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I've had 4 Minis (2 R53, 2 R56). They are small BMWs. Very complex only because BMW only does things one way. I've also had 4 BMWs. So at least the knowledge of how to fix one is pretty reusable across the marques.
If you work on your own cars, the Mini has one of the best support forums around. NorthAmericanMotoring.com. Pictoral how-tos and pretty much every issue addressed. I think some of the people on that forum know more about the cars than BMW does.
I built and used a walnut blasting setup to clean my DI intake/valves for about $50 total with the knowledge off that forum. Good stuff, but too bad I had to do it on a car with only 40k miles on it. My valves probably had close to 3/4" of crap on the backs.
In any case, I wouldn't recommend a Mini as a low hassle commuter. More like exotic car maintenance for an everyday car.
You have an R53, right? The water pump is part of the supercharger, not a directly driven accessory. Might as well get the supercharger rebuilt at the same time. The belt tensioner for the serpentine is a known problem, so replacing it is a good idea too.
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