When I called the dealership in my area ( I live in Montreal btw) before my cvt failed, I asked a rep how much a transmission fluid change would be and was told adamantly that they don't change the fluid, it's good for a lifetime. Meanwhile another dealership told me that they charge about 175$. So that goes to show that some mini reps don't even know what they're talking about.....

The best part is when I called back that 1st dealership after my cvt failed I was told that they change about 1 tranny a month and that they are very problematic.... I was also told that they do not rebuild the cvt, they just buy a new one and install it.

Anyhow, mine is being worked on now and should be ready early next week. Looks as thought it was just the chain that broke and no other damage. Seems a little weird cause before it failed the car was a little jerky... Don't know if the chain is capable of doing that??

Hopefully it runs smooth without any issues when I get it back.

 

Good luck with the rebuild. And I'd used the very, very best full synthetic fluid in there and change it out every 30,000 at a minimum. Maybe more often.

 

It shifts great, but then again, it did before, too except for a whirring noise. I asked the shop, "how could this happen?" And his response, was "Bad luck. I've never seen one of these go out (referring to a complex looking part he was showing me the wear marks on). What is the "very best" fluid? Believe me, I will use it.

 

Check with Mini first. See what they specify. If it's a proprietary lube, then use it. It's likely a full synthetic anyway. Just change it more often. If they specify something generic, pay attention to the specifications that describe the approved fluid and then find a full synthetic from Amsoil, Redline, Mobil, etc. Amsoil and Redline make the very best lubricants in my book. And if you're not sure which of their products to use, simply have the oil specs in hand when you call them.

Best of luck to you and your transmission.

Oh, and you might consider selling the car at some point while it's still running.

 

I just changed the fluid in mine and used http://www.waymotorworks.com/redline...ion-fluid.html Shifts better than before. I will be using this every time i change the fluid in mine.

 

I am in the same boat. My pristine 02 Cooper's CVT went out in November and no one wants to help me with it unless I pay $6000-$10K to fix it. The car isn't even worth that much. The dealership told me to junk it and buy a new one. Gee, great idea, I'll just buy another piece of crap that Mini won't stand behind. I want to convert it over to a manual transmission but the guys at Way Motor Works are harder then hell to get a hold of and won't return my calls or emails so I don't know what to do. I love the car dearly and I put over $1200 of maintenance in to it before it failed. Please! If anyone out there knows of another shop to deal with on converting the cvt to a manual I would greatly appreciate the info. HELP ME!!!!

 

I literally called a ton of transmission shops in my area and asked them if they've had any experience with cvt transmissions, you should do the same. Once you find someone go to their garage and try to get a feel for them, the shop I found actually had a mini cvt that he had previously worked on and showed me how it works. Find someone that'll do a decent job for a fair price and then get rid of the car, at least that's what I'm gonna do.

 

What do you mean "went out". Does it move at all?

 

Nope, I'm not even allowed to start it. It "went out" a mile from the dealership and had to be towed there. They drained the fluid from the trans and pieces of the trans fell out so they put them in a baggie and gave them to me.

 

MBisco- I tried calling around and I had people even hang up on me when I asked about replacing or rebuilding the CVT. Or they would say "I will call you back" and never would. I am so frustrated! I know that converting it to a manual can be done and I found a company that does it but they will not return my calls. What is with these shops??? I have money and it's like they don't want it or something. Like I said I am just so frustrated.

Also, getting rid of the car is not an option. I have put way too much in to it and I love it.

 

I know man.... It sucks bad...
It's understandable that a transmission fails but it's not normal that they fail out of the blue and so early and definitely not normal that it is this expensive and difficult to fix.

I don't know what to tell you, I guess I'm lucky that we have a few shops in Montreal that deal with cvt's.

 

Sounds like the belt broke. your best bet on contacting Way is to pm him here or on Facebook. he's formally prompt to return msgs must be busy.

