Consumer Safety Complaints
Search 2,245,377 safety complaints filed by vehicle owners with NHTSA, including 140,173 crashes, 56,794 fires, and 8,580 deaths.
What is a NHTSA consumer complaint?
A consumer complaint is a free-form report filed by a vehicle owner directly to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) describing a safety concern about their vehicle. NHTSA collects these reports through its Vehicle Owner Defect Report (VOQ) system and publishes them publicly. Each complaint includes the affected component, the date and circumstances of the incident, whether the failure caused a crash or fire, and any reported injuries or deaths. The owner's full narrative description is included verbatim, NHTSA does not edit or moderate the descriptions.
The database below contains over 2,245,377 individual complaints. NHTSA's investigators monitor it for clusters of similar reports, when enough owners describe the same failure mode on the same vehicle, NHTSA may open a Preliminary Evaluation that can lead to a recall. Many of the largest recalls in U.S. history, including the Takata airbag recall and the Hyundai/Kia engine fire recalls, started as patterns visible in this complaint database years before they became formal recalls.
How to interpret what you read
A few principles for reading consumer complaints usefully:
- One complaint is anecdote; a hundred similar complaints is data. NHTSA does not investigate the truthfulness of any individual report, that's the job of the Office of Defects Investigation, which looks at the full pattern. When evaluating a vehicle, look for whether multiple owners describe the same chain of events.
- Crash, fire, injury, and death flags are owner-set. They are not verified by NHTSA. They are still useful as a filter, because owners who tick those boxes are typically reporting more serious incidents than those who don't.
- Component categories are NHTSA-assigned, not owner-assigned. NHTSA standardizes the component field so that complaints can be aggregated. The owner narrative often goes into more detail than the component category captures.
- Complaint volume scales with sales volume. A best-selling model will accumulate more raw complaints than a niche model even at the same defect rate. To compare across vehicles, look at complaints per 100,000 units sold, not raw counts.
If you've experienced a defect
File a complaint. NHTSA's investigators rely on this database to detect emerging defects, and useful complaints, specific, concrete, with dates and mileage and clear descriptions of what happened, feed directly into the agency's pattern detection. The form takes about 10 minutes and is at nhtsa.gov/recalls under "Report a Safety Problem." Your complaint becomes part of the same public record that this page is built from. Owners filing detailed VOQs are how recalls get triggered.
Read more from our blog
Showing 6,381 complaints for MINI
Incident date: Apr 2, 2022
The car has a warning light "secure car against rolling" at first I thought it was a reminder to set the parking brake. The next warning light was "service required" - I just bought this 2017 Mini Clubman two weeks ago so I took it to the mini dealer service center. The motor mount, gear shifter, brakes were all affected and need replacing. When I looked up the "warning light" online - there ar... Read more
Incident date: Jan 10, 2022
Passenger side airbag light on with no one in seat, had it checked, the repair shop stated that there is a seat sensor fault, the code is 93c3(passenger seat occupancy detector). I have done some research on this and it seems that this a common problem, but there hasn't been any recalls by Mini, and if there is an accident the airbag may not deploy. I was told to by the dealer that it will cost $2... Read more
Incident date: Jan 10, 2022
Passenger side airbag light on with no one in seat, had it checked, the repair shop stated that there is a seat sensor fault, the code is 93c3(passenger seat occupancy detector). I have done some research on this and it seems that this a common problem, but there hasn't been any recalls by Mini, and if there is an accident the airbag may not deploy. I was told to by the dealer that it will cost $2... Read more
Incident date: Mar 22, 2022
The contact owns a 2005 Mini Cooper S. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V660000 (Steering) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact also stated that he was advised by the dealer that he had to pay out of pocket for a diagnostic t... Read more
Incident date: Mar 23, 2022
The vehicle has a faulty seat sensor that causes the vehicle to default to having a non-occupied seat with warning lights. In this situation, a passenger will not have an air bag deploy even if they’re heavy enough to otherwise trigger the weight sensor. This is happening on my vehicle and, based on internet research, most other R56 models to the point of a market existing for electronic bypass ... Read more
Incident date: Mar 23, 2022
The vehicle has a faulty seat sensor that causes the vehicle to default to having a non-occupied seat with warning lights. In this situation, a passenger will not have an air bag deploy even if they’re heavy enough to otherwise trigger the weight sensor. This is happening on my vehicle and, based on internet research, most other R56 models to the point of a market existing for electronic bypass ... Read more
MINI
COOPER CONVERTIBLE
(2006) - AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGER
Mar 21, 2022
Incident date: Mar 7, 2022
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 air bag warning light would illuminate whenever ... Read more
MINI
COOPER CLUBMAN
(2010) - ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Mar 10, 2022
Incident date: Mar 7, 2022
Engine quits while driving causing an unsafe condition. The car stopped numerous times while on the freeway. It starts back up but stalls again later. There are no check engine lights and the local repair shop indicates that it may be a problem with the Footwell Computer Mudule and specifically the soldering on the Low Pressure Fuel Pump Relay causing it to intermittently fail.
