensation or to reject it tbh.
Reply
Save
Like
keano
Ramaya said:
On a car that I just bought? A good deal? I don't think so.
The question is why MINI did not check the car prior to reselling it? It is an approved used car after all.
The problem was clearly there and a simple check would have confirmed it, hell even a drive around a roundabout would have done the trick. The moment I took the car and went to refuel it the gearbox was hard, at the time I thought the car was just cold. The issue was there long before I got the car.

I don't get your point of view guys, why should I take the fall and be good with it?
Click to expand...
As I found out the used check is balls.... its just a tick box exercise and they may not have even driven it round the corner but done everything on a ramp. Other issues they sometimes just leave so as not to have to pay for it as part of car prep but leave it to be picked up under the used car warranty - although yours is new enough to have manufacturer warranty so not sure how that affects things.

In terms of a fall - what fall are you taking? The car is being fixed with no cost to yourself - whilst the inconvenience of the car being off the road is a PITA I dont think you would be entitled to compensation... a good sales team would offer a goodwill gesture of some sort though IMHO.

In theory, once its fixed you will have a brand new car - personally, I would rather have a new engine/gearbox in a car bought for 2nd hand prices than have to take the depreciation hit myself with an actual brand new car IYGWIM. If you bought on finance it wont affect your GFMV so you shouldnt be out of pocket when you sell it after 4 years...

If you really are not happy with having a new engine etc then you could attempt to reject it but not too sure how you would get on as it would be in effect a brand new car that would be working perfectly... if there are ongoing issues then this may be different though. ;)
See less See more
Reply
Save
Like
keano
Ramaya said:
"Our mcs cost £26k it was 4 months old with 1500 miles on the clock and mini valued it after it was rejected and having to declare the engine replacement to future buyers at £14k thats a £12,000 pound loss in 4 months due mainly to the engine thank god it was mini that took the loss"
Click to expand...
Trade in value on such a new car is always terrible.

You wouldnt be trading it in when so new so it wouldnt be much different from standard depreciation - I dont think the engine replacement would be a significant factor and may actually be considered a positive by many...

With the problems I had with my car, I was offered around £4k less than what I bought it for - amusingly (now but not then) they quoted car prep costs as a significant factor in why they had to offer such a low price... bearing in mind it had supposidly been fully prepd and had only been driven around 3 miles so should have needed zero prep :lol:
Reply
Save
Like
J
Unless BMW take pity I doubt you'll be able to reject it. I've dealt with 2 rogue cars now, both of which I bought new. The first R56 fJCW engine expired after 14 months, they wouldn't replace the engine, they would only rebuild it. This was a full on job aswell, new pistons, new valves etc, BMW would not play ball, it didn't matter who I spoke to. After a month without the car I got bored and said give me a good trade in and I'll buy a 335i instead. John Clarks were pretty good at dealing with that.

The second fJCW came out the factory with numerous problems, when they coded in the works seats the sat nav decided to stop working... and didn't work for 6 months. At the same time it had a very slight misfire, the garage needed to be given 3 attempts to fix it. After a total of 2.5 months they failed, only the was I able to reject it and get my money back. If you have finance on the car get the company involved asap, they will fight your corner (even if it's BMW finance!)

Get rid of it and go back to basics with a R53 GP, best mini made!
See less See more
Reply
Save
Like
1 - 20 of 36 Posts
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
MiniTorque.com
We’re a forum community dedicated to the MINI Cooper, Cooper S and Clubman. Come join the discussion on performance modifications, accessories, MINI news, maintenance and more!
Full Forum Listing
Explore Our Forums
The Projects MINI Parts For Sale MINI Chat The Projects Engine & Drivetrain
Top