I have owned VWs, Honda Accords, Acura Integra, Acura RVX, and now a mini. I had trouble will all VWS and would never buy another one and the dealers were a nightmare. One I had to sell within 2 years because I could not keep it running; the clutch broke etc. AAA threatened to take my membership away because I was stranded so many times with that car. On the Accords I had the transmission go out on one and also could not keep one of them running. And on that car every time I turned a corner it would die. I never had any trouble with three acuras with the exception of a broken windshield on one and having to have that replaced. These were all cars that Consumer Reports recommended. On one VW, CR came out the next year and apologized for having recommended it because there was so much trouble with it. ski

 

Perfect!

 

you my friend....are an idiot. honda will be glad to have you.

if those are the conclusions you have come to after reading these forums about the car then it seems you have already formed your opinion.

 

Hyper:

Step back and look...you'll find a HUGE majority of pos vs neg comments re MINI. But if your due date is soon, just post your incoming new arrival on EBay and see how fast some west coaster who would otherwise have to pay thousands over msrp and wait months for the privilege might snap it up !!!
hs

 

First off, Have you read the honda forums? I dont know how much time you have spent in the honda forums, but I would bet large sums of money that you will see similar stories over there about hondas.

Second the MINI isn't a honda. If the only reason you are buying a car is for effeciency, build quality and reliability then you should buy a toyota or honda.

Third,You buy a MINI because german engineering designed it. Brits assembled it with tradition and heratige, Small children still point and get excited when you drive buy, and as you round a clover leaf onto the interstate at 70mph with the supercharger whine music to your ears as you seamlessly hit a gap in traffic without missing a beat. .....ahhh. You will NEVER get any of THAT in a civic.

 

Just about 61k miles and none of the problems you listed HB. I've tried starting threads over the years about another perfect day with my MINI and they are kinda boring... so most threads are about troubles or unusual events... that's all. Best to you even if buy another boring car!

 

Amen!

 

I LOVE those clover leaf ramps!


Clover

 

Even on this car enthusiast's board, look at how many people have complained about these problems and said "this has happened to me too" compared to the number of members. Active membership may be 9000, but i can guarantee you one of those inactive members will come out of hiding to complain about something wrong and seek advice for it. So really.

I have heard of TWO MINIs catching fire, both early '02 builds. Out of how many that have been sold worldwide? And you actually state that as a reason you're worried about getting the car? Wow. You're more likely to drive the car into a light post than have that happen.

Windshield cracking up is a more common occurence, but just barely, when you think about it. I am not worried about it happening to me at all. And if it does, so what? I'll gladly dish it out for the feeling of safety and confidence I have driving my car.

Before I got my MINI, I always thought my next car would be a Honda, but an older one, since the newer civics seem to have lower reliability. I test drove a few, never got any kind of thrill from it. I can tell you if I had gotten one, I would still be a homebody playing on the computer instead of out enjoying the weather. I come home every day with a sunburn now. How's that for a hazard?

 

This statement couldn't be more on the nose if he tried. I've been an Adminstrator on a major car board for over 5 years along with being a member to a few others for a years.

You have to remember that there is NO car or car maker on the PLANET that makes the perfect car. If you've owned Honda's and Acura's before you should know they have their problems too.

I've seen horror stories of weird things on cars like high end BMW's, Merc's, Acura's, Lexus and so on..... The stories you read here on NAM are nothing new to cars.

