[joeben]

2003 with cvt 58000 miles ok so far knock on wood but more concerned about going on weekend backroad trips after reading about failures

[bljppi]

My first mini, a 2004 MC CVT, now my son's, has 120,000 fun and sporty miles on it. Been up Moiunt Washington 4 times with Mini's on Top.
Great car so far. New Mini is a 2007 S auto.

[Sejanus]

Thanks for joining our little experiment folks.

[cafemoc]

Just sold 03 CVT with 86,500 ml, got me a 08 WRX 5 Door.

I missed my CVT with all fun memories.

[oldmots]

minitoo,
Thanks for the information. The procedure sounds like it would be better to just let the dealer do it if fluid temp is involved. If the temps are wrong, the fluid level can be wrong. Since its difficult to get the car raised and level in my driveway, it keeps me from doing the procedure well.

[Aurel]

Quote: Originally Posted by cafemoc (original)

Just sold 03 CVT with 86,500 ml, got me a 08 WRX 5 Door.

I missed my CVT with all fun memories.

I traded in my 03 CVT as well 2 months ago, right before my warranty expired, for a Mazda3 hatch ... got a really great trade in price that could not pass up and with all the bad news on the CVT decided to cash in my chips.

It was a rough first few weeks without my MC, but the Mazda has proven to more than I thought and then some ...

The Clubman might sway me back though next year ...

[nonsequitur]

Quote: Originally Posted by Aurel (original)

...and with all the bad news on the CVT decided to cash in my chips.

I read this as a good man who enjoys cars, trading around to keep that experience fresh. Absolutely no problem with that, nor with having concerns about the equipment, but there's no added rationalization needed to trade a car at nearly 50,000 miles.

I must say that I just don't hear or see "all the bad news".

There's good work invested in this thread. It was put together by one of the best people we have in the Forum. Thanks to all who are helping figure out this question.

[JEFF10049]

Ok just did the 60K service and sent off the oil sample. CVT is working flawless.

Jeff

[nonsequitur]

Would you come back with the results of the tests when you've finished? It would be interesting to see if anyone here can interpret them because the lubricant put into the CVT isn't really "oil". There are people at ZF to ask.

[JEFF10049]

Quote: Originally Posted by nonsequitur (original)

Would you come back with the results of the tests when you've finished? It would be interesting to see if anyone here can interpret them because the lubricant put into the CVT isn't really "oil". There are people at ZF to ask.

The results will only show wear metals and breakdown of the oil not what it is made of although I did have them reserch it and it is one of a kind. Nonthing else is the same but there are two other oils that should work . One was a cvt fluid out of japan might even be better and the other GM saturn CVT fluid not as good as the esso by mobil but it would work. I just by the esso from the dealer. It's a interesting fluid it has to lube while also transfering toruqe between the belt and and pullys. I can scan and post the wear metal anylissis when it gets here.

Jeff

[nonsequitur]

Can't ask for more than that... Thank you. It will be interesting to see what may be caught up in the fluid. It is a very special stuff.

[jswain]

Our CVT failed at around 70,000 miles, Cost us $7000 for a new one. Now it over revs with slight petal pressure.

[ontheroadagain]

I'm very sorry to read this. I can only imagine how angry I'd be. Can you tell us what year your MINI is?

[collibosher]

2003 Mini Cooper with 113,000. I am very upset to learn that my CVT transmission is dying. A drone type whirring noise has been getting louder and louder. Needs complete replacement of the CVT, estimated cost $7500!! This absolutely should be a recall, as all CVT owners will experience this failure sooner or later! This transmission was deemed experimental and we were all the guinea pigs for this multi million dollar company! I wrote MINI a scathing letter, I suggest others do so as well. Any other course of action that we could pursue? I live in NJ and found this pertaining to NJ Lemon Law:

New Jersey Lemon Law 56:12-44 Inherent design defect.

A manufacturer shall certify to the division, within one year of discovery, the existence of any inherent design defect common to all motor vehicles of a particular model or make. Failure to comply with this constitutes an unlawful practice pursuant to section 2 of P.L. 1960, c. 39 (C. 56:8-2).

I'm pretty sure MINI knew of this design defect.

[Sejanus]

Quote: Originally Posted by collibosher (original)

2003 Mini Cooper with 113,000. I am very upset to learn that my CVT transmission is dying. A drone type whirring noise has been getting louder and louder. Needs complete replacement of the CVT, estimated cost $7500!! This absolutely should be a recall, as all CVT owners will experience this failure sooner or later! This transmission was deemed experimental and we were all the guinea pigs for this multi million dollar company! I wrote MINI a scathing letter, I suggest others do so as well. Any other course of action that we could pursue? I live in NJ and found this pertaining to NJ Lemon Law:

New Jersey Lemon Law 56:12-44 Inherent design defect.

