Strongly considering a mini, I have a paid for car worth 18K on trade in, looking for something fun to drive in Florida with a backseat for the dogs. Here are a couple of options:

2016 Mini Cooper S convertible - 11K miles about 24K - does not have the two options important to me LED lights and Harmon Kardon sound
2017 Mini Cooper Convertible - 11K miles about 24K - has Harmon Kardon and has cloth seats which I really love because of the heat/sun here in Florida

So for each of those options I am going to have to come up with $5 to $7K and I will have a paid for car, after 3 years it will be worth something......

OR

Do a one payment 3 year lease and get a brand new 2018 the is really nicely equipped. This would cost about $15K - so I would get a check back from the dealer for about $3k, (I think I can negotiate a better deal here). At the end of three years I have memories......

So can't decide between Cooper or Cooper S Convertible and to lease or buy.

Any comments would help. I have driven both the regular mini convertible and the mini S convertible - the S is obviously quicker - has a nicer exhaust note - but other than that not a huge difference. OK interested in your comments and thoughts.

Lease vs buy, Cooper vs Cooper S.

Thanks in advance, hopefully I will be a owner soon.

 

I'd configure a 2019 model just for the comparison as the prices have dropped, especially on loaded models. The 2019 3-cylinder hardtop we ordered was $3,000 MSRP cheaper than the exact same 2018 model, about a 10% savings.

Used choices, I'd take the 2017. Newer and has features you want. Personally, I think the 3-cylinder has merits over the 4-cylinder and is just as fun to drive. I actually prefer the seat-of-the-pants feel of the 3-cylinder over the 4-cylinder.

 

Welcome to the forum

I'm an old coot and believe in owning. Since the re-did the fed taxes years ago, I don't see an advantage in leasing.

My daughter did this. And when the term was over, she was without transportation. If it wasn't for I owning an extra vehicle, she'd have to walk everywhere. She owns now.

Plus its up to you for maintaince, insurance and such, where is the plus in this ?

 

 

Sounds like the "Premium Package" that was like $1800.

Which seats, the striped seats, plaid seats, or the grey (Black Pearl) seats? What wheels are on the car? What other options does it have? Navigation? The options list can really change the "good deal" quotient.

Do you know the cost of the car new, window sticker? Try building and pricing it on the configurator for an idea. Was it a 30k car new or a 34k car new?

 

As for the prices ... if this is a dealership, its appears a tad on the upper end, if its private, there might be flex. I'd verify service was at done minimum.

I'd check with the dealership prior to sale if they will extend mini maintenance, this I'm not sure of. In the past, dealers will do this but since your a 2nd owner it would be a tab higher in cost.

 

As long as it has LED headlights and a 6 speed manual, get it! Don't settle.

I like leasing, leased many cars. My mother leases a new Subaru Forester Limited (~$34k sticker) for $290/month (36/10k) with $0 down every 2-3 years. If you lease a car with great residual value (like a Subaru in Colorado), the dealer will buy it out from you before the lease ends and you can make some money on it and put it towards your next lease or pocket the change. I've leased 5 cars and never turned them back in. The dealer always bought out the loan when I wanted to trade. Don't forget that, a lot of people give up money.

I'm now into buying 10 year old cars with less than 60k miles for under $8k. Can always get rid of them for not much more than I paid. Kind of a fun game for me and I like having the title in my safe at home

FYI - I paid $7,400 for my 2008 fully loaded gen 1 convertible with 53k miles a month ago. Have a few things to deal with (brakes, and strut tower), but been a solid investment so far. It's so freakn' fun. I'll always have a convertible in my garage from now on. New and old MINIs are still the best looking cars on the road. Their convertible with the sunroof option is genius.

Good luck!

 

 

The cloth seats would have been a $700 or so upgrade. Striped seats would have included the JCW interior package, a plus. With auto trans I'm guessing the car was around 31-32k sticker, maybe under 30k purchase price. It would be easy to add another 5 grand or more in options. I think it's an "okay" deal, but not a great deal. More options would make it a great deal.

 

 

 

The only real downside of leasing is that you have to make sure that you either have enough savings for the monthly payments or have a stable income.
If you terminate the lease early, there's an extra fee you'll have to pay.

 

 

Another note: MINIs are expensive to maintain. And even the routine + extended maintenance plans are covering less and less of the big ticket stuff. Unless you are a driveway mechanic/ garage star, this means a fair amount of liability for upkeep on the vehicle. I'm not mechanically inclined/resourced to do the maintenance myself that some others in the MINI club do routinely, keeping their first gen MINIs humming with 150K miles etc. That means when owning, I'm thinking about the brakes/rotors, the clutch... when leasing, even though I'm definitely throwing money away, I'm turning the car in for a new one every 3 years, and paying a lower monthly payment each month. As was said to me years ago, it's all about whether you think you intend to keep the car. If you do: buy it, do research on repair costs, and be armed with knowledge. If you don't, then lease and release. I'm told on MINIs, don't buy your leased car at end of contract though, as the residual is too high.

I bounce back and forth every MINI. I'm on my 5th in a few weeks... the first two were bought and sold, and the rest have been leased...

 

 

2019 F56 JCW ! zesty...

 

 

If you're not in love with the car that's the way to go. It's not so unique that you can't find another.

We negotiated on a 2017 F56 S that was LOADED. Dealer wanted $24,900. We wanted $3,000 for our trade, they offered $1,500. No deal.

Three months later the car dropped almost $3,000 in price, meaning we could have bought it at the price we wanted before, WITHOUT our trade.

Oh, and we sold our $1,500 trade for $5,800 on Craigslist in less than two weeks to the second person that looked at it. Dealers can be idiots.

 

 

F56 was used, very loaded, Yours Black Lounge Leather, HUD, Sunroof, HK, Navigation. Was probably worth their original asking price, but we were insulted by the trade offer. I did write them a note after I saw the price drop to let them know they blew our sale and we had already purchased another MINI. Never heard back.

Bought a 1-0wner 2014 3-cyl F56, 24k miles, manual trans, sunroof, sport seats, heated seats, enough options to cover our basic requirement list. Car was $14,100 USD + fees and taxes.

Have on order a loaded Iconic 2019 F56, Iconic trim level pretty much gives you every option. We specified Chesterfield Brown Leather on Pepper White. Brown Trim Line, Rail Spoke (Series 7) wheels. The only extra cost "option" was roof rails. Over twice the price of the used MINI . . . . yikes.

 

Wow that is a great deal! I wish I could find something like that! Found a nice 2016 S but has not of the equipment I want and looks like it was not really cared for. I guess I need to keep looking. Also good luck with that 2019

 

 

 

You should test drive a R53 S/JCW. Instant boost!