Please please please please please post photos!!!!!!!

 

Well, I got my car back yesterday morning... this thread's been fascinating.. I, too, would love to see pictures of the inside of the transmission.

Had my situation been a bit different, I may well have tried to track down something from a salvage yard.. but, Baby's is the only car I have available to me... I can't go for more than a few days without a means of transport.. thankfully, last week I had a loaner car from the dealer while she was in the hospital. (A convertible no less!)
Anyhoo, I'm quite satisfied. In fact, they even got the price down to 2600. So, while I want to see a lot more data on how long a mini will last before I buy another one, I just want to take a moment to say thanks to Tate Mini of Annapolis for the work. I was just about floored when he told me the final price... it was almost half of what I was expecting to pay, even with the first discount mini was offering me.

 

Glad that it was less then you expected and that you are pleased with the outcome.

I think if it were me I'd be frustrated in that I couldn't help but think there was something defective in the tranny in the first place to break like that though. Many newer auto trannsmissions of all sorts seem to last forever, certainly into the 100ks, are the CVTs less robust, are they surprised it failed or do they think its the type of usage that contributed to early failure? That sort of thing - why did it fail and is that expected, use/abuse or defective?

However it is good that it worked out and that you are happy

 

PS: What kind of warranty do you have on the new tranny, for how long/many miles and does it cover parts and labor?

 

$2600!! That's a transmission rebuild anywhere on most cars, it is nice to hear that BMW/MINI can stand behind their product and sounds like you have a good dealer. I seem to hear mostly negatives on these websites. This is quite a change.

 

Excellent final result. Well done Tate MINI.

 

Hmm... as for the warranty on the new tranny, the service sheet just has the boilerplate 12 months, 12,000 miles warranty on the parts...

but I could'a sworn that when I was on the phone discussing the price, he said it was 2 year warranty on the transmission only. Don't quote me on that though... I apparently don't have it written down anywhere. (stupid, stupid, stupid)

Yeah, I'm definitely NOT getting a warm fuzzy feeling on CVTs... I still want to see a comparison of how CVTs hold up compared to manuals and normal automatics.

 

A friend has had more than one (manual) MC transmission replaced - the last was just days within the *two* year warranty of the previous replacement (outside the car warranty) and was covered.

 

I have a CVT Cooper with 45,000 miles and no problems, yet. I did drain out some of the "mystery fluid" the factory had put in and replaced a pint with synthetic engine oil. This was at least three months ago. I figure mechanical failure will be caused by over-temp, lubrication break down, or partical contamination. I learned about automatic transmissions after one failed me shortly after a divorce (no money to pay for someone else to do it). I drive my CVT car like a mad man, and I'm sure the belt slips when taking off hard, but That's fine, as long as that doesn't cause damage. I have increased the power output of my engine, so I'm testing it. I would rather let the belt slip than break, so I'm for slippery and heat-resistant oil. When this trans fails, I will do it myself, because I'm pretty sure I'm the poorest man in this street. I will be writing again soon if I find a way to change the filter. ZF wasn't counting on people like me, and I will find out what lacks, then find a better way. I am disappointed in all the transmission failures on these cars. Getrag and ZF both used to build good stuff. -Jeffy.

 

I have recently obtained a 2002 MC with a bad CVT. The CVT was fine up to 110k miles. Then it made some horendous grinding noise and the original owner decided the dealer cost of $7K+ to fix was too much. I am not certain of the fluid changes done, but can say that it made it to 110k, and would guess it was changed less than recommended over the past 40k miles. It was possible to drive it slowly before I started in on it.

I am in the process of disassembling to remove. I find the Bentley Manual instructions a bit too thorough - e.g. remove axles completely vs popping them out of the tranny.

I could really use some information on the shortest path to change it out - I am in Minnesota, it's winter, and the garage is cold. Also a line on a used one with low miles, I do have the option to buy a reman from BMW, but I'd prefer to keep the cost down. -David

 

I have an '03 Mini CVT only 11,500 miles- noticed a small stain on my garage floor took it in to Prestige Mini NJ and was told my transmission valve "seal" was leaking. They gave me a loaner for 2 days(those guys are great) and took care of the problem. I just wanted to add it to this post as when I did a search for anyone else having this problem I couldn't find anyone. The fluid would not even have been noticable on my driveway(it's a red color) and I am just glad I spotted it in the garage. They told me it is unusual, but assured me all is now well. I hope so!!!

 

well i just bought a 2003 mini with an automatic tranny ( so im guessing that implies its the dreaded CVT?) for $2k and was looking on information as to what the problem could be. glad i found this forum with its wealth of information. from the sounds of it this particular transmission did well, holding out to 108K miles, sounds like most mini trannys only last 50k or less. well my issue is that it wont shift out of first. period. it has automatic and manual mode. ya know where youslap the stick forward/back to shift up/down (respectivly) but it will not shift in either mode. any knowledge by any1 out there?

 

Dreaded CVT is in the MINI Cooper; MINI Cooper S has the trouble free Aisin 6 speed. The best preventive maintenance for the CVT seems to be regular fluid changes, those that haven't had those seem prone to failure.