2008 Mini Cooper S yes or no.....

[Turbonic77]

I have a super reliable, comfortable estate... But. I've also always thought thale R56 mini clubman s would be nice.
Am. I going to be dissapointed?
Have the Web reliability issues I've read about pushed them into the realms of nice to look at - rather him than me.
(I had a very nice looking Alfa GTV until I cubed it for yet another headgasket failure, firmly in the realms of the nice but beware).

[MDUBZ]

The N14 engine issues are well documented. Some engines don't use a drop of oil between services, but a lot drank a lot of oil. The death rattle on the timing chains was caused by low oil levels; make sure it has the upgraded chain tensioners. Check oil regularly and just keep it topped up if yours is thirsty one. Ironically the dipstick can be hard to read. BMW tolerance is 1L every 1K miles

Some other made of cheese bits to think about
Clutch 30-50K miles £1500 (inc fly wheel and fitting)
Suspension 40-50K miles from £300 good excuse to upgrade so budget for more
High pressure fuel pump 50-70K £500ish

Like most cars the forums will save you some cash and explain how to DIY

If you've found one that has survived since 2008 it's probably a good one, but if your buying a 13 year old car you should probably expect to have to spend a bit on maintenance - depending on mileage i'd expect things like bushes to need replacing.

[loafer123]

I had, and recently sold, a 2014 Clubman S.

Someone on here gave me good advice to get myself over to the Mini R55 Clubman Buying Selling &Wanted group on Facebook.

FWIW, mine was great - ludicrously fast, hard ride, quite practical would be my summary.

[CoolHands]

I’ve got one of that vintage. It’s been great. It does use oil so have to constantly make sure it’s above minimum (as that’s what knackers the chain otherwise). Only unusual maintenance is I had to replace the thermostat which is actually some monstrous plastic moulded thing with lots of pipe connections. You have to replace the whole thing. This is common around 50,000 miles. Bit of a (enjoyable to be honest) task on a Saturday; ok if you like diy

[Challo]

Turbonic77 said:

I have a super reliable, comfortable estate... But. I've also always thought thale R56 mini clubman s would be nice.
Am. I going to be dissapointed?
Have the Web reliability issues I've read about pushed them into the realms of nice to look at - rather him than me.
(I had a very nice looking Alfa GTV until I cubed it for yet another headgasket failure, firmly in the realms of the nice but beware).

Do you have a budget in mind?

The R55 Cooper S has two engines the N14 and N18. The earlier N14 is troublesome, timing chain issues which are well known. The later N18 is better but still has some issues.

Like most things check the service history, the clutch, tensioner, fuel pump are the big ticket items. Also it’s known some cars can have issues with valve stem seals.

I have a R55 Cooper S, which is a bit of a project. It’s had all the main issues done by the previous owner, and currently on 106k. It’s had needed lots of work doing on suspension, alignment, bushes etc, but that’s due to the age and mileage.

They are loads of fun though. Mine is our second car, and it’s basically used as run around and treated like a van. Stick the dogs in the back, golf clubs and trolly fit in nicely. It’s quick in standard form, but loads of modding opportunities. Check out the R55 FB page, tend to be a few good cars for sale.

This is mine below. Bit of a shed, but addictive.

[nickfrog]

The N14 also had very fragile turbo oil supply piping. Ask me how I know.

The N18 improved on that and other things so that would be my choice.

[mike9009]

I owned an N14 engined Clubman for about six years. It loved a drink of oil 1litre every 800 miles, but did not have any of the TADTS. It did get a leaky thermostat housing and the side door jammed shut, but that was it.

It was fun and not too bad an ownership experience.