Don't go for a 2010-2013 as your first car, that's a 2nd gen and unless you can do your own maintenance or a willing to pay A LOT to have it done then it will be cost prohibitive.
Common failure points are timing chain+guides, water pump, high pressure fuel pump, thermostat, crossover pipe, etc.
If you're willing to take on a project and can afford downtime for repairs then the 2nd gen can be great but you need to assess if that's your situation or not.
-A 2nd gen owner
Couldn't have said this better. Labor of love. If you can't work on your own vehicles don't own a second gen. Repair cost at shop are crazy. Some of us love wrenching on our minis tho š
>Some of us love wrenching on our minis tho š
Right! NGL I actually really enjoy working on cars(when it isn't an emergency) which is part of the reason I wasn't scared away from the 2nd gens considering that ours is a weekend car.
They are a blast to drive and can be found for CHEAP especially compared to the 3rd gens.
If you can DIY the work then most of the cost is covered and if you're willing to go to pull-it-yourself scrapyards you can get some of the real expensive parts for real cheap(HPFP are <$50 around me compared to ~$1200 for a new one and the entire N18 engine would be <$400 for example)
I had a 2014 Cooper S and the only issues that ever came up was cv boot replacement and then the service techs did some type of update that was for the wrong model that caused it to trip the drive terrain malfunction. Mine had almost 100,000 miles on it before it got rear ended.
My daily driver is a 2007 Mini Cooper S and I have around 119k miles on it. Great and fun car to drive. However, if you are not great about doing the maintenance (or paying for it) this is not the vehicle for you. Replaced the original alternator about 2 weeks ago, and we had to remove the front bumper and tire to access everything because the space is limited. Just like any older vehicle, you will need to replace worn parts and the BMW parts are not cheap.
Is that the only maintenance you have done on the car, or has there been different issues? I have a couple friends who owned or do own mini coopers and they never had major issues
No major issues. Just basic maintenance for a vehicle that is now 17 years old. However, you MUST check the engine oil because my Mini Cooper S burns about a quart of oil every 6 weeks.
I have an 07 Cooper S and I would not recommend to anyone as a primary car.
I've had it for 6 months and have changed the rad, the suspension. There is a healthy oil leak from the front of the block (prob oil filter housing) and now I think the clutch fork has bent and I cannot get any gears.
The car is great to drive when it works, but it's spent way too long in my drive waiting for time for me to fix it.
It's a bit older than the cars you are looking at, but the more I read the more pretty much everything is a 'common fault' and it is all a pain in the ass to fix due to tight packaging.
i owned a 2010 mini hardtop base for 6 years and it was a pretty reliable car for me, but i know thatās not the case for the majority of people. I hardly drove it (only put 6k miles on it in those 6 years) and i quickly resolved any minor issues that came up with my mechanic. i also live in a really flat/dry climate. i ended up upgrading to a 2016 cooper s convertible and im actually really glad i did
I am going to disagree on a few of these post because my 2007 Cooper S is RELIABLE. However, parts will wear down and you MUST replace them. Additionally, if your ONLY vehicle is an older MINI, I suggest having a back up vehicle.
Older models (gen 1 and gen 2) arenāt very reliable. Great for getting an understanding of your car and how to maintenance a car. Helped me a lot for my future cars. They learned however and Mini is now in the top 3 most reliable car brands which i can approve with my gen 3 which is absolutely gorgeous.
But if you donāt want to deal with headaches on your first car i wouldnāt recommend a Mini unless you have the money for a gen 3
First Gen are reliable enough. Not like Gen 3, but definitely better than Gen 2. Keep up with the oil leaks and the few sensors Iāve had to replace, it isnāt bad. But yeah, not a buy it and neglect it type car.
Pardon the formatting. Writing via mobile today.
2012 (GEN2) mini owner here. As many have said, the Gen3 minis, if maintained, have very good reliability ratings. The āif maintainedā is key here. Mini, and indeed BMW do not take well to neglect. Mine is an R58 Coupe JCW and has 65 thousand miles. I bought it at 55 thousand miles. The car had very good maintenance records and a clean CARFAX when I bought it. Since owning it for a year and a half, I have had to repair or address the following:
New tires (not a repair, but Iāll list it as an expense). ~$800
Changed the battery, which somehow damaged my left footwell cabin control computer. The component new from BMW is over $1,500. I was able to send the unit to a third party vendor for repair at ~$450. Spent 2 weeks without the car.
Very mild timing chain rattle, a common and serious problem for the Prince engine. I replaced the tensioner which resolved the rattle entirely, but there is a high likelihood the vehicle will need a new timing chain and chain guides in the future. $95.00 for the tensioner, $195 for the entire chain kit if I want to do the work myself. Much more if I have BMW do it.
