I'm in a bit of an emotional turmoil these past few days. I had a 2002 base MINI for two years, sold it and bought a new 2004 MINI Cooper S. I've loved the car for ten years now. It has 140,000 miles, still looks quite tidy and I still love the car. I'm at a point however, where I'm beginning to wonder if it is silly for me to still rely on this one as the highway journey vehicle for my wife and myself. Would I still feel care-free setting out to make a cross-country journey or should I be looking to get something "more reliable"?
I went and looked at the new 2014 MINI and I'm really disappointed with how BMW is bringing the hardtop models back closer to the mainstream. Not gonna go buy one of those. I went and looked at a new Fiat Abarth and while intriguing I just can't see that being as practical as the MINI has been across the years.
If I had a bigger garage I would just keep my MINI and go buy something else to share the miles I travel but the garage is full and I've never been one to leave cars out in the weather.
So help me out here fellow MINI-maniacs! Do I just keep what I've got and drive it till it leaves me at the side of the road? Do I look for a lower miles used Gen 1 car? Do I say "thank you" for twelve years of MINI delight and go buy a Ford Focus ST? This dilemma is keeping me awake at night!

 

Ohe question asked by thousands of r53/50/52 lovers worldwide....
The brand moved on....made the car more "mainstream" to broaden the appeal and "grow the brand"... They moved from a niche player to mass-market.....
We did not....we enjoyed the virtues of a "perfectly imperfect" car.....
We fell in love with a car we consider nearly "perfect", and BMW decided to make it more BMW (IMO) and less mini.....sad....
How many loyal owners are asking this very question?
Many I think....
This same emotions as this have been posted by many sites by many different owner....

 

Wow that is a dilemma. Keep what you have for now and keep an eye out for that low mileage Gen 1. A couple of days ago someone here on NAM posted an 05-6 GP with like 10000mi for 25k. I guess if I was in the market I'd go look at the Ford Focus as well. Sounds like you really like a Mini(me too). I think it might be difficult to find a car like a Mini. Good Luck

 

I think this is something to talk about with the wife and largely dependent on the kinda road trip you're going on. If you're both alright with a possibility of being broke down and the worst case of it being something major, thus adding a few days in a hotel, then go for it! But if you need to get to your destination on time and the wife isn't apt to the idea I guess things a bit more complicated.

I regularly make trips between Chicago and St. Louis and am just edging over 138k miles. But, I have a few friends between the locations that I could call in the event of a break down and usually don't HAVE to be in either location within a strict time frame.

Since you don't like the 2014 models, what about just getting a low mile 2013 Mini?

When it comes down to keeping your current Mini reliable, the main components I worry about are the supercharger, the clutch and the tires. Assuming you have those taken care of, along with regular maintenance, I bet it would make it.

 

When my Mini gets to a point when its almost worn out I won't buy a newer larger ugly BMW Mini !

My thoughts may not align with other Mini owners but I think BMW has ruined the Mini's appeal !

I'll enjoy mine while I have it and then its an open market on what I drive next.

 

That was partially my plan a couple years ago. My wife was racking up serious miles on her '04 MCS so I decided to buy a brand new '10 Clubman S. What a mistake that was. At about 35k miles in under 2 years the car developed electrical problems that the dealer couldn't find. They spent $4000 trying to fix it and didn't solve anything. I began to fear for my safety and the reliability of a car with only 56k miles and just over 2 years old so I sold it and walked away. It was fun until the electrical issues started.

Last year I took my wife's '04 MCS in for service at Ft. Lauderdale MINI and after they had issues figuring out why it wouldn't start I picked up the car to find a ridiculous number of hammer marks on the starter...and a seized alternator that was stopping the motor from turning. The starter was fine as soon as I replaced the alternator. We sold the car the following week. I still have my '85 Mini, but don't plan on buying another new MINI.

 

Personally I'll call it quit when it will be totaled due to an accident. I'm only at 83k and got most of the usual Mini problems and still don't care, I love the car. Being a mechanic and doing pretty much everything on it kinda help too.

 

Nah, keep it til you find a low mile, well kept GP1.