[ToddBlack88]

Hi All.

My wife and I are looking at getting a first car for our son, and we have been looking at 1st and second gen Mini coopers. He is a fan of them, and we believe they are a good size vehicle to bet your bearings on and start with. The problem we have found is because of the shortage of cars, prices are ridiculous for used cars right now.
That said, we have found a very nice looking Cooper S with 60,000miles (1000,000kms) for a decent 10k Cad. (Decent for today). The only issue is it has been knocked around a number of times in its early life. In the first 22000 Kim’s, it has 4 carfax claims. All of them are rear of the car. One was $750, one was $650, and then there were two for $7500 and $3500 approximately. Then there was another for $600 in 2018, but nothing since. It has a clean title, and mechanical service records are good.

Would you? It seems like a lot of car for the money in the market right now, and I suspect he will knock it around himself a bit.

I am on the fence. I suspect it may go quickly….

[chassis]

Not my cuppa but if you like it go for it.

My vote would be something mid-size, or Toyota/Honda, or both.

[overcoil]

Like the car very much.

Hesitate because servicing them isn't cheap. Run flat tires expensive.

The $7500 repair, not a lot of overhang for crushing, what happens if it gets a second impact ?

Then again if the car doesn't live up to expectations, not that much money in your initial investment.


Going to have a pre purchase inspection ?

[Alfisti]

Absolute hard pass. For myself, maybe, but my kid? No.

Lots of crashes and the car is small to begin with. And I say that as someone who just bought a 997 with a small frontal impact so i am open to the idea but this seems a little too much for a teenager.

If you want some fun for the child, look at a FRS maybe?

[G MONEY]

If you don't want him getting laid, that's the car to get him🤪😉🤣

[///MPhatic]

Fun car.

JUNK throw-away car though. 100K on the clock and they are a maintenance nightmare.

This is a HARD PASS.

If you don't believe me, just call your local BMW Mini service dept and ask about the problems/costs, they will educate you real quick.

If you buy a Mini (other than new, and then only keep it for 50K miles) you will absolutely regret it.

[ToddBlack88]

Thanks for all the responses so far.

Originally Posted by Caravaggio

Like the car very much.

Hesitate because servicing them isn't cheap. Run flat tires expensive.

The $7500 repair, not a lot of overhang for crushing, what happens if it gets a second impact ?

Then again if the car doesn't live up to expectations, not that much money in your initial investment.


Going to have a pre purchase inspection ?

The $7500 repair was done when the car was only 9 months old, so I would assume it was done very well by the repair shop, back to original spec, so it should be just like new. Having just done paint repairs on both front bumpers on my M340i, to the tune of $7k alone, I am uncertain as what damage was. A new hatch and rear bumper, and paint is probably that much.

Originally Posted by Alfisti

Absolute hard pass. For myself, maybe, but my kid? No.

Lots of crashes and the car is small to begin with. And I say that as someone who just bought a 997 with a small frontal impact so i am open to the idea but this seems a little too much for a teenager.

If you want some fun for the child, look at a FRS maybe?

Would love an frs/brz, but they are out of the used price range right now. I am thinking of this car as a disposable first car. I don’t expect anything out of it later on down the line. If he is like most kids now, he will be parking by touch.

Originally Posted by G MONEY

If you don't want him getting laid, that's the car to get him🤪😉🤣

Originally Posted by ///MPhatic

Fun car.

JUNK throw-away car though. 100K on the clock and they are a maintenance nightmare.

This is a HARD PASS.

If you don't believe me, just call your local BMW Mini service dept and ask about the problems/costs, they will educate you real quick.

If you buy a Mini (other than new, and then only keep it for 50K miles) you will absolutely regret it.

What specifically is the maintenance nightmare? I have looked into it a bit, and it doesn’t seem any worse than any of the modern bmws I have owned. Is it specifically getting the car into service mode, adding to the cost, or are their more pressing common wallet emptying issues that I haven’t found yet.

[aktif8]

Originally Posted by ToddBlack88

Thanks for all the responses so far.



The $7500 repair was done when the car was only 9 months old, so I would assume it was done very well by the repair shop, back to original spec, so it should be just like new. Having just done paint repairs on both front bumpers on my M340i, to the tune of $7k alone, I am uncertain as what damage was. A new hatch and rear bumper, and paint is probably that much.



Would love an frs/brz, but they are out of the used price range right now. I am thinking of this car as a disposable first car. I don’t expect anything out of it later on down the line. If he is like most kids now, he will be parking by touch.





What specifically is the maintenance nightmare? I have looked into it a bit, and it doesn’t seem any worse than any of the modern bmws I have owned. Is it specifically getting the car into service mode, adding to the cost, or are their more pressing common wallet emptying issues that I haven’t found yet.

Owned a 2013 s, that admitted was very modded.

Lots of stuff breaks, and it's bmw prices to repair. Things escalate quickly.

You cannot go wrong with a Toyota or Honda product for a first car, imo.

[shawnhayes]

I had one of these, a 2003, from 80,000 miles and drove it into 110,000 miles. It was well taken care of before me, and with me.

absolute frickin' funfest of a car. Good to drive, good on gas.

If you can afford an expensive repair if something on it dies (transmission, motor, etc.), get it.

But, compared to a Honda/Toyota/Subaru? Those will last longer and cost less. But this one is a good one for me. For "my" child? Only if I'm nearby or know the local dealer and have the cashflow to make a midnight tow truck call "no big deal".

Shawn

[XutvJet]

I've watched many "Car Ninja" YT videos of Johnny (the channel host) repairing Minis to know that when they have problems it's typically epic. Johnny is a very well respected European car tech and is a BWM/Benz/Audi guru. Minis are one of his least favorite cars to work on. It's like the worst of BMW and an Audi combined.

I wouldn't do it unless we're a very good DIYer and aren't afraid to dig in deep into the engine bay. If you get one, I'd suggest having a $5K rainy day fund for the car and expect to exhaust that fund within the first 2 years of ownership.

[KevinC]

Absolutely not. Aside from the CarFax stuff (which would disqualify it immediately for me), the Cooper is junky and unreliable. Had a '10 S from new. Sold it within 18 months.

[XutvJet]

Originally Posted by ToddBlack88

I imagine most Mini owners hang their head like this when they see the estimated repair bill costs of their "cheap German car" that rival the repair costs a newer BMW 5 series.

[///MPhatic]

Originally Posted by ToddBlack88

What specifically is the maintenance nightmare? I have looked into it a bit, and it doesn’t seem any worse than any of the modern bmws I have owned. Is it specifically getting the car into service mode, adding to the cost, or are their more pressing common wallet emptying issues that I haven’t found yet.

I'm not going to do the research for you. I gave you the key to the lock; call a couple of dealerships and ask their service depts about the common problems they have, and what it costs to fix them, or wish you had. There isn't a 3rd option.

[M3WC]

Definitely a pass.

[grannyknot]

Really, he's not going to be a good driver for another 5 yrs, get him an old Volvo so he is safe and it won't matter when he dings it up.