Problems · NHTSA complaints
2018 MINI Cooper problems
Owners filed 6 complaints about the 2018 MINI Cooper with NHTSA between Mar 2018 and Jan 2023. The most-cited component is electrical system (2).
Complaints
6
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
3
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
3
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
Complaints by component
One complaint can cite several components
- Electrical system2
- Air bags2
- Engine1
- Service brakes1
- Structure1
- Other / unknown1
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Oct 28, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
When complaints were filed
Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
2
1
0
1
1
1
View as table
| Model year | Complaints filed per calendar year |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 2 |
| 2019 | 1 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 1 |
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 1 |
Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.
Top problems in owners’ words
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
Electrical system
2 reports
“UNKNOWN Driver side tail light socket. All lights stopped working. Took out the socket and the wiring harness connector burned up”
Air bags
2 reports2 crashes
“MY 2018 MINI COOPER COUNTRYMAN S WAS INVOLVED IN A FRONT END COLLISION WITH ANOTHER DRIVER WHO WAS TRAVELING AT APPROXIMATELY 50-60MPH. WE WERE TRAVELING APPROXIMATELY 13 MPH AT TIME OF IMPACT AND THE FRONT, KNEE OR SIDE AIR BAG(S) DID NOT DEPLOY. I HAVE A VIDEO OF THE ACCIDENT AS A DASH CAM WAS IN PLACE AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT.”
Engine
1 report
“Took car into mini dealer for clunking noise problem. Dealer indicated motor mounts were cracked and needed to be replaced. Another customer at dealer was also having motor mounts replaced. His car was also 4 yrs old with 32K miles on it. Mount replacement was not covered under warranty as the car was 4 yrs and 3 months since warranty was activated and coverage ended at 4 yrs.”
Service brakes
1 report1 crash
“FEBRUARY 21, 2019 I WAS PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE AND THE BRAKES TEMPORARILY FAILED. WHEN I PUMPED THEM A SECOND TIME THEY CAME TO A STOP, HOWEVER BY THEN THE CAR AND I HAD GONE OVER A HEDGE AND SIDE SWIPED A TREE. BMW NORTH AMERICA COULD NOT FIND ANY WARNING ON MARCH 11, 2019 WHEN THEY REVIEWED THE SYSTEMS, NO WARNINGS AT ALL, NO AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. I WAS TURNING IN TO A FAMILIAR PARKING LOT AT A SLOW SPEED.”
Structure
1 report1 crash
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 28, 2026
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.