 

It doesn't help you today, nor did it help me when my dealer offered me $2000 for my car on trade-in (worth $10-12,000 retail) and I then had to fork out $2900 for a rebuild, but I would refer you to http://www.topclassactions.com/lawsu...ction-lawsuit- where you can read the class action suit against BMW MINI. The law firm handling it will take your information and stated it takes one to three years to settle such a suit. When you read the complaint, you will certainly feel, "I am not alone." http://baronandbudd.com/areas-of-pra...ooper-lawsuit/

 

To Champagne4Amy -- I asked the dealer about converting to a manual transmission, too, and he said with the modifications you would have to make, it would probably cost a bit more than replacing the automatic transmission (dealer quote to me for that was $7400). You also lose cruise control. He said, and I would concur, that that is a solution for someone who works on his own car and can do it himself -- not practical for those of us who have to pay someone to do it for them.

 

Should read "dealer would not repair, only installs units rebuilt by other parties (reman)". In some cases with mechanical things, sometimes breakage is catastrophic and an entire unit is required, in that case you are making out by having them take your core.

I had a mustang we road raced and tore the crap out of the 5 speed, the only thing they kept was the case . Gear teeth were embedded in the input shaft teeth among other failures and metal was circulated.

Good luck. I have been servicing a friend's older father R50 and see I should look at changing the fluid. '04 with 30kmiles. No tranny issues yet.

 

The dealer told me the remanufactured units they installed had different fluid from the original (also different friction material -- whatever that is -- and solenoid valves). They also told me, when asked, could not changing the fluid at 30,000 miles have caused this, "I don't know." The dealer does NOT like to talk about these transmissions.

 

My guy called me today and said that i have a pulley that is not working properly also.... Looks like he has got to wait for the piece to come in and i'll hopefully get the mini back Monday.

 

Fingers crossed, then. Any idea what this is going to cost you?

 

Looks like its going to cost me around 2500$...... Which isn't as bad as other but still very annoying....

 

$2500 is a lot of money. I have NEVER spent that kind of money on any American or European car (Volvo, Volkswagen, Fiat, MG, Triumph, Austin Healey) I have owned and I have owned 15 cars. The van in my driveway has 168,000 miles on it and we've only had the transmission fluid changed, maybe three times? So your $2500 and my $2900 are shocking numbers to me, especially in view of the low mileage (53,600, in my case) but do some research, there are plenty of people who have been forced to spend $8,000 and more. Since a car that doesn't drive is worth virtually zero . . . what can you do?

 

After it's fixed, sell as soon as possible to minimize losses and eliminate risk.

 

Definately not a "lifetime" fluid. MINI tech once told me there is a MINI service bulletin which states to refresh with new fluid evey 35K miles....thing is after replacing the some 5 litres of fluid, the trany and computer for it has to be recalibrated. So additional labor is involved with a CVT flush besides just changing it.

 

Why should I not assume the problem is fixed with a rebuilt transmission? I have a 12,000 mile, 12 month warranty on the transmission.

 

Hey guys, its been a long time and i wanted to update everyone.

#1) I still don’t have the car back..... the mechanic is taking his time which at first i was ok about, now i'm getting a little annoyed...I told him he didn’t have to rush since i have 2 cars but this is a little longer than i had anticipated. My car is definitely not his first priority.

#2) I spoke to him last Thursday and he told me that he had replaced a pulley and the chain but for some reason the transmission would only stay in the low ratios??

Has anyone dealt with this before?

He said he'd have to look into it a little further so i decided i'd look into it also.

If anyone knows what may be causing the transmission to stay in low gears please let me know. Like i said the chain and a pulley have been changed...

Any help would be great!

 

I can't help on any of the mechanical aspects -- sorry -- but I guess I would be wanting the mechanic to give me a number on a worst case scenario (i.e., rebuilding the whole thing) at this point. I know that when my transmission was rebuilt the transmission mechanic (Advanced Transmission in Mauldin, SC) took it to the MINI dealer to have the computer reset. Could that be part of it?