Consumers complain of Mini Cooper timing belt failures - ConsumerAffairs
ConsumerAffairs' founder and former editor, Jim Hood formerly headed Associated Press Broadcast News, directing coverage of major news events worldwide. He also served as Senior Vice President of United Press International and was the founder and editor of Zapnews, a newswire service for radio and television. BMW's Mini Cooper has hit the sweet spot with American drivers, with sales approaching 300,000 in recent years. But the shine wears off the little cars all too quickly in some cases, with timing belt failures causing catastrophic engine damage in some models, according to a class action lawsuit and numerous complaints posted to ConsumerAffairs and elsewhere... The lawsuit claims there is a defect in the Mini's timing chain tensioner, which maintains an appropriate tension of the engine's timing chain. The timing chain controls the timing of the engine's valves, but when the chain doesn't have proper tension or synchronization, the engine's pistons and valves collide with great force and the engine components suffer so much damage that the... com makes no representation as to the accuracy of the information herein provided and assumes no liability for any damages or loss arising from the use thereof. Source: www.consumeraffairs.com
