The Used Car Index

2005 Mini Cooper problems

NHTSA lists 372 complaints for the 2005 Mini Cooper, 8 of them mention a crash and 10 mention a fire. 1 complaints mention an injury, with 1 injuries and 0 deaths reported.

Data build 2026-10-09.

NHTSA lists this vehicle as MINI COOPER.

At a glance

Complaints
372
With crash
8
With fire
10
With injury (complaints)
1
Injuries
1
Deaths
0
Recalls
2
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
91,800
Investigations
2
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
51

Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. No sales source is available for this record.

Where the complaints are

Top systems
SystemComplaintsShare of this vehicle's complaints
STEERING27674.2%
AIR BAGS4111.0%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM308.1%
POWER TRAIN256.7%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER113.0%
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING82.2%
SEATS71.9%
ENGINE61.6%
STRUCTURE51.3%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL51.3%
Top subsystems
SystemSubsystemComplaints
POWER TRAINAUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION9
STEERINGHYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST6
STRUCTUREBODY5
STEERINGELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM4
POWER TRAINMANUAL TRANSMISSION2
STEERINGHYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM2
VISIBILITYWINDSHIELD2
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLINGCOOLING SYSTEM1
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLINGENGINE1
EXTERIOR LIGHTINGBRAKE LIGHTS1

One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.

Model-generated complaint tags: This model year has not been tagged.

Recalls

See new recalls and investigations this week.

2 recalls.

15V660000

Date: 2015-10-15. Systems: STEERING.

Defect: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2002-2005 MINI Cooper and Cooper S vehicles and 2005 Cooper and Cooper S Convertible vehicles. The affected vehicles may experience temporary or permanent loss of the electro-hydraulic steering assistance.

Consequence: If the vehicle experiences a loss of power steering assist, extra steering effort will be required at lower speeds, potentially increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.

Remedy: MINI will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the electro-hydraulic power steering system, replacing the components and wiring, as necessary, free of charge. Interim notices were mailed to owners on December 10, 2015. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

15V205000

Date: 2015-04-06. Systems: AIR BAGS.

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 functi (excerpt)

Consequence: 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. (excerpt)

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. (excerpt)

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

Investigations

2 investigations; 0 open.

EA11005

Opened: 2011-05-04. Closed: 2016-01-05.

Loss of power steering assist

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) originally opened the investigation of loss of power steering assist in model year (MY) 2004 and 2005 Mini Cooper as Preliminary Evaluation PE10-038.The investigation was upgraded to Engineering Analysis EA11-005 in May, 2011.During EA11-005 the scope was expanded to include MY 2002 and 2003 vehicles that use the same steering system.The subject vehicles n

Systems: STEERING.

Linked campaign numbers: 15V660000.

PE10038

Opened: 2010-09-24. Closed: 2011-05-10.

Loss of Power Steering Assist

ODI has received 339 complaints alleging an unexpected loss of power steering assist while driving the vehicle.When the power steering assist stops working, drivers experienced difficulty in steering and/or controlling the vehicle.According to BMW drivers may experience either a temporary or permanent loss of power steering assist.BMW further advised that a temporary loss of power steering assist

Systems: STEERING.

Linked campaign numbers: None listed.

Manufacturer communications

51 manufacturer communications.

Communications by system
SystemCount
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM11
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING11
EQUIPMENT10
STEERING8
ENGINE7
POWER TRAIN7
AIR BAGS3
STRUCTURE2

10245428

Date: 2023-11-02. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STRUCTURE.

Cavity protection applied to underside of the hood is leaking out onto the wheel arch trim and grille.

10244507

Date: 2023-10-25. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

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

10145311

Date: 2018-06-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: EQUIPMENT.

NAVIGATION SYSTEM HAS MISSING OR INCORRECT ROAD MAP DATA: The route guidance is inaccurate and therefore irritating to the customer; or it is not possible to locate certain addresses, for instance:

10143574

Date: 2018-05-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING.

W10 ENGINE: EMS2K - COMPREHENSIVE COMPONENT OBD READINESS MONITOR NOT COMPLETED: An affected vehicle fails to pass a state Inspection and Emission (I/M) test due to the A Comprehensive ComponentA OBD readiness monitor status is A not complete,A or it fails complete after performing an applicable r

10143579

Date: 2018-05-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, EQUIPMENT.

NAVIGATION SYSTEM HAS MISSING OR INCORRECT ROAD MAP DATA: The route guidance is inaccurate and therefore irritating to the customer; or it is not possible to locate certain addresses, for instance:

10134994

Date: 2018-02-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

AISIN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISISON: RIGHT SIDE OUTPUT SHAFT SEAL REPLACEMENT

10151228

Date: 2016-03-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STEERING.

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.

10059098

Date: 2015-07-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE.

MINI: DIFFERENT FAULTS ACTIVATES ENGINE MALFUNCTION AND OIL WARNING. *MA

10059112

Date: 2015-07-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE.

MINI: BECAUSE OF THE DME SOFTWARE, AND A DAMAGED CLUTCH, THE DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION CHECK MESSAGE APPEAR. *MA

10059114

Date: 2015-07-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE.

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

Notes on this record

  • Complaints from the API and bulk file are merged and deduplicated by ODI number; the API alone misses records.
  • System and subsystem counts are numbers of distinct complaints, recalls or communications that name them. One record can name several systems, so shares across systems can add to more than 100 percent; a single share never exceeds 100 percent.
  • Recalls are counted once per campaign, investigations once per action and manufacturer communications once per NHTSA id, even when NHTSA lists several model names for the same record.
  • A sales denominator is a calendar-year proxy, not the population of vehicles still in use. Rates are copied from verified pipeline output.

Other names NHTSA uses

None listed.

Matched NHTSA models

Matched labels and complaints
NHTSA model labelComplaints
COOPER372

Same model, other years

All model years | All Mini models

Other Mini models, 2005

Sources

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