So I am looking to buy a 2008 Mini Cooper clubman S the only thing is it has 58,425 miles on it. My current vehicle is a 2009 Toyota Corolla S with only 42,200 miles. I have always wanted a mini and I recently drove the Mini and I love it. I am just weary about buying a used car with that many miles and it's 1 year older than my Toyota. What do you guys think? Should I go for it and finally own the mini I want? Or hold out until one becomes available with less miles and slightly newer? I do not think I could afford a new one since I want a clubman S.

 

In my opinion, certified used is the way to go. The additional warranty is very good. I recently bought a 2011 certified used MCS with more warranty time and miles than it had new.

 

Keep looking until you find one that doesn't concern you so much that you post for this type of advice. It's in the back of your mind and if you buy it and something does go wrong, you'll be kicking yourself as you pour more money into it. I am a big fan of find used vehicles with low mileage that still have some decent amount of factory warranty remaining. You save some money over buying new and still get piece if mind. We test drove about 10 minis and on all of them something just didn't feel right before we "stumbled" on one that was only a year old with 10k miles. Patience will pay off.

 

The quality of MINIs have improved greatly since the "early days", however, they are not cars that have the reputation for being bulletproof and easy/cheap to work on. I think realistically it is a bad idea to own a MINI without any sort of warranty unless you get a heck of a deal on it and can use the money to start saving just in case it needs repairs.

 

Debatable for sure. I will choose an 04-06 R53 over the R56 any day. The rest I agree with. Be prepared to toss some coin at the car, they are not cheap to really own.

 

I payed 1500 for my r50 with a bad clutch and replaced the clutch on my own and never looked back....love the car but be sure your mechanically inclined incase something goes bad.....but personal experience I love the car and will own a mini for along long time, funest car I have ever owned

 

If your worried about reliability,keep your Corolla!

My 2005 XRS has 138,000 miles and had no real issues compared to my wifes '12 Cooper S.

 

Frankly, based on 6 years of reading these boards if you want a mini you
can drive similarly to your toyota do not get the S.

 

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