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Thread: Girlfriend thinking of getting a Mini

  1. #1
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    Girlfriend thinking of getting a Mini

    My girlfriend is looking at getting a Mini, luckily for her she works at a dealership (Buick/GMC) but her boss knows the dealer she's getting the Mini from and is going to have it inspected himself before he lets her buy it.

    But anyway, it's an '07 with the premium package and winter weather package (if such a thing exists) but I was just wondering if anyone on here knows if Minis are good to own, anyone have any experience with them good, bad or otherwise? The only thing she's worried about is getting through the occasional snow storm in the winter.

    Thanks for any help you can give.

  2. #2
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    Pokey and Ferrer may have something to say on this subject. As far as I could remeber, they were quite happy with them.

    I think yours is an mk2 model, so the legroom for the back seats is slightly improved.
    I know some mk1 models had some interior quality issues, like aging materials and the assembly loosing up over the years, but that didn't regard the mk2 models afaik.
    KFL Racing Enterprises - Kicking your ass since 2008

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  3. #3
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    Mk1s are great cars, but you do have to know what you are getting into. They are brilliant to drive, but they aren't comfortable, easy-to-drive city cars. The interior has indeed some material and fit and finish issues, which is annoying considering it was a 25 grand car, but anyway nowhere near as catastrophic as our previous car (a Ford Puma).

    Mk2s were apparently softened and improved, but I don't have direct experience with them. I think Lagonda (I haven't seen him post much lately) has a Mk2 One D, so maybe he can say what is it like to live with one of those.

    Anyway, if you like to drive and care about those things, excellent choice, But if you are only buying it for the image it is a far too expensive, small, unpractical and uncomfortable car.
    Lack of charisma can be fatal.
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  4. #4
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    My sister had a mk1 (bought only because of how it looked) and loved it because before that the only car she'd ever owned was a early 90s Pulsar. However she then got an A3 and realised that the Mini wasn't a particularly well rounded car.

    So I'm with Ferrer on this one, if she wants it because of how it looks then she'll love it (connoisseurs buy with the hearts) but maybe stop in at a Volkswagen dealer before she parts with her money... or a Ford dealer if she might be swayed by a Focus and wants to save a LOT of money.

  5. #5
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    My sister's 07 got lemon lawed for constant water pump failure, suspension warnings going off all the time, and the fuel gauge not reading even after being replaced twice. The dealership bought it back and then she got an 09 and hasn't had any problems with that car at all.
    "We went to Wnedy's. I had chicken nuggest." ~ Quiggs

  6. #6
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    The only thing i know about them is that in England they keep their value. I went to one car auction and they fetched stupid prices compared to the other cars, it was a mini and BMW car auction.
    Speed has never killed anyone. Suddenly becoming stationary, that's what gets you."
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  7. #7
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    Thanks all. She's going to buy it. She can live with it's short comings, this is something she's thought about a long time and really looked into and it's the right move for her. Her's is Aqua blue which is a perfect color for her. She's a little disappointed it isn't an "S" (I guess my car enthusiasm is rubbing off on her) but that's it. It's got 47k miles.

  8. #8
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    S is a bit of an animal. And the one to go for if you can afford it.
    Lack of charisma can be fatal.
    Visca Catalunya!

  9. #9
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    Solid ride, I hate the interior with a passion but its a solid ride.
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  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ferrer View Post
    Mk1s are great cars, but you do have to know what you are getting into. They are brilliant to drive, but they aren't comfortable, easy-to-drive city cars. The interior has indeed some material and fit and finish issues, which is annoying considering it was a 25 grand car, but anyway nowhere near as catastrophic as our previous car (a Ford Puma).

    Mk2s were apparently softened and improved, but I don't have direct experience with them. I think Lagonda (I haven't seen him post much lately) has a Mk2 One D, so maybe he can say what is it like to live with one of those.

    Anyway, if you like to drive and care about those things, excellent choice, But if you are only buying it for the image it is a far too expensive, small, unpractical and uncomfortable car.
    I'm still alive

    Yes even on the Mk2 the interior can have its little rattles (which is unacceptable considering how much it costs). But our roads are absolutely horrible, also lots of cobblestones who can make every car rattle. I don't have issues on normal roads, just the cobblestones.
    But the Mk2 interior is a huge update compared to the Mk1. The Mk1 was just horrible.

    Is it practical ? No not really, the boot is useless. And it's starting to become an issue for me. I'm a photographer so I need to haul lots of stuff around. Either way I bought it for the brilliant drive it offers so I shouldn't complain. I knew that the boot was going to be useless.

    I can't really complain about comfort. My Clio Mk2 1.6 16V on 16" wheels that I had before I got the Mini was MUCH harder.
    I must add that I'm running the standard 15" alloys at the moment, so I can't comment on 17 or 18 inch wheels. I'm also running normal tyres, no runflat crap.
    All in all it's pretty comfy and the sports seats are great (a must have option!).

    The only "comfort" issue I'm having is the fact that you need to come to (almost) a complete stop for speedbumps, otherwise the front bumper just hits the speedbump. It's not really the bumper that is hitting the speedbump but this little rubber lip just underneath the bumper. It still makes a lot of noise. There are some speedbumps that I can't go over without hitting them with the lip. Even from a complete standstil and going sideways.
    It's an issue here because this country is FULL of speedbumps.

    BMW maintenance is expensive. But I expected worse. I just did my first 20000km maintenance a few weeks ago. It was around €150 for what's basically an oil change.

  11. #11
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    Thanks, she's had it almost a month now and she still loves it. It works great for what she needs but yeah she found out rather quickly how useless the boot was. The day after she got it her and her mom bought a rather large painting (like 36" x 48" or something) and could barely fit it in. She said it was pretty hilarious while they fiddled around to get it in.

    She might not do regular oil changes at the dealer, especially since the nearest Mini/BMW dealer is like 3 hours away.

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by ScionDriver View Post
    Thanks, she's had it almost a month now and she still loves it. It works great for what she needs but yeah she found out rather quickly how useless the boot was. The day after she got it her and her mom bought a rather large painting (like 36" x 48" or something) and could barely fit it in. She said it was pretty hilarious while they fiddled around to get it in.

    She might not do regular oil changes at the dealer, especially since the nearest Mini/BMW dealer is like 3 hours away.
    Congrats to your GF on the purchase, any pics of the car?
    "NEVER ALLOW SOMEONE TO BE YOUR PRIORITY, WHILE ALLOWING YOURSELF TO BE THEIR OPTION"

  13. #13
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    Whoops I didn't notice the thread/post dates

    Anyway congrats!

  14. #14
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    I do not have any pics right now, but she's coming to see me next month (long distance sucks) so I'll try to remember to grab some then!

  15. #15
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    My moms friend had one when they first came out, she got rid of it shortly after because she said the seats were back-breaking, but they could have fixed that by now

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