First of all before i pester you for you help and advice i would like to take a moment to introduce myself as i am new to the forms. "Hello" As these forums would put it i have been lurking for a few months now because my wife mentioned to me that she wanted a MC and so off i went to research and find out all i could find.

I currently drive a 05 altima SE-R and it's been a love and hate relationship. For what it is (A Family car) it's very sporty with lots of pep. Even for that it's still a family car and most people view it as just another Altima not a special addition, and i must say i like having a car that gets a little more then normal attention.

While looking for a nice normal MC with no extra bells and whistles for MsMcCMINI i ran across this



05 MCS purple Haze 20k miles with the Sports, premium, and cold weather packages. as you can see it has the AERO kit and is also equiped with the JCW intake. The way i understand it is that all it's missing is the full JCW package. All this and she is asking 19,500 obo so i guess here is where the questions comes in play. Is this a good price? what things should i worry about? and since my wife wants just a plain MC do think i should try and trade out my SE-R for one? Oh yeah and is there anything wrong with a guy driving a purple car.

Thanks in advance and look forward to being a member.

 

I think thats a really good deal. But always remember to ask if there has been any problems with the car or accidents yadda.

 

Not to try and skirt around giving you a straight answer about the price, but I'd say its an average price; at least for my area of the country. If you've looked around at several MINIs and this one just stands out in your mind because you like it, then its a great price.

If that is the car I chose to go after; seriously, then I'd pay for a CarFax report just to see the past vehicle records.

Would people think a guy driving a Purple Haze MINI was a sissy? Not unless your name is "the artist formerly known as Prince".

I like the Purple Haze color with black stripes more than most of the other colors than have been offered.

 

I think it looks like a great deal as well! And I like the purple

If you are buying form the original owner, you can have them put in writing that they (with their name and a signature) are allowing you (with your name in writing) to access all records, have them sign that and a picture of their ID, then take that to any MINI service department and they can give you all the service history on it. Without that in writing, you can still call any mini service and they can tell you exactly how it was sold with the specs as well as the warranty info.

Good luck!

 

Its purple! yuk

I would agree with wscruiser

thats an average price i would say.

 

Like the posts above mention. Ask if you can have a dealer/mechanic inpect the car before you buy.
They should be able to access the service records. Get a CarFax report as well.
By the way I like the Purple.

 

Thanks for all the quick responses and thoughts on the car. One of the main reasons why i would buy this car is the hope of better gas millage at around the same performance as my current car. As of right now i average about 18MPG in the Altima, purely city driving and that's with a fairly aggressive driving style. What about could i expect to get if i purchase the MINI? The second reason why is in the hopes that the MINI would hold it's value better and i can get out from under the Altima before it takes a huge price drop which is what I'm expecting.

About the idea of having a MINI mechanic inspect, the closest dealer is 2hours away so maybe i can have them fax the information over. The lady who is selling seems to be very good at keeping her records as she had the original window sticker and and sale paper work plus a the oil change and then a few other as i can remember. the engine bay looked as if it had hardly ever been opened with a bunch of dust and normal grit which makes me feel better then a engine that is sparkley clean.

 

Looks like a good deal!
Get the VIN and call 886.ASK.MINI
They'll give you a list of all the factory installed items and packages. They can also tell you when the warranty will run out. They will also tell you which dealerships have done warranty work. With that info, call the service center at those dealerships at an off-peak time like 10am or 2pm, or even 8pm. They will be more apt to take a peek into the computer and tell you what has been done. Some dealerships may flat out turn you down, then you'll have to sweet talk someone local.

 

Love the color!

Several years ago we were in England, and came across a TVR dealer. They had a similarly colored model. (If you don't know TVRs, they are a super-zowie sports car--I drooled.)

 

Hey,

It's a really nice looking PH/B MCS after seeing this, I went onto Autotrader and found the car there. The seller didn't provide much info, but it seems like you contacted the seller already, assuming thats how you found out about the JCW intake. That price seems to be on the low side, judging from only the exterior is has a lot of stuff on it. Take a look at the Carfax and ask to see if he/she has any service information on the car. Any mods on it? Also look for existing problems on the R53 using the forums, stuff like, mushrooming, rust in door sills, etc...not to scare you off but it's all wise to know before you buy!

Motor On & Happy Holidays!

 

Absolutely not, Purple Haze is a very very nice color if you've seen it in person...I don't think you can go wrong with a MINI in any color!

 

So what kind of Gas millage in town could i expect from a car like this?

 

Hendrix is rolling over in his grave.

 

that purple was such a short run color. Too bad it wasn't out in 2002, or I'd be driving one. As far as the Purple Haze name, there are some who bought when it was called "black-eyed purple"!

Matt

 

No the is not