I joined the Mini community today to gather some thoughts about a 2011 Mini Cooper S (R56, N18) that is for sale in my subdivision. Super clean interior and engine bay (pretty much immaculate), white, 6 speed manual, 81,xxx miles with 2 previous owners I believe. The seller of this Mini is an older Italian gentleman who had bought it from the priest of the church he went to (you can say the car has been blessed).

Anyways, the car has some minor front end damage with the following parts missing : Front bumper cover, Front bumper carrier, grille, and both headlight trim pieces.

The parts that are damaged and need to be replaced include: Driver headlight, hood, both fog lights and brackets, bulge in driver front tire.

Mechanical Problems include: I scanned the car with my scan tool and got P0597 code, along with the slight smell of coolant outside the car while its running. Another thing I had noticed was that the electric fans never kicked on during the 30 minute test drive. There is no visible damage to the radiator, intercooler, or ac condenser. There are no coolant leaks that I could see from the top of the engine or underneath the car. The A/C also does not work.

Total ball park number of $2,200-$2,700 just in parts that I would have into it. (Could get away with a carbon fiber hood and only painting the bumper)

With all this being said, his original asking price was $3,900 but after some shrewd negotiating I offered a firm $2,750 with the seller staying firm at $3,000. He told me that he had a friend of his who is also "interested" and lives in Ann Arbor and wanted to show him the car and see if he'd make an offer. Long story short the seller said that he didn't feel that this car was right for his friend in Ann Arbor and is basically kinda pushing to have this sale done by Friday (6/19/2020). Since the seller is now pushing for a deal, it leads me to believe that there isn't much interest in this car and realized the deal he passed up...which in all honesty drove my purchasing price down to $2,500 for feeling rushed. (at one point my heart was in it to win it telling me to drop 3 grand on this thing... Not logical)

I am coming to this community with 3 questions in hoping to lead me in the right direction with this potential buy. I honestly really enjoyed driving it, and owning a mini has been on my bucket list for some time, especially a 6 speed. Also it would be really cool to own a Range Rover and a Mini at the same time... But I am 22 with good mechanical knowledge and a car enthusiast. I have done work on my L322 Range Rover, the gf's e90 BMW 328xi, and Saab 93 Aero's just to give some background of the more difficult cars I've wrenched on. (Saabs are fun, but the 2.8t are a PITA to work on)

1.) Is $2,500-2,750 a honest and reasonable offer for this Mini, or am I over-paying?
2.) Would I be able to get a return on my investment or break even flipping this car? (Goal of at least $1,000)
- with additions of tasteful mods :JCW front bumper, exhaust, intake.
3.) Should I buy, or walk away?

If I am able to upload pictures of it to give a better idea of the state this car is in, I will try and do so tomorrow. I look forward to hearing from this community and also look forward to possibly becoming a Mini owner!
-PhilDango

 

Handy with a wrench? These cars are not cheap to maintain or repair.