Hey there world of mini lovers,

First post from a forum newbie here, looking for the wisdom of the masses to help inform me...

Here's my question in a nutshell:

Should I keep my '06 Cooper (cvt auto) that's about to hit 60k or trade up for a 2nd gen mini?

Allow me to divulge some further detail...

My intention when I bought my '06 was to take absolutely fantastic care of the car and drive it until it died, with the assumption that good maintenance would keep it running nicely for at least 100k miles and then some.

In accordance with taking good care of the car, car-savvy friends who I trust recommended that I get a tranny flush round 60k, even though they and I knew that the '06 cooper autos are CVT transmissions and are sealed "lifetime" boxes.

Well, I tried several dealers and shops, and all told me I shouldn't get the tranny fluid flushed. I finally found a dealer who said they'd do it, only to take my car in for the service and get told by the rep "Actually, I made a mistake, I'm new, and didn't realize you had a CVT... you really shouldn't do this service". I (somewhat reluctantly) didn't get the service and went home.

After so many refusals to do the tranny flush I've given up, but now I'm concerned my CVT won't live past 100k... if it even makes it that far.

I've had no problems with the car save a thermostat that needed replacing and a battery that threw low voltage which made the on-board computer do silly things. Other than that, things are and have been peachy.

I do have a 6 year 100k extended warranty... but would rather trade in sooner while the car is worth more if that's the route I'm going to take.

However, I'd like to feel confident that then 2nd gen mini I trade in for has the kind of engine and tranny I could rely on to take me past 100k miles...

 

i say cut your losses & go for that trade

 

Well conventional wisdom says the CVT is a ticking time bomb. Does the 100K warranty cover the tranny repacement? If so you could keep it and hope that is will fail before 2012 or the mileage limit. If it does you are in fine shape but if it doesn't I would get rid of it quick.

As to whether or not a Gen 2 will go to 100K who knows for sure, at least the auto trans should be less of a worry.

 

Hey - you've already paid for the extended warranty - take advantage of it and enjoy what you have for a couple more years. I traded in my '06 CVT when the warranty was over and wished I wasn't facing the 'ticking time bomb'.

 

but it is a trouble spot and an expensive one if it goes. With your extended warranty, you're in pretty good shape. As with all decisions like this, I'd do some math and see what makes sense to the budget. If you do trade up to a new one and stick with the Cooper, I think you'll find that the new engine is a charm, much better gas mileage and much better low RPM pull than what you're driving now. But you'd get that "wonderful" center stack design of the 2nd gen MINIs, and for some that's a deal breaker!

Matt

 

I'd confirm that your tranny will be covered by your extended warranty. If there is any hesitation (from the warranty provider) then trade it now. I'd be concerned that your fluid wasn't changed and that may be considered a reason to not cover it. I have an '05 CVT and it' part of the recommended service.

The $6k minimum it will cost to replace the tranny will outweigh quite a bit of the costs of trading it in now.

If the warranty will cover it no questions asked then you just need to justify the costs on trading up to newer.

Question: Is the 06 CVT any different than the 05? I wonder why your dealer said they shouldn't do it.

 

Great info from all...

As far as my warranty goes, I'm pretty sure it coevrs the tranny, but now that the question is raised I'm gonna go double check. My dad works for a very reputable Mercedes dealer and he sold me the warranty (at $1 over cost :-D ) and I do remember it was the highest "platinum" warranty out of all the options, so I'm pretty confident I'm cool there, but definitely will be checking...

And STLMINI, I'm not sure of the differences between the '05 and '06... but I've had 3 dealers and I think 4 shops all say I shouldn't change the fluid.

One guy even said that he simply WOULDN'T do it, like, even if I begged him... very strange phone call indeed...

Lovin' the advice so far NAM!

 

First, I had no idea 06 MCs had CVTs. I thought they had the Aisin 6-speed auto. Maybe Im thinking of the switch from the crappy Midlands Gear 5 speed to the Getrag in the MC.

the Xtended warranty should cover the tranny. where they suck, however, is on manual cars, where LuK Gruppe clutches and flywheels are almost always excluded from coverage. talk about ticking $3K time bombs...

I say get rid of that rubber-band tranny car and get yourself a 2G with the bulletproof Aisin automatic. No issues about fluid changes with those!

If U do this and are sticking with a MC, be advised the S/W paddle shifters were dropped beginning with January? 2009 builds here in the US.

 

All auto Cooper S's have the Aisin, regular MC's have the CVT.

 

My opinion is trade up for reliability. The cvt will crater that is a fact its just when and its not worth the price to replace it for it to fail again.

 

If you are planning to trade anyway at some point, might as well do it while it still has value. But if you want to drive it til it dies, then do it! Especially with the extended warranty.

As far as the CVT flush goes, the MINI dealer should do it - it's recommended every 60k now. Originally they were "lifetime" fluid and sealed - that's not the case anymore. I had mine flushed shortly before I traded it in, and regular flushes are key to keeping the CVT from imploding.

 

So far you haven't had any trouble with the car,you have the extended warranty (which does cover the trans) and you only have 60k on the car. I'd keep it at least another 20k.....in fact, I bet if you did some checking you'd find that you would get the same amount on trade whether it was 60k or 80k. Now, when you get closer to the 100k mark, the value seems to really drop when you're trading.

 

Kemo... Good call... I did have a look at KBB with both 60k miles and 80k miles... $2000 difference, and I imagine that will grow as it becomes an older model (probably be a 6 year old car when it hits 80k?)

I guess that's part of my concern... if the car's worth more now, I wanna take advantage of it (if I do go for the trade...)

Good suggestion to peep the value with the extra mileage though... Thanks!

 

What if you "start paying" for your new car now and keep your 06 for 2 years. Make the payment you would have been making to a savings account and have a bigger down payment.

Just a thought.

 

I'm surprised there was a difference at all, between 60k and 80k, but it's good you looked it up. The only sticking points for me (if it was mine) is that you have already paid for the extended warranty....and secondly, that the car hasn't given you a lick of trouble so far.

On the other hand, assuming you bought it when the 06 first came out, you've had it about 3 1/2 years and they say that people get the "itch" to trade after 3 years.......so you're over-due

 

Thanks to everybody for their advice...

And now the result...



I'll admit, I already miss my '06, but lookin' forward to the future with the new Clubman! Woo-hoo!!