As mentioned (here) I'm looking at buyign a used MINI (R53). What (if anything) did you all shop against your MINI?

Here's my current garage:
1990 Volvo 760turbo wagon. Daily driver, I put $2000 into suspension/wheels last year instead of buying a new car when I graduated. I hate the slushbox, but I'm not in love with the car enough to do a tranny swap.
1995 BMW M3: The car I wanted since I was 14. Weekend/fun/daily driver if the day is nice enough
2008 Toyota 4runner: wife's car, hauls and tows stuff when I need it.
1987 BMW 325is: DSP autox car and HPDE toy
1990 Nissan Sentra SE-R: 24hours of LeMons racecar

The Mini would likely replace the wagon, maybe the M3. Budget is $15k.

So far my list of car I've considered includes:

*Mini (obviously)
*Miata - Pros: similar (arguably more) "fun to drive" factor, RWD. Cons: less utility
*BMW M Coupe - Pros: I'm one of the "lovers" regarding the "love it or hate it" styling, RWD, BMW. Cons: weight, had a '01 Z3 and wasn't totally in love with it
*VW GTI - Pros: lots of people love GTIs, I like the plaid seats? Cons: VW hasn't ever done much for me
*STI or EVO - Pros: Stupid fast for cheap. Cons: good luck finding one used that hasn't been modded, then flogged to within and inch of it's life.
*Other possible: Mazdaspeed 3, Mazda RX-8, Porsche Boxster, ???

 

I had actually looked at some Nissan 350z's. I have always wanted one of them but really wanted a MINI more. So naturally I went with the MINI.

Plus insurance was too high for the 350z.

 

Honda S2000
Audi TT
Z3
350Z

 

I wanted a vert and looked at BMW 3 & CLK

 

i was coming out of a ford focus svt (a total loss wreck in the rain). i know, "it's a ford focus", but really that car was more svt than focus. i loved that car. so, naturally, i tried to buy another one. found one just like the one i wrecked in comparable condition. also found an '02 vw gti 337 & an '03 mini cooper s.

all three ran strong & handled curves well, but being inside of the mini was just a kool feeling. it def'ly won out styling wise (more torque than the svt & best handling of the three didn't hurt, either). plus, my other "car" is an '07 triumph thruxton and the two go together nicely. lol.

 

And completely out of left field, I shopped against a Jeep Wrangler! I just wanted a fun, quirky convertible. Surprisingly, it wasn't the great gas mileage that sold me on the MINI, it was the safety rating, probably one of the safest convertibles on the road at its price (plus the MINI was a bit more luxurious!).

 

We had traded our 350Z Roadster (which I absolutely loved) in on a Jeep Wrangler. Our planned "daily driver" was a Toyota Tacoma. After a couple weeks I couldn't take it any more without something sporty so I sold the Tacoma. Budget was $13K. Decided it had to seat at least 4 people as we have kids and the Z wasn't getting driven as often as we would have liked because of it.

Aside from being "fun" (power and handling) we had a couple other requirements: Manual tranny & leather interior. Considered Mazda 3 but ruled it out as very difficult to find used with leater interior, also looked at a wide range of used convertibles in that price range, Mercedes CLK's, etc. Didn't drive any. Was very interested in the Mazda RX8 due to it's handling capabilties and low resale value--we really could have gotten a lot with our money. After a lot of research we ruled out the RX-8 due to the horrible gas mileage.

At first I never considered the Mini--I think I had forgotten about them . Not sure but I think I saw one on the freeway or something and thought "hmmmm...they have to be affordable by now." So when I suggested it to my hubby he was very excited because he had wanted a Mini when they first came out in 2002. Then when I saw what they were selling for a year ago...I was disappointed very high resale value. Almost sold out for a base Mini, but we knew we'd just had to have the MCS. Hubby had also owned an Evo only 3 years ago.

To make a long story short, I looked and looked and could not find a MCS with low miles and leather, etc. for $13K. So I decided maybe we could finance just "a little" HA HA. So then we were able to look at the 05/06 models, and I also started looking at the Cabrio's. My hubby suggested that we just go drive one of each and narrow it down to what we really wanted, a coupe or a cabri. I think I made the mistake of suggesting we just go drive the overpriced DINAN MCS we had seen at the VW dealership a week or so ago...we weren't going to buy it, just wanted it drive it as an example of a coupe. Well of course we loved it. It was pretty much loaded and extra power. The cabrio we test drove at a different dealer was beat to hell and the salesman sitting in the back was about 6'4 and 250 lbs. When we got home my hubby said "I think we made a mistake by driving a modded MCS--nothing will compare." So the next day hubby worked a deal and we got the DINAN MCS for about $6K less than they were asking for it. We love it to death but I still sometimes wish we had gotten a Cabrio.

 

That's so funny. See my post above. It was buying the Jeep Wrangler that led us to the MINI. Now we have both

 

Thanks to all for the responses; it's interesting to see what other people considered the competition to their mini. Some answers are expected, some not so much. Because I like to talk about cars non-stop, here are my thoughts on why some of the cars people suggested didn't make my list. All comments are IMHO.

In 2003 I bought a used 2001 Z3. Interestingly, within a month of my purchase two of my coworkers bought a 350Z and an S2000. I thought the 350Z was kind of overweight and slow (acceleration and responsiveness), and (as much as I hate to hear this come out of my mouth) I thought it was pointless and wastefull not to have a +2 rear seat in a car that big. The S2000 was exactly as every review I ever read about it described - a dream come true when driven hard, but gutless and pathetic if you weren't flogging it. I drove both their cars several times and liked my Z3 the best.

