"How reliable is the 2003 Mini Cooper S?"

"Based on 257 NHTSA complaints, the 2003 Mini Cooper S has a median complaint mileage of 70000 miles. The most common issue is STEERING."

"What are common problems with the 2003 Mini Cooper S?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2003 Mini Cooper S is STEERING, accounting for a significant portion of the 257 total complaints filed."

2003 Mini Cooper S: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 257 complaints

257

Total Complaints

70,000mi

Median Mileage

STEERING

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

33,125 25th Percentile

70,000 Median Mileage

90,337 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

STEERING

121

VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

STEERING:HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST:PUMP

AIR BAGS

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

ENGINE

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC

POWER TRAIN:MANUAL TRANSMISSION

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"PE00 020; CONSUMER WAS TRAVELING ABOUT 65MPH ON HIGHWAY AND HEARD A NOISE. SHE WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER ONTO THE SHOULDER, AND NOTICED THAT RIGHT REAR TIRE TREAD HAD BEGAN TO SEPARATE. TIRE WAS A FIRESTONE STEELTEX, R4S #LT 225/7516M/S. THERE WAS NO ACCIDENT.*AK DOT#VD1L1XD298. *SLC"

"AT 65MPH REAR DRIVER'S SIDE TIRE TREAD STARTED TO SEPARATE CAUSING A BLOWOUT OUT. THIS COULD HAVE CAUSED A VEHICLE CRASH. SIZE 22517R16, DOT UNKNOWN.*AK THE DOT OF THE TIRE IS VD1L1XD WITH A DATE CODE OF 368. CONSUMER REQUESTS REIMBURSEMENT. *JG"

"WHILE TRAVELING ABOUT 60MPH ON HIGHWAY, CONSUMER HEARD A NOISE FROM THE RIGHT REAR TIRE. HE WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER TO THE SHOULDERS. TIRE TREAD SEPARATED FROM THE OUTISIDE WHEEL. FIRESTONE, P22575R16 STEELTEX.*AK CONSUMER STATED THAT THE SEPARATED TREAD WAS WRAPPED AROUND TAILPIPE AND DAMAGED WHEEL..."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28