2002 Mini Cooper High Mileage Advice

[chilipalmer]

I am thinking of an 02 Cooper with 110,000 miles that is for sale at £2,500. Is there anything in particular that I should look for especially given the mileage, is ita reasonable price assuming the maintenance history stacks up, also will it be good for another 30-40,000 miles over the next couple of years assuming nothing unexpected happens mechanically?

[Donboy]

I've got a 54 plate with 112000 miles on it , and apart from the rear wiper packing in ( common prob ) ,its been great , regular oil changes myself keep engine good,
Great wee car ..

[helix402]

See the honest John guide.

[MaxA]

There's a chap in the US who has done half a million miles in his 2001/02 Cooper, and provided you stay on top of the maintenance and consumables, it'll be OK.

[Cerbieherts]

128,000 miles on ours. Apart from a burnt exhaust valve early on its been great, and spends 5 days a week commuting into London.

[0llie]

MaxA said:

There's a chap in the US who has done half a million miles in his 2001/02 Cooper, and provided you stay on top of the maintenance and consumables, it'll be OK.

The really amazing thing about that car is that it is almost entirely original! And it's in the best colour, Silk Green

Main issue will be gearbox and PAS pump as already mentioned. The PAS pump should make a noise (earlier ones are louder than later 1st Gen's), but too much noise or very little noise spells issues.

Gearbox is a little more difficult to predict, you could be sitting on a gearbox that's got 500~ miles left on it and you would never know.

My 92k mile Cooper was in incredible condition for its age, I had it for 20k miles and drove the wheels off of it almost every day (including days at Santa Pod & Bruntingthorpe), and other than the gearbox, it never really went wrong. I really, really regret selling that car.

A friend of mine has had a 2001 Cooper since it was 6 months old. He bought it with 22k miles, and only sits on 41k today. Some years it's had as few as 120 miles put on it! When I popped the bonnet to change a side-light bulb, I noticed that the inside edge of the bonnet (where it meets the wheel arch lining & plastic arch) was covered in mud, which they all are. Underneath were very early signs of rust, and I think this is an area to watch out for in future, mud and moisture get trapped in there for long periods of time.

[g3org3y]

I'm looking at an early Cooper for my sister.

What's the dealio with regards to timing - belt or chain? If the former, how often does it need to be done and is it a mission of a job?

My understanding is that 'all' power steering pumps whine like a whining thing?

From what I've read the gearbox up to 2004 was prone to failure. Inevitable or just pot luck?

Edited by g3org3y on Sunday 25th November 12:02