I am going to be purchasing a 2005 S with 120,000 miles. Should I be worried? What should I expect to repair/replace?

 

120k on an 05' is very high...damn!

Take the VIN# and go to a MINI dealer and have them pull it up. They can tell you the service record on it.

Check the clutch, some tend to go out under 100k some last way longer.

see if the supercharger is making a grinding noise. If so, could be a sign of the water pump drive gears going out. (not cheap to replace).

I am sure others will chime in with more.

 

ThX...I do live in Cali and most of the driving is highway, but still seems high. Any other suggests to look for

 

that's really too high.........

 

Agreed - that is VERY high mileage. We just sold our 05' with 65K on it - the MINI is Mike's traveling office so he does a lot of driving weekly. If I were you, I'd look for one with a lot less miles....

Donna

 

Check the control arm bushings, as well as ball joints, wheel bearings, brakes, dampers...etc.

 

Really, that's not enough info to go on. You need find out what's been replaced so far. It may have been through a clutch and SC already, which could be good news. The price should be very low for that price, no matter what.

 

Price is $12.9... Gonna find out more tomorrow. i just need to know whT to look for.
Thanks everyone.

 

holy ****, i have a 2004 and it only has 48k

 

My 03 just turned 32K...personally, I wouldn't touch the 120K one you're looking at....go elsewhere

 

Why do you guys all have such an aversion to high-mileage cars? That many miles tells me its definitely highway miles...not exactly the most demanding. Secondly and like was stated above, if its been through a clutch and new supercharger, I wouldn't be worrying that much. So long as its had regular maintainence, compression/leakdown checks out, CV boots and bushings look nice, I wouldn't be averse if it is/was the right price.

I'll always take a well maintained high-mileage car over a low-mileage car with a ******* owner.

- Matt

 

My '96 Miata only has 130k on it. What does that guy do? How do you average 60k/yr? That's 200mi/day! Does he deliver for FedEx?

 

You need to know what's already been done. Supercharger, steering rack, p/s pump, suspension bushings and ball joints, brakes, and clutch could all be nearing the end of their reliable lifespan. This is not a problem if this won't be your only vehicle and you get it for a good price. I'm at 105K and am just about to do my first clutch and suspension bushings. Everything else on my list except for brakes is still original and I still autox and track my MINI.

Steve

 

You may want to ask a MINI dealer what they think about that many miles and what they would expect regarding useful lives of components/parts.

dan

 

Hear Hear! Just be sure to check and coublecheck the "well maintained" mart. Most cars don't get to high mileage without some decent maintenance.

Most will only tell you it's time for a new one. Owners who keep their Minis that long may or may not go to the dealer for service though. You'll get more reliable info on NAM.

For about $12k though you should consider what other alternatives you have, what your plans are for the car (are you going to mod the daylights out of it anyway?), and how to make sure it's good and reliable. An independent, Mini-knowledgeable mechanical inspection is a MUST. Add up what repairs/maintenance would be required and add that to the price.

By the way, good luck and welcome to NAM!

 

$12.9 is a little steep...i bought my '05 w/ 69k miles for $11k....i took it to the dealership and it needed about $1000.00 worth of reccomendations....so now i'm just plugging away...one recc. at a time. LOL. good luck tho! and keep us posted!

 

Is this the one at House of Imports, in Buena Park? The 05 MCS HB/HB?

 

Wait your sig shows a Cooper, do you also have a Cooper S??
I agree with everyone else, lots of miles. Must have been a travelling salesman or someone who commutes 100 miles a day like me! I've got about 75,000 on my '05 and the last 40,000 miles were done in the past year--so 3 years worth of driving would have put me in the same 120K range had I bought mine 3 years ago.

 

To me the higher mileage does not scare me as much as age does... Time seems to take a toll as do miles. 120,000 of all highway is easy on the car. Sure the SC may need replacing and others like pumps and such. But at the right price and replacing all that by a reasonable independent mechanic its probably a solid car.

You can be sure he probably did not rack up 60,000 miles a year on the track or auto-x...

 

ok 12.9 for that many miles is as others have mentioned is a bit much i bought my 03 with 30k miles for 16.5. grantd it's an R50 but, it was clean, loaded and well maintained.

that said if you have your heart set on it no advice will change your mind... but, i'm fairly new to the new MINI world and before owning this car i always tried to make every other car last as long as possible. this included tranny and engine rebuilding, total restoration... etc, etc..

so i guess i'm getting to the question of has anyone done this yet? gotten to the point of time where they really loved their car so much that they have pulled the engine and rebuilt it etc. etc.? granted the oldest MINI on the road is still relatively "young". but, it seems like due to the fun factor of the car people really can rack up the miles pretty quickly on it. has it been done or is anyone out there contemplating it? i see a bunch of people saying "i'll keep this car forever". yet, on the other hand, i see a lot more people treating their MINI's as disposables. especially out here in L.A. maybe it's just all new cars?

what do you think the chances of seeing a "restored" 2002 MINI on the road 20 years from now are?

 

If you run with the mini crowd, very high.

 

i own a cooper ...not an s...sorry, i should've clarified...

 

Is it free?

 

94k on my '04

maintenance thus far:

Mileage Repair
22k Windshield
28k Engine dampener replaced due to fluid leak (the big fancy one on the pulley end)
33k Power steering cooling fan, rear break rotors and pads
51k Radiator replaced due to pinhole leak at left edge
59k Front brake rotors and pads
79k Rear brake rotors and pads
85k Lower control arm bushings, lower motor torque mount, RH motor mount
92k Left front wheel bearing, supercharger belt

The car has been thoroughly inspected and no impending or predicted failures were noted by either Turner Motorsport or Mini Peabody. The supercharger belt replacement was done arbitrarily, not based on wear or failure.

So my experience suggests that bushings, brakes, and belts are surely going to wear out and would either have been replaced or would need replacement urgently > 100k miles.

 

I am considering buying a mini but am a little concerned. I currently have a 06 camry with 90K. I have a 100/day comute to my job. It was 120/day; therefore, I would definitely rack up mileage in a hurry. Then I love to take drives on the weekend. Should have been a trucker, do have a CDL. My concern is after a little research I find that replacing a transmission in a cooper costs $8,500 - $9,500. I'm also shocked at the cost of $1,200 to replace power steering pump. I am big on maintenance. Currently oil change every 3,000 miles and flush the transmission every 30K. Sounds like most of the mini owners change out cars before they reach 100K. Anybody concerned with cost of transmission replacement cost??????