I too have a love/hate relationship with BMW/Mini cars and BMW motorcycles. They're unique and offer a great driving experience, but against the backdrop of Japanese cars and motorcycles in my garage, they're definitely more troublesome and expensive to repair. Not patently troublesome and - so far - never "stranded on the road" unreliable, but enough trouble that I'm torn whether they're worth it. Unfortunately, I haven't seen anything from the Koreans or Japanese yet (the new Mazdas may have me re-think this) that has as much style and driving enjoyment, nor do you improve reliability significantly with any other Euro brand. I am watching to see if VW is turning the corner on reliability issues though as they have some good cars now and some great cars in the pipeline.

We'll see how I feel when it comes time to replace my Mini. There is one telling thing though - I've had mine 10-yrs which is the longest I've owned any car in my life. This says something, reliability warts and all.

- Mark

 

It is always sad to hear about problematic MINIs. There does seem to be a higher occurence of "lemons" with these cars. I have had a sunroof cassette replaced (still sticks and now leaks in florida deluges). One window is slightly slower than the other. Other than that it has been really solid and I beat the snot out of my car daily.

 

Time to chime in!

I own an 09 non-s, and my wife has a 10 non-s, both clubbies. I commute 50 miles ONE WAY every day, 500+ miles a week.

First off topic, go to pure-gas.org and find a non-ethanol station and carbon issues will diminish and the mpgs will go up. I went from 40ishmpg to 44+ mpg with just that.

I purchased my non-s at 26000 miles, i now have 61xxx. I have replaced my rear sway bar bushings and links and a temp sensor (cpo warranty), and thats all.

I do wish i had the power of the S but, i think i will search for a used and abused 02-06 s to play with, as i need mpg and reliability for my commute.

Love my mini! (My mom has a 10 clubbie non-s as well and takes it on every tarheel club day, shes 65...)

:-)

 

Well now we are officially out of warranty (100000+mi) carbon's building up, the sunroof still sticks and tire pressure monitor is going nuts

 

My Clubbie rocks!









Sorry..

 

My wifes sunroof was sticking till i lubed all the slides and gaskets, never stuck again. the rubber gets dry and gummy, sticks front to back and the motor sees it as a jam, lube the gasket between the front and rear glass, it will help, if not solve it. I use dry lube.

 

I too am SO UPSET I can barely talk about it!! $35k for nothing but trouble!! I thought I was getting the best of many worlds. Economy, sporty,station wagon space, teardrop trailer hauler. I bought this car thinking I would keep it forever. We were planning on replacing the engine when it died, you know, around 150,000+ miles or so. So far at 55k.... Timing chain, head oil leak, coolant leak (right now), clutch (right now), h2o pump recall, sport button failure, door failure.
I sold my beautiful 02 S2000 to buy this POS!!! I had 78k on my S2000 with over 80 HARD races/track/autocross days on it. I replaced pads and tires and fluids the entire life of the car and it never let me down.
I luckily bought the extended warranty, but it runs out next year, and doesn't cover clutches @$2000 to $3000 depending on which route you go.
I'm so DISAPPOINTED I can't put it into words!!!!
We are now looking at a Lexus IS250 to replace MoJo. My wife's GS300 Lexus has 160k without so much as a hiccup.

To pay what we do for so many breakdowns before the car is even payed for IS A CRIME!!!! BMW/MINI is a CRIMINAL Company!!!!

 

I don't want to rain on your anger parade, as I would be very mad too, if I bought a car brand new and had that many major issues in such a short time but...

The Lexus comparison isn't really a fair one.

I had over 250K miles on my 3 series without so much a single issue, and your MINI is a lemon.

On the same note, yes Toyota over all is known for their quality(honestly, with all the modern cars, they're just riding the coattails of that reliability reputation from 20+ years ago, anymore).

But, to say "my wife's GS300 is amazing and reliable, so I'm buying an IS250 is like saying "My Camaro was so sporty, quick, and reliable, I'm buying an Aveo!" The same badges doesn't mean the same attention to detail, quality, care, and satisfaction.

 

Consumer Reports recently (Last couple of months) Gave Lexus (All Models) their highest rating for reliability and quality. I didn't pull my brain out of a vending machine, so please don't insinuate without at least having the decency to ask first!

What you are saying sounds inflamatory, off the cuff and without any sound research or educational merit.

 

It does sound like you got a lemon. I had a bmw that i got rid of because i just couldnt take it any more. Hopefully this mini wont be the same way. That said, i also had a lexus (es300) that i drove for 125000 miles and it never had an issue. But it was like driving a marshmallow with an engine. I actually test drove an IS 250 because i like the styling, but it drove even worse than my es300 did (no "feel", weak engine) so i passed on it. IMHO if you want a car that is reliable and fun to drive, maybe you should go back to the s2000? Or if its a little more practical car you want, consider a mazda3 (ive heard good things) or a Subaru wrx. Just my $.02.