Hello,

I am here to ask advice regarding a car I am looking at to buy. I am looking for a project car and I have a budget of about $8000 for buying an R53, fixing it up, and doing whatever mods I want to do. I have some general automotive/technical experience from the past (and friends and family who have more who are willing to help), but neither I nor any of them have ever worked on a Mini extensively (I own a 2011 Countryman S ALL4, but it has never had anything major go wrong on it, thus not requiring much work).

I have found a used 2004 R53 for less than $2000, and it looks to be in good condition other than that the dealer states that it either "needs new engine soon" or "needs engine work". It also has over 150k miles, but it does run and drive. The dealer got it as a trade-in and they also state that they want to be rid of it as soon as possible, so I am looking at it as a way I could get an R53 for very cheap (less than $1.5k?).

However, I need to be able to fix it up for less than my $8000 budget minus the upfront cost of the car (preferably much less so that I have budget left for further work/repairs). Thus, I have a few questions:

1.) If we assume it needs a new engine immediately, how much would this cost if I did it myself/with minimal outside help from service centers (very little to no labor cost)? I would also consider engine swapping it if it could be done at a comparable price.
2.) How would I go about checking whether the engine really needs to be replaced or just needs work? Are there any other major problems I should look out for because it has such high miles?
3.) Would you buy a Mini like this, or would it not be worth it? Am I likely to experience endless problems because of the high miles that make it not worth it even considering the low price? What would you pay for it?

Thanks in advance to anyone who helps me out, I have contacted the dealer and will hopefully get more detail on the car soon, which I will add on this thread. I will also go look at it and report back if it seems likely that I will go for it after getting a bit more information and advice.

 

The dealer just got back to me, and they could only tell me that the engine knocks. They also recommended towing the Mini off the lot. I am assuming that this means "we have no idea what is wrong with it but it could be bad".

Anyone know what may be wrong with the Mini to cause the knocking sounds? Very vague info, I know.

 

Not sure what part of the us you're from but for the budget you have can get much better car pm me know of several. I am in Indiana