Mini broke my Mini!

[Prufrock]

Hopefully I'm posting this in the right place. Apologies if I'm not.

Yesterday, my 2012 R58 JCW Coupe (32k on the clock) was picked up at 8:30am by my local Mini dealership for a service and spark plugs change. It wasn't due a service or new plugs, but as I'd only bought the car two weeks ago, I wanted to get it all done.

I hadn't heard from them by 12:30, so gave them a call to get an update. Apparently, no-one was available to speak to me, so they promised to call me back. By the time they did, I was already on my way to the dealership.

I got there at around 1:30. The service assistant then said she had some bad news; the mechanic had managed to snap one of the spark plugs whilst trying to remove it, and now the head needs to be removed and reskimmed, at a cost of over £2.5k. She also advised me that my car cannot be driven until it's been repaired. Obviously, I demanded they fix the issue at their own cost, as they'd broken my car! They are refusing to accept liability. I just want my car back as it was before they picked it up yesterday morning.

Any advice would be much appreciated. My baby is currently sitting at the dealership undriveable.

Edited by Prufrock on Thursday 30th August 10:10

Edited by Prufrock on Thursday 30th August 10:11

[Prufrock]

That's how I see it; they're the experts. If the plug was stiff, they should have contacted me to advise of the issue and possible problems should they continue to try to remove it. They didn't do that. They simply forced it to the point that it snapped off.

[Prufrock]

I've done some googling and found it is possible to get it out without removing the head. They're now getting an independent engineer in today to take the rocker cover off, to make it easier to access the hole, then he'll try to drill out the plug. They haven't mentioned who's paying for that! They didn't mention anything about changing the timing chain, etc. Oh, they did say I need a new clutch at a cost of over £1k too. My clutch is fine!

Personally, I believe they are liable for the damage to my car.

Edited by Prufrock on Thursday 30th August 10:32

[Prufrock]

I am absolutely livid! I plan to stand my ground, but not sure how to proceed should they not fix the problem.

[Prufrock]

The independent engineer they got in has managed to get the plug out. They've agreed to cover the cost of the work they've got to do to retread, etc, and I've agreed to pay £100 towards the cost of the engineer (can't be arsed to argue with them over £100.)


Glad I'll have my car back tomorrow!