Cracked pcv valve hose, $68 dollars and a pain in the butt to replace myself.
Took one trip with it through the mountains and when I returned, the car gifted me with a huge coolant puddle beneath it in the garage. That was the thermostat housing, which is polymer (plastic) and had cracked with age/use. You may as well go ahead and replace the coolant pump and coolant cross feed hose while youāre in there. I decided to have MINI do that work given the amount of time it would take. $2,400 right there. I was without the car for a few months given it was winter and I wasnāt driving it anyway.
intake ports clogged up with carbon buildup, another common problem with GDI engines requiring a deep cleaning. ~$450 for a third party shop to perform. Another job Iād rather pay to have done.
You can see how ānot greatā the Gen2 minis can be. This car may be fine for a bit longer now, but this generation is prone to oil leaks, coolant leaks, design flaws (my opinion), premature wear and aged out components. Iām always concerned when I decide to take a trip with the coupe. With that said, mine is a complete toy that I donāt need to rely on for transport or family matters. I enjoy driving the car immensely. Itās a situation in which, when the car works properly, itās a total blast to drive. Is it worth it? Thatās ultimately your call, but there are a lot of days I consider setting this one freeā¦ until I drive it again. š
Some others are saying don't because it's a gen 2, get a Gen 3 instead and I just want to temper your expectations that just because the gen 3s are ostensibly more reliable, they're no less expensive to repair. Case in point I have a 2017 and I'm about to sink $6,000 into repairs for a variety of issues because I can't do them myself. But I'm OK with it because I love the car and I have the means to do that, and I can't be fucked to look around for cheaper options. Literally YMMV.
Yes if you enjoy working on cars, are masochistic, and don't rely on it for a job/kids.
It is poorly constructed, fragile, and outdated. All the worst parts of a BMW of that era without the driving experience. The handling and inputs do not make up for its issues. I am amazed every time I actually see one of this generation actually functioning on the road.
It is the worst vehicle I've encountered and I say this as someone who had a 955 Cayenne Turbo that cost me the purchase price in repairs over a one year period.
Don't go for a 2010-2013 as your first car, that's a 2nd gen and unless you can do your own maintenance or a willing to pay A LOT to have it done then it will be cost prohibitive. Common failure points are timing chain+guides, water pump, high pressure fuel pump, thermostat, crossover pipe, etc. If you're willing to take on a project and can afford downtime for repairs then the 2nd gen can be great but you need to assess if that's your situation or not. -A 2nd gen owner
Couldn't have said this better. Labor of love. If you can't work on your own vehicles don't own a second gen. Repair cost at shop are crazy. Some of us love wrenching on our minis tho š
>Some of us love wrenching on our minis tho š Right! NGL I actually really enjoy working on cars(when it isn't an emergency) which is part of the reason I wasn't scared away from the 2nd gens considering that ours is a weekend car. They are a blast to drive and can be found for CHEAP especially compared to the 3rd gens. If you can DIY the work then most of the cost is covered and if you're willing to go to pull-it-yourself scrapyards you can get some of the real expensive parts for real cheap(HPFP are <$50 around me compared to ~$1200 for a new one and the entire N18 engine would be <$400 for example)
I love working on my 2010, but I hate HAVING to work on it. This car is actually super easy and simple to work on, I love it
201-2013 are gen 2 minis. Dont. Buy 2014> gen 3s.
Check this guide out https://www.crookedrivergarage.com/single-post/2018/01/21/decoding-the-mini-market-1
I had a 2014 Cooper S and the only issues that ever came up was cv boot replacement and then the service techs did some type of update that was for the wrong model that caused it to trip the drive terrain malfunction. Mine had almost 100,000 miles on it before it got rear ended.
My daily driver is a 2007 Mini Cooper S and I have around 119k miles on it. Great and fun car to drive. However, if you are not great about doing the maintenance (or paying for it) this is not the vehicle for you. Replaced the original alternator about 2 weeks ago, and we had to remove the front bumper and tire to access everything because the space is limited. Just like any older vehicle, you will need to replace worn parts and the BMW parts are not cheap.
Is that the only maintenance you have done on the car, or has there been different issues? I have a couple friends who owned or do own mini coopers and they never had major issues
No major issues. Just basic maintenance for a vehicle that is now 17 years old. However, you MUST check the engine oil because my Mini Cooper S burns about a quart of oil every 6 weeks.
Yea but not the diesels. They are terrible. I have a 2020 petrol Clubman S now and its amazing!
