Hey all,
I've been cruising these forums as I am considering a Mini for my next car. I currently drive a 2001 New Beetle which has been a good girl, but my daughter wants my bug real bad.
If I were to pounce on the Mini, I would go for a two door S or JCW with a manual transmission. Right now, my short list includes the Mini mentioned, a VW Golf R, GTI, Toyota Corolla hatchback or a Mazda3 hatchback.
I just had a few questions for you all....
1. I find the lack of an engine oil dipstick alarming. I am a bit old school and like the idea of seeing oil levels, especially after a oil change. Is this electronic oil level system used by Mini accurate and reliable??
2. The engine compartment looks especially cramped. I like to do my own work whenever possible. How user friendly is the Mini for a good shadetree mechanic like myself?
3. Are you satisfied with your Mini? Please do tell....
thanks in advance!

 

How new of a car are you considering?

If buying a new or low mileage car, the difficulty of repair is not much of an issue.

Most of the people who didn't like their MINI (usually because they bought a worn out one) have left the forum, so you will get lots of happy responses.

My wife & I both like to drive our MINI, it is 1st choice out of our 3 cars, except for this nasty winter stuff happening right now . . .

 

I know a lot of people say the f55/56 is less of a mini than the 1st and 2nd gen but i absolutely love the car and the space of my f55 while being small!

I'm almost positive youd be happy in a mini!


but i have to throw a rec out for a 1st gen mazdaspeed 3.... i miss that car so much lol

 

 

hey man, I'm a bit of a newbie here but the last three cars i've had didn't have a dipstick. as long as you're on a level surface and pull the measurement as illustrated, you're going to get an accurate reading. I don't miss it.

So here's my experience, the car I just traded in was a '12 A4, 6MT quattro. I recently traded that towards a 15 MCS 6MT and legit, Its one of the funnest cars i've ever owned. This includes a few classic BMW 2002's, and my prized baby, an 07 BMW Z4M Coupe. the coupe wins but this mini is so damn close. Honestly, you gotta drive one, they are an absolute blast. My audi was boring and hum-drum. Great car and all that. fantastic in the snow but this car has a pulse, this Mini is a demon. in fact, the night I picked it up, I did that thing where I forced myself to go to bed early so I could wake up for my morning commute. I cant remember being this excited about driving a car. Not in years. In fact - I'm researching perhaps putting on the JCW exhaust/tune package.

Good luck whichever direction you go but definitely do yourself a fav and testdrive a late model stick-shift.

 

1. Dipstick is non issue for the long time driver. Electronic check works and I check it more frequently than I used to. Plus the MINI sticks are hard to read.

2. I don't really do much on my cars anymore, old bad back so not worth it. But take a look here https://www.newtis.info for info on how to do various repairs. It will give you an idea of what is involved.

3. I love the F56s, although it can be jarring and noisy. Just fun to drive. Wife has the F55 which is not as jarring and noisy, also fun to drive but not as fast as mine. If I drove a lot of long distances on the highway I'd probably have a different car.

VW Golf R, GTI, Toyota Corolla hatchback or a Mazda3 hatchback. those are some interesting choices. First two I like, don't get how they compare to the Toyota or Mazda.

 

Get a GTI there is more space around the engine. Oil changes are easier. It's got a dipstick. There are tons of after market parts. It's faster and handles better. Exterior looks probably not as good, but the inside which is the part you see is night and day better than a Mini. Do you know how you change the cabin air filter? No tools push a tab stop that allows the glove box to drop down and then another tab pull out the cabin filter stick in the new one. 30 seconds tops.

Take a look at what a pain in the *** it is to change the cabin filter or oil on a Mini. No it's not good for a back yard mechanic. You even need stupid bull adapters just to jack up the car

 

I will be getting a new car.

