Since I bought my 2006 mini s convertible in 2010, the nicest most expensive car I have ever owned, I have sunk $300-$500 of repairs into it every six months.
My hatred of the car has been steadily catching up to my love. When the A/C stopped blowing cold air earlier this month I became pretty sure that it was time for the end of our money pit relationship.
Unable to find a mechanic that I trust today I took her to the dealership

They called me to verify that:
A/C condenser going bad 1155 but can make it through the summer on a recharge $170
in addition to that
power steering hoses are leaking $560 (very very slowly)
control arm bushings torn $760
Oil pan gasket needs replaced $520
window needs realigned $60
Total $3055

The mini and I will now part ways. I cannot afford to replace her as I am too picky to find anything else that I really like so the plan is to sell her to an individual.
The question is how much of this should I repair before unleashing her high maintenance love on some poor unsuspecting schlub

 

People need to get more opinions before they decide to sell, go to a Indy shop. Leaky power steering lines? Add some when low and move on with your life, I just saved you 560 bucks.

 

Skip the oil pan gasket. We had 3 replaced under warranty and everyone of them still leaked...

 

Buy a "you fill it kit" of R134 refrigerant at WM and recharge it yourself. There's a product called A/C Pro I believe, but any kit that has a hose, gauge, and refrigerant will do.
Read the instructions. It's not hard, but its not a permanent fix either...

 

Check your oil, check your power steering fluid every fill up. Refill your A/C at the beginning of summer and as needed throughout. That's what I would do. As stated, it really won't hurt anything. Bushings, I'm not sure about.

 

Correction, 3K in dealer prices, is not the same as real world prices. Thee most be a Indy shop I your are ( I don't know where you are ) they probably charge you less than half of the quoted price.

Window alignment $0.00 you can do that yourself very easy
PS hoses leaking? They told me the same thing and the fluid level never changed, added $2 with of clamps just in case

I'm sure that an AC refill will be less than that elsewhere

I don't know how much the control arm bushing are but I can not imagine that they cost more than 350. With labor

Oil pan gasket, mine has been leaking for almost 2 years,no worries jus check and add oil as needed, is not that hard to replace

Avoid the dealer as much as you can

 

Don't Panic and sell based on what the dealer quoted. Slow leaks are no biggie do what the others stated. Install Powerflex bushings on the control arms. It's not hard and there are many posts here on NAM but if you don't have the tools or comfort you can pay someone for that. If I'm not mistaken Helix was doing those at MOTD for under $375. Those bushings go bad on all gen1 Minis so its not like you have a lemon. I did my own and it's not a big deal. Several vendors offer pre pressed in bushings with a core charge which makes the whole project alot easier.

 

Thank you all much for the advice

went to the dealer because they originally gave me a lower quote for the power steering hoses than a local shop but I have
been adding power steering fluid, the leak is much too slow to worry about fixing

there is a huge thick oil stain under the car (it lives in an outdoor parking lot) but when I checked the oil level today before taking it in, it was full. this has me relieved... clearly the leak is not bad... paranoid, if it is leaking is something else getting into the oil? Fortunately I'm usually too lazy to take the paranoia seriously.

For bushings don't you have to get the car up and the wheels off or something, Not sure how relevant this is but I once changed a cv boot with one of those after market screw closed numbers but I remember doing a rather poor job and it being a huge headache.

I guess my problem is that I really love my car, I love it so much that I don't own it. It owns me. And it's treating me like I'm it's little unwanted dog. I guess I'm just starting to get tired of the constant maintenance.

 

Honestly most of the problems you will come across, including those you have mentioned are known issues. Hopefully you researched the known issues attached to these cars before purchase. If you had you would know what you were getting into. That being said, once the known issues are sorted, your left with a pretty reliable "sports" car.

 

Sounds just like being married.

