First of all, hello everyone! I haven't posted before as I don't actually own a Mini yet (arg!), BUT I have been reading this Forum almost daily for well over a year now. For what it's worth I've looked at a few various Forums for various cars I'm considering and/or have owned and NAM is, by far, the best. Most car forums almost always digress immediately into snarky condescending arguments. NAM is one of the most upbeat and helpful communities I've come across. My hat is off to you all.

K, on to my question at hand. I'm buying a Mini when my current lease (Audi A4) is up next May (yeah, over a year). I know I know, it's a ways away, but I'm a car guy and as such, I enjoy doing "thorough" research on the matter Specifically, I'm trying to decide between a new or used Mini.

In general, I'd prefer a used one, 2007 or newer. I like the idea of paying less and don't mind a few miles on it. However, I've noticed a unique problem with the whole "used is cheaper than new" scenario with Minis. See, I've tried buying a new Mini for my last two cars (but always found a huge, can't-pass-up deal on another car) so I know what I was going to pay for a new Mini a few years back. And both times it was the same: dealerships were happy to charge no less than at LEAST $3500 over MSRP. The average price was about $29000 for an MCS with an MSRP of $25000 They were smug about it. Nick Meyer Mini in downtown LA actually bragged about being able to squeeze me and laughed when I walked away, stating he would have the same car sold by the end of the day. However, I recently went to Bob Smith Mini (very nice, btw) where they started by offering msrp (about $25000 for an MCS), knowing they weren't selling like they once were.

Therefore, here is my dilemma: If a new Mini is selling for about $25000, and a used Mini is only about $5000 less than that (primarily as a result of the buyer having paid a much higher cost for the same car earlier), is it worth buying a used Mini? Add into that a higher interest rate for a used car and the savings is even less.

Sorry, as I know this is long, but I've (obviously) been waiting for a Mini for a LONG time and I want to get it right. I figured, in all this forums infinite wisdom, you all might be able to offer some advice. Price is obviously important, but both in the short term AND the long term (maintenance and all that).

So, what do you owners think? Search for a good used 2007-2008 Mini and save a couple thousand but have more miles on it, or spend a few thousand more now (a couple years more of payments) but it's new and just the way I want it (I also have some specific taste in the color and trim).

All thoughts are greatly appreciated and I look forward to many more years of enjoying the site.

 

Go new. Used MINI prices are no bargain. Unless your budget is under $19000 you might as well pay the extra $5000 and get a new car maitenance and warranty wise. The high used prices were why I bought new.

 

If I could go back in time I would have bought a low mileage 2005 or 2006 MCS, but if you're going for the R56 I'd definitely buy new.

 

I found a Mini that was about 6 months old 4k miles and 100k warranty for $10k less than new . It was a no brainer for me to buy used

I think the biggest challange with buying used is finding a car that has what you want on it.

I did not even consider used as the prices have always been ridiculous , and then I ran across the Mini I bought .

I guess you just need to look around.

 

Depends on the deal you find...I went with an 06..since I like the old ones a tad better than the new ones. If you want an 07+..Id say go new. I do have to agree that the used Minis are still ridiculous in price.

Congrats on deciding on a MINI. I was a huge car geek before I got my Mini. Now that I have one...I can't think of any other car that is more fun to drive. Plus here in the NE-SD-IA area they seem to be far and few between. I like being different

 

You've got an entire year to search the used car market. There are tons of used MINI's for sale, and you may find one that fits your options list for sale at a fair price. If you include 08's, you'll find some that are still under warranty. Even though MINI's hold their value pretty well, it is still more of a buyers market out there, given the condition of the overall economy. If you don't know about the buyers guides on motoringfile.com, check them out.

 

I was in your exact position. After looking hard for months, I could not find a good enough price on a used car, to compromise on the options I wanted. I finally contacted Amanda at South Bay Mini. Found her from an advertisement on this site. She gave me a great deal (way below msrp) on a ordered car. Call her up, she is in your neck of the woods.

Larry

 

I never buy a new car, unless I can get it pennies over invoice. Saying that I haven't bought a new car since 2000. Get a used Mini. I found a fully loaded 07 mcs with only 19k on it and bought it for 21k. I have a friend who found a 07 with 6k on it and paid low 20's. These guys came with their mini warranty. Make sure that you have them inspected throughly before you buy it. Also, just because you buy a new one doesn't mean you wont run into typical mini issues.

V

 

I don't usually buy new either, but I couldn't see paying 21,000 for a car that was not just what I wanted when I paid under 25,000 for my new one. I wanted heated cloth seats and no sunroof and could not find that anywhere...

Larry

 

You're a perfect candidate for a new car purchase. You know exactly when your lease is up so there's no problem unloading your trade-in. If you special order you can get exactly what you want and not end up buying unwanted options just because they were already on the car on the dealer's lot. Time your order right and the new Mini will be waiting for you when the Audi goes away.

 

Do yourself a favor and don't even look further that Alexander Mini south of downtown LA. I wouldn't waste my time on Bob Smith Mini as they try to sell everything at sticker. I got my 07' in Jan. 2008 at $1,500 below MSRP when every other dealer was selling at MSRP+1.5-3K mark up. You can get a new car there at the price of used. South Bay Mini isn't bad too. The times of mark ups are gone and hope forever.

 

I bought my 07 used. I just couldn't pass up the deal. I payed almost $10k less for it then a new one. With that it didn't come with some options that I am trying to retrofit and am having some difficulty with but, that is okay I am also a car guy and like to get outside and work on it and try to figure out what makes it tick.

