Hello,

I've loved Minis from afar for several years and I'm thinking of getting up close and personal with a new '09 MCS. I currently drive a Toyota Tacoma 4WD that I bought when I moved north to Omaha NE. I love the reliability of the Toyota, pure and simple. When it's -14 F, it starts with no "cold start chatter". When there is snow and ice, it gets me up my annoying hill of a driveway and makes the 25 miles commute to work just fine, I know this is partially due to the great set of tires, but 4WD doesn't hurt. I love the look of the mini and it sounds like you all love them deeply, but I don't want to buy in to a headache. This winter has been colder and snowier than normal and the Tacoma is still fine although I park outside and let my wife have the garage. It's made me wonder if I would have been having issues with the Mini Cooper S since the temperature has been below 0 F every night for days. Any words of advice? Warn me off if I would be better off sticking with what I've got, or advise on ways to help the MCS handle the cold mornings outside.

Thanks for all the good reading you have given me while I sat back and remained anonymous.

Hoping to be an owner,
Moltenhalo

 

Welcome to NAM - I really liked Omaha. One of the cleanest and friendly cities I have ever been.

As with anything in life Moltenhalo, there are trade off's.

I have owned many Toyota's, both cars and trucks. But if you really like the Tacoma truck maybe it would be best if you stayed away from the MINI.......

Because I am guessing soon after you DRIVE that 09' MCS you are looking at, there will be no going back to the Toyota and your quandry shall take another turn......like which brand of snow tires do I mount to my new MINI Cooper.

Good luck !

 

LOL! You read my mind! I know not to drive it until I am convinced that it will work for me. I keep fending off the dealer when he tries to get me to test drive, since I'm fairly certain I'll be taking it home next.

 

Hi,

I live in Calgary, Alberta Canada. It's been quite a cold and snowy this year as well, and all we own are MINIs (two of them). We have put on good snow tires, and it has not failed us. We do not have the S though, so the issues with the cold may or may not happen to you. I believe they have found the issue with both the rattle and the frozen throttle body. However, only time will tell.

Will it handle deep snow as well as your truck, no. There is simply not enough clearance. However, as long as you don't start becoming a plow, you should be fine (we have).

We wouldn't trade our MINIs for anything else though!

 

Hey Heli! Snow what snow?

 

I was told to never drive a MINI unless you are ready to buy one - so I didn't - for years. Had a business aquaintance buy one and love it (and he is an engineer and was on nuclear subs and races cars) and I got the bug. I have not regretted 7 months of trouble free driving bliss. The MINI is the most fun of any car I have ever owned.

The so called cold start issue as I understand it is not really related to really cold temps but merely a start with a cold (not yet warmed up) engine. Suposedly the '09's and later have a revised timing chain tensioner design to correct the problem. There are some posts indicating that some have still had a problem. I have never had a problem.

I would be willing to take a chance - you have a 4 year 50k warranty and can trade the car while still in warranty if you are concerned. I have a Toyota Tundra and I don't expect my MINI to be the "appliance" that the Tundra has been with boring, but bulletproof performance.

I smile every time I drive the MINI. Remember as you read any message board that boards (of all auto makes) tend to attract more negative posts than positive ones and there is no way of knowing if a posted problem affects .0005% of the cars or 80% of the cars.

Good luck with your decision!

 

Well it's no surprise when you ask this forum about whether or not you get a MINI, the answer is 99.9% yes, and I'm not the 0.1% to say no, mabe he's on the Suzuki forum.

 

 

I'm making the Kool-Aid!! You can find it right over...



Good luck with the decision. The only advice I have for you is...keep reading the experiences of people here. That will likely provide you the next best assessment compared to going out and just buying one now.

 

You do know that MINI ownership is not about "joining the crowd", but standing apart from the crowd.

 

Well...there are a lot of us (=crowd) and a growing number of MINI owners. I see at least three or more every day going to and from work, and I drive under 10 miles roundtrip. I think that's a crowd, too.

 

Thank you for all the input! The people on here are one of the real reasons I would love to join the Mini community.

I have a few days left before I need to decide yes or no. Here's another question if any of you have any insight you can share; how does a Mini handle an accident? I'm not worried about how well it will protect me, I read about the good safety rating. I'm more interested in how well it can take another driver rear-ending the Mini or clipping a fender or front end and still be repairable. I commute on a better highway than I used to, but on the old route, I got hit from behind once when we all came to an abrupt stop, and hit in the rear quarter panel once when a guy lost control on the snow at about 50 mph and went straight into me. Both times, my Tacoma was repaired and looked like new. Will the Mini take a lickin' and keep on tickin' also or are they easily totaled?

Moltenhalo

 

Well, I responded but my post died in NAM land so let's try this again.

I have read several posts herein where MINI's have held up well. saw a post the other day where an 18 wheeler changed into a MINI's lane and the lug nuts of the semi cut into the MINI door and fender (Bond, James Bond) - but the MINI held its own.

The stubby trunk looks vulnerable but most sheet metal trunks offer minimal protection.

Good luck on your decision. I got the MINI bug and must have test driven MINIs 5 times. I would love it when I drove it and then second guess myself when I got home. I was going to sell my beloved BMW 3 series to buy the MINI and I worried that since I could not pinpoint why I was so crazy about the MINI - I feared that the thrill would wear off.

Well, 7 months later I still look for excuses to drive - just to play with the MINI

 

Thanks for all the helpful replies. You can see my final decision, made a week ago today, in my signature! Motor on!

 

Congrats!

 

Hi Moltenhalo, I missed this post so my reply is a bit late.

We drive a 2004 MCS. It's garaged over night. The garage is attached to our house, but not heated. The lowest I've seen in there is 10 degrees. Ours starts great, and we let it warm up before hitting the road with it. The clutch is stiff due to the cold, but it warms in a few blocks. For us, no problems, and we've had ours out running the highways at temps of 0 or lower this winter, with no issues.

Well, enjoy that new 2009 MCS, keep those washer reserviors full and we'll see ya for the trip in March!

 

Congrats and great color!!! Happy motoring!!!

 

Thanks! I really like the dark silver minis too; if they had had one with the stripes I might be sharing that color with you now.