My 2006 Mini Cooper (automatic transmission) does not shift from 5th to 6th until I pass 100kph, which keeps the RPMs at around 4000 in 5th. As soon as I pass 100kph, it drops into 6th, with the accompanying drop in RPMs. But if I slow down and drop under 100kph, the transmission shifts into 5th and the RPMs go back up.

This is a problem because most of the driving around here is between 90-100kph. On the highway where speeds range between 90 and 110kph, this can make for some very choppy driving.

And I can’t believe it’s good for my gas consumption or engine. I’ve been tracking kms per liter, and I’m getting between 11 and 12.5 km/l on each tank.

It has behaved this way since I bought it about three months ago, so I can’t really say if this is normal. The car has 70,000 kms and I had a maintenance check at BMW right after purchase.

What I’d like to know:
1. Does this make my engine work unnecessarily hard?
2. Is this normal?

Thanks for any help.