How many miles will a 2012 MINI Cooper S last?
Half of the 14 NHTSA owner complaints on the 2012 MINI Cooper S that list mileage came after 85,000 miles. NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026 holds 26 complaints on this model year; each mileage is the odometer when an owner reported a safety problem, not how long the vehicle lasted.
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See what the paid report includes →Of the 14 complaints on the 2012 MINI Cooper S that list mileage, half came after 85,000 miles; 6 came after 100,000 miles, 1 after 150,000 and none after 200,000. With fewer than 20 mileages, the median is the only percentile given.
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How many miles will a 2012 Cooper S last?
The 14 mileages owners gave run from 24,000 to 155,000 miles, and half are at or under 86,000. With fewer than 20 mileages this page gives the median only: the other percentiles are too few to say. 6 came after 100,000 miles, 1 after 150,000 and none after 200,000.
These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 2012 Cooper S wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Lowest mileage listed | 24,000 miles |
| 25th percentile | Too few to say |
| Median (50th percentile) | 86,000 miles |
| 75th percentile | Too few to say |
| 90th percentile | Too few to say |
| Highest mileage listed | 155,000 miles |
| Complaints after 100,000 miles | 6 of 14 |
| Complaints after 150,000 miles | 1 of 14 |
| Complaints after 200,000 miles | none |
Every model year together: Half of the 1,690 NHTSA owner complaints on the MINI Cooper S that list mileage came after 60,000 miles (NHTSA complaints file of November 11, 2026). How many miles will a MINI Cooper S last? →
Common problems with the 2012 Cooper S
NHTSA's file holds 26 owner complaints on the 2012 MINI Cooper S. Owners named the electrical system most often: 15 complaints, and half of the 9 that list a mileage came after 115,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component (NHTSA category) | Complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical System | 15 | 9 | 116,000 |
| Engine | 4 | 2 | Under 5 mileages |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 3 | 2 | Under 5 mileages |
| Power Train | 2 | 1 | Under 5 mileages |
| Structure | 2 | 1 | Under 5 mileages |
Of the 26 complaints, none reports a crash, 2 report a fire and none reports an injury. These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Is the 2012 Cooper S a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2012 is a good or a bad Cooper S: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2012 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.
With 26 complaints, the 2012 ranks 11th of the 15 MINI Cooper S model years from 2002 to 2016 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2005 (375). The fewest: the 2016 (10).
Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 Cooper S | 83 | 73 | 75,415 |
| 2003 Cooper S | 217 | 174 | 70,000 |
| 2004 Cooper S | 247 | 231 | 74,000 |
| 2005 Cooper S | 375 | 355 | 66,000 |
| 2006 Cooper S | 222 | 195 | 56,000 |
| 2007 Cooper S | 257 | 243 | 51,800 |
| 2008 Cooper S | 175 | 159 | 52,522 |
| 2009 Cooper S | 128 | 113 | 51,000 |
| 2010 Cooper S | 69 | 56 | 55,000 |
| 2011 Cooper S | 35 | 25 | 60,016 |
| 2012 (this page) | 26 | 14 | 86,000 |
| 2013 Cooper S | 24 | 13 | 49,400 |
| 2014 Cooper S | 13 | 11 | 25,000 |
| 2015 Cooper S | 18 | 12 | 25,000 |
| 2016 Cooper S | 10 | 6 | Under 10 mileages |
2012 MINI Cooper S recalls
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 2 recall campaigns that name the 2012 MINI Cooper S. A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
What these figures can and cannot tell you
- Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
- The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
- The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
- They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 2012 Cooper S lasts.
- A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 2012 Cooper S.
- Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
- 12 of the 26 complaints on the 2012 MINI Cooper S give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
- NHTSA names counted: COOPER S and COOPER S CONVERTIBLE. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only these.
- Recall-file names matched: COOPER S and COOPER S CONVERTIBLE.
Primary sources behind this page
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
- NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.
2012 MINI Cooper S questions
How many miles will a 2012 MINI Cooper S last?
Half of the 14 NHTSA owner complaints on the 2012 MINI Cooper S that list mileage came after 85,000 miles. Of the 14 complaints on the 2012 MINI Cooper S that list mileage, half came after 85,000 miles; 6 came after 100,000 miles, 1 after 150,000 and none after 200,000. With fewer than 20 mileages, the median is the only percentile given. These are mileages at a reported problem, not a lifespan: the file holds no 2012 Cooper S that never had one.
What are the most common 2012 MINI Cooper S problems?
NHTSA's file holds 26 owner complaints on the 2012 MINI Cooper S. Owners named the electrical system most often: 15 complaints, and half of the 9 that list a mileage came after 115,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 26 complaints, none reports a crash, 2 report a fire and none reports an injury. These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Is the 2012 MINI Cooper S a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2012 is a good or a bad Cooper S: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2012 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 26 complaints, the 2012 ranks 11th of the 15 MINI Cooper S model years from 2002 to 2016 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2005 (375). The fewest: the 2016 (10).
How many recalls does the 2012 MINI Cooper S have?
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 2 recall campaigns that name the 2012 MINI Cooper S. A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
How do I check a used 2012 MINI Cooper S before buying?
Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 2012 MINI Cooper S.