A manufacturer shall certify to the division, within one year of discovery, the existence of any inherent design defect common to all motor vehicles of a particular model or make. Failure to comply with this constitutes an unlawful practice pursuant to section 2 of P.L. 1960, c. 39 (C. 56:8-2).

I'm pretty sure MINI knew of this design defect.

Not to say that your CVT shouldn't have lasted longer, but I doubt anything that lasted over 100,000 miles is going to be considered an official lemon. As for whether we will all experience this, well I suspect every part will eventually wear out, the question is will we all experience a premature failure of the CVT? So far, to the best of my knowledge, not a single one of the 20 or so CVT MINIs that have signed on in this thread with a working CVT have come back and reported a failure. Perhaps not enough of us have driven far enough yet.

[collibosher]

Quote: Originally Posted by Sejanus (original)

Not to say that your CVT shouldn't have lasted longer, but I doubt anything that lasted over 100,000 miles is going to be considered an official lemon. As for whether we will all experience this, well I suspect every part will eventually wear out, the question is will we all experience a premature failure of the CVT? So far, to the best of my knowledge, not a single one of the 20 or so CVT MINIs that have signed on in this thread with a working CVT have come back and reported a failure. Perhaps not enough of us have driven far enough yet.

Well I hope you are right for everyone's sake. I have read auto reports in the past stating these types of transmissions were considered experimental and were surprised MINI were implementing them. I was an optimist though! But, things just aren't built to last these days!! 113,000 miles is a lot but an $8000 bill is ridiculous, it's almost what the whole car is worth, all for a transmission replacement that is going to give me trouble again down the line. Had I been in an accident and it was that much damage, it would have been totaled!

I guess the thing that also irks me is, is that I took so much care of this car. I have had EVERY scheduled maintenance and then some, performed religiously. I've never treated a car so well, or spent so much money on maintenance in my life, to be honest! Not like my old Honda Civic and CRX where I never changed the oil, never checked the fluids, never bothered with anything really (I was really young!) and nothing ever went wrong with these machines!! My friend has an old 1991 Honda Civic Hatchback with an insane amount of miles, this guy beats the hell out of the car, it's been in two accidents already and never been serviced in the 2 years he's had it and it's still going strong!? Which leads me to my next point:

If these MINIs are wearing out this fast, they will certainly not gain any reputation for being reliable cars. The above mentioned Honda is 16 years old and never needed it's transmission rebuilt or replaced! My MINI is a 2003 and it made it to 2008, despicable. It's also curious that in 2007 MINI stopped using and implementing CVT transmissions for good.

Sorry, everyone for venting, I'm just a little upset now.. I do wish everyone the best with their CVT MINI...

[Sejanus]

I'd be upset in your place as well. To me it does seem like the CVT's are a bit fragile if nothing else and the cost of replacing them is really too expensive, especially if they really do have a limited life span.

[whiteyanderson]

hello. been around awhile but, this is my first post. 2003 R50 CVT with just over 38k on the odometer. i am the second owner. not sure how the first owners treated it but, the car was in immaculate condition when i purchased it. so far it has been flawless for me. i worry sometimes but, i did get an extended warranty which will cover the car until 2012. but, knowing insurance companies, i am trying to stuff some emergency MINI money away.

first thing i did when i bought it was the inspection 1 service and had the tranny fluid changed. i then added a megan catback exhaust and an AFE cold air intake. they really helped sort out the stumble on take off. i don;t drive it too hard but, i like flipping over to SD a lot.

the car drives really nice. one thing i seem to notice with the CVT problems i have read is that they DON'T mention that the CVT was maintained. i have a feeling that they are under the assumption that the fluid never needs changing. i'm a little bit of a worrier so i plan to change it every 12 months. luckily i have an independent MINI specialist who charges decent prices.

[Sejanus]

Thanks for joining our little study. As for maintenance, sadly I'm afraid a good number of the people who have experienced failures followed the servicing schedule, which includes changing the fluid.

[MiniDad08]

Greetings:

We have an 05 R50 with 11,500. No problems here. Purchased it new in June 2005. This is a great thread which I will follow as time goes by.

Considering the relative complexity of the CVT fluid change as described in the Bentley manual (as found in this thread), I really wonder how many so called expert Mini mechanics may have not completed the change properly causing the very problem you are trying to avoid. It is easy to see why one might overfill if the proper warm-up etc, is not followed. Overfilling just as in the case of engine oil can be just as bad as too low of fluid.

You can bet that I will be quizzing my Mini dealer (Classic Mini) about which procedure they follow. The wrong set of hands can easily do more harm than good. I, know,....my one Mini dealer did not even seat the oil filter properly at the first oil change. When I drove it home, oil leaking onto the garage floor. The quick and easy method of drain and fill with CVT's may put money into a flat rate mechanics poket.....but it will certainly end up taking it out of yours in the long run...

Regards,
Jeff