2008 MINI Cooper S recalls and problems

The 2008 MINI Cooper S has 4 recalls and 168 owner complaints on file with NHTSA; the most reported problem area is engine.

2008 Mini Cooper S
Photo: 2008 Mini Cooper S by Calreyn88, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
How the 2008 compares
Fewest complaintsMost complaints

High complaint count among 21 Cooper S model years — 6th most.

4recalls
168complaints
1crashes
10fires
3injuries
53,600median miles

Owner complaints filed with NHTSA, not verified and not adjusted for sales. Ranking compares this model's own years only.

Does your car have an open recall?
Recalls apply to specific vehicles. Only a VIN lookup on NHTSA's official site shows whether yours is affected and still unrepaired.
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4 recalls

Electrical System

May 11, 2023 · NHTSA campaign 23V337000 · 97,933 vehicles

Problem: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2008-2014 MINI Clubman Cooper, Clubman Cooper S, Clubman John Cooper Works, and 2007-2013 MINI Hardtop 2-Door Cooper, Cooper S, and John Cooper Works vehicles sold, or ever registered, in Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Washington D.C., and Wisconsin. The electronic control module in the driver's side footwell area may short-circuit, due to corrosion from water and road salt.

Risk: An electrical short-circuit can increase the risk of a fire.

Remedy & notes

Dealers will inspect the sunroof drains, interior footwell area, and FRM and, depending upon the results of the inspection, certain components will be replaced. Owner notification letters were mailed May 13, 2024. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-866-825-1525.

Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov.

Engine

Apr 18, 2018 · NHTSA campaign 18V248000 · 47,806 vehicles

Problem: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2011-2012 BMW 550i, 550i xDrive, 550i Gran Turismo, 550i Gran Turismo xDrive, 750i, 750Li, 750i xDrive, 750Li xDrive, 760Li, X5 xDrive50i, X5 M, X6 xDrive50i, X6 M, ActiveHybrid7, MINI Cooper S Convertible, John Cooper Works (JCW) Convertible, Cooper S Countryman, Cooper S Countryman ALL4, Cooper S, JCW, Cooper S Clubman, JCW Clubman, Cooper S Roadster, JCW Roadster, Cooper S Coupe, JCW Coupe and Rolls-Royce Ghost, 2011 BMW X6 Hybrid and 2012 BMW 650i Coupe, 650i xDrive Coupe, 650i Convertible and 650i xDrive Convertible vehicles. The electric auxiliary water pump may fail and cause the circuit board to overheat.

Risk: If the circuit board were to overheat, it can increase the risk of a fire.

Remedy & notes

BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the electric auxiliary water pump, free of charge. Depending on the model, there are currently limited parts available, however not all parts are available at this time. Owners will be notified of the recall beginning June 11, 2018, and will receive a second notification when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact BMW customer service at BMW 1-800-525-7417, MINI at 1-866-825-1525, or Rolls-Royce at 1-877-877-3735. Note: BMW recommends that owners park their vehicle outdoors until the recall remedy has been performed.

Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

Engine

Jan 11, 2012 · NHTSA campaign 12V008000 · 90,368 vehicles

Problem: BMW is recalling certain model year 2007-2011 MINI cooper s, 2008-2011 MINI cooper s clubman, 2009-2011 MINI cooper s convertible, 2009-2011 MINI cooper jcw, 2009-2011 MINI cooper jcw clubman, 2009-2011 cooper jcw convertible, and 2011 cooper s countryman passenger cars manufactured from November 14, 2006, through January 18, 2011. The electric auxiliary water pump that cools the turbocharger has an electronic circuit board that can malfunction and overheat.

Original NHTSA wording

BMW IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2007-2011 MINI COOPER S, 2008-2011 MINI COOPER S CLUBMAN, 2009-2011 MINI COOPER S CONVERTIBLE, 2009-2011 MINI COOPER JCW, 2009-2011 MINI COOPER JCW CLUBMAN, 2009-2011 COOPER JCW CONVERTIBLE, AND 2011 COOPER S COUNTRYMAN PASSENGER CARS MANUFACTURED FROM NOVEMBER 14, 2006, THROUGH JANUARY 18, 2011. THE ELECTRIC AUXILIARY WATER PUMP THAT COOLS THE TURBOCHARGER HAS AN ELECTRONIC CIRCUIT BOARD THAT CAN MALFUNCTION AND OVERHEAT.

Risk: The circuit board May smolder which could result in a vehicle fire.

Original NHTSA wording

THE CIRCUIT BOARD MAY SMOLDER WHICH COULD RESULT IN A VEHICLE FIRE.

Remedy & notes

BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the water pump free of charge. The safety recall beganduring February 2012. Owners May contact BMW at 1-866-275-6464.

Owners May also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to <a href=http://www.safercar.gov>http://www.safercar.gov</a> .

Engine

Dec 12, 2008 · NHTSA campaign 08V657000 · 28,450 vehicles

Problem: BMW is recalling 28,450 my 2007-2008 MINI cooper s vehicles. The centrally located tailpipe extension protrudes slightly beyond the rear bumper. It is possible for inadvertent contact to occur with a person's leg.

Original NHTSA wording

BMW IS RECALLING 28,450 MY 2007-2008 MINI COOPER S VEHICLES. THE CENTRALLY LOCATED TAILPIPE EXTENSION PROTRUDES SLIGHTLY BEYOND THE REAR BUMPER. IT IS POSSIBLE FOR INADVERTENT CONTACT TO OCCUR WITH A PERSON'S LEG.

