Tell me about Minis

[Porchdog]

It's time for a new daily driver.

I have a half ton pickup as my primary/bad weather/hauling/ hunting/fishing rig but that's not what I prefer for just my daily driving around.

For years I drove a 94 Golf that was a good car. I taught my kids to drive in it and my boys drove it to high school. Eventually the pan was rusting and I got rid of it.

When the boys started monopolizing the Golf I got myself a 2005 Vibe. Great car, practical, trouble free but deathly boring to drive. Last year my oldest got a job in Missouri and I gave it to him.

I'm currently using a 2001 Jetta that my son picked up for $200 with a broken timing belt. He drive it for a year and I have driven it for a year. It's transportation but I don't like it - it has no soul.

So I'm looking for a commuter car. It has to be a stick shift, I prefer hatchbacks and it has to be sporty. It doesn't have to be crazy fast - my commute is 12 miles of twisty, hilly secondary road with a maximum speed limit of 45.

I am in no particular hurry and I don't want to invest to much. I started out looking at GTI's, Focus/Fiesta ST's and Mazda 3's

I am seeing lots of 2nd generation Mini's with low miles at reasonable prices - so i'm tempted. They are a bit on the small side, but I don't haul kids around any more. These always appealed to me but I always had an impression that they were prone to be broken down.

So give me the low-down - what can I expect from a 2007 - 2013 Mini?

[WPOZZZ]

I have a 2010 MCS and I think it is a great, fun, commuter car. It has about 38k on it now, and has been very reliable. It seems to be better screwed together than the 1st Gen. When I had my 02 MCS it was a fun car to thrash about, but after 10k it started to creak and rattle. The 2010 has been pretty rattle free, but the ac vents and the sunroof shades are not very durable. The rear shade will come off its track and there is not much you can do with it. The ac vents can get floppy and not stay in their place. Some folded paper to hold it will fix that.

My 2010 is a tip and the 02 was a 6 spd. I believe the 6spd is the same in the 2nd Gen. The 6 spd had good gear spacing and the factory throw was good. It was very easy to modulate in bumper to bumper traffic.

In your 12 mile twisty commute, I think you will have a lot of fun with the MCS. The MCS may look small, but it can carry a lot. In my 02, I was able to fit a set of E36 M3 Motorsports wheels and tires, and an M3 exhaust in the car.

[onewhippedpuppy]

I’ve had a 2002 S and a 2005 base, both bought used. Very fun, practical little go karts. Horribly made, everything is cheap snap together plastic, maintenance access is awful, and they are not very reliable. I absolutely despised working on mine because it was almost guaranteed that you would break something just trying to get to the part that needed repaired. Interiors were creaky rattle traps and did not wear well. Parts are BMW expensive too.

I would look GTI, Focus or Fiesta ST, Mazdaspeed3, WRX, Audi A3 before another Mini. I had a Focus ST that was a great little car, well made and dead reliable, lots of fun to drive.

[jwasbury]

We are on our 2nd Mini Cooper S, both have been primarily used as daily drivers, commuting in NY/NJ metro area. Fun to drive for sure, but they begin to unravel at about 80k from experience. Our current is a 2013 Cooper S John Cooper Works, at about 79k. One issue we have found is the suspension travel is very small, and therefore the car pounds in our northeast potholes. I've lost count of how many sets of tires we have put on the car, probably 6 to 8...not due to treadwear but due to sidewall bulges from the aforementioned potholes and lack of suspension travel. The pounding also causes the front strut mounts to fail, and sometimes the shock towers themselves mushroom out.

I hate DIY on these cars too...not engineered to be repaired.

I'm planning on selling the car very soon. If you're not scared by the above this car is currently parked at my home in Quakertown PA and you're welcome to come by for a test drive some weekend.

[jwasbury]

I should point out that only 1x in 160k miles of Mini driving did the car fail to get my wife home. Our Gen 1 had the main crank pulley fail and the car went into limp mode and we had it towed. Always got us where we needed to go otherwise.

So they have generally been reliable, but have needed expensive maintenance along the way.

