I have been having issues when my petite wife sits in the passenger seat. Basically I get the airbag is turned off light do to seat sensor malfinction. Took it to Mini they told me it was a bad seat sensor and was going to run $800.. mind you I now have 103k on the odometer (CPO) and this is a special order part. Has anyone else had this issue and any luck getting Mini to cover something that just went off warranty? Thanks

 

It's been recalled, depending on your production date. What do you have? Also, if you have to fix it yourself, file a complaint/issue with NHTSA and maybe the recall will be expanded in the future. Then you can probably get a reimbursement for your repair. Just remember to keep your receipts.

 

Awesome thanks for the info.. build date 1/19/2011

 

I found the recall but it looks like it is only for the 05-06 coopers.. did you see one specific for the CM?

 

Go to MINIUSA.COM and register your CM by VIN. If there is a recall you will be notified.
Like so many recent low mileage NAM posters there's no mention as to what MINI you have. It's hard to give a reasoned response not knowing what year and type MINI. Was a time the first thing most folks did was built a 'signature' with that information in it so you don't have to write it down every time you have a question. (See below)

 

Some owners have been able to negotiate a goodwill coverage for an out of warranty repair, or a discount (e.g. pay only for labor). Call the toll-free MINIUSA customer service number or talk with your dealer and see if they could help you out. At 103K miles it isn't a case of "just went off warranty" but you might get consideration because it's a safety issue. btw, if there was an outstanding recall the dealer would have handled it (as required by law).

This is the Countryman subforum and he said CM and build date of 1/19/2011. What else do you want to know?

 

Thanks for the info, I will give them a call and see if there is anything they can do.. as for just off warrenty to me it is only because it was a CPO car and I drive 150 miles a day or so for work so I missed out on it by 20-30 work days..

As for the signature... I tend to always be on here with my phone and the mobile version does not support signatures.. or at least I have never seen them with the mobile version of the site.. anyways I will add one shortly..

Thanks again!

 

If you'll go back to post #1 and read that you will understand why I posted what I did. The lack of pertinent information in the original post is a common affliction hence my suggestion for signature building. It removes all doubt. It took the OP two posts to provide model and build date. Just sayin'. Some people look at helpful suggestions as negative criticism, one of the great shortcomings of this type of communication. Also, it is not uncommon for folks to post in unrelated forum sections. This one is listed as 'Fixing Problems and Issues', no mention of CM.

 

The build date wasn't there when I replied, but you are correct. I didn't notice what forum this was in because I was just focusing on the thread title and found it in my new posts listing. Because a lot of members probably do the same thing, I've seen many threads started in the wrong forum. Fly'n Brick's suggestion of including relevent info in the post is a good one. There's an option to view signatures, or not, so it's easy to miss what model or year the issue applies.

 

The top of the webpage shows the full path of this thread:
North American Motoring > MINI Countryman > Fixing Problems and Issues > Passenger seat sensor (airbag)
It's under the Countryman subforum.

This is getting off-topic, but... I hate signatures.

I'm active on a number of forums. When I read a thread, I just want to read the conversation. Once a thread has more than a few posts, the signatures get in the way, like opening a webpage with a lot of ads. Especially if it's a long thread, I don't want to see over and over and over again that this person has a Chili Red with aero kit and 17% pulley, accompanied with a photo. I might tolerate it if the forum software would only display a signature once and not repeat on the same page. As it is, signatures can easily take up more space on the screen than the actual thread conversation.

Therefore in all of the forums I follow, I have signature display turned off in my settings. When I open a thread, I don't see anybody's signature. More information about a member is a click away if I want to look. BTW, I also have avatar display turned off. It just adds to the noise.

That said, your general point is valid. Many posters neglect to include relevant information.

 

What precipitated my post in the first place was to offer information on the recall notice for the '05 - '06 sensor failures. I got interrupted for a mo then came back, scrolled down to refresh my perspective and then noticed the third and fourth posts identifying it as an '11 CM making my original idea moot hence the secondary suggestion of an ingenious solution. Forums are interesting communities in several ways.

 

Just wanted to give an update.. I ended up getting the dealership to pay for the labor and I paid for the part.. I am pretty happy with that considering I was just off warranty. I will also add that I ended up having another problem while I was waiting for the part to come in so I am not sure if that also played a role but either was had a great experience with MAG Mini in Ohio.. either everything is good now and back in my CM :-)

 

Thanks for the update , so they just replaced the lower seat pad or the OCC sensor.

 

Yep

 

Thanks, so the sensor and the pad together ?