* Component/ system that has malfunctioned and failed - The Driver side tail light circuit board and pig tail malfunctioned. The connector has corroded and the plastic plug housing looks melted on the earth / brown wire. This in return damages the the ground connection for the tail light rendering the turn signal the reverse light and the brake light inoperable on the effected side. YES, MY VEHICLE IS AVAILABLE FOR INSPECTION AT ANY TIME. driver behind an affected vehicle could be confused which could increase the risk of a crash. vehicle has been inspected by a licensed MINI Dealership. They failed to report two of the three nonworking rear lights that have failed due to the connector becoming corroded. The corroded plastic plug housing becomes melted on the earth / brown wire. This in return damages the the ground connection for the tail light rendering the turn signal and brake light inoperable on the effected side. In this case it is the rear driver side. *There was/ is no warning until long after the first second and/ or third rear light(S) were not operable. Intermittently (sometimes) a warning will popup when turning on the vehicle. The vehicle will not warn the driver about and and / or all three lights each and every time the vehicle is turned on. ALSO while the vehicle is in drive or in reverse, the driver will not have any warning what so ever that the three lights 1. The driver side rear break light 2. The driver side rear reverse light 3. The driver side rear turn signal are not working due to a malfunction. * note that there is a very strong burnt/melted smell that comes from the connector as well. I could smell it on my fingers after removing the connector so I could check the rear bulbs for replacement. Please note the 1st photo-this is how the dealership left my connector after their assessment. Additional photos are of the connector/ pig tail/ circuit board corrosion. Intermittent warrnings for some of the nonworking lights.

- Denver, CO, USA

There is a design issue resulting in failure of the connector for the rear tail light assembly. The connector corrodes and the plastic plug housing melts. This damages the ground connection for the tail light rendering the turn signal and brake light inoperable on the effected side. This has happened on the right rear of our Mini Cooper JCW hardtop. Searching on the web shows this to be a common problem for the F55, F56 & F57 MINIs. As this failure makes the car brake light system non-compliant with FMVSS lighting requirements, there should be a recall to address this issue.

- Simpsonville, SC, USA

Rear tail lights have a bulb socket and a 6-pin connector that have a tendency to burn at the brown ground wire where the connector and bulb socket meet. Requiring replacement of both parts and disabling the rear tail light (brake, turn, and reverse lights). It requires rewiring the 6-pin connector and replacing the bulb socket. About $60 in parts. When this occurs it an alert comes on the dash of a malfunction to all three rear lighting functions. One or all three of the lights can be affected. However, due to the complexity of the parts and labor required, it can be burdensome for people to diagnose and then afford to repair, if they don-??t know how to repair themselves. Web searches helped me diagnose the issue and find the burnt connections on our vehicle, with folks commenting of a known issue on MINIs and BMWs for this type of connection, surprised it hasn-??t been part of a recall. An example can be found here: https://www.mini2.com/threads/solution-driver-side-tail-light-failure-melted-connector.361711/

- Lynnwood, WA, USA

While driving home Thursday night I received left tail light malfunction waring on my dash panel with the turn signal blinking extremely fast. After arriving home I checked the light and found that the tail light inoperative and the turn signals were extremely dim. The next morning I called tucson MINIand told them the problem. The sa stated to bring the car in and they would check out the problem. Upon inspection they found that the L/H tail light ground connector and the bulb connector melted. I ask the sa what would cause this problem and she could not answer this problem. But she did make a comment that she had seen hundreds of these problems. Some which caused enough damage that required the whole tail light to be replaced. She also stated that I was luck that the damage to my car limited to only the ground connector and the light bulb holder. I did some research on the internet and found several instances where the same problem had occurred. In one case the person had to replace both tail lights. I believe this is considered a safety hazard and could possibly cause a fire.

- Sahuarita, AZ, USA

Rear light connector over heating, melting and shorting.

- San Jose, CA, USA

This is in regards to the rear brake lights on the 2016+ MINICooper clubman models. The design of the rear brake lights can not be seen while following the vehicle at a cars length of distance. The largest tail lights on the rear hatch of the vehicle are not the actual brake lights where you assume you would see brake lights illuminate. Instead they are on the bumper below the rear doors. When in traffic or following less than 2 car lengths behind the cehicle the only way you can tell the vehicle is even stopping is the small 3rd brake light. Prior to anyone being seriously injured in a rear collision I would like to make the suggestion that BMW and MINIilluminate the large tail lights if the rear barn doors are closed and illuminate the lower lights only when the barn doors are open during driving. I've made this formal claim on record in case anything happens to my family in this vehicle in the future. I've included the following photos for reference: 1. following at 2 car lengths with brake lights illuminated 2. following at 1 car lengths with brakes illuminated 3. side view of distance when brake lights were completely obscured due to location.

- Corning, NY, USA