I financed a 2012 MCS R56 Hardtop about a month ago brand new from Princeton MINI in NJ. The car was already on the lot w/ auto tranny, cold weather pkg, and sunroof. Not including tax & etc, the price of the car was $27k. The car currently as 3500 miles.

UNFORTUNATELY FOR ME, I just came back from MTTS 2012 and saw green . And in the last month of driving, I decided the auto gearbox in the MINI is mediocre at best, and that I would really like some other options and goodies. I'm looking at factory ordering a MINI w/ a MANUAL gearbox, tech & navi pkg, RECARO seats, JCW package, xenons, sport suspension, cold weather pkg, auto AC, and sunroof. I've been in contact with a few dealerships and only one has replied back and given me a trade-in offer of $22k.

Now my questions:

-I've been told that the dealers can only order 2013 MY R56 at this point. After doing some research, i'm very confused as to whether the 2013 is still the current generation or not. Any insight?
-Via the "build your own mini" on miniusa, the car I want comes out to $35,3xx. Looking on the forums, I've read that a good deal will be 6-7% off that. Will I be able to get that kind of discount on a 2013? Can anyone recommend any specific dealers in the NJ/NY/MD/PA/DE/VA area that may help me get that price as well as give me the best value on the trade in? I've noticed that many dealers don't give great help unless you walk in.
-Do you guys think I should privately sell my MINI instead of trading it in? I was quite shocked at how much the vehicle depreciated in 30 days.

 

The dealer will always low-ball you, sell it yourself. Have you looked up the Bluebook value? I've never seen Mini discount 6-7%, maybe $500 but that's it, at least over here in Hawaii.

 

Here in Australia, as far as I know, you can still order a 2012 but I think that will switch over to 2013 in the coming weeks. This will probably be different state side so I'll leave that question up to someone else.

As for discounts, it seems to vary a lot. I hunted around and bounced quotes off three local MINI dealerships and ended up getting 12% off my final price. Don't try to please them. I walked in, sat down, gave them the figure I was willing to spend and what I wanted. They offered me (a), I said okay and left and they called me the next day and offered me what I wanted. I did this with a few dealerships and went with who offered me the best deal. I've found that appearing somewhat disinterested in the whole deal works best especially since I've met quite a few salesmen too big for their boots. They should work for the sale and work for your business in my opinion.

As for the trade-in, I got low-balled too so I ended up selling mine privately and luckily I got the price I wanted. It did take a few extra weeks though.

 

3% off MSRP, if you're lucky.

And you'll probably take a beating while getting rid of a 1 month old car... E end a MINI which ranks near the top in maintaining value.

 

A couple of weeks ago when I was told that 2013's MINI's could be ordered but they did not have any prices, lease residuals, etc. -- just order it on "faith", I suppose. My BMW dealer told me the same thing when I also looked in to ordering a 128i. Both dealers had no info on model changes, etc. and were frustrated as they had a number of people wishing to order but no info. I ended up getting a leftover 2012 out of stock with a discount of about $1000 and incentivized MINI Financial financing.

 

Sell it privately, but be prepared to take a hit on a car that's only one month off the lot.

As far as discounts go, you'll be lucky to get any more than $500 or so off of a custom ordered MINI. Dealers are much more willing to deal with in stock cars they want to move, especially towards the end of a MY.

One last thing.....nice choice on the color you want. BRGII is AWESOME!

 

i'm reading NAM and saw a few people got over $2000 back on R60s but i guess they were 2012. would it be a good idea to just wait for the end of the 2013 MY and order one then?

 

R60 is not as big a seller as the R56 and dealers seem to be more flexible in the pricing. My better half just bought an R60 and got $1500 off the sticker on a $34000 building. Do not expect that on an ordered R56.

And yes... waiting would be better unless you're wealthy and don't mind taking a beating on selling your current MINI.

 

i'm def NOT wealthy unfortunately i thought my car would depreciate but not as much as $5000-6000 as i've been told. on top of that, the discounts appear to be little to none on 2013 MY since they're brand new so I think I will see what my options are at the end of 2013 MY and try to order one then

 

Patience is a virtue. One that I lack, so I'm not lecturing.
Your new car depreciates greatly the moment that you drive it off the dealer's lot.

