Handbrake failure on my two week old cooper.s

[Gary.J]

Picked up my cooper.s just over two weeks ago now brand new 06 reg, and two days ago after driving around for a an hour or so went back home and parked it outside my house. (This is the 1st time I had parked on the road its normally on the drive ) To cut a long story short 45 mins later I had a knock at the door to say my car had rolled down the road into a van. Nobody was hurt but my car needs a new bumper and I cant drive it because the bumpers been pushed onto my back wheel.

Went down to the BMW garage the next day and they told me that i must not of applied the handbrake correctly, but surely if this was the case it wolud have rolled straight away not after 45 mins, and when i got back in my car the handbrake was still on. It weren't untill i done my research that I found out it was a common fault with the mini. Went back to the garage with this info and they have told me the fault had been corrected in 2002. Obviously not! Has this happened to anyone else in the last couple of years??? And does anyone have any advice?

[Gary.J]

someone plaese help.....

[MINIAC]

Faults & Fixes forum titles for handbrake failure showing threads

[bimini]

havent experience failure, but mine is not tight...i suspect they didnt adjust it when the rear pads were swapped for JCW's.

[DaFlake]

Sorry to hear that and I am glad that nobody was hurt, but you are going to see a lot of folks stating that you should have had the car in gear to prevent this. This is one of those grey line situations that is hard to determine who is at fault. Good luck...

[minicabrio]

Indeed it is not an uncommon fault. The problem arises when the handbrake is applied while the brakes are hot. As the brakes cool, they contract and thus the handbrake literally looses its grip.

Luckily its never happened to me (touch wood), but after seeing a few cases of it on here, I got myself into the habit of leaving The Minx in gear.

[Xena]

Quote: Originally Posted by Gary.J

Picked up my cooper.s just over two weeks ago now brand new 06 reg, and two days ago after driving around for a an hour or so went back home and parked it outside my house. (This is the 1st time I had parked on the road its normally on the drive ) To cut a long story short 45 mins later I had a knock at the door to say my car had rolled down the road into a van. Nobody was hurt but my car needs a new bumper and I cant drive it because the bumpers been pushed onto my back wheel.

Went down to the BMW garage the next day and they told me that i must not of applied the handbrake correctly, but surely if this was the case it wolud have rolled straight away not after 45 mins, and when i got back in my car the handbrake was still on. It weren't untill i done my research that I found out it was a common fault with the mini. Went back to the garage with this info and they have told me the fault had been corrected in 2002. Obviously not! Has this happened to anyone else in the last couple of years??? And does anyone have any advice?

Hi Gary

I had the same problem 2 weeks ago - mine isn't brand new but an Sept 04' plate.

The dealership told me that there is not a fault with my car but I have 2 witnesses who checked the handbrake, before me, and it was fully on.

As far as I can make out, your brakes heat up then you apply handbrake, they then cool down and 'off goes your car - on a mini adventure of its own!'...

L

[roland2003]

I do notice that the Mini's handbrake ratchet clicks are quite widely spaced ; in other words when you apply the handbrake lever , it drops slightlty to the 'first available click'. To get onto the next click is quite a bit more pull on the lever. If on a hill make sure you get it onto that 'next click'.
Best Regards Roland Gt Tuning.

[stevesace]

if you left it in gear, and with the wheels pointing to the kerb, it wouldn't have happened whether or not the handbrake is faulty, which is not a common thing now.

[rellik666]

Last year I had left my 03 mini one on a slight incline whilst I went to get fish and chips. I went into a spar to get some drinks, and then into the chippy. It must have been about 15 mins after I parked my car, I saw it reversing down the incline into a parked car. At first I thought someone was stealing it. Fortunatly it only rolled a few yards and the car it rolled into was old and beat up and no one was hurt although I think that if I had got to it in time I would have tried to stop it!

It cost me a new rear bumper. The hand brake was still on.

I have a MCS now it is also an 03 car, and we have an inclining drive. It is always left in gear!

The weirdest thing was the car park was full, and there was someone waiting to take my car parking spot, who thought I was just leaving. The lack of reversing lights or DRIVER didn't give it away!

[MINI-LOVER]

had the same problem with my '05 MCS. left my car parked, 1st in, handbrake on.
20 mins later, i hear my alarm go off, and find my Mini crashed into a fence, look inside and the gear wasnt in, handbrake wasnt enough to stop it.
learned the lesson the hard way, 1st always in (completely...), and wheels pointing to the sidewalk

[aslan0r]

stupid question, but if u always leave the car in gear (opposite direction to the incline), even if the handbrake fails will the car remain stationary.

or move a metre or so then stop?

[DaFlake]

Quote: Originally Posted by aslan0r

stupid question, but if u always leave the car in gear (opposite direction to the incline), even if the handbrake fails will the car remain stationary.

or move a metre or so then stop?

Not a stupid question at all. With the car in gear, the vehicle will move a little (probably like an inch or so) if the hand brake fails. This is due to the fact that the car is trying to roll thus also turning the engine which is not an easy thing to do. So, by leaving it in gear it reduces the risk of a run away car. Also, by turning your wheels towards the curb, you will force the car to roll onto the curb and thus further help stop the car from moving.

[wow]

Gary J the same thing happened to my Brothers Black MC yesterday. His bumper has minor damage but it is still damaged dur to the faulty hand brake. I have an appointment with BMW South Africa on Wednesday. They will replace the bumper if the damage is caused by a faulty handbrake. So I better have a good case against them.

I had a 2002 Cooper and it rolled as well. I was lucky with that one because I jumped into the car and pulled up the hand brake. So BMW tightened my handbrake.

Now I have a 2005 Cooper S and it is always in gear!!

[markie.b]

same problem with mymin one.car is 2 weeks old+has spent one of those@ manchester airport.25/30 mins after getting home from holidaycar is left on my drive[v~slight incline] ilook out to find car against cottage wall opposite.dealer has booked car for checks but obviously nothing will be found.damage to bumper rear wing +light cluster.body shop reckon 1300+quid.salesman isavoiding my calls.ref to leaving cars in gear my prev 5cars have all been bms discs all round never left any in gear.if mini brake is weak then why have they not been properly modded/sorted.this has spoiled myrelationship with newmin.any ideas on pressing bmw fortotal cost of repairs.