Hi everyone. Maybe you can help me out here. I've sold my last classic car (Triumph TR6). I've owned several Triumphs, Alfa Romeos, etc. I wanted to get a fun, economical daily driver. I've been leaning heavily towards a Cooper "s" model. The four I'm considering range from model year 03-05, with 39 to 50k miles. Most recently, a seller informed me of steering pump (recurring) problems. I "googled" this and found a few websites where people are just trashing the car..."pieces of junk", recurring transmission problems, etc. (i.e. see: www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/mini.html), and also www.mini2.com. I wanted to see what you guys think...you're experiences w/ reliability, dealer service/dependability, parts availability, etc. I live in the south new jersey area (near Philadelphia). I was also concerned about where to seek service AND if the cars are somewhat user friendly in that owners can perform some maintenance on their own (for example I did see a thread on how to replace the powersteering pump on this forum). The car was a "kick" to drive. I would be using this car as a daily driver (supplementing my more gas hungry small pick-up truck). Any info you guys could pass on would be greatly appreciated as I ponder my decision. Thanks

 

thats why i bought new.... 4 year warranty for the win. My older brother has an 06', the clutch went at about 10'000 miles, but the dealership replaced that no question asked, gave him a loaner, he had his car back in 3 days. Other than that, no problems

 

Good choice in looking at MINIs! You can go on the "classics" threads to talk to the smart folks about daily driving the classic Minis (note the capitalization differences in typing) but I can help w/ the "new" MINI talk - or BMW MINI. Here's a link to a really good article on pre-owned MINIs. A lot of the trashing of MINIs seems to come from a very small population - and while there ARE some with periodic problems out there, overall I'd have to say this car is a great choice. I had an '04 MCS (MINI Cooper S) and I now have an '07 MCS turbo - LOVE THEM BOTH. And never had an issue with either.

http://www.motoringfile.com/mini-r50r53-buyers-guide/


I was looking back through some of the threads I was tracking, and I also saw this thread in my lists -- and it's funny, but has some interesting tips to "read" used MINIs:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.com...d.php?t=140038

Good luck! I hope these help.

 

While problems do occur like any make of car the great majority do not have any problems or at the very least nothing significant. Don't let a small minority of dissatisfied people dissuade you from getting a car you are obviously already very fond of. Like you I did quite abit of research before buying but in the end after reading both the good and bad I decided that my desire to drive this wonderful little car was greater than my concern for any potential future problems and really when it comes down to it that risk is always there with any car you buy.

Welcome to NAM!

 

This is why I also chose to buy new. I actually looked into a couple of used cars that were closer to me than my MINI dealership and in the end decided that buying new was worth it. You don't really save that much by buying a used MINI and once you drive a new one, you will be glad you made the trip to the dealership. In my case, I drove 6 hours to get to my MINI dealer and doubt that I will ever regret it.

 

I thought my post would muster up more positive feedback about owning a used mini (w/o having to buy "new" to be safe). I've looked at other forums and am getting spooked when I find that members/owners are having a contest where their trying to find the car w/ the most mileage BEFORE requiring major mechanical work (tranny, etc.). I think the car's a hoot. I liked driving it, like the looks, like everything about it EXCEPT what I'm hearing about reliability....

 

Were you able to check out those two threads in my last post? The first (motoringfile) is a good snapshot of which years tended to work out the bugs the best. Reliability is one of the key attractions to this kind of vehicle - not to mention all the other cool perks, like the boring MPG discussion, or the really fun drive. Like any other vehicle, it'll have it's ups and downs, but overall, it is VERY reliable.

Did you have specific questions on it's reliability (like focusing on some of the "spookier" points)? That might help focus some of the NAM-ers replying to your concerns.

 

yes..I did read the two articles you posted. Thanks. I specifically worry about transmission. From reading other posts, I'm gathering that unless you have a new/newer (2007 or better), you're kind of waiting for a transmission problem when the car gets over 50k. Not all of the time, but it "appears" more prevalent than your average vehicle. As I mentioned, the power steering pump problem. I've read about coolant leaks. Repair costs appear to be high for the vehicle (I've read about $900 for a 4-wheel brake job, $8000 transmission replacement). The first article you forwarded mentioned that a newer vehicle is preferable over an older one (some of the bugs worked out). I am looking at three "03" vehicles and one "05". By my research, I would only really consider the "05". I WANT to be persuaded into this car. I would just be really pissed to shell out 18k to then find that I need a new transmission ($8k) not far down the road.

The second part of my original post delt w/ repair shops. I'm in the south jersey area. The closest dealer is about 40 miles away. In general, can routine maintenace be performed by local garages (I've also read horror stories about people waiting for parts from their local mini dealer). Do some/many people perform their own minor maintenance on these cars? I'm somewhat adept in turning a wrench. Thanks for your interest and encouragement.

 

I'm sure a real gear-head will be along soon, but:

As for transmissions and pump problems - I would say from general observation, and owning an '04 manual MCS myself, the problems most experience depend greatly on use/abuse. If you understand the mechanics of the vehicle, (or if you understand you need to find someone who does!), you can do a lot better job of maintaining the vehicle to within reasonable repair costs. The most expensive "repair" I ever had on either of my cars ('04 or '07) has been replacement tires for my '04 - and that was a stupidity issue on my part. I have NOT seen the high costs of repair you're talking about except in really extreme cases, or cases where the owner was super-mechanical savvy and wanted top-of-the-line. For what it's worth, try checking out some of the NAM threads on the higher-milage MINIs - there are a few enthusiasts who will give you more scoop on high-mileage / harder-used / "strongly loved" MINIs, and will be very honest about their consistent issues. I (obviously) can be very much mistaken....but this is what I've observed.

You're right - the motoring file article rightly recommends the later years of the BMW MINI for working out these kinds of issues. I dearly loved my '04, and didn't sell it willingly; but I was lucky and the '04 was the begining of the better MINI models.

Local garages WILL be able to work on your car, as long as they're familiar with German engineering -- preferably BMW mechanics. Unless it's got some kind of warranty, obviously. I'd suggest you link in to your local MINI motoring club -- most of these folks in these clubs may be mechanically inclined (to help w/ your maintenance) or can recommend a good local mechanic. Even if you don't have a MINI yet, most clubs are very friendly and will help w/your mechanical-hinged decisions.

Personally, my plan all along (with either of my versions) was to continue to go to MINI or BMW dealers for maintenance/service -- I don't have the time to spend learning to be a gear-head, and I don't trust many with my car.