Just some things to consider, FWIW -

Keep your eyes open.
Dealers have their inventory on line on their individual websites.
A dealer may get the car you want in as inventory and you might have some negotiating room.
MINI may also offer an incentive discount of some sort, like they did this year with a test drive coupon.

Make it to all of your "service due" appointments on time.
Keep all service records and receipts to prove your exemplary maintenance of the car.

Keep it clean.
Protect the paint and interior with good quality products and proper care.
Avoid automatic car washes.
Go to the Detailing forum if you aren't familiar with good care practices.
You don't have to be OCD about it to take good care of it, but a car that looks good is going to bring you more money on resale.

Don't mod it, or only do mods that are easily reversed.
You will want to take your car back to stock when it's time to sell it.

If I were buying a used MINI, I would look to see how often the oil was changed.
I would not want to buy my own car as I followed the OBC recommendations.
At 3.5K miles you might want to consider paying for an oil change soon.
Make sure to use only MINI approved oil and keep the receipts.
Some dealers offer a discount coupon on oil changes. It's on their website, under the "Service" tab.

While you wait, enjoy your MINI.
It sure beats not having a MINI!

Motor On!

 

thank you for your advice! fortunately, i signed up for first place finish when i purchased my car and instead of the detail every 6 months, I got them to do it ONCE a month! and I am actually planning on buying a power washer today to do upkeep every other week.

 

What would be the purpose of a "power washer"...to take the paint off before you sell it??!!

A good hose, one of these...

AND any number of these...

to keep your MINI looking it's best.

Of course there are a number of other items to go along with these and as everyone here has their preferences for car care detailing products I'll let you research your own.

 

Sorry but getting that kind of discount prob won't happen as they just don't have the markup in them. Especially since your ordering the car, if it's on the lot sometimes they want to move it, at the end of the month it's even better.
You will get more for your car selling it privately, but remember that whatever the dealer give you on trade you will get sales tax credit toward your new car which my come out pretty close to what you can privately sell it for.

 

actually from what i understand as long as you keep the PSI below 1800 and stand a few feet away, the paint is fine. a pressure washer helps take off a lot of bugs and sticky stuff and clean the underbody much easier than a garden hose

 

i got close to $1800 off my 2012 that was sitting on the lot when I purchased it last month but i'm guessing that was because it was 1. end of the month and 2. end of the MY

i'll wait for the end of the 2013 MY and try to order one then. maybe by then my credit will be better and I will be able to put down a bigger down payment

 

Depreciation is a b!tc4. Its just the way it is. Both of my MINIs are 6SM but my buddy used to have a '09 with auto and the paddles and it was a lot of fun, especially if you do a lot of commuting. I don't know if you paddles cuz from what I understand the new ones don't come stock with it but maybe it could help in the fun department. If you feel you can live with most of the car and modify and upgrade extras additionally then hold on to it. If you really are just not enjoying the car as much as you think you would with everything to the exact spec you want then it is always worth switching up. Unfortunately you took something off the lot and unless it happens to be exactly what you wanted you will always wonder "what if". Best of luck with whatever you choose to do.

 

actually my car has the paddle shifters already but i hate how they downshift for you. when i'm slowing down, I'll shift not realizing the gearbox just downshifted itself right before so it ends up dropping 2 gears and my car lurches. Ugh.

 

what do you think about a preowned JCW hardtop 2010 with 23277 miles on it for $26k? comes with blacked out xenons, white turn signals, cold weather pkg, auto ac, harmon kardon audio, JCW aero kit, and black driving lights?

 

also are there any significant changes between 2012 and 2010? the car I found is a few states away and I won't be able to easily inspect the car in person. one thing i noticed are all the buttons in the 2010 are silver while my 2012 are black and the radio looks slightly different

 

Did you talk to the dealer that sold you the car in the first place?

Anyway, if you order a loaded up JCW with the Recaros, (obtw do you even know if you will fit in them? They are for small people....) You will be lucky to get free mats and a discount on the 3M clearbra... They have 0 incentive to discount a ordered car.

Just another thought, but skip the Nav. It sucks, costs a fortune to update or repair, the trip routing sucks. (BMW/MINI problem on all NAVs). It's cheaper and easier to buy a Garmin with lifetime maps... The connected is pretty cool.

But they shouldn't have a problem taking your car back without too big a hit. They will just CPO, (MINI NEXT) it, and make out pretty good.