Going to Buy a Mini
 

This is my first post and I was really hoping to ask some questions about Mini Cooper's but really not sure where to post that thread, if someone could help me out that would be great.

Hello! I'm looking to buy a Mini as well, I would love to hear what others have to say.

The one I'm looking at is located here: 2004 Mini Cooper S

I have test driven a 2006, 2008, and am going hopefully tomorrow to test drive an 2009, they are all the same price, model and all the same features. I keep getting different answers from all the different dealers as to why that is.

Oh yeah what I forgot to put in the above post is that the 2006 you could tell had been driven hard, the 2008 was missing the boot or whatever it is called on the manual shifter and the doors creaked every time you opened or shut them and the dash lights were to the point where they were starting to wear out. I still have not driven the 2009 yet but it is from a BMW used car dealership so hopefully it will be in better shape than the others.

The main question I have is, is it something that happens to Mini's frequently that the inside door panel get's loose to the point where it creaks and groans whenever you open or put any pressure on it?

Oh yeah I guess I should post the price so that someone who knows something about Mini's can help.

The price of the 06,08 and 09 are all 15,9++, the last two digits do differ from car to car.

Okay so just to make the question easier on everybody, WHAT are the downsides or the troubles of owning a Mini.

Or are their any downsides, I know every car has it's faults, I was just wondering what the most problematic fault was with the Mini's.

Apparently every person on the forum that owns a Mini has had absolutely no problems what so ever ??

Or a bunch of people got a mini joined these forums then either never came back or can't figure out how to be friendly and give us newbies some advise ?

I know I test drove an 09 and a 13 and both of them the doors panels squeaked, at first I thought nothing of it, but with the door closed you could push on the arm rest or just about anywhere on the door panel and it had the annoying squeak :(

Yes exactly, that's why I want to hear from a Mini owner or more than one preferably as to if that is a common thing or if me and you have just tested or sat in bad ones, there are always bad ones no matter what car so I just want a owner of a Mini to answer any of the questions I have posted.

Youre in the right place, I just posted a short shifter for a mini and pressed new posts to get here. So looks good.
As far as buying a Mini, you should if you could, buy a JCW. They have a quicker resell value, I mean they will sell faster. I would compare this car to a race car with front wheel drive. IMHO, this car would be 10 times better with all wheel drive, but with that comes more moving parts and ops for things to go wrong. But the number 1 selling point on these cars is power to weight ratio. The moment to drive one you will be amazed at the torque of the car. Number two is gas mileage, GREAT cannot be capitalized enough, hovering around 30 mpg for M-F commuting is truly great.
The biggest downside is the small trunk, front wheel drive on snow with this torque and light car makes getting there a effort not too easy. Hope that helps and buy my short shifter, because puttin those torquey shifts together is key for getting the most out of that car, at least that is what my imagination is made of.

I didnt read all the replies, im just answering the main question so...
The main problem I had with the JCW is the front wheel drive on snaow, the torque, the hard rubber run flats, and light weight of the car, made it somewhat improper for snow driving. But that would be specific to my area, Chicagoland. If you are in Socal or somewhere where the snow is minimal, this would not be your situation.
Another issue may be the run flats tires, they are stiffer than normal tires, they are stiff to run flat, there is no spare tire in the car. So, as you see the small trunk is the third issue, you can fit a few things in there, actually I fit two 20x20 boxes and another 24x12 box with seat down. So there you go, can you live with those sacrices? Many cars have sacrifices that you will have to make. Example is Subaru, great performing car, lean mechanical complications but the design aesthetics makes you look away. The Audi TT, its a 2 seate2 with a 5 cylinder, why would you want 5 cylinders on a 50K car. The final option is the elusive M135, if you can find one that hasnt been marked up, thats right marked up from MSRP, you could have a nice rear drive ride, But again, not much for the snow. Mini does make a 4x4 cooper 4 door JCW, that is interesting, and if they can fit that into a 2 door model, hmmm.

Oh also, as you become more immersed in upgrades, you will find that the hood will be subjected to alot of heat from the turbo. They sell an app for that, called a heat shield. I would say that there are small issue with the car, but the aftermarket parts world has come to the rescue in a big way. I mean you can get a ton of stuff to prevent this or upgrade that. One of the coolest kits I saw was the rear diffuser kit and ram air integrating the hood scoop feature.

Buying a new mini
 

Just bought a 2010 hatchback s with just 16,500 on it. Not certified but I did buy an extended warranty. Wrestled with buying new and a relatively low mileage car. Couldn't resist as this car is really clean and runs terrific. My driving is limited so a low mileage car vs new was a savings and hopefully good outcome down the road.

I purposely avoided an 08 or older model regardless of miles. Things I read indicated some of the early bugs withi the 07 model change were worked out in 09 and beyond. Time will tell.

Good luck with your purchase.

Doug

Looking at possibly getting a Mini Cooper S, but this is way early in my buying process. My timing is next summer, maybe late summer. Trying to keep this below $10k, so I'm focused on '03-'05. Six-speed is a must. Want something small to fit in the third bay of the garage with room for lawn mower, etc. Thought about a Miata, but really need a back seat for 10-yr-old son and his friends. This would be mainly a grocery getter and foul weather car so I can leave my garage queen in the garage.

Sure wish this thread had gotten some wisdom posted up from some of the veterans here. I've heard "stuff" about Minis, and I don't know if it's just a few guys with sour grapes or whether I really need to watch for these things. Didn't know about the squeaks, so that's one more to add to my list.