MINI
COOPER CLUBMAN
(2010) - ENGINE
Mar 10, 2022
Incident date: Mar 7, 2022
Engine quits while driving causing an unsafe condition. The car stopped numerous times while on the freeway. It starts back up but stalls again later. There are no check engine lights and the local repair shop indicates that it may be a problem with the Footwell Computer Mudule and specifically the soldering on the Low Pressure Fuel Pump Relay causing it to intermittently fail.
MINI
COOPER CLUBMAN
(2010) - FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Mar 10, 2022
Incident date: Mar 7, 2022
Engine quits while driving causing an unsafe condition. The car stopped numerous times while on the freeway. It starts back up but stalls again later. There are no check engine lights and the local repair shop indicates that it may be a problem with the Footwell Computer Mudule and specifically the soldering on the Low Pressure Fuel Pump Relay causing it to intermittently fail.
Incident date: Mar 2, 2022
The failed component is the "Footwell Relay Module" (FRM) which enables communication between the instrument panel in the passenger compartment and the engine control components in the engine compartment. When this component fails the following essential controls become inoperable: emergency flashers, turn signals, door locks, and windows. Most other "convenience features controlled by the car ... Read more
MINI
COOPER CLUBMAN
(2009) - SEATS
Mar 1, 2022
Incident date: Feb 23, 2022
Following approximately 12 months of slow deterioration, the passenger-side airbag deployment system in this vehicle appears to have become continuously inoperative (red airbag failure annunciator continuously illuminated on instrument cluster in conjunction with continuous illumination of the amber "Passenger Airbag OFF" informational annunciator in the overhead console). Failure now occurs whet... Read more
MINI
COOPER CLUBMAN
(2009) - AIR BAGS
Mar 1, 2022
Incident date: Feb 23, 2022
Following approximately 12 months of slow deterioration, the passenger-side airbag deployment system in this vehicle appears to have become continuously inoperative (red airbag failure annunciator continuously illuminated on instrument cluster in conjunction with continuous illumination of the amber "Passenger Airbag OFF" informational annunciator in the overhead console). Failure now occurs whet... Read more
Incident date: Feb 3, 2022
1. 2016 Mini Cooper S Clubman's Head Unit is inoperable which provides vehicle information such as, Backup Camera, Oil Pressure, Tire Pressure, Maintenance Schedule(s), Hands-Free (Bluetooth) connection, Emergency Call Roadside Assistance, Brake Pads early warning due to brake pad sensors, and vehicle setting are displaying "No Signal", therefore making it virtually impossible to know the status o... Read more
Incident date: Feb 3, 2022
1. 2016 Mini Cooper S Clubman's Head Unit is inoperable which provides vehicle information such as, Backup Camera, Oil Pressure, Tire Pressure, Maintenance Schedule(s), Hands-Free (Bluetooth) connection, Emergency Call Roadside Assistance, Brake Pads early warning due to brake pad sensors, and vehicle setting are displaying "No Signal", therefore making it virtually impossible to know the status o... Read more
Incident date: Feb 3, 2022
1. 2016 Mini Cooper S Clubman's Head Unit is inoperable which provides vehicle information such as, Backup Camera, Oil Pressure, Tire Pressure, Maintenance Schedule(s), Hands-Free (Bluetooth) connection, Emergency Call Roadside Assistance, Brake Pads early warning due to brake pad sensors, and vehicle setting are displaying "No Signal", therefore making it virtually impossible to know the status o... Read more
Incident date: Feb 11, 2022
The car consumes too much oil. This is not mentioned in the car manual. Without enough oil, the car's engine would seize up and stop functioning. Driving with low oil in the system can ruin the vehicle's engine, completely breaking the motor.