[masraum]

I've looked at Minis a little bit. Some folks have very good luck with them, and some folks have horrible luck. I think they are kind of like a BMW in that regard (no great surprise there, right?)

[Porchdog]

I DIY everything, so that's a consideration.

WRX's are expensive used and almost all of them have been "tuned" - so I gave up looking at them. I don't need AWD - I have a 4WD truck.

A lot of the GTI's and ST's are "tuned" as well. The 2.0T VAG motors before 2013 I perceive as problem children - maybe that's overblown.

A lot of the Minis that I see used are adult owned and dealer serviced.

jwasbury - That's a great offer. I can see Quakertown from my front door - I'm on the ridge outside Limeport. One of my clients had a JCW - a cool gocart. He traded it in on a new 911.

[GothingNC]

2005-2006 Mini Cooper S are the ones to look for. Cast Iron block, last of the Super-Chargers and the gear box ratio's were changed for faster acceleration.

After 2006 they went to the French motor that is known to have chain tensioner failures and sometimes the vacuum pump bolt snaps taking out the timing chain.

https://hausofminis.com/2015/05/is-it-time-to-replace-the-timing-chain-on-your-2nd-generation-mini-cooper/

[jwasbury]

Originally Posted by Porchdog

jwasbury - That's a great offer. I can see Quakertown from my front door - I'm on the ridge outside Limeport. One of my clients had a JCW - a cool gocart. He traded it in on a new 911.

I'm serious...and like I said I want to sell the car, so maybe you might want to take it off my hands (we have 4 cars and only 2 drivers, so want to lighten the load).

This one has been dealer serviced, bought new by us. The JCW is pretty quick, and also has the best factory brakes of any car I've ever driven. I rank the brakes on this car above the 997tt and the CTS-V (both of which I have owned previously).

[Porchdog]

I'm serious as well - I sent you a PM. Send me an email or text and we can meet.

Thanks

[LakeCleElum]

Mazda - I've 2 of their cars and 4 pickups. Can't be beat for price and dependability. Easy to work on also....

[Porchdog]

Nothing against Mazdas - just not as much fun as the GTI or ST's and not nearly as many of them around on the used market.

[JavaBrewer]

Originally Posted by Porchdog

So I'm looking for a commuter car. It has to be a stick shift, I prefer hatchbacks and it has to be sporty. It doesn't have to be crazy fast - my commute is 12 miles of twisty, hilly secondary road with a maximum speed limit of 45.

I am in no particular hurry and I don't want to invest to much. I started out looking at GTI's, Focus/Fiesta ST's and Mazda 3's

I am seeing lots of 2nd generation Mini's with low miles at reasonable prices - so i'm tempted. They are a bit on the small side, but I don't haul kids around any more. These always appealed to me but I always had an impression that they were prone to be broken down.

Have you looked at the Audi TT? I really liked my 2001 TT coupe with the 225 HP motor. I did a minor tune to 250 HP and drove it 110K miles with only minor issues. The instrument pod started dying so I had it repaired by an online shop for ~ $300. Other than routine maintenance including timing belt and water pump the car was perfect. It did everything well and with the hatchback could carry a surprising amount of stuff. Fantastic interior design, materials, and seats. I was in an accident with it (got t-boned) and it protected me very well. Sadly the car was a total loss. That was 4 years ago - I might still be driving it otherwise.

[Luccia at Pelican Parts]

I HIGHLY recommend, if you're wanting a 2nd gen MINI, to go with a 2011-2013 as they have the N18 engine. The 2007-2010 come with the N14's that have very common issues with valve covers leaking, HPFP failure (warrantied by a dealer if you're within the mileage and year for replacement), timing chain "death rattle," massive carbon clean up issues that need to be cleaned every 50k miles and a few other quirks. The N18's got rid of a lot of these issues, although I have seen the HPFP issue with the N18's before. I have a thread on that here: http://forums.pelicanparts.com/bmw-mini/936930-hpfp-warranty-replacement-n18.html. However, they will be much more reliable than the N14's. Now, if you're looking at the non-turbo issues, then that's a whole different story and you'd have less issues with both the N12 and N16 (2007-2013).

