Hi all! I'm new to this forum, and technically don't have a mini yet, but I am certainly not new to supercharged cars! I have a 2003 SVT Focus with a Jackson Racing supercharger currently in the garage as my fun / weekend car (when its running!), but I came here because I had a question about an R53 Mini.

I currently daily drive a 2006 BMW 325i (e90 bodystyle) 6 speed manual. It's been a fun car and all, and been reliable as can be for the past 45k miles and almost 2 years of ownership. However, I used to daily drive my SVT Focus back in highschool before the first motor melted pistons and I've been tempted for a long time now to get back into a supercharged car for a daily driver.

My question is, are the R53 cooper S's pretty reliable for a high mileage daily driver? I'm still in college, so I can't be constantly dumping money into a daily and I need it to be fairly reliable and rarely if ever leave me stranded. (My e90 has only once left me stranded in 2 years, and that was from the water pump / thermostat, which is a known issue on the N52 motor) I put between 20-25k miles a year on my daily driver. I have read the sticky with all the information on problems and DIY's, and so far it appears that they are fairly reliable and low maintenance, however much of that sticky was more geared towards lower mileage cars (<120k), but I could be wrong. I also did some research on this forum already and saw that some others had 300k+ on their supercharged coopers, but I know there can be some that are just "lucky". We have that in the Focus world, as there's a few guys that put 200k+ on their SVT's with minimal if any problems, one of them even supercharged for 200K out of 250k (and then it was wrecked, otherwise it would have went much longer!). But then you have my supercharged SVT Focus that's been through a full motor rebuild and a few head gaskets and still to this day continues to plague me with issues, I swear it's cursed! I guess my point being that even though I've seen a few higher mileage examples, I still have to ask to get a general consensus because most of what I read is geared towards pretty low mileage cars!

I've driven and ridden in a few coopers over the past few years and I really have nothing negative to say. I only have one friend who had a R53 and had issues, but I feel like that was due to his driving and maintenance style (He wasn't a car guy, and at 70k miles when the dealer told him the clutch was going bad and it needed $2500 worth of service - what was wrong I am not sure, he sold it for a Honda because he wanted something cheap to maintain.)

I apologize if I was rather long winded asking a simple question, but taking into consideration all above, should I continue looking for a R53, or in this forum's opinion, would it be best to keep my e90 for the time being?

(I should add, I'd like to get an R53 eventually anyways, but if I don't trade my e90 for it I will likely have to wait 2-3 year until I can afford to buy one as a weekend toy!)

Thanks all!

 

The R53 is an amazingly fun car, but reliable at high mileage it is not. Even if you do preventative maintenance, it can add up pretty quickly. I bought my 03 with 120k miles just over a year ago and I've been stranded 3 times. Crank pulley, belt tensioner, and clutch have all gone out on me. On top of that I've replaced strut mounts, coolant reservoir, all bushings and engine mounts, coil pack/wires/plugs, and cat/headers because it needed to be done. If you're worried about putting money into something, I would stay away.

If you want a fun car that will always leave you smiling, don't hesitate at all. I daily drive mine and I'm at 136k now. It runs strong, but it definitely needs TLC.

Edit: I will say that if there are records of good maintenance, proper oil change intervals, and parts have already been replaced then you would be in a much better position than I have been. I'd still be careful since cash is a concern.

 

Welcome...

You can find any number of R53s out there, and depending on Year and Mileage the prices will vary.

Can you find a dependable R53 with 200K miles and use it as a dependable Daily Driver? Absolutely. But you also risk getting a car that needs some repairs upfront to become the car you want. e.g., I found a R53 that was priced fairly and was in really great shape, it needed very little to be a DD. then I found a R53 that was priced as a Handyman's Special and I spent more for parts and repairs than I did for the car to make the car a DD.

But you have to be financially ready for such a purchase.

Best advice, find a trusted Independent MINI Technician you can take any Purchase Prospect to and have them give it a complete inspection so they can give you a real world assessment of the condition of the car. Granted it will cost you a few bucks, but in the long run worth every penny.

Bottom line: Life is to short to be unhappy... if you want a R53 get one. in some cases maybe two...

Motor on!

 

Good to know. I'm not afraid of maintenance, I have a local indy shop that has been absolutely amazing and reasonably priced on my e90. Considerably cheaper than the dealership. Getting stranded that often would be unnerving to me though, as I need my daily to get me to class and work on time.

I still want to hear more from other owners, but I am starting to get the feeling that if I do make the leap, having extensive maintenance records will be a must!

Thanks for your prompt reply!

 

Get the R53 as a weekend warrior if you can swing it while keeping your E90. Do the necessary work as you go. Having both cars is the would be a perfect mix of fun and utility, without having to rely on a 10-12 year old car for your daily commute.

 

Thank you for your response as well. Seems to me the general consensus is maintenance records and a clean bill of health from an independent inspection. I already have a shop I trust and have used to service my e90 these past two years. They're mainly a VW/Audi shop, but have trained BMW / Mini technicians.

Paying a bit more for a car that has maintenance records, has been well taken care of, and is just in better shape overall sounds like a good idea. I'm not opposed to traveling to find the perfect car as well.

Sounds like I have some searching to to, though I get the feeling it might be a while before I find the perfect cooper, most of what I see seem to be lacking service history or just generally abused!

 

These cars can bite when things go wrong, some jobs are fairly pricey. Generally the engine and 6 speed manual trannies are pretty good. The bushings, struts, fan, oil leaks, engine mounts, , exhaust, airbag sensors, stereo can fail fairly early. Some tend to rust too, so look out for that.

 

id say go for it. ive had my car for 2+ years now, not once have I been stranded. I have put on 28k miles on it. the only thing that was replaced not by go fast bits is the tranny. since my GF nearly blew it up getting me to the ER. she took out the synchro to 4th. I am aware of the issues that can happen to this car. but I DD mine even through all the snow up here in New England with no issues, never even been stuck. Theres a few lurkers on the forum who have 200k miles plus, and we even have a regular guy who has 330k and still going.


ideally youll want an 05-06 they have the least issues minus the recall we have starting up right now about the passenger seat airbag

 

DIY will definitely keep the cost down if anything does need to be fixed on the car. Also a great way to learn more about the car, if you have the time of course, especially with a busy college schedule. We have great DIY Tech Articles from routine maintenance to the bigger more time consuming jobs. We also have great pricing on parts. Good luck with your purchase!

-Luccia

 

I bought my 2006 R53 with 99k miles on it 2 years ago. 36k and 2 years later, I've had some work done on it, but it's never left me stranded and has been very reliable.

 

fun fact! the r53 uses the same tranny as your focus

 

Thanks for all of the quick answers y'all. I think I'm going to heed Helix's (and a few friends) warnings and not be quick to make the jump. I'll be on the lookout for a clean, low mileage '05-06, but I plan to be very picky to hopefully find one that's been babied with low miles. And after looking around a little, I think I've decided the color scheme I want both exterior/interior, which won't make finding a babied car any easier lol. BRG with a (don't know the proper name for Mini's) cinnamon interior. I already checked around on both craigslist and autotrader within 200 miles, only 1 match and it was an earlier year R53 and much higher miles than I'd like (>120k).

I'm in no rush though. I'm confident I'll find the perfect car eventually! In the mean time though, i'd like to thank everyone for your help!