U.S. public vehicle records

2006 Mini COOPER S CONVERTIBLE: complaints, problems and recalls

Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.

Key facts

36 owner complaints analyzed

1 distinct recall campaigns

63,500 mi median reported failure mileage

Scope: 2006 model year. Data snapshot: 2026-09-12 (September 12, 2026). 34 complaints include usable failure mileage.

Owner-reported patterns

Most common problems

Air Bags is the most frequently named component, appearing in 17 of 36 complaints (47.2%). A complaint can name multiple components.

Recurring terms in complaint narratives
Topic	Matching reports	Share of complaints
Steering behavior	5	13.9%
Transmission and shifting	4	11.1%
Braking behavior	3	8.3%
Engine operation	2	5.6%
Electrical and battery issues	1	2.8%

Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.

Component breakdown

Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.

Air Bags

Seats

Power Train

Steering

Engine

Engine And Engine Cooling

Seat Belts

Electrical System

Air Bags: 17; Seats: 6; Power Train: 5; Steering: 5; Engine: 3; Engine And Engine Cooling: 3; Seat Belts: 3; Electrical System: 2

Reported problems by failure mileage

Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.

Under 25,000

25,000 to 49,999

50,000 to 74,999

75,000 to 99,999

100,000 to 149,999

150,000 and above

Under 25,000: 2; 25,000 to 49,999: 7; 50,000 to 74,999: 12; 75,000 to 99,999: 10; 100,000 to 149,999: 3; 150,000 and above: 0

50,000 to 74,999 miles has the most reports with usable mileage (12). 2 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.

Complaints over time

Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2011: 4; 2012: 5; 2013: 4; 2014: 5; 2015: 12; 2016: 2; 2017: 2; 2018: 1; 2019: 1

Pattern summary

Air Bags leads the component reports. Steering behavior appears in 5 complaint narratives. Transmission and shifting appears in 4 complaint narratives. Braking behavior appears in 3 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.

Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.

Examples from the source records

Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.

Owner report 10380360 · 2011-01-28 (January 28, 2011)

THE POWER STEERING WOULD STOP AND IT BECAME HARD TO TURN AND STEER. IT CAME BACK ON AND HAS DONE THIS SEVERAL TIMES OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS. IT EFFECTS STEERING WHEN GOING SLOW MORE THAN FAST. IT DOES NOT SEEM TO FAIL UNDER ANY SPECIFIC CONDITION, IT WILL JUST STOP AND AFTER AWHILE IT WILL COME BACK ON.

Owner-reported narrative. 74,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10380360 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10396311 · 2011-04-12 (April 12, 2011)

2006 MINI COOPER S. CONSUMER STATES VEHICLE SOMETIMES STALLS AND STOPS WHILE DRIVING *TGW THE DEALER INFORMED THE CONSUMER THAT MISTAKES WERE MADE IN REPROGRAMMING THE VEHICLE. THE DEALER STATED THE ENGINE WOULD MISFIRE, BUT THEY ASSURED THE CONSUMER THE PROBLEM WOULD BE CORRECTED BY CHANGING THE SPARK PLUGS. ALSO, THE ELECTRONICS SYSTEM WAS DEFECTIVE, WHICH CAUSED THE NAVIGATION SYSTEM TO GIVE FALSE DIRECTIONS. THE ABS, ENGINE AND STABILITY CONTROL LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. THE CONSUMER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER FOR THE NECESSARY REPAIRS. TH…

Owner-reported narrative. 34,156 miles reported. Look up ODI 10396311 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10423907 · 2011-09-06 (September 6, 2011)

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 MINI COPPER S CONVERTIBLE. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 45 MPH THE VEHICLE DECELERATED AND THE INSTRUMENT PANEL LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE OVERHEATED AND STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE CONTACTS HOME. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 51,000.

Owner-reported narrative. 51,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10423907 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10435626 · 2011-11-14 (November 14, 2011)

THE PASSENGER SEAT AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT IS ON ALL THE TIME, INDICATING LESS THAN 25 LBS IS ON THE SEAT, EVEN THOUGH THERE IS NOTHING ON THE SEAT. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 60,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10435626 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10445955 · 2012-01-30 (January 30, 2012)

PASSENGER AIRBAG LIGHT IS ON EVEN IF LESS THEN 25 LBS IS ON THE PASSENGER SEAT. *TT

Owner-reported narrative. 40,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10445955 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10446011 · 2012-01-31 (January 31, 2012)

WHILE DRIVING MY 2006 MINI COOPER CONVERTIBLE THE POWER STEERING FAILED WHILE MAKING A TURN ON THE OFF RAMP OF THE HIGHWAY. THE PASSENGER AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT STAYS ON INDICATION THAT THE AIRBAG IS NOT TURNED ON. *TT

Owner-reported narrative. 53,650 miles reported. Look up ODI 10446011 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10450809 · 2012-03-08 (March 8, 2012)

THE PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF LIGHT CAME ON WITH NO ONE IN THE SEAT, WHEN ADULT SAT DOWN THE LIGHT DID NOT GO OFF. ALSO THE AIRBAG FAULT LIGHT CAME ON. THE SEAT BELT WARNING LIGHT DOES NOT COME ON WHEN PASSENGER DOES NOT BUCKLE SEAT BELT. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 62,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10450809 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10453479 · 2012-03-29 (March 29, 2012)

MY 2006 MINI COOPER S HAS A DEFECTIVE PASSENGER SEAT AIR BAG SENSOR, I WAS QUOTED $1200 TO REPLACE IT. THIS IS THE EXACT SAME PART THAT BMW RECALLED IN 2008. BMW RECALLED AROUND 150,000 VEHICLES IN NORTH AMERICA TO FIX A POSSIBLE DEFECT THAT MAY KEEP THE FRONT PASSENGER AIRBAG FROM OPENING IN A CRASH, THE RECALLED CARS INCLUDE 2006 3-SERIES, 2004-06 5-SERIES AND 2004-06 X3 VEHICLES. MINI USES THIS SAME RECALLED PART BEING MADE BY BMW, YET HAS NOT RECALLED THE PART. I KNOW MANY PEOPLE THAT HAVE HAD THIS PART REPLACED AT THERE OWN EXPENSE SEVERAL…

Owner-reported narrative. 85,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10453479 at NHTSA ↗

Recall history

1 distinct campaigns affect this selection. Announcement dates below are different from vehicle model years. A campaign may cover multiple years.

15V205000 · Air Bags:Frontal

Reported: 2015-04-06 (April 6, 2015)

BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2005-2006 MINI Cooper and Cooper S vehicles manufactured January 5, 2005, to November 28, 2006, and 2005-2008 MINI Cooper Convertible and Cooper S Convertible vehicles manufactured January 5, 2005, to July 31, 2008. Due to manufacturing, installation, and exposure issues, the front passenger seat occupant detection mat may not function properly and, as a result, the front passenger air bag may not deploy in a crash.

Consequence: An improperly functioning mat may cause the passenger frontal air bag to be inactive when the seat is occupied, and in the event of a crash, the air bag will not deploy, increasing the passenger's risk of injury.

Remedy: MINI will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger seat occupant detection mat, free of charge. The recall began on October 12, 2015. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525.

NHTSA campaign record ↗