 

a lot of this stuff you can fix with basic hand tools in your garage as long as you are smarter than a monkey

oil pan gasket is a matter of draining the pan, removing the pan, scraping off the old RTV from the pan and block, putting new RTV on, and reinstalling to german torque specs(goodntight)($8 if you reuse your old oil), changing the power steering fluid(yes change it chances are that will fix your leak) is a matter of draining the old fluid and putting new fluid in(maybe $10 in fluid)

control arm bushings are also easy to do, just replace the entire control arm($300 at most for both sides) which again can be done in the garage with simple hand tools

you can have the dealer realign the window if you want for $60 and the AC problem id take to an independent AC specialist, assuming you need to replace the entire system, it wont cost you nearly as much as it would through an AC specialist

 

None of those are serious & all are DIYable if you're handy. But those can also be used as excuses to sell. Depends on how much you wanna keep or rid of it.

 

Here is some help. I don't know how mechanically inclined you are, if you can find a MINI indy or another owner who knows how to work on a MINI that helps a bunch.

Parts and some DIY's linked below.


They called me to verify that:
A/C condenser going bad 1155 but can make it through the summer on a recharge $170

A/C Condenser & Drier Part # 64531490572

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/64531490572/






I would replace the seals 9 & 10 , then have it recharged, an A/C shop can evac it for you for the R134.

#9

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/64508374959/

#10

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/64508375741/




power steering hoses are leaking $560 (very very slowly)

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...luid-leak.html DIY is linked in the thread.





control arm bushings torn $760

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ll-joints.html

DIY

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-bushings.html






Oil pan gasket needs replaced $520

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/11131487221/



Diagrams

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...amination.html

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...l-pan-diy.html






window needs realigned $60

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-me-crazy.html


There is a tool which works on the side window gear to loosen and tightening it, you can slightly adjust it, for the convertible its easier with the top down and all windows up, when I did it.

Window Regulator Nut Wrench Part # 83300494251

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/83300494251/ES199501/



Thanks and hope that you can keep your MINI.

 

lots of good resources and parts there, but the AC problem will have to be fixed at a licensed shop because they can properly dispose of the freon(that and federal law says you have to be licensed to work on AC systems)

and that oil pan gasket is way overpriced, seriously a $8 tube of RTV Ultra Grey at any auto parts store is much cheaper and will get the job done

its even cheaper online if you only buy stuff online

 

OP: If $500 every 6 months is too expensive to maintain a 8 year old german car than the mini just isn't for you. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if you told me it was $500 a month. These cars just aren't that cheap to keep running long-term. You've managed to find most of the "known" issues but there are still others that will crop up. Some of them won't be as cheap. What about when your supercharger finally wears out? Cars don't run forever without maintenance

Dear sweet jesus please don't do this. Oil pan bolts have a torque spec for a very good reason. You don't want to be drilling into your block to fix an oil pan bolt hole.

 

Exactly that ^^. These cars are more expensive to buy and more expensive to fix than other products on the market. If tinkering around with it yourself holds no appeal, then this is a battle against you that your car will win. Get the window fixed, recharge the a/c, and slap a for sale sign on it.

 

Yeah, I live in a condo and have a parking space, no garage, no tools, no ramps, no jacks. Plus I am 5'1 and the idea of working on my own car scares me a bit. I'm clever and can put in new floors and a garbage disposal, but my sink isn't worth $10k

To replace the bushings I have to drop the sub frame not gonna happen

descriptions of replacing the oil pan include calling it a headache almost worth paying to get fixed.

And speaking of headache, I was so upset about selling the car and replacing it I got a headache so bad that my face hurt. yes, my face. this has never happened to me before. That is not a reasonable reaction or a remotely healthy relationship.

I'm gonna sell it or trade it in, question now is how much I should repair if I sell it to an individual

 

Definitely use the torque specs on the oil pan! I've learned the hard way on another car

 

And speaking of headache, I was so upset about selling the car and replacing it I got a headache so bad that my face hurt. yes, my face. this has never happened to me before. That is not a reasonable reaction or a remotely healthy relationship.

I'm gonna sell it or trade it in, question now is how much I should repair if I sell it to an individual.

You are clearly stressed out about this, I understand. These cars do need love and attention and not everyone is adept at doing that. You should probably sell it and get something else. I would not recommend that you pay for all the work to be done for two reasons. First, you will not recover what you will spend. Second, you will miss out on selling it to someone with tools and know how that wont be too scared when you disclose your known issues.

