Buying advice please

[max lange]

So we are looking to replace our ageing BMW and thinking of a Mini, not a new one but a 2008/09 model. How reliable are they, should I rather get a 1.6 than a turbo or supercharged. My wife will be the primary user.

Any thoughts and suggestions would be welcome.
Oh and I would like to keep spend under R140k

 

[Willy]

For reliability take the normal cooper, my wife has a cooper countryman in auto and it might not be a rocket ship but it is still fun to drive. check if you can't get a 2010 or later which are the facelift ones.

 

[that_guy_Ettiene]

My wife has a2010 Mini Cooper.

Yes, its not a GTi but, it is enough for everyday driving, its incredibly light on fuel (6.7L/100km ave).

Services is not that bad but brakes can be expensive at the dealers.

Ours have 96k km on the odo, Fsh at BMW.

Nice little cars these.

The wife (read: me) wants a E46 330i MSport.

So you can PM me if you dont find what you are looking for.

 

[Jarv]

Get a normal cooper , you will be safe off m/plan, my sister's cooper we have had since new 07 model given zero problems where as my 2011 mcs spends more time at bmw than i get to drive it.


Sent from my GT-I9500

 

[max lange]

Jarv

Thanks, seems to be the general sentiment to stick with a Cooper outside of motorplan. Currently looking for the right deal that fits my pocket. Luckily I'm not under pressure so I have time. I think a 2008/2009/2010 model will fit my pocket.

 

[spawn616]

just more info on these
for my gf

r53 or 56
what common problems do they have

do they share the ecu problem as the sc and turbo ones?

what is new in the 56 that the 53 don't get?

other options are a 1 series but she struggles with vehicle size and parking is an issue

do they have any special wear and tear items

 

[Willy]

What?

Okay stop.

Bar the brakes, some suspension bits and the name there is nothing common between the R53 and the R56.

The R53 is the supercharged one.

They are great, motors are bulletproof and they are oodles of fun. Stuff that do go wrong are the power steering pumps and the cooling reservoir. Some random sensors but generally they are to dump to break.

They do rattle quite a bit and they are heavier on fuel at around 9l/100km.

The R56 is the turbo one.

They are also great, but they tend to suffer from the timing chain issues and some have turbo problems. These can both be prevented by good maintenance and preventative measures. Lighter on fuel especially when you get the N18 (2011+ ) motor ones. I got 6l/100km on one once driving to work and back for a week.

The R56 is also a bit softer to drive and easier to life with.

Both are fun, both are fairly cheap to maintain and none of them have ECU problems.

 

[spawn616]

ok i see the cofusion

i mean the normal 1.6 ones non forced induction,
as new items like did the 56 get options that the 53 never got....sorry i know i made that a vague question but interns of gizmos


the 53 sc got dead ecus(randomly dying which is now obx current employment terms)
the 56 suffers from turbos and super knock from the heads been drowned in carbon from the way the emission reduction works in that motor

i know the big failures but theres not much to search on this or international forums

just random guys posting general service questions

 

[Willy]

Okay

First of then you are talking about the R50 and R56 Cooper.

They are fairly good. My wife has a Countryman Cooper which is fairly good. No problems yet for the past 75000 km.

I am yet to experience an ECU failure in either of my R53's both having more than 150 000 km on the clock. So there is that. . .

Bar the weaker motor there is nothing you couldn't get on the Cooper. The Cooper S's came with stuff like climate control and bigger brakes but that is about it. Everything was optional on the Cooper.

---

From the 1st to second generation. There was not allot of extra features.

On the motor side the 2nd generation got vanos.

Inside well build quality.

 

[spawn616]

ah i see

cool thanks man much appreciated

 

[Bizo]

hey there, check my add in For Sale section, selling my 08 R56, I have replaced many of the expensive components so very reliable and in very good nick .Just put on new tyres, did new oil pump, radiator , brakes , oil filter etc etc.

car is very neat too, interior is perfect , also have service books with slips for the work done/parts replaced

 

[Willy]

hey there, check my add in For Sale section, selling my 08 R56, I have replaced many of the expensive components so very reliable and in very good nick .Just put on new tyres, did new oil pump, radiator , brakes , oil filter etc etc.

car is very neat too, interior is perfect , also have service books with slips for the work done/parts replaced

Bizo, your car looks neat. If it was 1 year earlier I would have bought it. But I do love my superchargers.

 

[Bizo]

hey there, check my add in For Sale section, selling my 08 R56, I have replaced many of the expensive components so very reliable and in very good nick .Just put on new tyres, did new oil pump, radiator , brakes , oil filter etc etc.

car is very neat too, interior is perfect , also have service books with slips for the work done/parts replaced

Bizo, your car looks neat. If it was 1 year earlier I would have bought it. But I do love my superchargers.

thanks man, its never too late to come over to the dark side:rollsmile:

 

[Willy]

Nah, its okay, while the turbo guys wait for the lag to past I will scout out the road ahead. :roflol:

 

[Scavenger]

Just a note regarding the R50. Go for a facelift, from mid 2004 on. I blew the midlands box on my prefacelift, twice, before 60000km. Having said that, I miss that car... I wish I could have destroyed the gearbox just one last time.:cartel: