Tracking CVTs

[Drewuk]

Cooper S models have a standard auto gearbox and not the CVT.

Drew :-)

[evielea77]

Thanks for that I have been looking for ages.

Well mine is as good as a choclate fire guard. I have now rejected the car. Not sure if its the car or the dealer who tried to fix it. But after getting back last last Wednesday it went again on the Saturday. This is my third Mini Cooper S, needed automatic, wish I had stayed with the manual now.

Don't think I will be buying another auto mini.

[GizzmoGeek]

I have a 2002 Cooper CVT. Just topping 134k miles. Two days ago it starting making a whirring noise in the transmission. Got it checked yesterday. They say it's "probably" belt in the transmission and they suggested that I "hope that it goes away" as there is nothing they can do but replace the transmission for $8600 or something. I'm quite devestated. I had some glimmer of hope that maybe it would be okay and just be noisy for a while, but I started searching the MINI2 forums and heard how many people have had their CVT Transmission take a dive so much earlier than mine. It's quite sad as I LOVE my car. I'm practically in tears over the thought of having to get a new car. Right now, their suggestion is to drive it until it dies on me and then buy a new car. I'm completely bummed right this minute. I'm still hoping and praying that the sound goes away, although I'm not quite that naive.

[Sejanus]

I'm really sorry to hear that. Can I ask though, if worse comes to worse, why is it better to buy a new car for $15-20K than replace the transmission?

[GizzmoGeek]

I'm not sure it is better to buy a new car than replace the transmission. I'm very much struggling with that decision right now. They are quoting about $8700 from the dealer and about $7 from another repair shop to replace the transmission. The '02 transmissions are known for failure, I think I'm lucky in getting 135k out of it. The car, according to blue book, is worth like $6k trade-in on a good day. I'm concerned what will go wrong next after I replace the transmission, as maintenance for the MINI is very expensive. I've loved my car dearly for the last 7 years but it's not cheap to maintain by any stretch. So the question is, if I replace the transmission, how long will it last and will anything else go wrong shortly thereafter? A new car at least comes with a longer warranty. It's a complete conundrum for me. I have no idea what to do but want to spend my money wisely and not just flush it away. It's all that much harder because I've taken very very good care of this car and I love it so. Therefore, to answer your question, I don't know what the correct action should be, buy or fix. I'm completely stumped but I have just a few days to decide.

[Sejanus]

Well for what it is worth I started this thread (and another one on the "other" site) to keep track of CVTs that were working fine to see how many might fail over time. It has been about 2.5 years, we've had 35 MINIs check in and so far to the best of my knowledge only one has failed. Others may have failed of course and not checked back in, although people tend to post when they have a major problem like that. At 134K miles you have one of the highest mileages, but Willy had 189,000 as of April and there are a few others at over 100k. Based on that and the fact that the failure of manual transmissions is hardly unknown around here I'm not convinced that CVTs are particularly prone to failure. I think the real problem is that when they do break down they are quite expensive to replace, since MINI is unable or perhaps unwilling to do anything but replace the whole unit.

I've always found it more economical to fix a car than buy a new one, even when the repairs are quite expensive. The turning point for me is when I don't feel like I can trust the car to be reliable for day to day use. At that point it might still make more sense financially to fix the car, but it's too much of a hassle to deal with.

[GizzmoGeek]

Thanks, I greatly appreciate your opinion. I agree with you, I naturally tend to fix cars instead of replace. I spoke with another service center, British American Autoworks, who also do work on MINI's. They used to repair (break open and fix) the CVT transmissions but they gave it up and now just replace them. I found that rather interesting. The new MINI's all have the regular 5 speed automatic and no longer carry the CVT, that gives me hope that repairing one of them wouldn't be quite as difficult as it's proven technology. I've been out to drive a Toyota Matrix, Subaru Outback Sport, and several different Mazda 3's but none of them are cranking my tractor. I'm going to test drive a new MINI this evening. There's a good chance I may end up with a new MINI by the time I finally finish all my test driving. I keep coming back to the fact that I like it so much more than the others, the other cars at this point would be "okay" as in I can live with it where the MINI is "awesome" to drive. So, unless I really don't like driving the new one (doubtful), there's a solid chance I'll be owning a second one. :-)

[Sejanus]

So now the question is how much can you resist loading up the new MINI with options? You do know the S comes in automatic model these days as well right?

[GizzmoGeek]

Ahahaha. Options I'm all for. Bluetooth and iPod adaptors required, along with warm rear ends, super sound system and a sunroof. However, don't need the extra speed the S offers. I drive my regular Cooper plenty fast. I don't think I need the extra incentive or the cost. Tempting, but nah. I'll stick with putting the money saved from the S into extra options instead.

[Sejanus]

You are far more sensible than I would be if I was getting a new MINI. Let us know what you end up with.

[GizzmoGeek]

Update on the MINI... I ordered my new MINI on Saturday. Horizon Blue, White Top/Mirrors, White Racing Stripes, MINI Hardtop. Premium, Sport, Cold Weather, Automatic. Upgraded Sound, Bluetooth, iPod Interface, etc. All spiffy and awesome like. On order. Should arrive... eventually. Now all I have to do is wait patiently. MINI of Towson is offering a decent trade in for my vehicle so I can't complain at all. They have always been very very nice and easy to work with. Now that I'm over the fact that I'm spending a fortune on a new car, I'm quite excited by the entire thing.

[Sejanus]

Good to hear. Congrats on the new MINI/.

[Sejanus]

Well my MINI passed 100,000 miles the other day and still no CVT issues, so this seemed like a good time to take another headcount of those of you who are still around on MINI2 and TotalMINI. By my last reckoning we've had 35 CVT MINIs sign up and only one reported failure from among those cars. That seems pretty good to me. It'd be great if folks would check in again with the current mileage of the MINI or let us know if they have experienced any CVT problems.

'02 CVT 100,000 miles, no problems

[Sejanus]

I must sadly report that our farthest running CVT (Willy's) failed just a day or so ago at 198,000 miles.

[valnmike]

Quote: Originally Posted by Shep (original)

Hello again all you fellow CVT owners! It's been a long time since I posted on the CVT threads.
Max is now over 6 years old. His CVT is running very well. But he only has 25,000 miles under his bonnet, and he complains about lack of enough exercise. I no longer commute to work--that's why.
He had his 25,000 service just last month. I specifically asked for the CVT fluid to be changed. When I examined the hard-to-understand bill carefully, there was no mention of it being done, so I checked, and indeed they had forgotten it. If I had not caught this error, Max would have gone 50,000 miles before getting the CVT fluid changed, which I am sure is not a good idea.
This was just a human error at a normally good dealer. But I urged them to institute a procedure to be sure not to leave things out of servicings--it could be disastrous for someone someday.

The original service requirements did not call for the CVT fluid to be changed. MINI changed the requirement and many shops have not gotten that message (check the MIMI.com web site manitanance links). If this was a MINI dealer though, they have no excuse for forgetting your fluid change.