So, a friend calls me today and asks me if I would be inteterested in a Mini. He sees one sitting in a yard and he stops and checks it out for me. Heres what he says:

2002 Type S with 135k Hood has some primer on it in one spot.
Tire pressure light is on.
Airbag light is on.
Service light is on.
Decent tires
No dents but missing some bottom rubber pieces.
Starts fine and runs fine. He talked to the guy and he's asking $2000 but my friend seems to think $1700 would buy the car.

OK, I'm going to look at it in the morning. What should I specifically look for, you know, trouble spots? Were there certain problems inherint to an 02 type S? I'm here at home and I'm going to try and Google search and educate myself on an 02 over the next couple hours. Your help would be appreciated.

 

I would have a mechanic check it out as a high mileage car like that could turn out to need a lot more than you want to put into it. And the airbag light could be a number of expensive items.

 

Look at the house behind it. Need I say more.

 

I would not buy that car, to many reasons to list.

 

I'm with gestero on this. It might be a little over-kill on my part but I've said more than a few times I wouldn't own a Mini that didn't have a factory warranty.

 

Leave it alone. If the previous owner can't be bothered to fix the easy things (rubber pieces), what else has been neglected. Maintenance has to be kept up with on a MINI.

 

Sounds like a box of chocolates.... Your are not going too know what you have till you get into it....
A cheap MINI is rarely a good buy....and it sounds like many basic items are in the "deferred" mantaince category... Parts fallen off...and not replaced...sounds like the owner did not/does not want to spend a dime on the car...so bet you could drop an extra $3000 to fix issues if you buy it for $1500...and by then you could have bought a nicer car...
First year production cars can have extra issues...they can be gutted at track cars, but as a daily unless it is a really nice one..I'd pass..

 

Whys the rear quarter look like a different shade?

 

The house behind it is awesome lol

Not sure what you guys think you can get for $1700 but it's probably not going to be any better than this Mini.

The big concern is the service engine light. Do you have to pass emissions in your county? If so, you might want to find a car that will pass an emissions test easier.

I would buy it at that price though, tire light easily reset, my airbag light has been on forever, missing body pieces easily replaced.

If the clutch doesn't slip, at all, I say go for it. At this price range all cars are a crap shoot anyway. Might as well gamble on a really fun car.

If you can fix stuff yourself, or are willing to learn that would be extremely helpful down the road with this car. The previous owner probably hasn't taken very good care of it.

Do have a mechanic look at it first though , you would be taking a chance either way, but it would be a very good idea to have it checked out. If the owner says no then keep looking.

 

I hate this, other than the hood thing which my 02 does not have, I have no different issues than an 06 couldn't have

 

OP, as a few others have already mentioned, I'd definitely get a PPI done on it before purchasing. That way you'll at least know whether there's any real big ticket items you'll be hit with right up front. Who knows, maybe mechanically the car will check out well. In that case, I'd go with your gut feeling on it.

 

Based on the description and where your located the car has and acv(actual cash value) of about 1500-1700. If the some of the essential repairs are less than $1k, then it would be a good car keep and enjoy or one to flip and resell. By just taking care of the essential repairs and some TLC work you could resell it between $2,500 to $4,000.