I've been car shopping and found numerous cars that are better then my 06 r53 and within my budget. I consider myself a car guys I should be having a blast but it's been horrible. I'm so stressed. Any time I think about giving up the mini I get a feeling like when I took my cat to be put down (he had cancer). I've been on the verge of tears multiple times.

I even stumbled onto a great price on a 2014 low milage FRS. It's perfect for me even the color I want but I keep making up excuses to keep the mini.
The mini isn't terminally ill yet but it's super unhealthy and has been making life very difficult for me.

the 2016 Miata is the only car to really sweep me off my feet. It could make me forget the mini. I didn't think a car could be that fun. Unfortunately I didn't think a car could be that small either.

 

Nothing wrong with you. There is something in the Mini Cooper R53 that connects with you. My wife has been convincing me to sell my R53 MCS when my 2016 Porsche Cayman is coming but just like you, it is hard to turn my back to something that has given me many joys of driving since 2004. I am keeping it for life.

 

DO NOT sell your mini, slap a John Cooper works motor in it and buy another daily driver at 2 percent interest on the cheap. I will never sell my 05 MCS.

 

Better question, what's wrong with your car?

 

I have a 2006 GP with 93,000 and have been driving a Mini for 12 years so I also thought about selling the GP for something newer, such as a GTI, FRS, or MX-5. However, I still beat them all at Auto-Xs. Instead of buying a new car I decided to put a little money into the Mini to refresh the suspension. I am looking forward to a few more years driving a Mini and I am making plans for MTTS 2016.

 

So many cars, so little time. Before my Mini I had a FR-S and before that a Miata. Both are nice cars and both will be a lot more reliable (on average) than your Mini. Buy one and enjoy the some of the other cars that are out there.

 

Buy the car you want and keep your Mini, problem solved.

 

#1 On occasion in the morning it has cranked and not started. Wait an hour or two and it's fine. Neither me nor my mechanic can figure it out. (Fuel pump is probably not getting activated). I don't like being late for work...

Oil seeping from pan gasket and crank sensor
Control arm needs replacing
Power steering pump hoses and resivior need replacing
Small antifreeze leak?
Clutch probably in the next year

Would keep the mini as a 2nd car but initial insurance quote for mini and pleasure frs was not good. Need to look into other insurance companies. Also with most cars keeping the mini is a foolish waste of money, insurance property tax and repairs

 

Okay, get rid of the Mini, too many problems.

 

aside from the starting issue these are all common problems, and not world ending.

 

If you suffer from TLDNR, don't feel obligated to read, but if it means anything to you, I can completely relate. I have been a Mini fanatic most of my life but have only had mine for almost three years now. This September, I was driving enthusiastically with a friend around some private roads at night, and i crested a hilled turn going too fast, and hit a curb. I broke a lot of stuff, and was distraught for weeks. I live close to work, and was planning to walk for a while until I could afford to fix it myself. Then, in a very emotional turn of events, my grandma offered me $2,000 to fix her, knowing fully well that it wouldn't necessarily take that much. So I turned my frown upside down, got out my tools, and decided to completely overhaul my whole car and rebuild it to be even better than before.

After four months of work, I felt like at least getting the wheels on and removing the jack stands would be a significant step forward. I just got the suspension back together earlier tonight, and she's now sitting on her own four wheels for the first time in a while. I decided to lower the car like I had been wanting to do ever since I got her, and as I got the last wheel on the ground and discovered that my jack was now slightly too tall to get out from under the car in it's lowered state, I took a step back to look at it. I started doing that weird laughing/crying thing that happens when you can't decide what you're feeling.

I'm extremely excited to get my car running again, and after having torn apart the engine to do a valve job and clean up 11 years of carbon buildup, I'm pretty sure I'll be doing the same thing when I hear the engine turn over for the first time.

Anyway, my point is, I've never loved any other object in my life more than my Mini. I can't say I wish this whole thing had never happened, but it has been a lesson worth learning, and I know I'll be happier in the end. You're totally right about the guilt; I felt like I had killed my best friend. I'm never getting rid of my Mini, and I'll be fixing her until the rust takes over. And who knows, maybe at that point, I'll be a good enough fabricator to fix that too.