S2000 - see above
Audi TT - a personal thing, but I don't like the styling. Maybe a second gen coupe (definitely a TTS), but that's not in my price range
Z3 - had one, like it, want something different. M coupe is on my list
350Z - see above

SVT Focus had crossed my mind for sure. A couple things kept it off my list, mostly like you said, "It's a ford focus". I spent a lot of time in my firend's ZX3. I really hated that interior - cheap, hard, ugly, low quality plastic interior. That ZX3 could swallow insane amounts of cargo though.

lol, I didn't have that on my list yet!

Interestingly enough, while the mini is still at the top of the list, the porsche boxster has gained some ground. The early ones are less powerful and their resale suffers b/c of it, into a price I can justify. I just don't know that I want to give up the ability to carry more than a single peson and their breifcase in what will likely be my DD.

 

Blonda, my wish is to eventually have both! I'm just not into the everyday sedan or SUV! I still look at the Wrangler with lust and I know, one day, it too shall be in my driveway! Muahahah!!

 

That's too funny. When I was shopping - I considered buying a brand new '06 Jeep Unlimited Rubicon. I talked myself out of it, as I already had a '94 Jeep Cherokee with a lift and set up for the trails around here. I would have had to sell my Cherokee to help finance the Wrangler, thus eliminating my paid-off offroad beater. There's NO way I'd take a vehicle offroad if I'm still paying for it. And what's the point of a Jeep if you can't do that?

So instead, I elected to keep my Cherokee and purchase a lightly used MCS. That's how I ended up with my '04 R53.



(I'll end up with that Rubicon someday, though...)

 

2004 Honda civic SI hatchback (still kinda wish i got this after all the problems ive had with the mini)
2005 honda accord
2004 VW GTI
2008 Nissan Versa (i just wanted more MPG)

 

sac02, your selections are so very reminiscent of my little brother! He's still in love with the M coupe! I always take pictures of them for him, he also loves the third generation RX-7's and still dreams about purchasing one (even though he could afford many sports cars available today!) and S2000's. He's now looking at the Subaru Impreza WRX STI models, heads up about that as well! In the meantime I'm just gonna sit idly by until you see the 'light' and join the cult of the MINI. We'll be waiting for you (insert evil laughter)...

 

You with your Rubicon, me with my Sahara...Yes, AKIndiMini, our day will arrive!

 

haha...go figure. cross-shopping the mini with a jeep (that just doesn't sound right, lol).

but, apparently, we're going to have to invent an official "special" wave for mini/jeep owners (the wife drives an '03 liberty renegade).

 

We are very happy with both. Although Jeep stands for Just Empty Every Pocket! We have an 08 Unlimited Rubicon and I think our total investment is now at least $50K or more, but we wheel the crap out of it--that's what it's for right? It's currently sitting at the dealer with a blown up transfer case. I actually had to rent a car for next week...we are taking a trip out of town with 3 kids and luggage...the Mini isn't going to cut it

 

I know -- both vehicles have a wave. I sometimes catch myself waving at Jeeps while in the Mini or visa-versa and I get weird looks!

 

It must not be that weird of a sentiment to like both MINIs and Jeeps, somebody at MINI seems to recognize it. Remember the Beachcomber concept?

 

A couple of the MINI owners here also have Jeeps in their driveways...so I don't feel that it's terribly unusual.

blonda - if you think having a Jeep is an expensive 'hobby', try owning a Land Rover. I've currently got both a Jeep and a Land Rover at the moment, and the Rover is by far - the worst "4x4xfar" when it comes to reliability.

 

I sold my Wrangler when I finally ordered my R56 build.

When I started looking into MINI, I was on the hunt for a more economical vehicle--the 17 mpg of the Wrangler just wasn't cutting it. Of course, when it all comes together...I still would have saved money sticking with the Jeep over MINI, but the MINI is much more fun to drive (except in the snow--I am in Colorado, after all ). The other vehicle in the running was a Ford Escape hybrid.

 

haha...i've got neighbors down the street that have a land rover (it's been collecting dust for like (3) years). seriously, it hasn't moved in (3) years.

 

Haha, they probably need some sort of expensive part to make it work again.

Any idea what kind of Rover it is? Mine's a '94 Discovery. I have a strong love/hate relationship with it. There's no such thing as a cheap part on a Rover.

I find it so strange (but quite delightful) that MINI parts are actually quite reasonably priced.

 

I owned a 2003 vw gti, modded it more than a bit, it was quick enough but the handleing just wasn't great, even with switching to different setups, so I bought my mini and the mini stock with runflats handled 3 times better!

Also your Nissan ser, haha actually a very underrated car, those things can be preettty quick if you mod it, I have a friend with an '02 ser spec v, put a turbo in it, a couple other small mods and drag races it, sweet ride..

 

yeah, i'd agree. the 337 had a factory lowered suspension. it would be a lot of mucking around to set up a gti the same way (and still not have 1/2 the handling as a mini). on the mini test drive, i exited turn 2 of the first "s" with big a$$ smile on face.

 

I came from a Z4, I looked at:

E46 330
WRX
RSX
Civic Si
Mazda 3