NHTSA Complaint #11490912 — 2019 MINI COUNTRYMAN

In July 2022, I kept getting a warning that the passenger restraint system is malfunctioning whenever somebody sits on the passenger seat. I brought my car to Mini of Austin and they had the system being reset but the warning came up again a few days later when somebody sat on my passenger seat. In August 2022, I brought my car back to Mini of Austin and a week later they told me that they had to replace the airbag sensor and it would take weeks since they had to order it from Germany. They told me they would let me know when the part arrived but they didn’t tell me that the part had arrived until I asked them in October 2022. I brought my car to Mini of Austin again to have the sensor replaced but after 10 days they told me the replacement that they got was faulty so they had to reorder the replacement and it would take weeks again. I’ve had my car back ever since and the problem got worse. I got the passenger restraint system malfunction warning even when nobody sits on the passenger seat. The seatbelt warning is also always on even when nobody sits there, so I have to buckle the seatbelt at the passenger seat even when nobody sits there in order for the car to not giving me noisy alarms telling me to buckle the seatbelt on the passenger seat when I’m driving on my own. Mini of Austin hasn’t charged me since the car is still under warranty. However, the warranty will end on November 26 2022 and they told me I would have to pay for the service and replacement if the issue comes up again after the warranty ends. I believe that my car is faulty and should have been recalled or at least have my warranty extended in case the issue comes up again not long after the warranty ends.