I know many of you have been awaiting word on the resolution of the paint rubbing issue I documented a couple months back. For those who don't remember that post you can read it here. You can see the photos there as well.
You may also remember reading in the comments of that original story that MINIUSA contacted me about the post and forwarded on the photos to engineers with the company. Because of the story posted here and the photos I was told they aware of the issue and would be working on a fix.
Well It took awhile but a regional MINI rep took a look at the underside of my MINI's hood today. Apparently this is the case this particular rep had seen but he did consider it fairly serious. He is going to report back to engineering his findings and add the to what they already have. In the meantime he has given the go ahead to have the underside of my hood repainted and then some protective foam attached. Obviously the foam isn't a permanent fix but it will buy MINI some time to determine the best solution.
For those who have found this to be an issue on their MINIs the first step I'd recommend is to contact your dealer and have it thoroughly documented. I'm not entirely sure having the hood repainted will be totally necessary until an actual fix is found but some sort of protective strip probably will be in the short term.
Judging from the responses from the first story about this issue MINI certainly has a growing issue on their hands. The only conceivable solution I can see would be the redesign of the plastic and rubber piece that goes above and around the radiator. Add that to the cost of repainting all those hoods (granted most will probably not need to go that far) and the entire situation begins to get complicated. Hopefully MINI can come up with something that is both an encouraging solution to owners as well as being financially viable for them. That being said I have faith that they will find a solution and deal with it accordingly. From my experience BMW and MINI have a history of dealing with issues head on and being as fair as possible to the customer.
<p>I've been keeping tabs on this as well, Gabe. I told my dealer about it, and as yet, no solution has been presented. I hope it's a cheap and easy fix, tho I doubt it. I'm not really worried,…yet. ;-)</p>
<pre><code> BCNU,
Rob in Dago
</code></pre>
<p>I don't have it yet, but I always wipe down that area along the rubber strip whenever I wash the car.<br />
I have also added weatherstrip moulding on the hood side of the wheel arches to minimize dirt and grime in the engine bay</p>
<p>I'd like to add the weather stripping but I think I'm going to hold off until my issue is resolved totally by MINI.</p>
<p>For some reason over the weekend I was reading Graham Robson's book on the MINI and came across a passage where the engineers had to add a second hood latch as the engine vibrated the one-piece bonnet too much on the prototype. Perhaps it wasn't enough as the engine vibration along with the grit trapped on the rubber strip is basically grinding the paint away. The only long-term solution is to redesign the engine bay not to have the bonnet significantly touch the radiator. I have wear already on my MCS on the paint and the fiber padding on the underside of the bonnet after only 5000 miles so this must be a common problem and will unfortunately require an expensive solution in the long-term for BMW & MINI.</p>
<p>I've been asked by a couple people if there's something they can do to <em> prevent</em> it from happening to their MINIs. While I'm not sure there is really anything that would definitively solve the issue as it stands now I would recommend wiping down the rubber part of the radiator housing. </p>
<p>At the very least you can try to keep dirt from grinding that way.</p>
<p>What about attaching something to the inside of the hood where it makes contact with the plastic? I seem to remember you saying that you were going to try that, Steve.</p>
<p>Matt, I went with the weatherstrip on the wheel arches (on the hood side) to help reduce dirt in the engine bay.. </p>
<p>I have not seen major signs of wear yet on mine (I check each cleaning), but if I do, I think a two inch strip of clear packing tape in the two major wear areas should do the trick and won't look too bad.</p>
<p>I'd be glad to show you what I did next MINI ride (or if I run into Gabe and his phone 🙂 )</p>
<p>Now, I haven't checked my bonnet (if the front area is a bonnet, then are we talking about a bonnet or a bonnet cover?) recently, but I “think” that I have a large insulation pad attached. (I have a '03 S.) I “think” this takes care of the rubbing.</p>
<p>If anyone's curious about the weatherstripping that Steve talks about, there are some photos at <a href="http://revorg.org/cleanengine.html" rel="nofollow ugc">http://revorg.org/cleanengine.html</a>. Adding this weatherstripping has virtually eliminated sand and mud in the engine bay.</p>
<p>I'd love to see a photo of this insulation patch Scott. I'd also be curious to see if MINI altered the plastic above the radiator too then.</p>
<p>I did check my bonnet last night, and most of the underside is covered with an insulating mat that covers all the places where rubber gaskets contact the underside. I'll post a photo of the mat as soon as I can. The mat has a hard but textured surface.</p>
<p>The weatherstripping project takes about five minutes – most of that to clean the arches. I also added some silicone sealing at the area where two body panels meet in the engine bay (just to the inside of the wheel wells). I'll get a photo of that, too.</p>
<p>As a result of these two fixes, my engine bay remains completely clean.</p>
<p>Gabe, I've now added the photos of the insulation mat to <a href="http://revorg.org/cleanengine.html" rel="nofollow ugc">http://revorg.org/cleanengine.html</a> – you can see right where the gasket at the radiator meets the mat. No paint abrasion, but I'll bet that the gasket will wear if not kept clean.</p>
<p>I bought a used 2003 “S” with 13,000 miles on it, now 16,000. Drove it from Florida to California (home). I have no rubbing or paint loss detectable. But I do have a strange, sometimes, creaking noise coming from the rear area. It seems like the rear hatch. I also have a major stumble at launce. Love the car.</p>
<p>I have been reading your comments regarding the paint rubber issue, do you guys think that the problem have been resolved for the new 2004 models</p>
Hello from Canada,
We have, among other vehicles, a 2003 Velvet Red Mini Cooper with 16,000 KM on it. After reading the hood rub issue we took the article into our “local” (150 Km away) Mini dealer to show them what the UK and the USA was doing about the issue and although they had not recieved any warranty issues up until our Mini(strange) they had also heard of your article! The service manager contacted Mini Canada, brought up the issue with them and we now have hood protectors installed!
Thanks a million! And thanks’ have to go out to Budd’s (Mini Oakville in Ontario, Canada) and to Mini Canada. No waffle, no issue, just great service and great people.
The New Mini is just as much fun as the original (maybe more), only better – the new one has heat(!)and air(!) and the parts don’t fall off! Mind you, with the original Mini you could see the quality in every part that fell off as you held them in your hand – very satisfying.
Thanks again for your assistance and that of your readers.