Hi everyone!

I've been searching for a MINI for a few months, I've test driven a regular cooper but my husband want's the S. This is my everyday car, for around the town and 45 min. drive to visit my family on the weekends.

I found a 05' S and a 06' S (both automatic)

Here is the rundown of each car:

05 S
Hyper Blue w/grey stripe
cloth interior
60,000 miles
hardtop (no moon/sun roof)
15,900 obo



06 S
Space Blue w/ white stripe (stripe is torn on the back)
Black Leather
35,000 miles
moonroof
17,900 obo


Now the 06 has upgraded sound system, still has the warranty, premium package and heated seats. The 05 has the hardtop which I would like over the moonroof..

I guess the upside to the 05' is that it's a few thousand less.. and might be the deal breaker I also like the color of the 05' a little more.. that hyper blue is kickin

So my question: Is the 06' THAT much better than the 05'? Is the 05' still a good deal?

 

What kind of service history do they have? Did one car have lots of warranty work? Poor maintenance? How is the body, paint, interior wear?

 

Both have great service history, well maintained and very clean. The 06' is listed on carfax as a fleet vehicle. Not sure about warranty work, I'll have to ask when I go see the 05' again and the 06' today.

The 05' looks basically new in and out, except for a missing mini logo on the wheel. The 06' I'm looking at today but does have some of the stripe missing. The interior (as far as pictures go) looks really good.

 

'05 and '06 MCSa are exactly the same cars. This comes down to personal preference. For instance, Space Blue Metallic was a 2006 model year only color while Hyper Blue was available in both 2005 and 2006 (It was introduced in 2005 to replace Indy Blue Metallic).

But If I were me.... I would go with the 2005, just because it doesn't have a sunroof. I just don't care for the MINI's huge glass roof and no solid sun shades. But if you live in a nicer climate where it doesn't get too hot or too cold, then get it. Sunroofs rattle, creak and leak with age.

Probably I would also prefer cloth seats over leather. I like cowhide in my living room furniture, but not in my cars. The MINI leather does not have impressive quality overall and does not age all that well either. But again, it is personal preference. Up to me? I prefer leatherette over either cloth or leather.

Since your brain is leaning towards the 2005, I would say that is the finer choice of the 2. That 2005 MCSa is more in tune as to how I would option a MINI. The 2006 color is nice, buy Hyper Blue is brighter and more cheery type of color.

Good luck with your decision!

 

Don't trust Carfax.com 100% Some stuff does not get reported to them. If you decide either way, pay a professional mechanic for an inspection. Best money spent for peace of mind. Get the car up on a lift before deciding which way to go.

 

For the $2000 price difference, the leather and the fact that the '06 has 25,000 fewer miles and some remaining warranty is attractive. The premium package also adds some nice stuff like the leather steering wheel, cruise control and the onboard computer.

I guess it depends on just how much you dislike the idea of having a moonroof, and how much more you prefer the Hyper Blue to the Space Blue.

 

Thanks for the reply We will do the inspection on both if it comes to that.

I do prefer the cloth over the leather myself as well.. and the hyper blue is soooooo nice.. is the mileage a huge deal? I also like the idea of having the warranty even if it's only until december..

My husband likes the upgraded sound system.. he's leaning towards the 06' and me the 05'

It's a tough one..

ETA: ScottR your right on.. I mean it's only 2-$3,000 more for less miles and better options with warranty remaining..

 

My 2005 MCS would be perfect for you because it doesn't have sunroof, has leatherette seats but it does have the upgraded Harmon Kardon stereo. But it is manual, not automatic.

60K miles, assuming the car has been well cared for, is still practically a new car. Mileage is not an accurate yard stick as to how the car has been treated. Some cars with just 20K miles have been abused and some with 100K miles have been pampered...It is all relative.

I have 55K miles on mine and still rides and feels like a new car.

I think both cars are terrific choices and you both may have to compromise some. Tell your husband that the speakers on the 2005 MCSa stereo can be upgraded if he is not happy with the sound quality. The Harmon Kardon in the 2006 is very difficult, if not impossible to upgrade. But it is a very nice sound system. I love mine!

 

If both maintained equally, the 06 no doubt. Worth the difference.

 

60k miles....hmmmm. I wonder if they were told from the dealer how much the 60k mile service would cost and just threw it up for sale.

 

At 60K miles replace the engine belts, perhaps front brakes/rotors need replacing also. Air and cabin filters. Not a big deal. Pretty standard issue stuff.

Why people are so afraid of paying money to maintain a car and keep it running?