I'd highly recommend you find a low mileage N18 with all the service records. You'll want to make sure fluids (especially the cooling system) have been serviced like they should be. Change the oil every 5,000 miles and make sure you change filters as well. Let me know if you have any specific questions as I'd be more than happy to answer them. Hope this info helps.

[Tobra]

Originally Posted by Porchdog

I DIY everything, so that's a consideration.

I do too. One look under the hood of a MINI and I got a Miata.

They don't call it the Answer by mistake

[Porchdog]

Luccia - That is a fantastic chunk of information. Thank You.

Tobra - The Mini is no worse in that regard than other cars I have worked on - I'm resigned to engine bay crowding. A couple friends have Miatas, I have driven them and worked on them and I like them. I don't need or want another sports car at the moment. Just something practical and sporty to run around in. Besides - most of my friends and relatives don't fit in a Miata.

[Don Ro]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

I’ve had a 2002 S and a 2005 base, both bought used. Very fun, practical little go karts. Horribly made, everything is cheap snap together plastic, maintenance access is awful, and they are not very reliable. I absolutely despised working on mine because it was almost guaranteed that you would break something just trying to get to the part that needed repaired. Interiors were creaky rattle traps and did not wear well. Parts are BMW expensive too.

I would look GTI, Focus or Fiesta ST, Mazdaspeed3, WRX, Audi A3 before another Mini. I had a Focus ST that was a great little car, well made and dead reliable, lots of fun to drive.

I had a hankerin' for another small car (have had a few and love them) back in '12 - '13...wanted a Mini thinking the I could pretend it was a Cooper - a car I missed out on.
I went on the Mini forums and I just couldn't find a year that didn't have issues. Quite disappointed, I was.
I bought a new '13 Fiat Abarth 5 spd...dead reliable and not one issue since. If the multi-speed auto was offered at the time I would have chosen that.
Corners like a snake down a rat hole and brakes that will suck your brains out through your forehead.
In "Sport" mode (alarmingly quick), 26 - 30 mpg city, 36 - 38 mpg hwy.
.
Good luck in your search.

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[T77911S]

take a look at Z4's

don't know anything about minis other than I have heard something about the harmonic balancers being an issue, not sure though

[onewhippedpuppy]

Sounds like you want to want a Mini, which is fine. But you'll hate working on it. I've had more cars that I can count, including terrible cars to DIY like Audis and 951s. I DIY everything. The Mini is my least favorite because of the stupidity of design and cheapness of parts.

Your comment on Mazda, btw, leads me to believe you haven't driven the right Mazdas. Go test drive a Mazdaspeed3 or RX8, which has rear suicide doors and will seat 4 adults. The RX8 is a scalpel of a car, and the Mazdaspeed3 is on par with every other hot hatch that you've mentioned.

[Porchdog]

Don - I do have the Abarth on my list. It's good to know that you haven't had any trouble. I will look harder at those.

Z4's - those are on my list as well. Hatchbacks are hard to find and they are all expensive, compared to everything else on my list. I can't convince myself that I want a 2 seat convertible for my daily driver - I would need to take my truck every time I was fishing or shooting or running errands. Hatchbacks are so handy.

I want a Mini, I want a GTI, I want an ST, I might even want an Abarth. I haven't driven a Mazdaspeed, I have only seen a couple for sale.

I have driven an RX8 - I can't say that I was very impressed. It was OK, but it didn't blow me away and I didn't like the door arrangement. I know three people who had them - all had constant issues. I don't hold them in the same regard as the 3 or the Miata as far as dependability.

I also wasn't considering the GTI because of friends experiences with VAG turbo fours - but the current generation (2013+) seem to be pretty robust. They certainly have driving dynamics and fit and finish over the ST's

I asked about the Mini because I really didn't know anything about them - aside from one rip in a JCW and a friend of a friend telling me he does a lot of heads at the dealership.