I purchased my 04 MCS two years ago from the original owner-- a little old lady who garaged the car, kept all the records and only drove it for 35,000 miles. Fast forward two years and 30,000 miles later and the car that I thought I'd keep for ever is suddenly looking like a very bad decision.

Right off the bat the HK amp was dead. Then about a week into ownership the motor mount broke (third time it had to be replaced). Three months later the battery also needed to be replaced. OK, I thought, all pretty normal MINI stuff I must just have bad luck.

Well, the luck doesn't seem to improve. The car randomly stalls from time to time when I'm stopped, totally powers down and back up a few seconds later. Then, there's probably an exhaust or vacuum leak based on a noise it is making. The windows also like to stop working as soon as it gets hot around here. Seeing as I live in Phoenix, that's pretty often.

I love the car but if I never had issues like this with any of my 100,000 mile + BMWs. I'm starting to think... if she gives me this much trouble now at 65,000 miles, what can I expect a year or two from now, let alone four.

The other part of the problem is that boyfriend's car is currently paid off (1996 328i) and I'm the one with a car payment for another year. The original plan was that he'd get a new car next may when I paid the MINI off and I would keep the MINI until what ever car he got was paid off. I'm now worried that the MINI will be an unreliable money pit before that happens.

Has anyone had these thoughts before? Did you sell or get over it?

 

I had an 05 R50 with a CVT automatic that I sold at 106,000 miles. Not because it was having problems but because I bought a newer JCW from a friend.

I think overall you will find both good and bad stories from people. Most are probably true. It just kinda depends.

I think they are more needy than other cars. "cough cough" Honda "cough cough". But they also respond totally different as well.

I think the key to success with these cars is too maintain an active role in the management of the car. By that I mean, keep up with maintenance, fluid changes etc.

Check your oil. All the time.

Check this guy out. http://www.miniusa.com/haroldqa/index.html MINI just featured him. He has 488,000+ miles on his MINI so far.

 

I've felt the same at times but have always decided the fun i have driving is far greater than some of the stress these cars can cause.

Have no clue about the stalling issue but the exhaust/vaccum leak should be easy to fix once you find out where it is. My windows do the same with the texas heat all it takes is a good smack right above the speaker on the door to fix it.

Some other things to watch out for are the harmonic balancer, power steering fan, low speed fan resistor, supercharger gears, and clutch. i find anticipating the failure of a component makes it a bit easier to deal with when something does give out. At almost 90,000 miles all i've had to take care of so far was the balancer.

 

For all of my days with my MINI, the days (hours) I have are worth it!

 

Not to cast dispersions or start a war of sorts but it's been discussed on the Forum before: Best years are '05 and '06 for reliability and performance. I would seriously consider trading or selling for a low mileage '05 or '06 MCS. You may well save money and aggrevation in the long run.

 

Yeah I knew that when I got an 04, but it was such a good car, and they got so much better year over year I thought I would be OK. Now I regret not holding out for an 05, but at the same time... I now have a house we're working on, a 60lb dog and will probably have some kids in the next few years, so it doesn't make sense to replace the car with another MINI. I'm not yet to the point where the MINI is impractical, and had hoped to hold onto it for at least a few more years... now the equity is looking enticing and the problems getting more frustrating.
]

 

I knew what I was getting into when I bough my MCS. After 6 years in the auto industry, I've seen alot and heard even more. (the "most" "informed" and/or "vocal" about autos tend to stem from forums. Once I tried winning an argument with a jet propulsion -a.k.a. rocket- scientist from Lockheed Martin regarding the fluctuations in MPG on his Prius, and got nowhere ...for a week!)

The MINI is European and is not as reliable as a Japanese car and never will be. The parts costs more, the labor costs more, and the accessibility of trained techs is not as accessible as one would surmise. W. Edward Deming's early teachings of his philosophy of TQM (Total Quality Management, along with Eiji Toyoda's implementation of Kaizen, brought forth a level of reliability and quality never known in manufactured products, and that was the 1950's. Now the same auto company with his namesake is the most reliable car ever made. (I used to hate Toyotas for it, but after seeing engine after engine, Corolla after 600,000 mile Corolla, you become a believer)

Sorry, that was a tangent. Back to the 02 MCS, I have replaced...radiator, supercharger, intake, injectors, harmonic balancer, oem exhaust hear with cats, both OXY sensors, valve cover gasket, water pump, T/stat, coolant exp tank, 1 A/C line, 1 PWR steering return line & fan, radiator fan assembly (low speed resistor does not sell separate), most radiator hoses, all the shocks and mounts, all engine mounts, fuel pump, clutch & flywheel, reduced the pulley & smaller drive belt, three sets of tires, now on new 16" OZ HLT's, FRT & RR brakes done at least twice per end, and numerous seals/gaskets to various parts of the engine. Oh, and I managed to do a couple of oil changes too.

