We are considering a new Countryman, but I wanted to try and get some feedback about the new minis in general Just as a background, we have a 05.5 VW Jetta TDI. After that experience I wanted to find out from owners if Mini has any glaring , expensive problem like the Jetta. The Jetta: Failed Dual Mass Flywheel- $1300-1700 Cams wearing out $2000 + HPFPs 6000k + Icing in intercooler lines- no fix yet I am reading through the problems thread, but there is a lot to cover So, just over all how are the new Mini's and how does customer service seem to be in general.

 

I can't speak for the Countryman. I don't have a need for one. I just ordered my forth MINI so we love them. There are a lot of multiple MINI families. I'm sure you will love the MINI and if you don't you can always sell it. Have have the highest resale value. I say buy one.

Don

 

I am one of those multiple MINI families. You should be fine while you are under warranty, but MINI maintenance and repairs can run into serious dollars once you are on your own, so to speak. You should scan the 'stock problems/issues' section of this forum to get a general idea of things gone wrong. You may want to have this thread moved to the Countryman section instead of the Clubman section.

 

Well thanks for the answers. The reason I posted here was the Countryman is new so hard to get long term feedback on it. I just wanted long term feedback on newer Minis in general. I am looking through he issues thread, just a lot to go through. I was a mechanic so I do all our maintenance, only goes to the dealer for warranty.

 

As you point out, that's impossible given that the Countryman is only now hitting the States.

I'm a former VW and Audi owner. I've bought nearly a dozen new VWs, and came to MINI from an Audi allroad. I can assure you that the dealer experience with MINI is vastly better than any I ever experienced with VW (in several states). While I found Audi's dealer experience to be excellent, it's on par with MINI.

As far as the cars go, the MINI is more fun to drive than any VW I've owned and more reliable (radically more reliable in the case of my allroad). I think you will be very happy owning a MINI.

Enjoy!

 

All the mini's have quirks, some specific to the unit itself. Justa's seem to be the least plauged. The S models have problems, but really most seem to be from squeezing out way more ponies than the factory really intended. If you are a mechanic, that probably makes since to you. I have had the Clubman for a grand total of 3 days when I arrived at work and had to leave her parked for two weeks but already found a few different things than the justa had.
Parts and labor can be expensive, and it is a nich car but not too bad. Remember their is a concentration of "problems" noted here because so many look here for answers.

Best of luck. The countyman seemed like a nice unit when we were looking at it.

 

I also came from a VW to a MINI. I had a 2000 New Beetle turbo that i had modified to some degree. (APR Chip, Turbo-back exhaust, intake, short-shifter,poly bushings). The warranty period for the Beetle was horrible. After I got the initial build problems, I had pretty good luck. Owned the car 10 years and it had approximately 150,000 miles when I traded.

All of that said, I'm more than a little impressed with my Clubman's initial build quality. So far 7,000 + miles and only a few "niggling" little things. My experience with the service has been night and day. I know the problems and issues section can be pretty intimidating, but I think overall they're not that bad.

 

The Countryman being manufactured in Austria may be a plus due to the Oxford, UK plant having so many negatives associated with it. I drove a Countryman Cooper S All4 and I was impressed that it had what I call a "substantial" feel to it. There was no wind noise and the only rattles I heard were from the items attached to the center rail system. I've never used any of my MINIs as a daily driver but I'm hoping the MINI brand will be known for longevity and not just high resale value.

 

Like you, I'd never owned a MINI before buying my John Cooper Works Clubman. So far, it's been a very positive experience for me: no problems at all, and the service at MINI of Pittsburgh (for the free maintenance) has been excellent.

 

I sold a BMW 3 series convertible and bought a new MINI S Convertible about a year and a half ago. This MINI has been the most fun of any car I have had in over 30+ years of driving. It is just a lot of fun to drive and my dealer has been great to work with. I think you would enjoy a MINI!

 

I have one of the very first S Coopers to come to North America in 2002. I'm still driving it daily. All original issues with the car were repaired by MINI under warranty. I've had no other issues despite increasing my HP over 30% from stock. These cars are meant to be driven and they are designed for people who like to drive. Sorry Google.

 

Definitely not nearly the most reliable or well-made cars out there, but nothing is as fun to drive in the same way. No German car is close to being as reliable as a Honda or Toyota, of course, unless you are one of the lucky ones who gets a good one. I haven't driven a Countryman but the Clubman S is an absolute blast to drive despite the many problems I've already had with it in under 14,000 miles. They aren't built as well as BMWs are, but again there's nothing like 'em out there in many ways. I agree that the Countryman being built in Austria could be a plus over the other models being built in England.

 

I agree with Headlands completely.

Having owned VW's in our family, MINI's reliability is on par with VAG vehicles. The only thing is the service department is more knowledgeable at MINI.

One thing to consider about the Countryman is although the vehicle is bigger than a Clubman, the rear seats do not currently fold flat. As a result you sacrifice some cargo space. The M.A. told me this when I was getting my windows reprogrammed a couple of weeks ago and said if hauling cargo if a priority to stick with the Clubman. The rumor is they are going to try to come up with an updated bench seat to fix this issue, but I don't know how that would work with the cupholder/accessory rail that goes from the front of the car to the rear.

 

I do not think you will have any problems with a Countryman being new to the streets. The Mechanicals and computers stuff have been used on all of the Mini's for a few years now. Only the Body and if you get All Wheel Drive will be different. With a four year warrenty you can enjoy your new Countryman and relax.

 

Well we are not sure if we are going for a S or not but don't need the ALL4.

We will be ordering one soon, it's just a pain in the ___ because we want to drive a manual S and Non S back to back to decide and non of the local dealers have both.