Risk: If the tailpipe extension is hot during inadvertent contact, a burn could occur.

Original NHTSA wording

IF THE TAILPIPE EXTENSION IS HOT DURING INADVERTENT CONTACT, A BURN COULD OCCUR.

Remedy & notes

Dealers will replace the tailpipe with a new shorter tailpipe free of charge. The recall is expected to begin during January 2009. Owners May contact BMW at 1-866-275-6464.

Customers May also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to <a href=http://www.safercar.gov>http://www.safercar.gov</a> .

Recall text as published by NHTSA and the manufacturer.

What owners complain about

Owner complaints filed with NHTSA; one complaint can name several areas. Not verified by NHTSA.

Complaints by year filed

2008: 5 complaints20082009: 8 complaints2010: 12 complaints20102011: 15 complaints2012: 23 complaints20122013: 31 complaints312014: 19 complaints20142015: 19 complaints2016: 14 complaints20162017: 7 complaints2018: 4 complaints20182019: 4 complaints2020: 5 complaints20202023: 1 complaints2024: 1 complaints20241

NHTSA investigations

Engine compartment fire

PE11036 · opened Oct 11, 2011 · closed Jun 11, 2012 · led to recall 12V008000
Summary

In a January 10, 2012 letter to NHTSA, BMW of North America, LLC. (BMW) submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) identifying a defect in the electric auxiliary water pump in approximately 88,911 model year (MY) 2007-2011 Mini Cooper vehicles manufactured from November 14, 2006 through January 18, 2011 (Recall 12V-008).According to BMW, the auxiliary water pump on vehicles equipped with 4-cylinder turbocharged engines may overheat.Electro-migration can cause the pump electronic circuit board to overheat resulting in smoldering of the water pump. If smoldering occurs, it may lead to an engine compartment or vehicle fire.The pump supplier, Pierburg Pump Technology GmbH, redesigned the pump to address factors that may contribute to circuit board overheating.The redesigned pumps were completely implemented in production vehicles by January 2011.Recall 12V-008 was the third recall initiated by BMW to address electric auxiliary water pump fires in vehicles equipped with Pierburg pumps.In two October 20, 2011 letters to NHTSA, BMW submitted DIRs for similar auxiliary water pump defect conditions in approximately 32,084 MY 2008-2011 BMW 5-Series, 7-Series, X5 and X6 models equipped with 8- and 12-cylinder engines and manufactured from May 2008 through December 2010 (Recall 11V-521); and for approximately 589 MY 2010 Rolls-Royce Ghost vehicles manufactured from September 2009 through September 2010 (Recall 11V-522).In three separate April 5, 2012 letters to NHTSA, BMW submitted amen…

EXHAUST PIPE BURNS

EA08020 · opened Aug 29, 2008 · closed Jan 2, 2009 · led to recall 08V657000
Summary

BMW WILL CONDUCT A SAFETY RECALL (08V-657) ON 28,450 MINI COOPER S VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM NOVEMBER 18, 2006 THROUGH JULY 8, 2008.DEALERS WILL INSTALL MODIFIED EXHAUST PIPE TIPS THAT DO NOT EXTEND BEYOND THE REAR BUMPER.THE TWO EXHAUST PIPE TIPS OF THE SUBJECT VEHICLES EXIT THE UNDERSIDE OF THE VEHICLE AT THE CENTER OF THE VEHICLE AND EXTEND BEYOND THE REAR BUMPER.THE COMPLAINANTS REPORTED BEING BURNED ON THEIR LEGS WHEN THEY INADVERTENTLY TOUCHED THE EXPOSED HOT EXHAUST PIPE TIPS WHILE REMOVING ITEMS OF CARGO FROM THE REAR OF THEIR VEHICLE VIA THE HATCH BACK DOOR.SOME COMPLAINANTS REPORTED BEING BURNED ON MORE THAN ONE OCCASION OR THAT OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS WERE ALSO BURNED.THE 50 INJURIES REPORTED IN THIS INVESTIGATION INCLUDE SIGNIFICANT SECOND DEGREE BURNS CAUSING BLISTERED AND SCARED SKIN AND ONE INCIDENT RESULTED IN A THIRD DEGREE BURN.THIS INVESTIGATION ALSO RESULTED IN AN INITIAL DECISION OF A DEFECT.FOR INFORMATION REGARDING THE INITIAL DECISION AND DETAILS OF THE INVESTIGATION SEE DOCUMENTS, INRM-EA08020-31646.PDF (INITIAL DECISION LETTER) AND INIR-EA08020-31648.PDF (INITIAL DECISION REPORT), IN THE INVESTIGATION FILE.THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.

2008 vs. other MINI Cooper S years

Owner complaints by model year; the darker bar is the 2008. Click a bar to switch year.

Questions

Does the 2008 MINI Cooper S have recalls?

Yes — NHTSA lists 4 recall campaigns covering the 2008 MINI Cooper S, the latest from May 11, 2023 (electrical system). A recall applies to specific vehicles: enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see whether yours is affected and still open.

What are the most common problems with the 2008 MINI Cooper S?

Owner complaints filed with NHTSA most often mention engine (120), air bags (30), power train (9). Complaints are consumer reports and are not verified by NHTSA.