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What 5 owners told NHTSA about the 2020 Mini Cooper Se

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 (5)Crash / fire / injury (1)Engine (2)Brakes (1)Electrical system (1)Speed control (1)Steering (1)Visibility & wipers (1)Wheels (1)

Newest first · 5 complaints

Jun 25, 2025Speed controlBrakesEngineCrash1 injury

I was pulling into a parking spot slowly and all of the sudden the car took off and took off and I couldn’t stop and when I tried to sped hard on the break it wouldn’t work and I lost control and my car wouldn’t stop until it crashed into another vehicle that was sitting in another parking spot.

NHTSA ODI 11669081

Mar 13, 2025Steering

The contact owns a 2020 Mini Cooper S. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the power steering feature malfunctioned, causing the steering wheel to become difficult to turn in either direction. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the steering pump had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 25,500. The VIN was not available.

NHTSA ODI 11648130

Mar 18, 2021Wheels

THE TIRES ON THIS VEHICLE HAVE BLOWN OUT 3 TIMES IN THE 9 MONTHS WE HAVE OWNED THIS CAR. ANOTHER TIRE (A FOURTH INCIDENT) HAD A BUBBLE THAT WAS REPLACED BEFORE IT BLEW OUT. ALL INCIDENTS WERE SEPARATE TIMES. THE DEALER AND BMW WILL DO NOTHING. ALL BLOW OUTS WERE ON THE HIGHWAY TRAVELING ABOUT 60 MPH.

NHTSA ODI 11403655

Jun 23, 2020Electrical systemEngine

DURING A RAIN SHOWER, DROVE AT ABOUT 15MPH INTO ROUGHLY 4" OF WATER GATHERED ON THE SHOULDER OF AN ACCESS ROAD ADJACENT TO THE HIGHWAY AND THE ENGINE STALLED. WOULD NOT RESTART. PUDDLE OF WATER WAS NOT HIGH ENOUGH TO BREACH THE CABIN - RUNNING BOARDS WERE STILL ABOVE WATER AND THE CURB ADJACENT TO THE STREET WAS NOT SUBMERGED. CAR WOULD NOT START AND TRANSMISSION LOCKED UP. BMW ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE CONTACTED AND ADVISED NOT TO START; TOW TRUCK HAD DIFFICULTY LOADING ONTO THE FLATBED BECAUSE THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM HAD MALFUNCTIONED IN THE ELECTRIC CONVERTIBLE TOP AND WAS OVERRIDING THE ABILITY TO PUT THE CAR INTO NEUTRAL. *TR

NHTSA ODI 11330340

Dec 19, 2019Visibility & wipers

WHEN SITTING IN DRIVERS SEAT ( I AM 5FT. 1 IN TALL) AND THE CONVERTIBLE TOP IS OPEN, I CAN NOT SEE THROUGH THE REAR VIEW MIRA BECAUSE THE CONVERTIBLE TOP FOLDED IS BLOCKING MY VISION. MY SEAT IS AT HIGHEST POSITION. JUST AS POINT OF REFERENCE I HAD A 2012 MINI CONV. AND THIS WAS NOT A PROBLEM. BECAUSE OF THIS I HAD TO TAKE THE CAR BACK TO THE DEALER AND GET ANOTHER VEHICLE WHICH COST ME IN EXCESS OF $5000 AS MY 3 DAY OLD CAR WAS CONSIDERED USED WITH 91 MILES ON IT. MY HUSBAND WHO IS 5'9" TALL TRIED IT AND HAD SOME VISIBILITY BUT VERY LIMITED. THIS IS A DANGEROUS THING AND SHOULD HAVE BEEN CORRECTED BY MINI. EITHER THE MECHANISM OR THE FABRIC USED HAS TO BE CHANGED TO ALLOW THE TOP TO RETRACT OUT OF SIGHT. THIS DOES NOT MATTER IF YOU ARE MOVING OR STANDING STILL, AND COULD CAUSE THE DRIVE TO EASILY HAVE AN ACCIDENT BECAUSE THEY CAN'T SEE WHAT IS BEHIND THEM.

NHTSA ODI 11290057

Working with the data? Download all 5 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 14, 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 2020 Mini Cooper Se verdict →