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2005 Mini Cooper S Recalls & Complaints

2

open safety recalls on record

Serious

383 owner complaints filed · Severity Index 0.44 · updated 2026-08-07

The recalls

Serious15V205000

Air Bags:Frontal

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 & full details

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.

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.

Serious15V660000

Steering:Electric Power Assist System

If the vehicle experiences a loss of power steering assist, extra steering effort will be required at lower speeds, potentially raises the risk of a vehicle crash.

Remedy & full details

MINI will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the electro-hydraulic power steering system, replacing the components and wiring, as necessary, free of charge. Interim notices were mailed to owners on December 10, 2015. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525.

BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2002-2005 MINI Cooper and Cooper S vehicles and 2005 Cooper and Cooper S Convertible vehicles. The affected vehicles may experience temporary or permanent loss of the electro-hydraulic steering assistance.

Complaint volume

383 this model-year 6 median, same year

Volume alone is not a fault rate — popular vehicles attract more reports. Read it next to the severity mix below.

What owners reported happened

8Crashes
31Fires
7Injuries
3Deaths

Across 383 complaints. Severity Index 0.44.

Severity Index weights each complaint's reported outcome (death ×10, injury ×4, fire ×3, crash ×2) and divides by total complaints. It measures how severe reports are, not how often faults occur.

What owners report most

Steering205 · 54%Air Bags62 · 16%Electrical System22 · 6%Air Bags · Frontal11 · 3%Power Train10 · 3%Seats8Engine8Engine And Engine Cooling6
  1. Steering — 205 reports
  2. Air Bags — 62 reports
  3. Electrical System — 22 reports
  4. Air Bags:Frontal — 11 reports
  5. Power Train — 10 reports
  6. Seats — 8 reports
  7. Engine — 8 reports
  8. Engine And Engine Cooling — 6 reports
  9. Unknown Or Other — 6 reports
  10. Steering:Hydraulic Power Assist:Pump — 5 reports

What to do

  1. Find your 17-character VIN on the driver's door jamb or the base of the windscreen.
  2. Check it against NHTSA's official lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls — the authoritative record for your exact car.
  3. Book the repair with any franchised dealer. Safety recall work is free, with no time limit and regardless of who owns the car now.

Other model years

2002 (1) · 2003 (2) · 2004 (2) · 2005 · 2006 (1) · 2007 (4) · 2008 (4) · 2009 (3) · 2010 (4) · 2011 (3) · 2012 (2) · 2013 (1) · 2014 (4) · 2015 (4) · 2016 (3) · 2017 (3) · 2019 (1) · 2020 (2) · 2025 (3)

Numbers in brackets are open recall campaigns for that year.

Questions

Does an open recall mean the car is unsafe to drive?

Not usually. NHTSA issues a "do not drive" or "park outside" advisory when a defect is dangerous enough to keep you out of the car — those are flagged Critical above. Everything else should be repaired promptly but is not an immediate stop-driving order.

Do I pay for recall repairs?

No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to fix a safety recall free of charge, including parts and labour, whether or not you are the original owner.

Why are there complaints but no recalls?

Complaints are unverified reports filed by owners. They can prompt an investigation, but many never become recalls — either the fault isn't safety-related or it isn't widespread.

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