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Hey, us too.
2004 Cooper, delivery Oct 2003. 57,000 miles; it gets driven almost every day but not very far. Paint is still great - Indi Blue - with white top, stripe and mirror covers, and my wife still gets compliments on it to this day. Needs shock and have a set of Koni FSDs waiting for better weather to be put in. It also needed an exhaust and I found a Base Cooper JCW exhaust for it that my wife loves (yes, that was an option back then). Other than tires, that's it. Still a blast to drive and zip around in.
Then there is my 2012 Cooper S (Oct 2011 delivery) which is also a blast. My snow beast, track beast and twisty road beast. And have no plans to part with it.
Was still driving my Oct 2002 Cooper with 214,000 miles, but I'm back on the site to investigate options to resolve a new transmission noise. Was considering a 6-speed replacement but in the end settled on repairing the old Midlands gearbox. Problem traced to a spalled output shaft bearing. Great service from UK eBay seller gearboxpartsonline. Had the complete kit of all bearings and seals delivered in 2 days for less than $150 total. Now I just need a warm day to put it back in the car (15F here this morning)
Ordered an '06 MCS new for my wife's 60th birthday and we traded an '03 Lincoln Navigator so there was a dramatic size difference. She started having alzeimers problems so the car was used by me . Another drastic change was that my daily driver was a highly modded Mustang GT with a big block capable of 900 HP and ran a 9.90 index in the 140's (think STREET OUTLAWS) and I loved the MINI. Of course,it was modded. A couple of years passed and then I ordered a '13 JCW that I couldn't wait to tear apart and I still have it. If you're at MOT2017 stop by and say hello to the old man.
Another one of the original owners here, picked mine up 06/2002, am at ~75K miles now.
which brings me to a question, to those of you who are using this as a 2nd or 3rd car (or like me who only drives 5K a year), does anyone have a customized maint schedule? i feel like i've replaced most of the things that are problematic, but i'm worried that since i don't drive that many miles there are things that i'm missing that would be picked up with more regular trips to the mechanic.
Just oil changes and simple maintenance, so once a year oil changes and makes sure the tires are good and not cracked and brakes don't seize to the rotor face after a wash and setting. Good to keep the battery in check and run all the electronics once in a while. Turn a/c on once in a while.
original owner, 2002 MCS dark silver, build date 8/2002. 345K and going.. its rusty, full of poly suspension components, bright green sparcos, coil-overs and go-fast goodies.. Heck, I drive 152 miles round trip to work!! Haven't driven it in 14 days, we gutted the car for roll cage installation!!
original owner, 2002 MCS dark silver, build date 8/2002. 345K and going.. its rusty, full of poly suspension components, bright green sparcos, coil-overs and go-fast goodies.. Heck, I drive 152 miles round trip to work!! Haven't driven it in 14 days, we gutted the car for roll cage installation!!
Hmmmm, that must be one tough ride to work if you need a roll cage for it.
Another one of the original owners here, picked mine up 06/2002, am at ~75K miles now.
which brings me to a question, to those of you who are using this as a 2nd or 3rd car (or like me who only drives 5K a year), does anyone have a customized maint schedule? i feel like i've replaced most of the things that are problematic, but i'm worried that since i don't drive that many miles there are things that i'm missing that would be picked up with more regular trips to the mechanic.
That sounds like our '04; about 5k miles a year. Ours has a lot of 1 and 2 mile trips but it gets run every day or 2. Cars "die" from non-use. So, yes, everything that ECS said, plus I would add:
- drive the car every couple of days. This will keep all of the moving parts good (brakes, tires, bushings, alternator, water pump, steering pump, etc). Plus it is fun to drive these things, so just do it.
- Make sure that the engine comes up to temperature when you do drive it. OK, maybe not every time, but most every time. This helps to drive moisture out of things like he engine. The Gen I MINIs are great for this as they heat up very quickly, much faster than my Gen II. Our '04 is up to temp within a mile or 2.
- Run the engine up into the higher rpm range ever once and a while. It doesn't hurt it to see 4 - 5000 rpm.
Just curious how many other original owners were lurking on here.
I've stuck with my 06 r53 for a decade now (purchased October 05)
Edit = 107kmi
I was car shopping this summer but when it came down to it there was no new car worth swaping the mini for.
I admit the brz and wrx are as fun or more to drive, I really want an ecoboost mustang and a nicely equipped optima felt grown up but none were worth shelling out $25-30 to me.
I guess I just have to keep fixing the minI. I will draw the line at rust, and here in New England it will eventually be a problem.
Similar situation. Bought mine new in April 2006. 74k miles. I've tested GTI and BRZ and Mustang. I liked the way the GTI drove but the styling is SOO boring. Love the styling of the 2017 BRZ but the engine and interior were underwhelming. I liked the Mustang, but it's SOO big! Not sure what will be next, but I too can't seem to find anything that I want to shell out the dough for to replace the Mini.
Spec'd our R53 in July and took delivery in August 06. Modded with a 15% SC pulley, JCW cai and 22mm rsb. It has 45k respectfully driven miles. Other than scheduled fluid changes and tire rotations, we have only had to replace the thermostat gasket and a drl bulb, knock on wood. I don't flog it and and follow some valuable operational tips from our very trusted indie tech which have sofar proven to be spot on for reliability.
Original owner of a Feb/04 build CR/W MINI Cooper R50. 115Mi/185km on it now and still running well. Got a folder full of repair invoices but most of the bad and expensive stuff happened during its original 4yr/80,000km warranty period including the Midland gearbox self destructing at 68,000km and just 2 months before the original manufacturers warranty was to expire.
Have babied it in the last couple of years since it owes me nothing and not yet convinced that subsequent gens are any more reliable and worthy of buying as a replacement when that day finally comes so will probably hold onto it until the engine/gearbox powertrain gives up.
Spirited driving but nothing abusive. No power Mods and not that mechanically inclined but do my own brake pads, spark plugs, engine mounts, valve cover gasket, filters and regular fluid changes including recently replacing the midland gearbox oil which I overfilled with 2.5L of synthetic redline MTL since I read on MINI forums that its recommended, plus the MINI dealer overfilled it when the gearbox was replaced in early 2008. Body looks fantastic and attribute it to minimal winter road salt where I live, minimal rain, regular hand spray washing and complete hand waxing 3 or 4 times a year.
Original owner of a 05 pepper white MCS built Jul/04. Ordered on NAM from Classicmini in Ohio and shipped enclosed carrier to Portland, OR. I have been too preoccupied with other things in life in last 10 years to really play with it. I now finally getting ready to install a lot of goodies that I planned, including some factory kits that has sat around all these years. The little car still drive like new and I love it as much as the first day.
MINI now
off the enclosed carrier in Sep 2004 with trunk full of factory kits also bought from Classicmini
I am about to do a list of modest performance upgrades in the next dry spell here in soggy Pacific Northwest.
Another original owner of everyday driver, 2005 Mini Cooper. Ordered in November 2014, build to my specs, arrived January 15, 2005. After a dozen seasons in the frozen North, still going strong with 150,150 miles!
If they ever design a new one with a more classic/retro dash, I may consider.
