Hello, i'm thinking of buyinga 03 cooper s with 175k miles on it. The price is $2500, and it has check engine and some flashing light on the speedometer. My dad is a mechanic and he said it sounds like theres a rod knock, oil or something is leaking from exhaust, and there's a rattle that sounds like it might be the exhaust.

It also has some rust on the door and the hatchback, which i can fix for less than $500 repainted


Do you think this is a good idea? My dad can either rebuild the engine or swap a used engine, but i'm not sure if there's more problems. The tranny seems to be ok, clutch ok but needs new brakes.

 

The only one to answer all your questions IMO is your dad who is a mechanic. This IMO would make a great father and son bonding project.

 

Keep in mind he doesn't work as a mechanic, but he was a mechanic and has all tools in our garage etc. We already have done a few cars together and sold them for 2x the price.
With the mini, that won't be the case. I'd like to keep it so selling it for a profit isn't my concern, but finishing it under 5k.

I guess the only way to find out is check the codes and see if they're major, if not, we will buy it and fix paint/ brakes and other cosmetics and then swap engine when it dies.
Unless you guys know of a way to get the rebuild kit for cheap. He has rebuilt engines before but in the 90's.

Edit: The car's central locking system doesn't work too, is it a cheap fix?

 

Also, here is the car: