Hello, Rob here....

Im a new Mini owner, purchased an used 2005 Cooper about two months ago and I love it! All was going well untill a few weeks ago; I started having problems with 5th gear.
The problem is that when I would shift into 5th, it would pop back out of gear and make a grinding noise. It continued to get worse and is now doing the same thing in 4th gear.
I have parked the Mini untill I can figure it out and correct the problem.
Has any one had this problem? Im thinking it has something to do with the shift cables....

 

Your shift linkage could be bent, but it sounds more like a bad synchro in the transmission.

 

Would be nice to know if this is 5 or 6 speed.
Need to give as much info as you can for people to help you with problem.

 

It is a 5 speed, and the previous owner had put a new one in a few months before I purchased the car. Thanks for the reply.

 

I agree that it sounds like synchros have gone out.
Positive way to check it, drain transmission oil and look for metal pieces in the oil.
The R50 is fitted with the 5 speed Midlands transmission that is not very dependable or reliable after 50K.
If your transmission is shot, I would recommend installing a 05/06 Getrag 6 speed transmission instead of another Midlands.

 

Aren't the 05/06 R50 5 speed Getrag?
I read on another board the change was with the July 04 builds.

 

I'm almost positive they are still Midlands.
Won't swear on a bible on it but will check my Bentley manual on it.

 

Thanks again! Going to have it checked out in the morning....

 

Midlands until 7/2004
Getrag 5-speed from 7/2004 - 9/2006.
They take different gear oil, too - (ask me how I know).

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ion-fluids.pdf

 

Thank you for info on transmissions.

 

Oh well, metal in the gear oil, I’m thinking my next step is to contact the BMW shop that the transmission was purchased from and see if it is under warranty.
Also I did a little more research and found that after July 2004, the getrag five speed gear box was used. My Mini was built in April 2005.

 

It seems really weird to have a bad transmission if it was just replaced. I would also check to see if the previous owner replaced the clutch as well. I had the same problem minus the grinding part on one of my trucks and it was just the clutch.