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Read the WELCOME ALL BMWFANATICS post.
Problems with Mini's
- Thread starter Arbee
- Start date
Arbee
Honorary ///Member
So, i got a week left to get the wife a car!
Yesterday, i saw and took a Cooper S for a test drive. Its a 2005, with 77 000km on the clock. Looked great until i took it for a drive. I think the Supercharger was fooked as it had no power at all. Felt like my ex 84 1300 Golf 1. The steering kept clicking as i turned and the clutch was all the way up, almost hit my chin with my knee when releasing clutch. The suspension is seriously stiff (my bm has 19's with a 35 tyre profile and this Mini was with stock 17's and was crazy). The car rattles worse than a citi golf.
I let the wife drive the car, she cannot stand it. So, off with the Mini idea, im going to purchase a brand new Polo Vivo or a E46 Compact...
Yesterday, i saw and took a Cooper S for a test drive. Its a 2005, with 77 000km on the clock. Looked great until i took it for a drive. I think the Supercharger was fooked as it had no power at all. Felt like my ex 84 1300 Golf 1. The steering kept clicking as i turned and the clutch was all the way up, almost hit my chin with my knee when releasing clutch. The suspension is seriously stiff (my bm has 19's with a 35 tyre profile and this Mini was with stock 17's and was crazy). The car rattles worse than a citi golf.
I let the wife drive the car, she cannot stand it. So, off with the Mini idea, im going to purchase a brand new Polo Vivo or a E46 Compact...
M
Mike1
Guest
Hold up.
What are you willing to pay for a car?
That was probably an R50 and a fooked one at that. Let me know and I can see if I can arrange a R56 at a good price.
The R56 (2007 onwards) is heaps ahead of the R50 and R53 in terms of comfort and refinement. Dont give up on the MINI.
You need to find the right one.
Give me a shout on 082 3546 888 and I will take a look for you.
Mike
What are you willing to pay for a car?
That was probably an R50 and a fooked one at that. Let me know and I can see if I can arrange a R56 at a good price.
The R56 (2007 onwards) is heaps ahead of the R50 and R53 in terms of comfort and refinement. Dont give up on the MINI.
You need to find the right one.
Give me a shout on 082 3546 888 and I will take a look for you.
Mike
Arbee
Honorary ///Member
MiniMike19 said:Hold up.
What are you willing to pay for a car?
That was probably an R50 and a fooked one at that. Let me know and I can see if I can arrange a R56 at a good price.
The R56 (2007 onwards) is heaps ahead of the R50 and R53 in terms of comfort and refinement. Dont give up on the MINI.
You need to find the right one.
Give me a shout on 082 3546 888 and I will take a look for you.
Mike
Sorry bud, just saw your response now...
Bought a 2007 SEAT Ibiza with 41 000km for R85k.
Budget was R90 000 for a 2nd car.
Thanks for the help though, much appreciated.
We have had 2 minis from 2004.
Problems:
cvt Gearbox losing memory
key losing code and centyral locking not working
Shock tops tend to go quite quick
Window mechanism
power steering pump noisy
Starting problem on Cooper S - internittenant (BMW confused as usual)
ABS and traction lights come on for nothing (bmw SAY Normal:nono
Problems:
cvt Gearbox losing memory
key losing code and centyral locking not working
Shock tops tend to go quite quick
Window mechanism
power steering pump noisy
Starting problem on Cooper S - internittenant (BMW confused as usual)
ABS and traction lights come on for nothing (bmw SAY Normal:nono
Arbee
Honorary ///Member
Cooper said:
Yep... Thats true. And i have a small amount of regret around it.
While the Mini is an awesome car, its damn expensive to maintain.
At present, I need to replace the Powersteering pump and pipes. And the LCA's. Quotes ranging from 15k upwards. :tease:
However, the car is moving and i dont have time or money now to sort it out.
Carbon
///Member
iifunky said:
I can't believe there are still clowns that post this crap, then newb members actually do it.
for goodness sake, NO CAR SHOULD BE DRIVEN WITHOUT A THERMOSTAT!!!!! Your oil heats up too slowly, and in most cases NEVER gets up to operating temp, your car over fuels, your combustion is incomplete, rings wear more quickly and it promotes blow-by and oil contamination, valve guides wear out and there is more strain on your oil pump.
In short, IT'S BAD!
Arbee said:At present, I need to replace the Powersteering pump and pipes. And the LCA's. Quotes ranging from 15k upwards. :tease:
However, the car is moving and i dont have time or money now to sort it out.
Unfortunately there are some issues with R53 Minis. Suspension bushes wear out, PS pump failure, wheel bearings don't last very long, crank seal can start leaking oil, cooling expansion tank and thermostat housings crack. But I took this all into account when I bought my car.
Don't replace the whole LCA, its not needed. Is most likely only the LCA Bushes that are worn, I replaced mine at a shop for R1050 per side. But the ballpoints could also have been damaged if it was driven with worn bushes for a while. I would recommend you do this quickly as braking performance is massively reduced with worn bushes.
Or buy a kit like THIS and let someone fit it for you. Then your front end will be tight again.
As for the power steering, I decided that if my pump fails that I would fit a PS Pump delete kit (like THIS). It makes the steering noticeably lighter that one with a dead pump apparently, and doesn't cost much. You can use this as a temporary fix or a permanent one if you don't mind heavier steering IMO.
Just a few options.
Regards
Jacques
Arbee
Honorary ///Member
Cyclone101 said:iifunky said:
I can't believe there are still clowns that post this crap, then newb members actually do it.
for goodness sake, NO CAR SHOULD BE DRIVEN WITHOUT A THERMOSTAT!!!!! Your oil heats up too slowly, and in most cases NEVER gets up to operating temp, your car over fuels, your combustion is incomplete, rings wear more quickly and it promotes blow-by and oil contamination, valve guides wear out and there is more strain on your oil pump.
In short, IT'S BAD!
Arbee said:At present, I need to replace the Powersteering pump and pipes. And the LCA's. Quotes ranging from 15k upwards. :tease:
However, the car is moving and i dont have time or money now to sort it out.
Unfortunately there are some issues with R53 Minis. Suspension bushes wear out, PS pump failure, wheel bearings don't last very long, crank seal can start leaking oil, cooling expansion tank and thermostat housings crack. But I took this all into account when I bought my car.
Don't replace the whole LCA, its not needed. Is most likely only the LCA Bushes that are worn, I replaced mine at a shop for R1050 per side. But the ballpoints could also have been damaged if it was driven wit worn bushes for a while. I would recommend you do this quickly as braking performance is massively reduced with worn bushes.
Or buy a kit like THIS and let someone fit it for you. Then your front end will be tight again.
As for the power steering, I decided that is my pump fails that I would fit a PS Pump delete kit (like THIS). It makes the steering noticeably lighter that one with a dead pump apparently, and doesn't cost much. You can use this as a temporary fix or a permanent one if you don't mind heavier steering IMO.
Just a few options.
Regards
Jacques
Awesome info. Thanks!
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