Looking at a 2008 Clubman Justa
 

Hi guys,

I've been looking for a 2006 R53 Cooper S for a while, and still searching...

But in the meantime l happened to find a 2008 Cooper Clubman at a dealers.

I have never driven one before, so had a few questions.

I used to have a 2007 Cooper S, great car but glad l no longer have it due to all of the various issues l've read and seen.

Is the Justa Cooper plagued by the same issues?

This particular Clubman has 79,000 miles on the odo, 2 previous owners and a clean carfax. I see some dealer service history on there.

I'm planning on phoning the local Mini dealership to see what other records they have on it.

Any issues or things to be aware of on the clubman?

Wonderboymini-

I have a 2008 Justa Clubman, a pretty safe purchase and lots of the Mini fun but without the overt speed your S brought you. The issues to watch for with this N12 engine are:
Thermostat housing (hopefully yours is on its second or else you'll be buying it ($500), and the timing chain tension needs to be watched. It has the same timing chain set up as the 'death rattle' S model with less stress on it so problems are less severe, yet they exist.

If nothing has been done to the timing chain yet, you might invest in having the tensioner bolt replaced by the new design while your chain slack is being measured. Few owners have done this on the N12 engine, but most of us who have found it to be beyond the tolerance allowed.

Mine needed new struts and plugs at 70 k too.

Other than these issues mine has been pretty trouble free. Aside from these concerns, which can be addressed, the Clubman is a great design and super fun to own. There are lots of forum threads here that will convince you of that!

Thanks Torch,

I thought l had read there was a recall on the timing chain? Is this correct?

They are asking around 9k for the clubman, 2 previous owners. The 1st owner being a lease.

I'm going to call my local Mini dealership to find out what records they have on it this morning, l see they serviced it in the past according to the carfax records.

Pretty safe car also. See what in the vehicle history report and see if the local MINI dealership can run the VIN and see what was done. Thermostat housing check and sometimes the chain, but that was mostly on the early S models. I believe the chain was not a recall on the Justa Cooper , but a check , the MINI dealership can also see if there is anything outstanding needs done under warranty work.

If you even need parts we are here to help. :)
Good luck and post up some pics.

I already have some parts in mind, as well as adding usb/bluetooth :)

Blackjack side scuttles and mirror covers to

Just spoke with the local mini dealership (100 miles away)

They mentioned they replaced the radio on it around a year or so ago, as the display was fading in and out, other than oil changes every 10k, nothing else has been touched.

So no thermostat housing or chain repairs/replacements.

If anyone has any insider VIN tools, here's the VIN.

WMWML33578TJ46713

I used the lookup tool on here, but it doesn't show what packages are on the car.

-Chili Red,
-Manual
-Leatherette
-Multifunction Steering Wheel
-Spare Wheel
-Power Folding Mirror
-Silver Roof and C-Pillar
-Sunroof
-Arm Rest
-Sports Seats
-Heated Seats
-Gotham Grey Interior (super rare, converting my car over to this slowly!)
-Automatic Air Con
-Hi-Fi Sound System
Made 2nd May 2008, pretty nice build if you ask me!

Need some quick advice, the dealer let me drive it home for a few hours.

1. Looks like it's been sat a couple of months, but the air in the back kind of smells stale or moldy, can't see any leaks from the sunroof, guessing it's just where it sat. ?

2. Looks like a rust spot near the entry door.

How can l tell if it has the engine rattle?

I can hear some kind of rattle on idle, but unsure and the video may be to large to post on here.

3. The sunroof interior pieces seem to be slipping out front and back.

4. No spare tire?

5. Believe the tire warning light is on as the dealer put nitrogen in the tires?

I have a video of the engine at idle, although not sure how l can share it?

video

https://www.dropbox.com/s/phxgf2cg49...30924.MOV?dl=0

Driving back to the dealership now, let me know what you think

The video is still uploading....

I managed to speak to the previous owner earlier,

He said the thermostat housing was replaced only a couple of hundred miles ago, he found the car was leaking oil, so had to replace some parts, and then the thermostat had issues.

He put a couple of hundred miles on the car before trading it.

Advice?

need some quick advice, the dealer let me drive it home for a few hours.

1. Looks like it's been sat a couple of months, but the air in the back kind of smells stale or moldy, can't see any leaks from the sunroof, guessing it's just where it sat. ? If it sat for a few moinths it could just need airing out and an interior detail. There are 4 sunroof drains, 1 at each corner. You could check to see if they drain and/or leak.

2. Looks like a rust spot near the entry door. That should clean up just fine.

How can l tell if it has the engine rattle? Engine sounds okay to me, but we have a s.

I can hear some kind of rattle on idle, but unsure and the video may be to large to post on here.

3. The sunroof interior pieces seem to be slipping out front and back. Should be able to snap those back in.

4. No spare tire? Is there space for a spare or did it come with run flats.

5. Believe the tire warning light is on as the dealer put nitrogen in the tires? You can reset the light through the turn signal stalk.

I have a video of the engine at idle, although not sure how l can share it?


Looks really clean from you pictures and with a good detail should shine!

Well the dealer dropped the price even more, so l'm tempted, but also looking at a 2012 with only 20,000 miles on the odo in BRG with no sunroof.

After a lot of reading, l had heard the N16 engine is more reliable than the N12.

MiniMan can you run the VIN for me? WMWZF3C51CT268358

Thanks :)

The VIN Decoder doesn't give me all the info like packages spec'd with the car etc..

Sorry about that. This one does a better job:

http://www.bmwarchive.org/vin/bmw-vin-decoder.html

Thanks l tried that in the past and it never provided any info, worked on the latest VIN though.

There is just over $5k difference between the two.

Recommendations? N12 or N16?

I'm leaning to the N16 in BRG with the 20k miles, packages seem pretty much the same apart from the Air Con - 2008 is Automatic 12 is Manual, and the Audio - 12 has the HK Audio.

No sunroof would be nice, no leaks to deal with later on.

I would go with the N16, less miles on it and more future fun with the car! The Auto Air Con is annoying, especially the one from pre-LCI models, trust me I've had both, the sunroof in the '08's isn't tinted dark enough, they changed it to a darker tint later on, and will bake you in your car, I prefer to take my '08 out when it's not hot or in the dark. Also the H/K is well worth it, the base system is RUBBISH and you'll enjoy the car better with the upgraded sound, especially if your music buff. But get what you want, I think the Chili Red/ Silver combo is quite nice and the Gotham Grey interior was only made for a few months and is quite rare and really makes the interior look more upscale IMO, both engines should be reliable if proper care is given! Good Luck!

Thanks Mini the 08 had 15k oil change intervals, the 12 has had them every 6k from what l can tell.

The 12 is located a couple of hundred miles away from me, and has been at the dealer's since last August, originally priced at 20k.

I'm guessing that both engines use the same thermostat housing part?

Was planning on going up to VA to look at the other Mini today, but the weather had other ideas, in the meantime the 2008 cubbie got another price reduction, so now 6k in difference without the sales tax or fees.

I recently purchased a used 2012 and have been very happy with it. The fit and finish is great with very few creaks and squeaks. I choose a 2012 over a many 2009 and 2008's with similar mileage (60k and out of warranty). It has a few suspension noises that I suspect to be loose end links and maybe a warn bushing or two. That will get sorted once the weather warms up around here.

Good luck. Kevin.