Charging Flap Won’t Open

  • Thread starter Thread starter fizzit
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oh nice! Well done they're taking care of you (and very lucky) I can't see a parts manager having that in stock randomly unless Mini forces them to have it in stock (I used to work in the parts department of an infiniti dealership. Parts on the shelves that sit for a long time lose money.)

anyway good news!
 
They said it was for someone else whose appointment is in 2 weeks. I guess the early bird gets the charge port door
 
fizzit said:
They said it was for someone else whose appointment is in 2 weeks. I guess the early bird gets the charge port door
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Wow very lucky.. sometimes mechanics at the dealership I worked at would go out and rob parts off of new cars. I never want to take my car into any dealer after my experience working there. But glad they had one in stock. Makes me wonder if this is possibly an issue with it happening to multiple people.. :confused:
 
Ya now I'm a little concerned. Two cars with the same issue is usually not a concern but there are not many SE's out there. Is the charge door a carry over from the ICE Mini's or specific to the SE's???? Not being able to get to the charge port is a pretty big issue. One of the reasons I thought I liked the Mini was its simple charge port door, did not realize it locked. I look at all these other motorized charge port doors thinking its just one more thing to break and it would suck if it did when you were almost out of charge.
 
Ericwc said:
Ya now I'm a little concerned. Two cars with the same issue is usually not a concern but there are not many SE's out there. Is the charge door a carry over from the ICE Mini's or specific to the SE's???? Not being able to get to the charge port is a pretty big issue. One of the reasons I thought I liked the Mini was its simple charge port door, did not realize it locked. I look at all these other motorized charge port doors thinking its just one more thing to break and it would suck if it did when you were almost out of charge.
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From what I have seen around the web, it's definitely more than just two. OTOH, it seems to be the only regular issue with the SE.
 
I'm not planning on messing with anything that isn't broken but if mine ever gets stuck, I expect it wouldn't be that difficult to disable the lock mechanism either mechanically or by unplugging the actuator (possibly with an error though).
 
Maybe there's a way to pull the fuse for the actuator or made some tool/3-d print something to reach in there to open? (just thinking out loud)
 
The service person said they’ve replaced a few but not a lot. She also said the replacement part number is different from the original in my car, presumably because mine’s a 2020 which was the first model year. Hopefully this part is more durable and this doesnt happen again. If it does I’ll definitely try to figure out how to disable it, maybe in bimmercode.
 
Puppethead said:
It seems basically an identical mechanism as my 2015 Hardtop S had, but of course the door is different with the stamped E.
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Am i correct that the inside of the door is different too. the receptacle for the plug cap vs holder for a gas cap
 
Tommm said:
Am i correct that the inside of the door is different too. the receptacle for the plug cap vs holder for a gas cap
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Oh yeah, a slightly different "holder". So the door itself is a totally different part. I was thinking of the latch, and how the flap actually works (push in to open), and the way it locks when the car is locked.
 
Puppethead said:
Oh yeah, a slightly different "holder". So the door itself is a totally different part. I was thinking of the latch, and how the flap actually works (push in to open), and the way it locks when the car is locked.
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I think they replaced the hinge and guts. Otherwise the door has to be the color of the body and having two of the same color for a SE seems a bit too coincidental.
 
CoachCookie said:
Maybe this goes without saying, so did the new door/actuator resolve the issue? Was it in fact the actuator?
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It is resolved! From the repair document, sounds like they replaced both the door and actuator but it was the actuator that failed.

Tommm said:
I think they replaced the hinge and guts. Otherwise the door has to be the color of the body and having two of the same color for a SE seems a bit too coincidental.
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Yeah, that’s correct.
 
38 psi? I used to hypermile the smart cdi (799 cc turbo diesel!) with my stock EcoContacts at 40, but I eventually installed Bilstein coil-overs and wider, lower-profile UHP tires, and started rattling my fillings loose at anything over 33 psi.
 
here is the part I will probably be replacing three days after my waranty expires. Sorry about the size.
https://www.lllparts.co.uk/en/produ...-flap-hinge-genuine-bmw-51177069449/id/344159
bmw-fuel-filler-pot-flap-hinge-genuine-bmw-51177069449-1.webp

https://www.bmwpartsonline.co.uk/Filler-Pot-51177069449-E87-LCI-118i-N43
s-l640.jpg
 
Hi all! I just had this problem and the almighty Google brought me to this thread, because I just had the same problem with my 2022 SE.
Pressing lightly and fist bumping didn't make a difference. After reading this thread, I decided to lock and unlock the car. The door popped open as soon as I unlocked it.
Not sure what happened, but I hope that will solve the problem for others.
 
I am experiencing this same problem, and it's very disconcerting. For the third time now I have been able to successfully get it open by pressing/banging on the left side of the charge flap while locking/unlocking with the fob. It took quite a few tries and not a little bit of time. I decided to put tape over the opening where the lock peg goes into the flap to prevent the door from closing all the way. So I am driving around with the flap open. It does mostly close at freeway speeds. Why in the world is there a lock on this door in the first place? Makes no sense. Push to release would seem to be plenty adequate and much more reliable. I made an appointment with the MINI dealer, the part costs $240 and the fee for diagnostics is $300...
 
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