I've been in two low speed accidents, one on the passenger side and one in the front. Car has been broken into twice (living in SF is crazy) and impounded twice (I'll take the 5th).

Through all of that, when I bought it with it's 69k back in 2008, I would've never thought the car would be so much fun! Then again, I think "fun" is having my arms, elbow deep in my engine bay, cussing at at 10mm that could have been wrenched on by the Hulk. "Fun" is whipping around the twisties here in NorCal, cutting through insane traffic on the 101, and blazing down Lombard Street at 2am, tires screeching. Now, 4 years later and close to 100k more on her W11, I can say she was, is, and will always be worth it.

05r50 has the right idea, in that you must keep an active role in the vehicle's daily grind. You cannot afford to neglect a damn thing on these cars or **** will start to fall of or just explode or something. So many buy these cars b/c they are "cute" and have no clue what the difference is b/w a crankshaft and a camshaft.

If you are the like me, I suggest you keep your MINI, and prepare to spend alot of money on it, alot. Not Toyota alot, not Honda or Mitsu or Suba or Mazda or even Hyundai alot. No, you will pay zee German price, and the zee German premium. Everything on a MINI costs more.

If you are not like me and do not find wrenching on cars or driving on mountain roads a fulfilling hobby, sell it and buy yourself a Sienna or Camry. Those are some great minivans!

Lastly, Cavalier Cooper, you need to cease this nonsense about "equity". Automobiles are depreciating liabilities. Unless you keep them under lock and key and only showcase them at a Concours, they will cost you more money that what you get out of them. There has never been and never will be "equity" in a car like this. (When I sold Subarus, we used to lay down folks every week with boiler plate words like "investment" and "equity". Throw a couple of words like that in the mix and hazaa, the customer gets all ethered up and ready to sign)

Maybe one day I'll sell my MINI, but only after I wreck current head and then install my spare OEM head with only PDI mileage and then wreck that one, and then... nah, I will never sell it.

 

"Some other things to watch out for are the harmonic balancer, power steering fan, low speed fan resistor, supercharger gears, and clutch."

Also window motors, door latches, and clutch slave/master.

All cars with a clutch we know will have to be replaced, but the MINI's tend to be sooner than later. Also supercharger gears were touch and go, some peoples lasted forever.

I loved my car, but it did require a lot more maintenance than any other I have owned. Mostly I traded/bought a different car for other reasons than maintenance; more mpg's and room and a hitch mount for bikes for racing.

 

A lot of 1st gen issues can be traced back to BMW's experiment with the resurrection. A lot of its components, though ingenious, were put in w/o enough reliability testing. With the cramped engine bay, the urge to push the tech envelope, & the pressures of launch deadline, BMW elected to:

1.Connect the waterpump thru the charger w/ gears instead of a separate independent pulley.
2. Use a failure & fire-prone speed sensitive electro-hydraulic power steering pump instead of the old pulley-driven mechanical 1.
3. Use a good mix of components from all over:
a. Chrysler built W11 engine w/ Japanese NGK plugs
b.Japanese Denso alternator
c.Brit Midlands 5/ZF CVT trannies on the non-S
d.Getrag 6/Japanese AISIN auto on the S
e. Mimic the classic's go-kart feel by putting the wheels on all 4 corners with stiff suspension...only to forget strut tower reinforcement.
f. Put the battery in the S trunk, only to forget a manual trunk latch on early models.
g. Use poor seat mechanisms.
......& so on. I'm not saying all are bad. Some were hits, others- misses.
No doubt, BMW had the best of intentions w/ this experiment & we're all reaping the benefits, at the same time, enduring the side effects.
Forums have magnified the MISSES, but 1 thing most, if not all of us, can't deny is this- it's 1 heck of a fun car!
I've learned to live w/ its quirks & w/ the challenges of MINI ownership.
The smiles have, by far, outweighed the frowns & I've no plans of parting!

 

Lots good already said in this thread.
I will just say I have an '04 with 72k and almost no problems. Very good car and intend to keep it for a long time.

I don't think the year is as important as the car itself. Not all cars are created equal. You can read about 05 & 06's with lots of problems and 02's that have run like tops.

Any car with 65k MAY need repairs so just keep that in mind.
If you need a car that does not need anything but payments, you probably should move on from your MINI. Hate to say that to any dedicated MINI owner but just reality as I see it.

 

Please check out our website for all of your mini parts at:

http://mini.sewellparts.com/

Also, you can email me at jhalfmann@sewell.com for any further questions.

 

The only way a MINI can be kept reliable in the long term is with lots of attention and $100 bills. I have a 2002 MCS with 135,xxx miles that I've owned for 8 years and it's endless.