 

 

1- The lack of a dipstick is no big deal. like others have said as long as you're on level ground to check it .
2- Working on the F56 isn't a big deal once you remove the plastic covers and 'pretty panels". On my 2016 MCS I did a helix intercooler, short throw shifter, intake , exhaust , downpipe, rear sway adjustable end links and chassis braces all without a lift. Jack stands and ramps made it easy. I have also helped many F56 owners install mods locally
3- I have had 3 F56's 1st was a 2014 S (no problems ) Traded for a 2016 S that was better equipped. Traded for a 2019 JCW 3 pedal. Never had problems with any of them. I would create a check list to assist you with your decision. I looked at GTi's, Mazda 3's, Focus ST, WRX etc. Many say the Mini is underpowered, or the aftermarket doesn't give it enough love. How much power do you want > Are your autocrossing? Doing lapping days? .On paper it is underpowered. At the end of the day I felt the Mini was a better fit for me ergonomically.

 

This will be my daily driver. I travel about 40 miles to and fro everyday. I am not looking for a super fast car, but I do like to drive with confidence that my car can get me out of trouble when needed.
Right now, I am leaning towards the Mini (either S or JCW) or the Golf R or GTI. Small, maneuverable and quick.

 

Okay, I'm a Clubman S All4 driver. Traded in a fully-loaded Range Rover Evoque for the Clubman. Before the Evoque my daily drivers were Jags and Range Rovers. Now, my wife and I always seem to choose the Clubman whether it's for errands or road trips.

I'm old. Our MINI is a complete hoot. Brings a smile to my face EVERY TIME I drive it. These cars are not for everyone and the monthly sales data indicates new MINI sales are tanking, so the popularity of these cars is not strong among those who actually go out and buy/lease a new car these days.

Reliability of our MINI has been perfect after two plus years of ownership. Exactly ZERO performance issues --only complaint was noisy folding side mirrors which the dealer replaced under warranty based on the fact I said the noise bothered me. Overall service experience has been excellent at two different dealers.

Dinan $250 Sport box added all the extra zip I require -- definitely made the car more fun. Also, I'm not a fan of run-flat tires (harsh ride, IMHO), so I changed those out and this improved ride quality and handling. But then, my Clubman has a spare tire.

These cars are comfortable and handle well but they aren't boulevard cruisers or cushion-of-air highway fliers. They are firm-riding, responsive, kick-in-the-pants fun cars for people who like to have an engaged relationship with what they drive.

Buying used can get you a good deal, but beware as some MINI drivers really like to flog their cars, because it's so much fun to do so. If you do buy used, look at a lease return or other car still in warranty. If buying new, grind hard on price.

Not the most practical or lowest cost car. And the new Mazdas have drivetrain improvements soon to arrive that are getting good press, along with improved interiors. Worth a look, IMHO.

If unique is what you seek, well... I went in to the dealership intending to get a new BMW and ordered a MINI instead. Glad I did.

Bottom line, of the many, many high line cars I've owned, my MINI has consistently brought more smiles per mile than any of the other, much more expensive rides I've had and enjoyed over many decades.

 

P.S. What's a dipstick?

 

Wonderful write up....thx

 

To answer your questions:

1. At first I did find no dipstick off-putting, but seems to be a trend going forward. On my 2015, the reading seem to be fine. No issues...so not a big deal IMO
2. Seems like every engine compartment looks cramped now-a-days. The days of leaning over the fender w/ a socket to pull a plug are gone. Again, these car a rolling computers and really need some w/ the expertise and tools and electronics to do anything beyond the very basic stuff..
3. I couldn't be happier w/ this car. In fact, I cannot imagine not having a Mini in our garage always.

Additionally, My MCS (automatic) is a 2015 w/ a JCW tune and exhaust. We are planning to trade for a 2020 and wife wanted to look at a full JCW. (I am not a track guy nor do I race the car, but do enjoy some spirited around town driving, but thought the extra HP and TQ looked good). I scheduled a test drive (2018 JCW automatic) w/ a salesman riding along. I explained to him I wanted a car w/ very good throttle response and overall peppy behavior.

