Quote:
Originally Posted by Shaun @ Tru6
There are many cars with 90K to 140K miles that need a suspension rebuild, oil leaks, coil packs, etc. in the $2K range. Perfect cars are $6K. Both cheap.
Reading some of the needs work ads, I get the sense these are not cars for people who don't do their own work.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy
If you don’t DIY you’ll be paying ~$200 per hour at the local European specialty shop. Not a great situation on an otherwise cheap car.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Deschodt
Agreed, and not jut DYI, DYI with an engine hoist.. A lot of work requires the service position which is no joke. I really enjoyed the ones I owned, plural, but you have to be a serious masochist to have one outside of warranty. I still cannot believe the quote for a clutch job a few months back...
All local independants: "oh no we no longer do mini clutches, it gets expensive and our customers get pissed off"
Dealer: $4000 conservatively, likely a little more (on a car worth $5K)
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At those prices, I would go into business doing clutch jobs on them but they really don't fail much. I can definitely see how accessing things on the firewall side of the transverse engine would be a drag, (prime reason to never buy a turbo/later Mini). That said, it's not a difficult platform to remove things, including the drivetrain. A lot of the criticism seems to forget the design parameters of the original project...it's a Mini. As in, tiny car. They could have made it bigger, then it would have been like the current abominations that say "Mini" on them but look like ugly x-over SUVs.
When the car was introduced in 2001, people went absolutely bonkers over it. I remember being at the Auto Show, you couldn't get near the Mini exhibit. My broke, slacker buddy in MN. who had never spent over $2k on a car in his life took out a loan somehow and bought one of the first ones. If they would have introduced what they are selling now, the brand would have taken a schit on arrival.