 

+1

I fully intended to buy a "previously enjoyed" MINI. Searched for months, found a few good ones. But the prices being asked for used ones just didn't make sense when a brand new ordered-to-spec MINI was only a little more. Add to this the fact that I was looking for a relatively low-optioned car and it became even more difficult to find one that suited me, as most of the good used ones I found were loaded up with optional stuff that I didn't want.

I decided to order a new base '08 MINI with only the options I wanted. (BTW, here in Canada, a "base" MINI comes with a lot of stuff as standard equipment that would be options on the base USA model - so direct price comparisons are really difficult). Dealer sold it at MSRP, plus I got a $1000 rebate from the federal gov't as a fuel economy incentive. Not like I needed an incentive to buy a MINI, but hey, free money from the government? Sign me up!

Bottom line - buying new made much better sense in my case than buying used. No regrets.


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Minis are unique. New ones always seem to be improvements on the older ones. I'm finding that my 09 is a better car than my friend's 07, but its not as good as the '10 loaner I had a few weeks back.

Mini seems to keep their cars as works in progress. To me, it seems that a "brand new" 09 is not as good a car as a used '10 because it has not gotten the engineering updates that seem to get added by the week. You can find really good used ones, but over all, I think that if you can buy new, do it.

 

Wow, I can't thank you guys enough for all the input. It's helping put my mind at ease. I figure I'll plan on buying a new one and but keep looking for a great deal on a used one. If I happen to come across that deal, then great and if not, I'm ready for the car I want. 33EJB, that's what I was thinking of doing too. To keep the cost as low as possible while still getting what I want, I figure I'll come up with my wishlist of option, and then exclude anything I can retrofit later and see where I'm at.

And AMODAVE, you have a good point. I've heard of long waits for a new Mini, but I could time this perfectly. Could be a good way to go.

Well, I have a year to go, but thanks to you guys and your posts I can live vicariously through you all Thanks again for helping me with my decision and look forward to "officially" joining your community!

 

Remember on used one too that it is a Niche car and it holds its value well

 

I am very happy going CPO from my local dealership. Got a 1 year old CPO Mini for 25% off MSRP before taxes. I am sick of new car salespersons saying they can't go below MSRP. I walked 100 ft to the used MINI lot and began negotiated. It doesn't hurt that the used sales people know nothing about MINIs

 

I just bought my 07 MCS (used obviously, but CPO) and couldn't be happier. I wasn't in a financial position to buy a new Mini, but test drove mine and fell in love.

Maybe you could go test-drive some used Minis at a local dealer? Who knows, maybe a used one will "speak" to you...

If not, place an order

 

My suggestion is do a lot of research and you'll find "a fairly priced" pre owned MINI. I live in CT, and found a used MINI in Nov 2009 in a South Miami Toyota dealership, the original window sticker ( I have it) price was $31,200, it had 10,200 miles on the odometer, and I bought it for $19,500+tax, and tags+ $59 Southwest Airline ticket to Miami, and approximately $200 expense to have a very fun drive it home.

 

Buy used from a private seller and have a pre-sale inspection done at the mini dealer for $100-$150. I saved a LOT buying a loaded 2008 MCS with 8k miles on it, full warranty on service, etc. The only way I'd buy new is if there was a horrible supply locally and/or you wanted some really unique combos. Otherwise, with the factory maintenance linked to the car and a pre-sale inspection, it makes no sense to me to buy new when you can save $5k-10k easy.

 

Figure that a 2007 will sell for 2/3 of the sticker price. Never pay over sticker, EVER. On this forum I never saw anyone who did that even though some dealers gave it a try. Tell them to get a clue and move on. The biggest savings on a used car comes from avoiding the sales tax, so private parties rule. You'll save a couple grand right there. Figure in the extra warranty on a new car into your equation, about $500 for every 10k miles. Of course figure in the additional interest on a used car if you finance. Finally add about $500 to the used car price because you won't get everything the way you want if you ordered new. Lots of little figures to play with.

 

You're probably not going to find any hot deals on any '08 or '09 models. I personally ran into the issue at a tuning party that my '09 has ECU software too new (reprogrammed at dealer 3 weeks ago) and hasn't been cracked by various people in the ECU tuning world.

My next MINI will definitely be a used '07 or '08, but that is a long way down the road. My MINI only has 26,000 miles.

I still think the best reason to buy a used MINI is if you want a R53. There is nothing quite like the supercharged MINI.

 

I don't know if it's continuing this year, but for 2009 there was a new car tax credit where you could write off the entire amount of the sales tax. Just one thing to consider if you want a new MINI.

 

Huh? You have to pay the sales tax when you change the title in your name at registration.

If you get around that by undercutting the cost of the car with a false bill of sale way under what you paid, you're just doing tax fraud. If you're cool with that, then fine, but you run the risk of not only tax fraud but no recourse if you find the seller sold the car without disclosing a flaw. Kind of hard to go to court and sue for the $20k when your bill of sale shows you paid $5 to cheat the tax man, etc. Just sayin...

 

I bought a new 07 MCS (week 3 production) on faith since you obviously couldn't even test drive one. Loved it. When I was ready to move up to a Clubman, I found that my MCS wasn't worth as much as Mini advertises on value retention. I don't regret buying new, but I found a great used Clubman S out of state. Even with the cost of flying up and driving it back, I was happy with the purchase. It is still under warranty and had the basic options I wanted.

I guess, if you have a very specific set of options in mind, buy new, but know that if you intend on selling it too quickly, you will take a bath like any other car. If you are going to keep it forever, go for it. But if you are flexible, or have time to shop around, go used. A car is not an investment. It is transportation that can (and should) be fun to drive. So enjoy whatever you buy. If not, buy an Aveo.