Hi guys,

We are looking for a car for the girlfriend. Pretty much anything under a budget of 2k on the West Coast ideally. If anyone has any leads to some let me know.

Thanks,
Tony

 

welcome to the forum, if you find a 2k mini it’s most likely going to need some work to get her back on the road. What’s your main goal here?

 

I don't mind as long as she likes it. It's pretty simple cars to work on from what I been seeing. Some weird issues here and there. I have been with BMW for over 10+ years and have pretty much any tool to fix those so I don't really see it being super difficult unless it's ECUs. A decent fix me up I wouldn't mind since I can usually gauge how much it will be and what things would need.

 

I concur with Jason. Money spent up front will save you in the long run.

 

If you get her a MINI, she has to understand that it isn't a drive it and forget it grocery getter. My co-pilot has a R60 and guess who manages it. Sure ain't her.

 

Even if you're an accomplished mechanic, buy a $2K MINI then be prepared to spend a minimum of another $2K to keep it running...if you're lucky!

 

For $5k, you can have this '04 R53....everything works, great little car, get in and drive

Bryan

 

You're going to buy a project for $2k. You need to re-assess your budget, or look for a different vehicle. You can get a pretty good, reliable R53 for $4-5k, but you'll really need to do your homework, or you're going to buy a maintenance headache. If your budget is really $2k, don't buy a MINI.

If you're able to spend more, Brian's (@A383Wing) car above is a good deal.

 

Hi guys,

So just a quick update. We ended up finding a pretty good 2011 Mini Countryman S with about 100k miles. Overall seems like it's pretty well maintained. It just arrived so we are going through the process of everything.

Current codes are through ISTA
2D55 Variable camshaft timing control (VANOS), intake, cold start: not controllable
2C58 Charging pressure control: Switch-off as consequence

A normal scan tool states P052B $7E8 Cold Start 'A' Camshaft Position Timing Over-Retarded Bank 1

At least for now, I have swapped the vanos solenoids to see if that will transfer the issue.

What is the best way to get bluetooth audio added? Is there some retrofit I can possibly do with coding in features or changing some computers?

 

look up bovee Bluetooth adapter mini/bmw on amazon. Should be an 90 bucks, works great with my 12 pro max and mini

 

Is there anyway to add a rear sway bar to a non all4 model?

Also I did ended up getting the tune2air but it randomly disconnects and I'm not sure why. Not sure if power keeps cutting out on the radio or something. The usb and aux cables when I wiggle it doesn't do anything. So not sure what to look into.