Incident date: Feb 18, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 Mini Cooper. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the headlights and taillights failed to illuminate as needed. The contact was able to drive safely to the residence. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with footwell (FRM) module failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate f... Read more
Incident date: Feb 18, 2022
The contact owns a 2008 Mini Cooper. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the headlights and taillights failed to illuminate as needed. The contact was able to drive safely to the residence. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with footwell (FRM) module failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate f... Read more
Incident date: Feb 23, 2022
The fuel filling nozzle turns off repeatedly while filling the fuel tank, regardless of position of nozzle, pressure used, station used. In an attempt to remedy, Mini Service Technicians replaced tank vent valve but it did not correct the issue. I am unable to fill my gas tank.
Incident date: Nov 5, 1984
Blindsided Drive side impact car ignited I was cut from my car suffering emence Injuries due to the malfunction of the airbags . No air bags deployed.
Crash
Fire
1 injured
MINI
COUNTRYMAN
(2020) - STRUCTURE:BODY
Feb 24, 2022
Incident date: Feb 24, 2022
TRUNK/REAR HATCH POWER LIFT WILL ENAGE IF KEY FOB HAS HATCH BUTTON PRESSED WHILE CAR IS IN DRIVE OR IN MOTION. HATCH WILL RAISE CREATING SITUATION WHERE OBJECTS CAN FALL OUT OF THE VEHICLE. DISCUSSION WITH DEALER REVEALED OTHERS HAVE SAME ISSUE ONLY ON THE COUNTRYMAN MODELS AND DEALER DOES NOT HAVE ACCESS TO FIX THE SOFTWARE.
Incident date: Feb 20, 2022
I can not put gas into my car. I have had the charcoal canister replaced. I am now being told that I need a new fuel tank. I’ve also been informed that this is a reoccurring problem in 2015 mini coopers.
MINI
COOPER CONVERTIBLE
(2005) - POWER TRAIN
Feb 18, 2022
Incident date: Sep 5, 2021
The transmission will cycle first through third and when it tries to go into 4th it slips and will not operate higher gears it caused me to lose my forward drive momentum as I was switching lanes and the car I was getting in front of almost ran into me.
Incident date: Feb 15, 2022
Entire Driver Side Tail Lamp assembly stopped working (includes running light, brake light, reverse light, and blinker). Dash board did display warning (while driving) of lights malfunction, but nevertheless stopped working while driving. Upon further Inspection, found a “short” / melted pig tail (electrical connector) connecting to the rear of the lamp assembly. (Both the connector and pig ta... Read more
Incident date: Feb 15, 2022
Entire Driver Side Tail Lamp assembly stopped working (includes running light, brake light, reverse light, and blinker). Dash board did display warning (while driving) of lights malfunction, but nevertheless stopped working while driving. Upon further Inspection, found a “short” / melted pig tail (electrical connector) connecting to the rear of the lamp assembly. (Both the connector and pig ta... Read more
Incident date: Dec 17, 2021
The passenger seat OC3 Occupancy Sensor has malfunctioned, leading to the ECU to believe the seatbelt is unbuckled and disabling the passenger airbag while the car is in motion. This is a frequent occurrence which can be seen across all of the Mini/BMW forums for an untold number of owners of this build.