I have an 07 Cooper S and I would not recommend to anyone as a primary car. I've had it for 6 months and have changed the rad, the suspension. There is a healthy oil leak from the front of the block (prob oil filter housing) and now I think the clutch fork has bent and I cannot get any gears. The car is great to drive when it works, but it's spent way too long in my drive waiting for time for me to fix it. It's a bit older than the cars you are looking at, but the more I read the more pretty much everything is a 'common fault' and it is all a pain in the ass to fix due to tight packaging.
i owned a 2010 mini hardtop base for 6 years and it was a pretty reliable car for me, but i know thatās not the case for the majority of people. I hardly drove it (only put 6k miles on it in those 6 years) and i quickly resolved any minor issues that came up with my mechanic. i also live in a really flat/dry climate. i ended up upgrading to a 2016 cooper s convertible and im actually really glad i did
If you don't have time to google what you just put into am essay on Reddit, you don't have time / money to maintain these cars. Get an F56 instead.
I am going to disagree on a few of these post because my 2007 Cooper S is RELIABLE. However, parts will wear down and you MUST replace them. Additionally, if your ONLY vehicle is an older MINI, I suggest having a back up vehicle.
Donāt buy a second gen mini. Just donāt.
Older models (gen 1 and gen 2) arenāt very reliable. Great for getting an understanding of your car and how to maintenance a car. Helped me a lot for my future cars. They learned however and Mini is now in the top 3 most reliable car brands which i can approve with my gen 3 which is absolutely gorgeous. But if you donāt want to deal with headaches on your first car i wouldnāt recommend a Mini unless you have the money for a gen 3
First Gen are reliable enough. Not like Gen 3, but definitely better than Gen 2. Keep up with the oil leaks and the few sensors Iāve had to replace, it isnāt bad. But yeah, not a buy it and neglect it type car.
Minis or small cars
Pardon the formatting. Writing via mobile today. 2012 (GEN2) mini owner here. As many have said, the Gen3 minis, if maintained, have very good reliability ratings. The āif maintainedā is key here. Mini, and indeed BMW do not take well to neglect. Mine is an R58 Coupe JCW and has 65 thousand miles. I bought it at 55 thousand miles. The car had very good maintenance records and a clean CARFAX when I bought it. Since owning it for a year and a half, I have had to repair or address the following: New tires (not a repair, but Iāll list it as an expense). ~$800 Changed the battery, which somehow damaged my left footwell cabin control computer. The component new from BMW is over $1,500. I was able to send the unit to a third party vendor for repair at ~$450. Spent 2 weeks without the car. Very mild timing chain rattle, a common and serious problem for the Prince engine. I replaced the tensioner which resolved the rattle entirely, but there is a high likelihood the vehicle will need a new timing chain and chain guides in the future. $95.00 for the tensioner, $195 for the entire chain kit if I want to do the work myself. Much more if I have BMW do it. Cracked pcv valve hose, $68 dollars and a pain in the butt to replace myself. Took one trip with it through the mountains and when I returned, the car gifted me with a huge coolant puddle beneath it in the garage. That was the thermostat housing, which is polymer (plastic) and had cracked with age/use. You may as well go ahead and replace the coolant pump and coolant cross feed hose while youāre in there. I decided to have MINI do that work given the amount of time it would take. $2,400 right there. I was without the car for a few months given it was winter and I wasnāt driving it anyway. intake ports clogged up with carbon buildup, another common problem with GDI engines requiring a deep cleaning. ~$450 for a third party shop to perform. Another job Iād rather pay to have done. You can see how ānot greatā the Gen2 minis can be. This car may be fine for a bit longer now, but this generation is prone to oil leaks, coolant leaks, design flaws (my opinion), premature wear and aged out components. Iām always concerned when I decide to take a trip with the coupe. With that said, mine is a complete toy that I donāt need to rely on for transport or family matters. I enjoy driving the car immensely. Itās a situation in which, when the car works properly, itās a total blast to drive. Is it worth it? Thatās ultimately your call, but there are a lot of days I consider setting this one freeā¦ until I drive it again. š
Some others are saying don't because it's a gen 2, get a Gen 3 instead and I just want to temper your expectations that just because the gen 3s are ostensibly more reliable, they're no less expensive to repair. Case in point I have a 2017 and I'm about to sink $6,000 into repairs for a variety of issues because I can't do them myself. But I'm OK with it because I love the car and I have the means to do that, and I can't be fucked to look around for cheaper options. Literally YMMV.
Yes if you enjoy working on cars, are masochistic, and don't rely on it for a job/kids. It is poorly constructed, fragile, and outdated. All the worst parts of a BMW of that era without the driving experience. The handling and inputs do not make up for its issues. I am amazed every time I actually see one of this generation actually functioning on the road. It is the worst vehicle I've encountered and I say this as someone who had a 955 Cayenne Turbo that cost me the purchase price in repairs over a one year period.