 

I will jump in here too. I have had a blast in my mini! 4 sets of tires in 40k miles, 2 sets of race tires, 2 sets of street tires, actually the runflats hace 10k + left on them and the 225/45/17 Kumho MX's are 60% worn :smile:

I finally had a windshield crack after 39k miles and stones that hit so hard they sounded like gunfire one finally cracked the windshield
I drive my car 120-150 miles a day and love it more now than when I bought it 1.6 years ago. I race once a month minimum. Do 4k clutch drops consistantly leaving 20' duel black marks as I smoke civic Si's with the trash can mufflers as they sound like they are setting a land speed record but quickly dissapearing in my rear view mirror.
I had a problem with the electrical in my car. I spoke with the mechanic, told him I had done the LSD, Camber plates, rear camber bars, boost gauge, front and rear strut braces rear sway bar, and the vacume mod.
when I picked my car the report to BMW read "there are no mods that would have caused this problem" the mechanic reworked my 4 point harness while he had the seats out so it worked better, set the toe in on the rear wheels for a better auto x alignment (I had told him that the reason I installed the rear camber bars was that the camber was + on the passenger side and - on the drivers side) so he put it on the rack to make sure there wasnt any problems
They gave me a loaner for 3 days and called 2 times a day while they had the car to keep me informed on their progress!
I have had new Mustangs, ford trucks, and never have I had the service I have had with MINI, they know my name and greet me every time I come in to pick up some parts or for service, the parts manager keeps me informed on JCW goodies that are in the works and the sales people accross the street know me by name also. This was a surprise because my sales person left 1 week after I bought the car! After watching this treatment my wife ordered a MINI Cooper S convertable with LSD and traded in her Honda Prelude as honda wouldnt cover the power steering pump ("accessory" item) that went out at 40k miles ($269) mind you, it was about the size of a large orange!
I have read a complaint about my dealer the kid wrote pages about how he had been cheated, mis-treated, it started when they wouldnt throw in an extended warranty for free, then when they wouldnt replace his tire and rim for free (warranty covers running into culverts doesnt it?) lol
I would like for you to buy whatever car:
#1 you can afford! (very important)
#2 Suites your needs
#3 you will enjoy driving

 

Truer words were never spoken IMO. 'Tis a shame that we rely on 'virtual' characters to deliver the most realistic of quotes. Finding Nemo rawks.

</thread hijack>

 

Another vote for you not to buy the car. It sounds like you're going to lose sleep over every little issue your car may or may not have. Even with the minor issues *some* owners see, the overall experience owners have with the Mini makes it worth the trouble.

I'd like to know how many people who actually had these problems would consider trading the car in. I'd bet almost none of them would.

Head on over to your nearest Toyota dealer.

 

Yikes I've had my MINI for 2 years and none of that stuff has happened to me I'm way over due. Better sell quick before something happens

 

HB -

Giving you benefit of the doubt here... Don't go back to Honda. MINIs are much more fun. Heck, mine's more fun than any of the BMWs I've owned.

Assuming you really want to be reminded why you should still get a MINI, just go drive one again. If you're still unsure, go drive a new Honda (or whatever else you think you might like).

If the comparison doesn't convince you, THEN go back to Honda. We'll all be fine, and you'll be happy, too. Everybody wins.

If you decide to get the MINI, we'll soon forgive & forget the weak moment.

 

lol.. too funny.

seriously though, any car will have problems. And if you are already being such a worry freak that you will somehow be damned with a MINI with EVERY possible problem out there, then make yourself feel better and get a Honda. Just don't complain when you find problems with your Honda, I mean my sister and uncle both had a Honda Acoord and they both had problems of the car just randomly not starting and being left stranded (MINI has roadside assistance mind you). All not fixed under warranty because the kept telling her she was just imagining things

 

11) And the International Space Station is going to fall on my MINI!

 

poor guy is gonna log back in and find 200 responses to his post

 

Pig gets impatient sitting in the parking lot at the dropzone. Let's go motoring instead.

500 skydives, 1000 BASE jumps, 25000 miles motored, no windshield problems, no dealer problems, no rattles.

OT, but hey WannaMini, parachutists (of all kinds) hate when people report that the "parachute didn't open." The darn things pretty much always open, but every mistake and malfunction gets reported as "didn't open," no matter what really happened.

 

How come Mr. Hyper Blue has not responded yet?

