so I have a chance evo but a 2003 cooper s with a lot of upgrades including enkei nt01 18s, 22% pulley, short shifter, coil packs, and other upgrades.

bad part.
the owner tried to replace head gasket and did a bad job at putting things back together and now it can't drive and has a bad idle..
price is $1500

I'm new to the mini scene and it will be my 2nd car (2014 tacoma) is my other vehicle.

any advice. this is she.. she also comes with an aftermarket intercooler.

 

what is the mileage?

why is he saying it it a bad HG job?

do the numbers of how much it will cost to fix it.

after all is fixed, how price wise does it compare to other minis?

 

this is part of the convo I had with the seller.

 

HG is easy enough to fix - its an easy weekend job if you have any mechanic skills. I am very concerned if the OP has fouled up the HG, what else was messed up - easy enough to bend a valve when the head is out if you know what you are doing, not to mention damage to the bottom end if a piece of metal got in the way of piston travel... If you do not have the skills, take it to a decent independent shop to check out timing and compression, put a scope down the spark plug holes.
Considering the $200 tow charge + a couple of hours labor with a decent mechanic, its money well spent. These cars are old enough they are only worth what you want to pay... so make sure it can be (reasonably) economically repaired. A new head... timing kit ... labor could easily run more than $1.5k on top of the car price.

 

 

what is the mileage?

 

this is his response for replacing head gasket.

 

if he thinks the timing was off, why not just rest the timing? i come from 2nd gen minis, and setting the timing, take 30 minutes!

 

156k

 

Sounds like a "basket" case. How good are you with a wrench and then how good are you at putting something back together that you did take apart and do not know if everything is there???????????

 

I'm very good at mechanics. I once fixed a broken dome bulb on my car. it was tough but I managed to do it.
all jokes aside. I am an industrial mechanic so.. yes. I'm a little worried about the wire harness because he mentioned that he gutted the interior to inspect it.

 

the engine is assembled and he says it runs with a rough idle and that he did the timing wrong.

 

Cam and chain not mated up correctly and you have some bent rods. Throw in the gutted interior, I would not pay more then $500 and then keep my figures crossed that I did not buy a 2500 lb paperweight.

 

he has all the interior but it's just not installed.

 

My 2 cents is this. If the timing chain was installed incorrectly chances are that you will have damage. This is an interference motor so bent valves, damage to the pistons and/or rods. If I was looking for a toy and the body was in good shape I would haggle him down and have fun fixing it up. I have been having some fun fixing up and modding my r53. the plus side is this if you buy it and can't get it fixed you can part it out and make back most of your money.

 

that sounds like a good plan but I'm really not wanting another "problem" on my hands. I have a 2yr old and one on the way. I don't need more complications in my life right now.