I bought this at a mini dealership last October. It had about 69,000 miles on it.
Carfax history didn't really have any accident, major fix, nothing.

After about a month later, heater didn't work. Brought it to the dealer, was told it's a frequent issue with mini. It was about $500 to fix.

About 1-2 months later, belt or something needed to be replaced. My husband took care of it while I was out of town. I don't remember exactly what the issue was. But it cost close to $1,000.

After a month later, break part needed to be replaced costing $400.

Then exactly after a month from that, the car broke down in the middle of street. Yes. It literally broke down and we had 75,000 miles on the car. Towed the car to mechanic and spent $1700 to replace the clutch. I googled and found out a lot of people who own manual mini have the same issue.

And again, a few days ago, which is about 1-2months after spending $1700 to get a new clutch, the car started to make weird rattling, growling noise at start. It's diagnosed as Turbocharger issue and it'd be about $2000 to fix/replace.

I am aware that most of states don't apply Lemon Law to used car but I just can't believe that the car is having problem one after another, literally every month.
At this point, we're so sick of it and want to get rid of it.

Does anyone have so many issues like us or is it just the one we have?
I'm so stressed and pissed I just wanna crash the car somewhere. I really do feel hostile toward the mini now...

 

I am sorry your MINI ownership experience hasn't been satisfying, that said, it's a used car with 70,000+ miles on the odometer. Belts, clutch and brakes are items that wear out and need to be replaced on all vehicles periodically. With regard to the other issues, those are typical MINI problems. It is not a Toyota, Honda in the way that it drives or in reliability. Many MINI's don't have all these problems, but certainly some do and a little research would have revealed that. If you're that frustrated with the car, fix it and sell if for as much as you can, and buy a Toyota or Honda or something else and hope it is more reliable. Also, it you buy anything else used, look for a good independent service facility if you want less pricey service and repair work done. Dealerships are notoriously the most expensive service and repair option. Oh, and by the way, "lemon laws" don't apply to used vehicles that are no longer under warranty. Best of luck with your decisions.

 

I am sorry for your pain, but Minis have a fairly,low resale value.They have a history of expensive repairs required at fairly low mileage.You bought it and you are either going to live with it or take a hit on dumping the car. Sorry for being so blunt.

 

I'd never buy a Mini "S" with that many miles. If I had been stuck on getting an "S", I would've gotten a new one. Look at it this way, soon, it'll be like new with all you've replaced.

 

I'm with the 2 above: It's not a typical old Honda that will last 400K miles with little to no maintenance. You have to take care of it. Pay close attention to oil changes and your brakes(They wear quite fast, though I can't think of a single brake part worth $400......). The car is far more fun than the typical grocery getter and over all a better car, so yeah there will be some give and take on fixes and maintenance costs. Sounds like you bought one that was right on the verge of needing a few things and the dealership got ya.

On that note, there was no warranty? I mean, that's one of the benefits of buying at a dealership over a private party. I bought my MCS used with 74K miles on it (oh no Karl, I bought a used S, woe is me!), and the MINI/BMW dealership offers a 3mo./5K mile warranty. I'd call that above and beyond on a used car, but it's what I kind of expect from a dealership who is supposed to go over their trade ins with a fine toothed comb.



I couldn't agree less with this guy though ^. Maybe every private party and dealer in your area sells flogged junk waiting to break down on you? My used MCS is going strong with minimal work. I've done the brakes and an oil change. That's all it's needed. I'd call that a good deal with putting almost 10K miles on an "evil, must-be-avoided used S"...

 

Go change your Pamper. I didn't say it was impossible to get a decent one, I said I wouldn't. Didn't mean to turn off the Teletubbies while you were watching, I'm just stating my opinion, (and I'm sure many others would agree) that the "S" is more trouble prone.

 

You will have a new car note or repair bills. The advantage to used is you can put some repairs off. Can't do that with a new car note.

Used is always a gamble. I purchased used but still under factory warranty. Never broke down but did require attention & money! Mini's remind me of exotics. There a blast but do require a lot of TLC.

 

To the OP...you are right...that's an outrageous list of repairs that should not happen on a car with that mileage.....do you have any recourse ...probably not....the deeper I get into MINI's the less enamored I am with the brand.

 

The thing is, he didn't list a single thing the dealer could easily KNOW was going to happen.

Unless the clutch was slipping or not engaging properly(which he also would have felt on the test drive), they never would know it was going to go out.

The HVAC issue, again, is something he said just stopped working. How the hell would the dealer be responsible for that?

"Break(brake??) part costing $400" Isn't exactly a detailed explanation. Especially considering I'm doing nice ceramic front pads and brand new rotors with a new sensor for about $100 worth of parts, and the rears even a tad less than that, I can't fathom a brake part needing to be replaced costing that much. A caliper is not that kind of money, hell even a master or booster shouldn't be that kind of money.

 

I can imagine new pads, rotors, etc all the way around at a dealership would probably be in the $400 range, but that's true on many cars, not just MINI's. I love my MINI, and it has been virtually problem free in the nearly 40K miles I have owned it since new. That said, I am prepared for potential issues and expenses as I approach the time that I am out of warranty. If it gets really expensive or time consuming, I will make a personal finance and business decision and sell it and buy something else. Also, once we are out of warranty, it will be the rare issue that takes me back to the dealership. I think independent shops can do just as well, for less money, especially for typical wear and tear items like brakes, clutches, etc. Regarding resale, I haven't looked lately, but nearly 2.5 years ago when I purchased my MINI, MINI's were near the top of resale charts, which was one of the reasons I purchased mine. While values may have fallen recently, I don't think they are any worse than many other brands.

 

I won't mention Momentum Mini in Houston as the dealer but they charged $302.72 for front brake job without rotors last year!

An Indy charged $511.95 for ceramic pads & rotors on the rear this year!

 

I might add that you can really save a lot of money by looking through many of the "DIY" articles here and elsewhere on the net. Minis require more care and feeding than many other cars, but that care and feeding is very easily accomplished. Replacing brake pads as an example can be done easily with simple hand tools.

But if you lack the skills or have no confidence in your mechanical abilities, a Mini may not be your best choice for low cost transportation.

We have two in my family -- an 09 with 70K and an 05 with 120K. The both run every day. My wife and I sometimes get really creative in coming up with a reason that we simple must be the one who uses the Mini today (exception -- I always get to drive it when it needs gas). The 05 belongs to our daughter. She let me drive it once -- to get gas.

 

I agree completely. I read the "how to" threads whenever my MINI needs repairs, then I check my Bentley manual. The only drawback is not having a garage. Replacing the thermostat last January was brutal.