2018 JCW was okay, I really did not see a noticeable difference in the way the car responded to my driving and throttle input compared to my car. Salesman was talking the car up, about the exhaust sound and how it handled. Test drive was approx a 5 mile loop on roads w/ stop lights and 50 MPH speed limits w/ some merging (to test acceleration), and some "Twisty's". When we got back, he asked " What do you think?" I said, "lets go for a ride in mine."

Same route we had just driven, my car felt more lively and responsive than the JCW. Salesman commented that my car was really fast and asked if I had a tuner on it. (which I do not), He went on to say, I have to admit your car feels faster than the JCW. I told him I felt the same way (in fact, if the different between feel and performance was in favor of the 2018 JCW (rather than my car), I'd considered trading up in 2020.

When we got back to the showroom, sales manager asked what I thought, I told him and the salesman confirmed it. Yes JCW has more performance parts (suspension, brakes, etc) and in it's defense, the car would have longer legs on a track as the power comes on w/ higher RPM's. But, for me, as a street driver, the MCS w/ the JCW tune is more fun w/ more more usable power lower in the RPM range (actually dyno results show a JCW tuned S produces more wheel torque than the full JCW) and torque is where the acceleration is is.

Also, you may want to check out a Hyundai R-Spec Veloster. I went to look at them and they are nice for the money. Seats feel especially good as does the driving position. It gets a bad rap for "plasticy" interior parts, but to me that's nit-picky. Mini is BMW quality (and you are paying for that) Wife cannot drive a stick, so Automatics for us. Hyundai has a great price, great warranty, and very good build quality (if you wait until the market fills), you can check out the Veloster "N". The base car starts w/ 250HP and should be plenty of car. Their is also a 275HP version (for more money-but way less than JCW).

 

I own a 2015 F56 Cooper Si

As, well, probably more than a "shade tree" mechanic, I am very comfortable with working on the car. Something to note is that the entire front end pops off easily so that you can get to all the components. As well, you can get to most of the important components without it, even the downpipe, turbo, all intake stuff, spark plugs, etc. The belts may be a bit of b*** though.

Of course, in comparison to the other cars you are looking at, the mini is as about as cramped in the engine bay as the others.

I AM BEYOND SATISFIED by my MINI. It has been my favorite car I have ever driven, and honestly, it handles better than so many cars. Because it is so light, you can really keep the speed up through corners, and, with the BMW engines in the current lineup, you get enough torque to not be considered slow. As you can see by my sig, I have modded my car to quite a degree. In comparison to the other cars, the tires are the most important difference, as the F56 is usually sold with pretty poor all-season runflats, to get the feel of the older generations back, springs and shocks made the biggest difference.

 

Echo that, and to build upon it, I think if you do new tires, grab some light wheels at the same time. I ordered a set of Enkei RPF1 (17"'s) and Conti Extreme Sport DW) from Tire Rack and saved 8 lbs of unsprung weight at each corner (Total of 32lbs. overall). Noticeable diff in handling. The car came alive (also netted about approx 8WHP and 9WTQ) using the below example:

This was a Camaro (showing WHP w/ different wheels and tires, but same should apply to any car where unsprung weight is reduced. Factory wheel (blue) is 8 lbs heavier than the Lighter (green) wheel replacement. Lighter wheels do not increase engine HP, but reduce power train loss and rolling resistance.:
Results:
1. (Blue curve) Factory wheels: 20”x9.0” with Pirelli 275/40-20 tires weighing 68 lbs combined per rear wheel. – Max hp: 371 hp, Max Torque: 375 ftlbs - (Baseline)
2. (Red curve) Aftermarket wheels: 20”x9.0” with Pirelli 275/40-20 tires weighing 72 lbs combined per rear wheel – Max hp: 369 hp, Max Torque: 373 ftlbs - (A [-] loss of 2 hp and 2 ftlbs)
3. (Green curve) HRE wheels: 20”x11.0” with Nitto 315/35-20 tires weighing 60 lbs combined per rear wheel – Max hp: 380hp, Max Torque: 384 ftlbs - (A [+] gain of 8 hp and 9 ftlbs and that is running a 2” wider wheel/tire combo)