Incident date: Dec 17, 2021
The passenger seat OC3 Occupancy Sensor has malfunctioned, leading to the ECU to believe the seatbelt is unbuckled and disabling the passenger airbag while the car is in motion. This is a frequent occurrence which can be seen across all of the Mini/BMW forums for an untold number of owners of this build.
Incident date: Feb 3, 2022
Fuel tank shuts off the gas pump no matter how much gas is in the tank. Faulty fuel tank vent (purge) value is causing the issue. This is a known issue on Mini's. A voluntary recall has been issued for 2016 Mini's, but this problem is also happening on 2015 Mini's. Dealership as well as another auto service store has replicated the issue. Check engine light is lit up as well.
MINI
COUNTRYMAN
(2017) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Jan 31, 2022
Incident date: Jan 31, 2022
The contact owns a 2017 Mini Countryman. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle cabin was emitting a smoke odor. The contact stated the rear passenger side taillight malfunction warning message was displayed. The contact mentioned that the socket was melted when he replaced the rear passenger bulb. The contact spoke with a local dealer and they were informed to call the ma... Read more
Fire
Incident date: Feb 17, 2020
Repeated experiences of sudden engine operational failure and reduced and/or complete loss of power while driving. The engine malfunction indicator lamp comes on. Car stalls and stops in traffic on the highway and on streets blocking traffic. Will not start again until powered off for periods between 5-15 minutes if at all. -First experienced the issue February 2020 and have intermittently expe... Read more
Incident date: Feb 17, 2020
Repeated experiences of sudden engine operational failure and reduced and/or complete loss of power while driving. The engine malfunction indicator lamp comes on. Car stalls and stops in traffic on the highway and on streets blocking traffic. Will not start again until powered off for periods between 5-15 minutes if at all. -First experienced the issue February 2020 and have intermittently expe... Read more
Incident date: Feb 17, 2020
Repeated experiences of sudden engine operational failure and reduced and/or complete loss of power while driving. The engine malfunction indicator lamp comes on. Car stalls and stops in traffic on the highway and on streets blocking traffic. Will not start again until powered off for periods between 5-15 minutes if at all. -First experienced the issue February 2020 and have intermittently expe... Read more
Incident date: Aug 7, 2021
my passenger airbag lights have been on for months .. cannot remove also my car has been burning oil since i got it
Incident date: Aug 7, 2021
my passenger airbag lights have been on for months .. cannot remove also my car has been burning oil since i got it
Incident date: Jan 8, 2022
Warning light to secure vehicle against rolling when placed in park. Alert of a danger situation.
Incident date: Dec 1, 2021
There is a warning light of airbag. But it havent reported when i purchased by a previous owner and carfax as well
MINI
COUNTRYMAN
(2020) - TIRES
Dec 23, 2021
Incident date: Dec 22, 2021
225 /45 R19 Uneven wear of the tires. Excessive wear inspite of brand new vehicle, 2 wheel alignments done on the vehicle in an attempt to stop the excessive wear of the tires. The Front right side tire collapsed causing my car to veer into a curb. The other three tires have less than 20% thread and the mileage in the vehicle is only 9000 miles. The vehicle was purchased new In June 2020 and came ... Read more
MINI
COOPER CONVERTIBLE
(2005) - STEERING
Dec 21, 2021
Incident date: Nov 29, 2021
My son drives this car and the power steering went out twice on him while driving. I need to get the pump replaced via the recall, but the nearest location is 200 miles from me. It is not safe to drive this car that far and I would have to drop it off and make another trip to pick it up. Towing that far would cost a small fortune. I called every number and was transferred to several people to help... Read more
MINI
COOPER CONVERTIBLE
(2005) - STEERING
Dec 17, 2021
Incident date: Dec 17, 2021
The contact owns a 2005 Mini Cooper Convertible. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V660000 (Steering). The contact stated that while her son was driving at an undisclosed speed, the power steering assist failed. The dealer was made aware of the recall but informed the contact that they do not service recall repairs. The nearest dealer that was able to service the recall... Read more
