Been offered a cooper convertible, anything to know?

Been offered a cooper convertible, anything to know?

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HotJambalaya

Original Poster:

2,023 posts

179 months

Sunday 19th April 2015
quotequote all
I don't have all the details yet, all I know is its about 40k miles, convertible, leather seats and gold coloured, not sure what year it is yet, will know tomorrow..... Dealer has offered £5k for it, so I can have it for that.

I'm conscious in particular that its not the Cooper S, so I'm just wondering how slow the Cooper is? Is there anything to keep an eye out for in particular?

Oh, and its gold.... I can't seem to find exactly what mini gold is, google just throws up all those horrific gold wraps so any ideas?

Cheers!

sad61t

1,100 posts

209 months

Monday 20th April 2015
quotequote all
At 5K it is probably the 2004-8 shape.

Only MINI gold has been Solid Gold (859)
http://martinlewis.co.uk/ml/mini-paint-colour-code...

Cooper is not a bad choice for the convertible, as it's more suited to summer days' cruising. 0-60 is about 10s.

Main issue will be the hood mechanism jamming, expensive at 2,500 and upwards at dealer prices. Alternatives are available, a quick internet search on "mini convertible roof replacement" found http://caymanautos.co.uk/convertible-hood-repairs/... , a YouTube video for DIY, etc.
Don't worry too much about fold lines on the material, with treatment it will remain waterproof.

Other than that, it's all the usual old car issues plus power steering pump (whining on adding lock is normal), exhaust rots, the auto has horror stories but I had a neighbour who ran one for years without issue and barely knew what maintenance meant.

sad61t

1,100 posts

209 months

Monday 20th April 2015
quotequote all
P.S. Here's an Autotrader search on a Gold MINI Cooper convertible:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/mini/...

Gives you a good idea of prices and colour.

HotJambalaya

Original Poster:

2,023 posts

179 months

Tuesday 21st April 2015
quotequote all
thanks, can't say I'm a huge fan of the colour....

I think that the car might be 08, so could make sense with the dealer markup. However, I don't have any more info, since he's decided to hang on to it until he finds a replacement, so nothing (for) now...