I would have agreed with that too except that there are so many tales of issues MINI won't even cover on a new car warranty I'm not sure that the used warranty is worth anything.

 

No more of a joke than asking $39,777 for the car. As with all things, the truth probably lies somwhere in the middle...

 

I say lowest end of the middle I try not to invest to much emotion in a purchase... before I bought Mini Mee we were looking at new Accord coupes... I made offers on them, Miatas a 350Z... but I got Mini Mee for the right price and here we are

 

If they are as "unaware" as you have suggested -- and it appears they are, they may have made some sort of huge mistake when they took in in as a trade and paid too much themselves. Benz dealers seem to have a pretty high opinion of themseleves and their customers, and many seem to have this little list of folks who are looking for a special car. The dealer guy just calls up and says come get it. All too often the customer shows up with wife/girlfriend/daughter who immediately falls in love with the car and has to have it regardless of the price (maybe how it got sold in the first place).

Its sad to say, but they may just hang onto it until the right fool comes along with a large checkbook. They'll show him a couple of Benz offerings at $95K to $120K, then tell him the have this little bargain car that they can probably sneak away with for "...oh, maybe somewhere around $38 and change." the customer -- fresh from looking at AMG stuff feels like he's discovered a steal, and the car goes out the door.

Sad, but it seems to be the way of life for many luxury brands.

Look elsewhere, this one's priced too high, and its seller can't support it after the sale.

...and, if I could afford a fully optioned JCW in the first place, I'd probably opt for brand new, then I'd get the fun of going through the option list and making my own.

YMMV.

 

It's true that this Mercedes dealership won't support the car after the sale (all the more reason why they can do a better job of discounting their price, in my opinion); but the remainder of the MINI factory warranty and maintenance program (for whatever it's worth) is still in effect.

 

page three

http://www.cargurus.com/Cars/invento...tance=MILES_75

 

Huh! They're even low-balling my $29k suggestion by ~$4k, based on their "national average"... They're also citing "national average" 2009 JCW prices above the 2010 models, which seems counterintuitive...

That being said, they seem to agree that the 2009 JCW Hardtop in Marble Falls is a good buy (see first page).

 

Hi, Just joined these boards as i am considering trading out of my gas guzzling suv and getting a clubman instead. The dealer has a very nice 09 jcw he is trying to get me into, but the jcw models here in canada have huge premiums over the regular clubman S.
Do you find those extra premiums are worth it to get the jcw?
Also, since i can technically wait another couple of months should i wait until the new redesigned models come out, which might drop prices on 09 further?

 

Not certain if the premiums in Canda are greater than here in the U.S; I guess a used factory JCW doesn't warrant too much more money here in the States -- except in Boerne, Texas...

I suppose the best way to examine the question is to equip a Clubman S (at least as closely as possible) with everything that come standard on the factory JCW Clubman, and see where that price is compared to what you would pay for the factory JCW Clubman. You can do that to a large degree on MINI's web site, but I'm not certain they offer the JCW engine upgrades on their "Configurator;" you might need to add in the cost of that engine upgrade at the end of the process. And keep in mind: the JCW engine upgrade to a Clubman S does not uprate the basic "S" engine to the same horsepower as the factory JCW engine, and the Clubman S transmission is the standard 6-speed (you can't upgrade it to the JCW Getrag transmission); so when all is said and done, it's really a bit of an "apples-to-oranges" comparison...

Personally, I think the extra money I paid (which wasn't a whole lot over the Clubman S) was worth the performance gains: more horsepower/torque; stouter transmission; better brakes; upgraded suspension. As I already mentioned: a lot of these items are only available on the factory JCW vehicles. Not to say that you might be able to retrofit a Clubman S with those things, but probably not for less than what a factory JCW Clubman would have cost you...

Ordinarily, that's a good strategy, and in the current buyer's market, your chances are pretty good that the vehicle will still be on the lot a few months down the road. But life offers few guarantees; so if you choose to play the waiting game, you should mentally be prepared for the contingency that someone else will purchase it during that period... The other thing to consider is that the price on an '09 JCW Clubman probably won't drop dramatically immediately after the 2011 models hit showrooms; I don't recall there being too many real changes for the new models (cosmetic "facelifts" and a small horsepower bump).

If you really want the JCW Clubman -- and already know it -- do some additional pricing research there in Canada to know what's the highest fair price you should pay; then ask to drive the two vehicles (a 6-speed Clubman S and the JCW Clubman) back-to-back over the same course of roads. At that point, you should be able to make an informed decision about whether the JCW Clubman is right for you -- and worth the extra money to you, which is all that really matters in the end.

 

Carmax sold 2 this year I saw for $27k. Not as many options, but that price is ridiculous.

 

It's hard to set a price for something like a JCW because the population is so small. From what I understand, in 2009 the US got 498 JCWs, Canada about 67 and Mexico about 33. The total 2009 MINI population was something like 45,000+ I believe. You can make guesses as to how much the value is reduced by using it (5,000 miles, 10,000, whatever), but what you don't know is how the market will respond to the car. There just isn't enough data...