I have this on my 2006 S. Purchased 4/06.
I think you should change the title of the thread. It seems to still be an issue.
We haven't been back to the dealer yet, but I expect no trouble from them. Hendrick Mini of Charlotte, NC.
I think when I am there, I'll ask a salesman to let me see some of the test vehicles and I'll check them, too. Won't this be fun??!!!

 

Here’s another place to look for rust, this is on the floor board under the carpet padding, behind the passenger side seat.

 

Rust is like cancer.... Just when you think it is taken care of... it pops up somewhere else.... Out of curiousity, what year is the car in your photo? Also, any details (garaged vs. parked outside; Texas car vs. somewhere else, and, and, and...) about the car?

 

Hey Guys, not be stupid here but I've been tugging fairly hard on my early build '06 rubber and it is resisting. I'd hate to break a glue seal or something if Mini made some running changes to the installation. Any ideas?

 

Had same feeling on my brand new '06, but it does come off (no glue seal). Goes right back on. Good thing I checked - was wet under there! Dried it out and will most likely need to do it every so often as it does not look like moisture is staying out of it. No rust though!!

 

Wne to my dealer Sat. The SA and tech said they never saw this problem before and were unaware of BMW having any involvement with this issue. I mentioned this NAM thread and they were unaware of NAM The SA suggested I take photos and send them to the dealer manager who will forward them on to BMW regional for evaluation. I also asked for a pressure wash and rust inspection. SA said this was not anything the dealership has ever done and is not necessary under the warranty It may be time to trade in on a Buick.

 

Find a new dealer if you don't get proper attention to this!!

 

I think it is time to find a new dealer period. I personally wouldn't let that dealer even wash my car.

 

Just because the service department never heard of NAM????

 

Well, also for this reason:
Somewhere up in this thread (I am too lazy to find the exact post number), the regional service manager for MINI was going to raise this as a service item to publish to the dealers. Either the regional service manager was lying; or, the SA at that particular dealer is clueless. I hope it is the SA being clueless, as I would be troubled that the regional service manager for MINI was lying.

But then again, if the SA never heard of NAM, they should be fired for ignorance....

 

I checked mine 2 months ago. They had a bit of rust, but nothing scary.

I used sandpaper to remove the rust, and then applied 3 coats of touch-up paint.

Problem solved!

 

Did you etch the area (that you sanded/had the rust) with something like phosphoric acid after the sanding (but before painting)? If not, keep a close watch on the area you painted - the rust will return.

 

You should use a coat of bare metal primer on the sanded area before applying the touch-up paint over that.

 

This may because of the seals along the back windows. Just the other week I found the one behind the drivers side pushed down and i am almost convinced that if the seal pushes down that easily that it is not truly sealing.

 

I just want to say that if the SA at your dealers are the same as mine then this is the case as to why they are clueless...1. They move them from car type to diff car type too much 2. They dont give a sh** and lie 3. They dont care about their customers......Just to vent a little more...When I bought my Mini I asked a ton of questions to the sales rep and she didnt know about 90% of them. She was always asking the other reps etc....I am sorry she was on the job for 7 months and didnt know there was a website for the local club...even though the dealership has events there for the club etc...It just seems when we get someone who knows the cars or cares what the customer thinks they get moved or let go or they find a better home where they will be appreciated by their employer...Remember BMW is usually kissing the customers A** but in the end it still come down to the benjamins.

 

once you have rust it virtually will never go away..especially with sandpaper..sand blasting maybe but the reaction has already begun.

 

What is a yearly underbody flush?? something to get at dealer?
sounds nice

 

Well, if you can get to the rust at a molecular level, you can stop the rust. Dilute phosphoric acid is one approach that has been used with good success at stoping rust. The challenge is being able to get access to the rust in the early stages.

 

use a paint like Rustoleum. They encapsulate the rust, convert some, and keep moisture and air away from the metal. There are a lot of encapsulating paints....

Matt

 

that claims to convert the rust into inert iron particles.... Although my personal preference is to treat the rust with dilute phosphoric acid followed with a rust inhibiting primer (I used zinc chromate, but there are replacements available) and then color coat it. With that model, I have been able to successfully stop the rust from returning (~10 years) unless the painted area was re-exposed (rock impact from the wonderful roads in the S.F. bay area).

 

I think POR is a better product than Rustoleum. A wonderfull mag, skinned knuckles, did a comparo where some guy in New Hamshire tested a bunch of different products, and left them outside for a year or so.

I didn't find a website for them, but here's a link to subscriptions...
http://www.mysimon.com/Automotive/90...mlpid=21437066

They cover stuff going back to brass era cars! Not glossy, but an excellent read none the less

Matt

 

So, any consensus on what should be done with a new car? Wait or take preventive measures? I just picked up my '06 MCS last night, and I'm inclined to treat it with POR-15 ASAP to prevent any problems. I don't like the idea of waiting for rust to appear, and then having it repaired.

 

If you don't have rust present (but you still have the un-painted sheetmetal), you could treat it with a rust preventing primer and color coat. I think that POR-15 actually needs some rust to be present so that it can bind itself to the rust (after converting the rust to inert iron)....

 

Im about done with my dealership. Ive drove up to My dealer twice (80 miles round trip.) and nothing is going to be done about the rust. I was told "If I repair the rust myself, I will void the rust warranty." I said to myself, If there is a warranty to void, why the hell dont they repair it I keep getting the run around. I was told the RSM must see the problem. I was told twice he was there and when I get up there, he is gone. Now Im told to call back every week to see if he is up there I showed one of the mech. over there and I was shocked at what he said after he saw the rust. He said "Whats the big deal? All cars rust. Ive owned 2 MINIs and Im sure they had rust." I was told that they will NOT do anything till MINI gives them the ok. By then, my poor MINI will be a rust bucket... Im just going to fix the problem myself and be done with it......Out of all the cars Ive owned, MINI has had the worst customer service Ive seen. Its not like Im asking to fix my engine after its been modded. I have a MINI that is rusting in a place I feel it should not be rusting. Just for the hell of it, I removed the lower door sill cover off my 88 Mitsubishi Cordia. (My daily driver.) and guess what, No rust... My MINI is only driven on nice days and the only time it gets wet is when I wash it. I would hate to see what it would look like if I left it in the rain all the time. Here in Florida, It rains just about everynight during the summer.

 

SSMini, sorry to hear about your problems. My dealer took care of it ASAP.

The only problem I've found with the fix is that it's probably going to happen again. They ground down the rust and painted over the metal from the outside. The inside of the metal sill is still bare and I still see water getting under the weather strip. I'm not sure if it makes it to the bare metal but it definitely gets close. I'll keep tabs on it for the next year or so and then decide what to do about it.