 

Hyper Blue,

I found myself having the same thoughts as you about half way through my wait period. You read about other people's problems and it starts to freak you out. Especially with convertibles and all the top and rear window problems that people are having. That coupled with some large unexpected medical bills almost killed the whole deal.

We decided to stick it out. We could always sell it if need be. We have had it for a month now and just finished the break in period last night. This car is so incredible and I am so happy we did not cancel our order. It is the first time since I was a teenager that I have liked driving almost as much as riding motorcycles. Eek! I never thought I would say that.

I say go for it. I really doubt you will be dissapointed.

 

Sleeping?

I don't think it's fair to make fun of him too much, though. A new car is a big purchase for most people, and going with something different than what you know and have not had problems with can be scary. Or he may just not really want one. As much as i love Zooty, I know one like her is not everyone's cup of tea. One of my own friends was not all that impressed, but she isn't much of a driver either.

On the other hand, it really isn't fair to blow problems out of proportion either.

 

Hyper Blue,
I've had my MINI 2 1/2 years and still love it. Yes, I had one of the issues you mentioned (the windshield replaced by insurance @ no charge after two years of ownership. It was nice to get rid of pits ), but overall I would buy the MINI again. In fact I did just buy a second one.

I would argue if you go to any car forum you will find 90+% negative comments posted vs positive comments. When people have a problem they need to vent and the forum is one place to do. If everyone posted their positive experience with their cars every day, the web site would explode.

Please don't cancel your order based solely on the fact you see negative comments on a forum. This should be taken as a sign of support. These websites are a great resource for help if you should have an issue.

I know dozens of MINI owners and the windshield on your the only common issue I recognize. Maybe a handful of owners I know, and they have all been fixed.

I have 44000+ smiles. Several high speed track events and some autocrossing 2 years at MINI's on the Dragons and one to come. The car is as strong as new and ready to go.

If you want to get a fair judgement... start a thread "Do you love your MINI?" and see the respones.
Good Luck... hope you stick with it.

 

<jumping on the pig pile>

It's a matter of comfort.
Do you truely believe that if something happened once to someone else, then it will definitely happen to you?
My friend's Cooper has been hit twice in parking lots - does that mean mine will get hit? Answer - yes, but not because it's a Cooper, but because people are idiots.
If you're REALLY looking for a reason to buy a MINI, go to the dealership and talk to people picking up their cars from service. That will be a more representative sample set than the one-off issues you identified.
Good luck with your decision!

</jumping on the pig pile>

 

HyperBlue:

You have taken a dozen worst-case scenarios and characterized them as an aggregate median. That is faulty analysis, pure and simple. It's like saying you'll never fly American Airlines again because they've had two accidents in the last twenty years AND they lost your luggage last week, so they must be a terrible airline.

1) Windshields: mine is fine at 20k miles, as are most peoples'.

2) Dealership treatment re: windshields: this probably won't happen to you.

3) Dealership treatment re: warranty work: Haven't you ever been screwed over by a Honda "service advisor"? They're famous for it.

4) Chance of car exploding: there's a chance the Earth will be sucked out of the solar system by the gravitational pull of a passing star, too, but I still manage to get out of bed every day. Figure the odds, man.

5) Moonroof exploding: See #4. Then again, do as I did and don't get the moonroof, because they are squeak-rattle-leak sources in ANY car.

6) Ignition won't turn car off: Statistically insignificant incidence. See #4.

7) Turn on A/C, get heater: Guess this never happened to you with Volkswagens. (Really?). Again, statistically insignificant incidence.

8) Heated seats quit working: mine are doing fine at the 23-month mark; they work better than the ones in our Volvo. If you're going to make decisions on isolated data points, use mine too.

9) New clutch at 12k: Only if you abuse it.

10) Someone will steal your wheels: Maybe. See #4.

As for your love of Hondas... maybe you should just buy another dull ol' Civic... but you should know that my '91 Civic blew out its engine for no good reason at 92k miles. You should consider THAT data point too, perhaps.