RE: Mini Cooper S (R53): PH Buying Guide
Discussion
patrick2306 said:
I currently have a very late model R53 FJCW. The car has every option imaginable including the great LSD and the Harmon Kardon system, Recaros etc. I had to sell my e60 M5 to invest in a new business venture and was very much mourning that car until this little rally car came into my life. The car has so much character and is such a great drive.
It is definitely a keeper, after coming from a car like the M5 of course the overall speed isn't as great, but the sense of speed and the handling are second to none. The car is quicker in daily driving and keeps up with much faster cars on the road (having played with a few caymans and some confused VXR boy racers!!). The engine although old tech makes a fantastic noise and feels like a mini M engine (no pun intended), making power right through the rev range and most at home towards the red line! Every car has it's foibles, but none do so with so much character. Attached is a picture of my car Rory as we call him. I implore anyone to try one and not come back with a huge smile on their face, a true classless car that feels like a modern classic already!![](http://thumbsnap.com/sc/2CXHTxCS.jpg[/img]</a> <a href="http://thumbsnap.com/mFthGsPw" Target="_blank">[img]http://thumbsnap.com/sc/mFthGsPw.jpg)
Very nice.It is definitely a keeper, after coming from a car like the M5 of course the overall speed isn't as great, but the sense of speed and the handling are second to none. The car is quicker in daily driving and keeps up with much faster cars on the road (having played with a few caymans and some confused VXR boy racers!!). The engine although old tech makes a fantastic noise and feels like a mini M engine (no pun intended), making power right through the rev range and most at home towards the red line! Every car has it's foibles, but none do so with so much character. Attached is a picture of my car Rory as we call him. I implore anyone to try one and not come back with a huge smile on their face, a true classless car that feels like a modern classic already!
patrick2306 said:
I currently have a very late model R53 FJCW. The car has every option imaginable including the great LSD and the Harmon Kardon system, Recaros etc. I had to sell my e60 M5 to invest in a new business venture and was very much mourning that car until this little rally car came into my life. The car has so much character and is such a great drive.
It is definitely a keeper, after coming from a car like the M5 of course the overall speed isn't as great, but the sense of speed and the handling are second to none. The car is quicker in daily driving and keeps up with much faster cars on the road (having played with a few caymans and some confused VXR boy racers!!). The engine although old tech makes a fantastic noise and feels like a mini M engine (no pun intended), making power right through the rev range and most at home towards the red line! Every car has it's foibles, but none do so with so much character. Attached is a picture of my car Rory as we call him. I implore anyone to try one and not come back with a huge smile on their face, a true classless car that feels like a modern classic already!
just missing satnav?It is definitely a keeper, after coming from a car like the M5 of course the overall speed isn't as great, but the sense of speed and the handling are second to none. The car is quicker in daily driving and keeps up with much faster cars on the road (having played with a few caymans and some confused VXR boy racers!!). The engine although old tech makes a fantastic noise and feels like a mini M engine (no pun intended), making power right through the rev range and most at home towards the red line! Every car has it's foibles, but none do so with so much character. Attached is a picture of my car Rory as we call him. I implore anyone to try one and not come back with a huge smile on their face, a true classless car that feels like a modern classic already!
Mines the other way, just missing heated seats and an LSD, i suspect it was used at a pre-release show by mini somewhere, chili pack options but all spec'd individually.
patrick2306 said:
It has the sat nav yes, forgot to mention that! I like to think of it as a shrunken version of my M5 haha
Really, that's interesting because usually satnav and a sunroof means your radio aerial is in the rear right window and you just have a sharkfin on the roof, yours is the first I've seen with an aerial!Silent1 said:
Really, that's interesting because usually satnav and a sunroof means your radio aerial is in the rear right window and you just have a sharkfin on the roof, yours is the first I've seen with an aerial!
Yes full sat nav and panoramic sun roof, the aerial is a Mini stubby sport. I didn't know that they didn't usually have an aerial. I'll be looking out for that now. How do you like your R53?patrick2306 said:
Yes full sat nav and panoramic sun roof, the aerial is a Mini stubby sport. I didn't know that they didn't usually have an aerial. I'll be looking out for that now. How do you like your R53?
Got the Chrono pack on mine rather than the Satnav....but got the sunroof, heated pews and GKN Super diffpatrick2306 said:
Silent1 said:
Really, that's interesting because usually satnav and a sunroof means your radio aerial is in the rear right window and you just have a sharkfin on the roof, yours is the first I've seen with an aerial!
