Looking for a 2005+ Mini Cooper Convertible, any color or mileage, for a summer driver for our family. Unfortunately (for my wife).....automatic preferred. Budget is probably the only real requirement we have as we're not looking to spend too much on a car we would drive a few months out of the year (Minnesota is home. We had 20" of snow less than 4 weeks ago).


Longer Story:
We bought our first Mini, 2012 MCS Convertible in Pepper White, after trying to start a family for over a year. We were ready to accept that we were not going to have children ever. Enjoyed the crap out of the car.....and then 3 months later we find out Baby #1 is on the way. A few months after he's here, we realized that crawling in and out of the car to get the baby out was too much for my wife's back. We start car shopping for something a little bigger and end up in a 2013 Countryman S in blazing red. Awesome!


A year or so after getting the Countryman, we find out that Baby #2 is now on the way. I scoured this forum for all tips/tricks/hints to optimize the space in a Countryman with two kids. Small car seat, space efficient stroller, etc. Ultimately, we found that the Countryman lacked the space we needed for strollers, diaper bags, and storage for groceries/Target runs for a growing family. Even the smallest car seats resulted in relatively cramped rides with the fam. Sadly, we started car shopping again and I ended up in a Forester XT.


* My compromise was that, if I was saying goodbye to another Mini, I'd have to get a turbo at least! *


Now that the boys are 5 and 3, we are considering getting back to our convertible days and are looking for a fun summer car. We'll probably keep our current cars for managing the Minnesota winters.


So NAMers, I need your help! While we'd love to end up in a Mini, but my wife is also open to looking at Beetle convertibles too. Let me know if you come across any local listings or have a convertible to sell! I am looking forward to re-joining the Mini family.


Thanks for looking and reading!