 

Wow at those prices. If someone handed me a $1000 I could have all those problems outside the A/C fixed in a weekend. The sad part is after parts I'd still have a huge chunk of cash left over for my labor.

 

 

"Disclose your known issues"? Oh the words of an optimist! I think the OP refers to the potential new owner as a "unsuspecting schlub". Colorado used Mini potential owners beware!

I think you should be a realist and bring your car in as a trade in to a Mini dealership. Test drive a new F56, fall in auto love....and sign the dotted line. New car, warranty etc is certainly the lowest stress solution here for someone not wanting/able to perform some DIY work. It will cost you but look for the best deal out there with the lowest payments. Lose money - of course but cars are like that. Nowhere near as distasteful as the bad karma from unloading your Mini on the unsuspecting schlub.
Signed, an unsuspecting schlub who some years ago bought a Toyota with faulty bits. Like seat belts

 

Your car is a 2006. That's 8 yrs. not bad for a car ownership so overall you shouldn't feel too bad about replacing it. For me cars have to last 10 years or more when bought new. That's just how we budget ourselves. We have 2 cars. We save for 5 years minimum than are ready to replace one if/when it makes sense. so far we've done well .

Another consideration is that 8 years of about $800 or so of repairs is $6,400. It's another way to look at it. When you compare that money against things like options on a new car, food, or gas you quickly realize that it is not that bad to spend money like that for something you love so while everyone gets these ideas about reliable cars. It's good to put things in perspective with the joy some things brings you. It all varies from individual to individuals so there is no right or wrong answers. I enjoy driving and driving car I appreciate so I am whilingly put more money into it because in the end it brings me joy. It's just part of the entertainment budget. Some people spend $1,000/yr for fancy cable. Same thing...

The critical part is always at what point does it go from $800 a years to twice or 3 times that and wether or not it is a one time aging fix or a trend. On a personal note the inconvenience of having the car fixed is what frustrates me more sometime.

If you indeed are ready to replace the car always look at the positive side and pleasure that comes in getting a new car. That experience alone can be worth it. Doing something new. Driving something new is always a marker in ones life. If I had the cash I would change car more often just because it is so nice to change. I'm limited so instead I cherish our cars for some time in order to save for that next one. I have not regretted our purchase and experience yet that way.

That said I would also add that while you do that (looking for a new car) one should not looked at the negatives of the past car but rather the positive to get the next one. The worse you can do to yourself is get some car because of fear related concerns like reliability and go from a loved car to a car that you will never be happy with and brings you a sense of regret even if it runs perfectly well. You'll be telling people how fewer problems you have but deep down you won;t be quite has happy. Just my 2ç. Always think up not down. Wether it is a MINI or not (and you should not exclude MINI just because of your 06 problems) you should always look for something that brings you the same or better joy

Anyway just some food for thought that may help you one way or an other.
I rather not give straight pros or cons to that sort of decision, but rather look for what fits your life still the most. Money is just money. It, itself does not bring joy.

Good luck

 

Question for ECSTuning: On that diagram of the entire a/c system, I do not see an expansion valve. Where is it?

 

to be fair, I refer to a new owner as an unsuspecting schlub due to the crappy build quality and repair frequency of first gen minis. It's what I was.

I would never sell a car in need of $3000 in repairs to someone undisclosed. That is just... Disgusting. I am practically pathologically honest which is why I will likely trade the car in for something newer made by a brand known for reliability.

My last car was bought with 125k miles on it and in four years only required a new door lock and tires.

my mini was bought at 45k miles and has had a new door lock, a new engine mount, two new keys, new brakes, an a/c recharge, a $300 tune up, wheel speed sensor, and manifold air pressure sensors. And it currently could use a new oil gasket, new power steering hoses, new bushings and a new ac condenser

While new minis are significantly more reliable it is very unlikely I will ever own one again.

Though I must say that the 2014 Countryman S All 4, that the dealer lent me until I get my car back, is an unbelievable amount of fun. It is an automatic and I ran in up a steep hill with a switchback, which can be tricky in a manual, and the Countryman took the corner like a madman.