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What 10 owners told NHTSA about the 2017 Mini Hardtop 4dr

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (10)Crash / fire / injury (1)Engine (4)Electrical system (2)Transmission & drivetrain (2)Airbags (1)Backup camera & sensors (1)Brakes (1)Fuel system (1)Lights (1)Seats (1)Tires (1)

Newest first · 10 complaints

May 29, 2026Transmission & drivetrainElectrical systemEngine

My vehicle has active VANOS failure codes (131401 and 130304). These codes are preventing my car from passing the New York State safety and emissions inspection, rendering it legally unable to be used on the road. BMW/MINI Corporate is refusing to honor their national extended component warranty bulletin because they are conditioning the repair on a valid registration - which is a legal impossibility while the defect remains unaddressed.

NHTSA ODI 11740812

Jul 30, 2025Engine

The motor mounts have been replaced twice in the last six years and per the dealer, This is normal which I find very hard to believe on a 2017 Mini Coop of convertible, with 90,000

NHTSA ODI 11677354

Jul 9, 2025Electrical system

The contact owns a 2017 Mini Cooper. The contact stated when the vehicle was started, the vertical aim headlights malfunctioned. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was confirmed that rodents had chewed through the insulation around and the electrical wires. The contact was informed that the insulation was made of soy, which attracted the rodents. The contact was informed that the electrical wires needed to be replaced. The vehicle was being repaired. In addition, the contact stated the repair had occurred previously and the current issue was the second occurrence. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue but provided no assistance. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000. The VIN was unavailable.

NHTSA ODI 11672201

Apr 3, 2025Engine

My 2017 mini coupe has 70,000 miles on it. I’ve had it 11 months… I was in a drive-through and it started making a hard knock sound no engine light or any other lights came on the vehicle. I had it towed to a shop where they informed me my engine was blown and it would cost $16,000 to replace the engine. My oil level was perfect. I reached out to Carvana. I missed my warranty by five days and they will not do anything about it. There is no reason why a car with 70,000 miles on it. The engine should be blown.

NHTSA ODI 11652692

Mar 10, 2025SeatsFuel system

there is a leak which affected the control unit fuel pump. the leak is ongoing throughout many of these cars yet there has not been a recall to fix it. more than $3k in damages. It's something a modern car should not be facing.

NHTSA ODI 11647364

Aug 21, 2024Transmission & drivetrain

2017 Mini Cooper - Selector Lever Magnetic Shift Interlock Mechanism

NHTSA ODI 11610080

Oct 30, 2023AirbagsCrash

Driver left the roadway to the outside of a curve to the left, sideswiping a telephone pole and spinning at least one time back onto and off the roadway again before coming to rest. Impact to the passenger front wheel, and entire passenger side, without impacting front or rear end of the vehicle. C pillars deployed, as well as seatbelt pretensioner. Impact was at 55+ mph. No air bags deployed. Dash now indicates fault or error in air bags.

NHTSA ODI 11552767

Oct 9, 2023Tires

Driver side front tire collapsed on side wall while driving. 4 days later the passenger side tire also collapsed while driving almost causing accident. Tires are relatively new installed in May 2022 and have only 14,500 miles of use. Losing TWO (2) tires the same week for sidewall failure is very very odd and pissible indicator of tire defect Barum Bavuris 5HM 215/35 17 size

NHTSA ODI 11548959

Jun 12, 2023Backup camera & sensors

The contact owns a 2017 Mini Cooper. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle a round quarter sized image was displayed in the in the center of the customer display screen and while the backup camera was activated the image caused a visibility hazard to the driver. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The contact was informed of the Manufacturer’s Extended Service Campaign regarding the failure however, the contact was informed that the VIN was not included. The failure mileage was 35,000.

NHTSA ODI 11526526

Apr 13, 2023LightsBrakesEngine

1. (Lighting) The front lights of the car kept turning off and on. We would always go to the repair shop every time the lights began to malfunction. (Engine) the oil was sticky which was not normal and the water entered inside. (Brakes) When you turned on the car, noises came from the brakes which were concerning and risky to drive in. 2. This car was risky to drive due to the problems with the oil and brakes. 3. Yes, this problem has already been confirmed by a dealer. 4. No. 5. No.

NHTSA ODI 11516980

Working with the data? Download all 10 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 25, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2017 Mini Hardtop 4dr verdict →