Incident date: Dec 15, 2021
Unable to fill gas as pump repeatedly shuts-off while trying to fill and would even over flow out of the filler neck. Tried 2 different pumps at local QT without luck.. Drove up to local Phillips 66 with exact same issue. Found several other owner with similar issue and found the following Service Bulletin posted on "NHTSA": https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2015/MC-10147283-9999.pdf My vehicl... Read more
MINI
COOPER COUNTRYMAN
(2012) - ENGINE
Nov 17, 2021
Incident date: Nov 9, 2021
The contact owned a 2012 Mini Cooper S Countryman. The contact stated while she was at a standstill in traffic, she saw smoke exiting from under the hood. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to park on the emergency lane and exit the vehicle before the vehicle was engulfed in flames. The contact did not sustain any injuries nor seek medical attention. A police... Read more
Fire
Incident date: May 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2009 Mini Cooper S. The contact stated that an airbag warning light would intermittently flash on the instrument panel. The contact also stated that the passenger’s side airbag would remain off with or without a passenger seated in the passenger’s side seat. The dealer had been notified of the failure and informed him that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The contact wa... Read more
Incident date: May 1, 2021
The contact owns a 2009 Mini Cooper S. The contact stated that an airbag warning light would intermittently flash on the instrument panel. The contact also stated that the passenger’s side airbag would remain off with or without a passenger seated in the passenger’s side seat. The dealer had been notified of the failure and informed him that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The contact wa... Read more
Incident date: Nov 5, 2021
My 2003 Mini Cooper was affected by the 2015 electrohydraulic steering assistance recall. Mini did the repair at 79, 322 miles in 2016. In November 2021, at 98, 000 miles, the car began having intermittent power steering loss. The power steering might disappear for under a minute, or it might return for mere seconds. There is no warning when the power steering goes out, so you have to assume th... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2021
Took car into mini dealer for clunking noise problem. Dealer indicated motor mounts were cracked and needed to be replaced. Another customer at dealer was also having motor mounts replaced. His car was also 4 yrs old with 32K miles on it. Mount replacement was not covered under warranty as the car was 4 yrs and 3 months since warranty was activated and coverage ended at 4 yrs.
Incident date: Nov 11, 2021
The lighting and small system computer or FRM module. This module controls any features including safety features on the car. Also known as the footwell module. After having AAA install a new battery within days the widows would not go down my turn signals, hazard lights, dash lights, courtesy lights, tail lights, horn, high beam headlights and possibly airbags don’t work. Mini will fix the prob... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2021
The lighting and small system computer or FRM module. This module controls any features including safety features on the car. Also known as the footwell module. After having AAA install a new battery within days the widows would not go down my turn signals, hazard lights, dash lights, courtesy lights, tail lights, horn, high beam headlights and possibly airbags don’t work. Mini will fix the prob... Read more
Incident date: Nov 11, 2021
The lighting and small system computer or FRM module. This module controls any features including safety features on the car. Also known as the footwell module. After having AAA install a new battery within days the widows would not go down my turn signals, hazard lights, dash lights, courtesy lights, tail lights, horn, high beam headlights and possibly airbags don’t work. Mini will fix the prob... Read more
MINI
COOPER CLUBMAN
(2010) - EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Oct 29, 2021
Incident date: Oct 27, 2021
I bought the car used 10 days ago, 3 days ago, the electrical indicator flashed, so I parked the car. I thought it was a glitch. It was very rainy. I woke up the next morning and it had spontaneously combusted on the inside driver's footwell, obvious flames had been on windows and whole car reeks of smoke. I cant even get inside of the car with the physical key. I could have been inside when the c... Read more
Fire