The 2008 MINI Cooper Convertible has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 91,800 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 10 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the air bags. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Recall campaigns
AIR BAGS15V2050002015-04-0691,800 affected
Defect
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2005-2006 MINI Cooper and Cooper S vehicles manufactured January 5, 2005, to November 28, 2006, and 2005-2008 MINI Cooper Convertible and Cooper S Convertible vehicles manufactured January 5, 2005, to July 31, 2008. Due to manufacturing, installation,…
Consequence
An improperly functioning mat may cause the passenger frontal air bag to be inactive when the seat is occupied, and in the event of a crash, the air bag will not deploy, increasing the passenger's risk of injury.
Remedy
MINI will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger seat occupant detection mat, free of charge. The recall began on October 12, 2015. Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525.
Complaints by component
AIR BAGS
3
POWER TRAIN
2
SEATS
2
1injuries
STEERING
2
1fires
SUSPENSION
1
Total complaints10
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“Passenger upper seat heater burned hole through seat and childs jacket while driving. The heating element is now visible and daughter received a minor burn to finger, do to melted hole in jacket from seat heater.”
“Moving my mini into the garage a fire caught under the hood and the steering went out, after inspection it was found to be the power steering pump. Insurance will not cover the cost as it is a mechanical failure. I have read about the previous models being recalled for this same problem as well as…”
“Power steering failed and was unable to steer car. Power steering fluid was full. Inspected at garage and mechanic said there was no clear reason as to why the steering had failed. Did get some steering ability back but am worried it will happen again. Vehicle had been stationary for a couple of…”
“Tl* the contact owns a 2008 mini cooper convertible. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 15v205000 (air bags) and stated that the part was not available within a reasonable time frame to schedule the recall repair. The dealer did not give a specific date for when the part…”
“Tl* the contact owns a 2008 mini cooper convertible. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the air bag sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer…”
“It appears that the passenger seat occupied sensor is not working. *tr”
“It appears that the passenger seat occupied sensor is not working. *tr”
“Transmission failed (cvt). Vehicle has low miles and cost to repair is over $8,000. *tr”
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2008 MINI Cooper Convertible as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.