Hi, this is my first post

I have been looking around at Minis in the area recently, and came across this one:

http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail...eadExists=true



It's the right color, packages, etc.

Anywho, the car was pretty rough around the edges. The accessory driving lights were just jiggling around in their housings, the rear driver's side wheel arch trim is falling off, cupholder broken off, scratches and dents here and there. That's not a terribly big deal to me, since I tend to be a little rough on my cars anyways... but..

I started it up, and they let me go out on a test drive. The ABS, tire pressure monitoring system, and stability control (?) lights were all on steady. A quick read thru the manual means that all three systems were on the fritz. So, that's a big no-no. The drive itself was pretty good, about what I expected not knowing the car nor the roads, but I was pretty disconcerned with a "surgey" on/off power response, seemed like the motor mounts were shot. Is that normal for these cars?

Also, I checked for mushrooming of the strut towers (present), didn't bother checking the door sills for rust, and the engine was making a bit of a tick noise. Is that normal? Injectors maybe? What sorts of other things should I be looking for as I test drive?

 

Welcome to NAM. That particular MINI sounds a wee bit scary to me. Not well cared for. I'm sure you can find a pre-loved one in better condition.

 

Yes, you could find a better one, but this one could be had for cheap. Then you could do the MINI a big favor and bring it back to MINIdom.

I probably would look elsewhere, but I do like the color.

Welcome to NAM, good luck in the search.

 

pretty good deal.

i think the 05s would be better due to new gearing though...

 

I would suggest spending the money to have a mechanic who is familiar with Minis check it over. That will give you a good starting point for negotiations. IMHO you would be better off having them fix things rather than negotiating a lower selling price.

 

Thanks for the responses, everyone.

I think I'm going to drive a few other cars first to see how I like them first, before worrying about negotiating with this car. I've got at least one well running car at the moment so it's not a rush.

I've considered the 05s due to the LSD option (that's only 05-06 right?), but was unaware of the gearing. However, most 05's are a little high on my price range.

 

Well MINI's do hold there value very well so if you find one chesp you have to wonder. I think that things you mentioned would put me off this as well. I do like the colors and it's optioned heavy butg it's sounds like it was drivien hard and not cared for. The 05's and 06's do have different gearing which provided more power (not much) but more importantly quicker response (not a HUGE difference. I also think the early issues had been worked out by then too. It is possible to find an 06 still at a dealer-new which can help with interest rates, etc. I am guessing you're in the DC/VA/MD area and there seem to be a good supply up there so drive as many as you can!

 

Yep, I live in Maryland, and you're right: there are quite a few MCS to choose from around here. I might have to look into the "new" 06's as you mentioned. The key factor for me is to keep the payment down to a reasonable amount, as I'm gearing up to purachase a house.

 

I think I ran into that mini during my search for the perfect mini. The milage turned me off though.

 

Look elsewhere - check out the one's here on NAM for sale. I think you'll have better luck finding a really well taken care of MINI.

Donna

 

Call 1-8966-275-6464 (ASK MINI) and check out the VIN#.


Art

 

Allow me to clarify the LSD option. It was only available as an "extra" for January 2005 builds and onwards. There are plenty of model year 2005 MCSes that never had the option (i.e. late 2004 builds).

Even then, it was a $500 option, not standard, so you probably won't find very many 01/2005+ MCSes that actually have it, but it's worth keeping an eye out for it.

I held off ordering my MINI for an extra month or two when I heard about LSD coming, and I'm glad I did.