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Not sure if this is a good deal these days, but its by far the cleanest I've seen in a while. The right buyer will love this: well optioned, chrono package, JCW R52.
On the other end of the spectrum.
05 S Red 130k
Pretty clean pics, non children leather, and blue tube lol.
$3250 intelligence level low, so maybe $2750
On the other end of the spectrum.
05 S Red 130k
Pretty clean pics, non children leather, and blue tube lol.
$3250 intelligence level low, so maybe $2750
So glad to see this thread is still alive and kicking! I started it a few years ago while I looking for an R53 JCW. I haven't been on NAM in a little while, is the old FS thread going to be closed? Any chance the moderators can move it to the new FS thread? It might get more traffic that way as well.
Anyways, I'm on the prowl for my 7th MINI, I'll post any deals I find. Either looking for a low mileage JCW again or maybe a good project in need of TLC that doesn't need the sub-frame dropped. I have a set of seats, rear bumper, headlights, etc.. that I could swap on a banged up MINI.
Thanks for starting the thread, it helped me find an okay deal on CL 600 miles away.
Not sure I’d be too comfortable with the swap of the gauges back/forth... would wonder about the mileage and functionality and how that all works with the ECU
this car has been for sale on and off for a while; glad to see the owner is more reasonable on price. The first time I saw it (near the beginning of this thread) the ask was $16k on Facebook.
Are you looking for you? My opinion on this is it's at a dealer so it's going to be overpriced by a fair bit. You're right though about the maintenance, if that's been kept up, then it may be worthwhile. I see there are 3 lights on, the seat belt light which may not mean anything other than put the seat belt on, and that yellow light, I think it's for brake pad wear? And the TPMS light...may just need a reset, or more. High mileage I think. I'd be interested at $3500 if it passed my own inspection and test drive. But yeah orange is bad and cabrio is not for me.
Are you looking for you? My opinion on this is it's at a dealer so it's going to be overpriced by a fair bit. You're right though about the maintenance, if that's been kept up, then it may be worthwhile. I see there are 3 lights on, the seat belt light which may not mean anything other than put the seat belt on, and that yellow light, I think it's for brake pad wear? And the TPMS light...may just need a reset, or more. High mileage I think. I'd be interested at $3500 if it passed my own inspection and test drive. But yeah orange is bad and cabrio is not for me.
Yes, looking for me. I haven't looked for a JCW in over 18 mo, so Im starting to get a feel for prices again.. It seems they're higher than last search for clean examples. I wont tie up this thread, but $3500 seems fair for the mileage, considering it probably needs another $2k in maintenance to get the steering tight, new clutch, etc.. I hate dealerships in general, besides being pure evil they often lack maintenance records and I assume all vehicles were purchased at auction with heavy damage or theft history - Im cynical. These are getting harder to find, however, so PP isn't always an option.
This one is a no go due to across the pond, but recently saw it and thought it was interesting --- owner dropped a big wad of cash on all the mods too...
...although personally I prefer the s/c to turbo regardless of more power, however I've never driven a turbo R53 and may change my mind LOL it's just that the s/c is so full of soundful character and I love the instantaneous response as well, but a well set-up turbo conversion with gobs of power + crazy torks does sound much fun and probably is a blast to thrash around!
For me.... After looking at the GEN-1 cars... I really have decided that I like the LOOKS of the S-model F&R-Bumper/Skirts... though I do like the skirts painted.
The JCW Aero kits may be more "rare"... but for me the stying of the S is a better balance for ME.
Looking at all the 'deals' above... sure, it's nice to find that rare find in a 14-19 year old GP/JCW car for a great price if that is what you like.
But looking at the deals... for me... the real deals are the lower priced high-mile 'S' cars that have been well taken care of.
For me... a 14-19 year old Gen-1 car will suffer from age as much as use... an outdoor stored 30K-mile car is worth less to ME than a garage-kept 'cream puff' with 190K on the Odometer that has had the right maintenance.
Even these low mile cars need the hood, scoop and front bumper painted and some good PPF from paint-chips (nature of these cars) ... and more likely than not the windshield has nicks and pits in it.... Sure the 190K car will have more paint-chips/nicks... but in the end, the solution for both is the same if you want a really nice car.
If the body and interior are in great shape... and the the car has 190K on it.... and the price is what I'm finding on these cars ($2500-$3500 for LCi 05/06 models).... thats the one for me... Put in a new clutch, tend to the known issues for leaks/pulleys/supercharger etc.... and that is a ride that I'd keep for a LONG time. That is, IMO, a better car than a low mile car that would need some of the same maintenance in the end (leaks, clutch, rubber parts etc)
Worth putting money into along the way for proper PM and any neat upgrades (I'm partial to the Lounge Leather interiors from the R5X cars. Heck... at $2500... a new factory Mini replacement long-block or a good quality rebuild brings these cars to a point that is BETTER than a 14-19 yera old car with 30K on the clock.
In the end, it's that reliability and condition/good looks that I'm after.... all the 'collectable' stuff, though nice, is not what makes the car for me..... and the S has plenty of power... and can be bumped up slightly, with reliability while retaining all of the important emissions items and keeping it streetable with no need for "track specific" items or lowering the car.
I do prefer the stock cars over the mods.... and that makes it easy for me since most modded cars are for a specific small cross-section of Mini owner types.
Cars that fit this criteria on CL/FB etc are fairly easy to find.
Again though... to each their own... and these are fanastic cars...
MOTOR ON !!
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Last edited by mountainhorse; Nov 1, 2020 at 05:22 PM.
Not to get too off topic, but its a combo of things. I've owned well taken car of R52-3 with higher mileage and low, what I've noticed is that both need rubber parts replaced (cooling system, hoses of all kinds, bushings) but after replacing what seemed to be every single steering component, the higher mileage Coopers never had nearly as tight of steering. I replaced damn near everything you could think of and still couldn't get rid of creaks over gentle bounces or have tight steering on my '05 JCW w/ 85k miles vs my '04 JCW with 35k miles. I drove them back to back 18 mo ago, and the lower mileage was easily a better handling car.
Everyone’s experience may vary. I’ve owned both ends of the scale. For example, 2003 Cooper S with 200k miles ended up costing a lot more than a 42k mile 2006 JCW. It depends a lot on the individual car, and on how far you are willing to go when chasing perfection.
My original intent was to buy a 100k mile S or JCW for $6-9k. Upper range if well maintained, no stories. Low mile, right color, right optioned R53s are getting hard to find, and sell within days. After a 2 year searchtempest rabbit hole, I got lucky. Probably wouldn’t do it again. Winters here, can’t even drive it...doh!
The Reef Blue Goodwood I posted earlier is on Carsandbids and ends tomorrow. Depending on reserve, this could be a stellar deal on a car that there are less than 100 of.
The Reef Blue Goodwood I posted earlier is on Carsandbids and ends tomorrow. Depending on reserve, this could be a stellar deal on a car that there are less than 100 of.
My opinion? Meh. It’s basically a Cooper S with **** carpets and wood trim. Even though the package is quite rare, there isn’t much that’s very special about it. Plus, it’s an automatic
Many thanks for posting that!