 

Pinkbow, where are you located? Our local motoring club (local = relatively speaking for me!) on the East Coast has quite a few MINIs for sale - admittedly not blue (of any variety), but much lower milage for around the same costs...

 

Seriously...it's generally much cheaper to MAINTAIN a car than it is to wait for it to break and then FIX it...

 

My thoughts exactly! I would go with the 06 but I also love my sunroof and prefer leather over cloth, I feel that leather or leatherette is much easier to keep clean and maintain, also the reason why I have all leather couches in my home as well. I like the lower mileage, the warranty for anything unexpected that may occur that wasn't caught during initial inspection and the sound system and multi function wheel are super nice features.

Also you can remove the stripe and reinstall new for very little money. I had my vinyl supplied by a local sign shop for $15 bucks and I cut my own.

 

The one with the moonroof! I love them.

I don't care for my cloth seats. I wish my car had the leatherette.

 

I have German leather furniture in my living room. But the MINI leather seats that I have seen don't wear that well at all. Seems to me MINI's leather quality is below that what is offered in many other cars, including BMW.

My leatherette seats still look new after 4 years of use. Ditto for the leatherette seats in our first MINI, a 2002 MC that we had for 6 years. Cloth seats are difficult to clean in case of a coffee spill and do tend to get smelly with time.

Hey, you can always have the seats re-upholstered to a different material if the budget allows and the mood strikes.

 

Of course. But most people neglect their rides and then went things go south they blame and bad mouth the car

If you are gonna keep a car past the warranty period, you have to pay to keep it running. There is no way around it.

 

I don't know if the quality of the MINI leather varies from year to year or from color to color, but the leather in both of our MINIs still looks great. Mine (Dark Blue) is 2.5 years old and has a little over 50k miles, and my wife's is 3 years old with about 30k miles (Cordoba Beige).

No cracking/peeling/fading whatsoever. The leather on the seat bottom of my car has begun to loosen up nicely, which is one of the things I like about leather - I don't like the drum-tight "plasticky" look of the vinyl.

I've never had a MINI with the vinyl seats, but I had MB-Tex in my Mercedes, which is pretty much the "gold standard" for vinyl upholstery. Even compared to MB-Tex, I still prefer the MINI leather.

 

I gather you clean and condition the leather often.

 

Monthly, at least. That's a good point - the vinyl will keep looking good virtually regardless of what you do it (like spills), or what you don't do it (like cleaning/conditioning). The leather definitely requires some occasional TLC.

 

Wow.. thanks for all the replies everyone

I wanted to correct that it's actually electric blue and not hyper blue.. which I love even more..

Going to see the 06' tomorrow at 3

I'm in Texas.. but moving up to the east coast (we hope) very soon.

 

I personally think it is an easy choice of the 06. For $2k and a lot less mileage and you get the sunroof.

 

I pick the '06. If you have the funds - Lower miles, leather, sunroof, heated seats, warranty.

You will be driving a newer car, lower miles - presumable requiring less maintenance, and no doubt it will be worth 1.5-2k more when you sell it.

 

If properly maintained (conditioned every few weeks), the leather will look like new for years. My seats are over 6 years old there are only three spots of damage, one from the CG seat belt lock, and two from jeans rivets on the passenger seat. Sure there are some creases and indents where I sit, but leather does that.

About leatherette, it smells awful and always feels rubbery, and never breaks in, so I don't sink into the seat - My sister's MC has leatherette.

You can't beat the scent or feel of well conditioned leather (BMW Leather Care Kit with UV Protection) If we are talking about the quality of the leather, and I know this is a bad example, but my mother has a Chrysler Pacifica with "leather seats" and I swear they are made from brown paper bags. The car is only 2 years old and they are cracked and the color has worn out of them. Of course I don't waste my BMW leather lotion on them, I've been using some cheap Armor All stuff - but they've felt like paper bags since day one.

 

I haven't seen the particular leather that the Pacifica uses, but a *lot* of American cars (even my dad's top-end Lincoln) use "spray-dyed" leather instead of the "drum-dyed" leather that MINI and most other European automakers use.

Basically, drum-dyed leather is soaked in a vat of dye that has the consistency of water. The dye soaks all the way through the leather, but it lets you see the pores & fine imperfections in the leather.

Spray-dyed leather is just plain leather that's been essentially "spray-painted" with a colored vinyl solution that's much thicker than water.

The result is that the dye hides most of the details of the leather and almost gives the seats a "plasticky" feel, and since the dye is sitting on top of the leather, it's prone to fading where the dye layer wears away, as well as cracking & peeling over time.