Hello,
I am buying a mini cooper and would like suggestions on whcih one to buy. I want to buy it used and it has to be a mini cooper S. what year is the best? I have read the consumer affair reports and they are horrible for mini coopers. They say the transmission needs to be replaced before the car hits 100k.This makes me nervous. How do I avoid this problem. I want a fast fun reliable car. Please help me make the right decision. Thanks

 

well.. choose from 2005 and above... .

 

you could buy a new one and get the extended warranty.

 

I would start by reading through this:
http://www.motoringfile.com/mini-r50r53-buyers-guide/

. . . and since this question has been coming up about twice a week lately, you can search (or just scroll through the thread subject lines in this forum) and find multiple discussions on this.

 

Take a look around the Site. It's very, very informative.

That said, you do take the time to post some concerns, so:

I have owned about 200 cars or more over time and out of those I bought "new" about three times, so here is what I suggest. I recently bought a 2006 MINI S[not] convertible [that's my way of of saying it's NOT an "S".]

1. Wise decision to do your homework. It's very easy to buy on impulse and to simply sign the line. After all, it sure is fun to want a car one minute and to be driving it the next.

2. I don't know why you are looking at used, but my reasons included not taking a depreciation hit that one suffers when buying new. Also, depending on the deal, I usually can buy a used car closely similar to the new car. For example, my 2006 MINI is pretty close in looks and features to a 2007-2008 car.

My 2006 MINI, as equipped, would cost about $11,000 additional for a "similar" 2008. Yes, there may be substle differences, but absent a dramatic improvement over an earlier flawed model or significant change in looks, there's no motivation for me to buy new.

3. As another member in here said, one should get the most car you can, for the most money you can budget. As has always been my situation, add about $2000 to that amount for when you go over budget [there is always something better, for just a few thousand more. ]

4. Restrict yourself to looking at cars with a balance of the MANUFACTURER'S WARRANTY remaining. This will give you great comfort at night when thinking about your new-used car. Knowing "it's covered" will help you sleep at night. If you are looking at 2006 models, you can find MINIs still under warranty [MINI warranty is 4 years, 50,000 miles. This is longer than average.]

If you get a car that was put in service [purchased] in 2006, all the better because the warranty runs longer into, for example, 2010. Mine was put in service in mid-June 2006 and has 23,000 miles. So I will have a full warranty until June 2010. [I don't drive much so I doubt I would reach 27,000 additional miles to exceed the 50,000 mile warranty period.]

5. Sign up for CarFax [it's only about $30 for a month of UNLIMITED runs on checking car history.] That way you can find out a vehicle's history, for example, how many owners there have been, where the car is from, accidents or wrecks, and even when the car was last maintained by the dealership.

6. Check our CarterMD, a member in here. He is able to run ASAP reports on a MINI's VIN. It will tell you the exact configuration of the car you are purchasing, including all options installed. Awesome. But I would not tax CarterMD too much [lots of people asking him for an ASAP report.] So I would not ask him to run a report until you are certain you want a particular MINI.

7. As to the MINI: I disagree about Consumer Reports. I have read nothing but good things in CR about the MINI. There's some minor complaints, but the MINI earned a "recommended" rating in CR's April annual auto issue.

8. There are issues about the CVT [transmission] in pre-2005 cars, meaning 2004 or earlier. I heard about it and saw some older MINIs for sale on Craig's List that said "transmission replaced" as if that was a plus selling point. I saw it as a negative.

My solution was to stick to 2005 or later cars. Also, not wanting to chance anything, I decided to get a manual transmission since if something fails, parts of a manual are cheaper to replace than an entire automatic tranny. Plus, the manual transmission makes the MINI perform better [especially in non-S versions.]

Conclusion: I had a lot of options on which car to buy this time around. I could have gone with a Toyota, Nissan, or something else super dependable. But here in San Francisco I like the MINIs small footprint and one gets a lot of style and "cool factor" for the money.

I would not have bought a MINI if I thought it was junk or a rip-off in terms price for what one gets. If I had seen lots of complaints about the car, in terms of reliability or other serious issues, I would have passed on buying one.

I saw nothing but good things on The Net, including Edmunds, epinions, and Consumer Reports. Yeah, just like any car, there are those who will say the MINI is the Yugo of Y2K, etc. But I have seen such comments on every car brand. There's always going to be someone whose bad experience convinces him or her that the model is junk and should be avoided. If I followed their advice, I could not buy any car.

That's my take on it.

 

thanks so much for your replies. I'm definatley going to get 2006 or newer. What is faster turbo or sc? Also paddle shifter or stick? I have read that there r also special suped up versions. What's the deal with this. I have had many cars and always there is 1 model that is sought after. What model mini cooper is this?

 

Do not buy anything older than an '05. In that year they changed to a closer ratio gearbox that dramatically improves performance.

 

auto with paddles or 6 speed manual?