Yes full sat nav and panoramic sun roof, the aerial is a Mini stubby sport. I didn't know that they didn't usually have an aerial. I'll be looking out for that now. How do you like your R53?
t, i've had times where travelling one way you get signal and not the other because it's on the wrong side of the car!I love it, it's knocking on 300bhp, it looks much better with the JCW aerokit, i've done over 150,000 miles in it, long ago i decided that it's never going, it's far too much fun even though it's supposed to be 'the daily', the cost of parts for it is stupidly cheap (engine and electrics wise, exterior and trim is another matter!) and the engine is bombproof!
My only complaint is BMW putting the prices of parts up now they're not making them, things like intercoolers for the GP used to be £350, now they're £900, i presume it's to do with the EU requirement to supply parts for 10 years after production ends and so they bump the prices up to put people off buying them!
My brother has an r50 Mini Cooper on a 53 plate. I believe it's got some sort of factory standard sport suspension and to me the exhaust sounds too fruity for a standard 115hp Cooper. It's done about 60k and has worn the miles really well, he's had no bother with it. He's replaced the run flats with some grippy Uniroyals, and what really impressed me was the go-kart feeling and grip of the thing. He took me out in it and scared me silly round the corners, Not sure how total grip would compare to my EP3 Type R but it certainly felt more composed, no doubt due to the size. I suppose the terribly worn bushes in the Civic aren't helping to make a fair comparison though. As a lot of people have mentioned already, the first BMW Mini looks the best and will make a decent design classic in the future much like an Audi TT now.
I have also had the pleasure of driving a friends electric blue 52 plate JCW, she didn't realise what she had bought and only bought it for the colour, typical woman!! She only brought it round for me to check as it was making a, I quote "funny whining sound"
It had a mean looking bodykit, leather, H&K stereo, few more extras, it was a nice bit of kit. The supercharger whine was epic, and I really gelled with it. I don't like the laggy delivery of turbo cars, and the JCW was a nice strong linear power delivery which makes a change to the peaky EP3. Outright pace was probably on a par with the Civic, can't decide between the supercharger noise or the sound of VTEC! Will definitely consider an early Mini JCW if I fancy a change from Type R's.
I have also had the pleasure of driving a friends electric blue 52 plate JCW, she didn't realise what she had bought and only bought it for the colour, typical woman!! She only brought it round for me to check as it was making a, I quote "funny whining sound"
It had a mean looking bodykit, leather, H&K stereo, few more extras, it was a nice bit of kit. The supercharger whine was epic, and I really gelled with it. I don't like the laggy delivery of turbo cars, and the JCW was a nice strong linear power delivery which makes a change to the peaky EP3. Outright pace was probably on a par with the Civic, can't decide between the supercharger noise or the sound of VTEC! Will definitely consider an early Mini JCW if I fancy a change from Type R's.
patrick2306 said:
s m said:
Got the Chrono pack on mine rather than the Satnav....but got the sunroof, heated pews and GKN Super diff
Chrono pack is nice, sat nav is more useful with the updated discs. How do you like your R53? Literally just got back from a drive tonight, great evening for it!
, so I thought I'd find the oil temp/pressure gauges more interesting to look at 
Goes without saying, but drive a few. At the age they are now many are baggy or have been ragged to death.
Recaro seats are desirable.
Open the bonnet and check the strut top mounts for any splits. It's not a massive job to fix, but if they are split the camber on the front wheels will be out and this will scrub the tyres/the car won't handle right.
Smaller supercharger pulley/works airbox is desirable, gives a noticeable power increase.
Final things to look out for are same as buying a classic Mini:
Oil leaks and rust....
Get the car on a ramp, check the rear subframe and body around the fuel tank/rear subframe area for corrosion. Have a look at the underside of the engine while you are at it for oil leaks.
It can be surprising how rusty the R53 can be underneath, when it looks all fine on top. Especially if it has lived somewhere with a lot of salt on the roads.
Check around the tailgate for rust spots too.
Recaro seats are desirable.
Open the bonnet and check the strut top mounts for any splits. It's not a massive job to fix, but if they are split the camber on the front wheels will be out and this will scrub the tyres/the car won't handle right.
Smaller supercharger pulley/works airbox is desirable, gives a noticeable power increase.
Final things to look out for are same as buying a classic Mini:
Oil leaks and rust....
Get the car on a ramp, check the rear subframe and body around the fuel tank/rear subframe area for corrosion. Have a look at the underside of the engine while you are at it for oil leaks.
It can be surprising how rusty the R53 can be underneath, when it looks all fine on top. Especially if it has lived somewhere with a lot of salt on the roads.
Check around the tailgate for rust spots too.
s m said:
Triumph Man said:
Couple of things on the review, there is a water temperature gauge; that is a picture of the R56 interior (as Dr Interceptor has said); and watch out for failure of the PAS pump. My GF has a Cooper, and had the pump replaced after it kept running, and eventually flattened the battery.
If you're mechanically handy you can extend the pump life by clearing out the carbon dust build-up 
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