Mini Cooper Purchase - Advice Appreciated
Discussion
I wonder if anyone can please advise us.
We've got two very practical cars but are looking for a little fun in our lives in the form of a Mini Cooper or Cooper S. I think our budget is up to about £6000 although we'd rather spend less than that really.
The sort of budget we have puts us in the area of MY 2003 - 2006 cars. Personally I'd always rather go for low miles rather than youth.
I understand there was a change in the specifications and design around mid 2004 so would be interested to know if that should affect our decision making process.
Any help/advice much appreciated.
Dave
We've got two very practical cars but are looking for a little fun in our lives in the form of a Mini Cooper or Cooper S. I think our budget is up to about £6000 although we'd rather spend less than that really.
The sort of budget we have puts us in the area of MY 2003 - 2006 cars. Personally I'd always rather go for low miles rather than youth.
I understand there was a change in the specifications and design around mid 2004 so would be interested to know if that should affect our decision making process.
Any help/advice much appreciated.
Dave
Hi Dave,
In terms of facelift yes the facelift cars are worth seeking out. The Ones and Coopers got a far more reliable gearbox (common failure point on earlier cars) whilst the S got a little more power. All cars had the headlights revised and those with Xenon lights received much improved units. The dashboard on all cars was also changed to a three piece rather than a five piece item to reduce squeaks and rattles. There were also cosmetic tweaks across the range that in my opinion improved the looks.
In terms of Cooper or Cooper S we plumped for an S as they've had a solid six speed Getrag gearbox from the start and whilst they're juicier than the Cooper the Cooper isn't that economical in the first place so it seemed worth having the S for the extra power, often better kit, and the six speed gearbox. We sought out the facelift as as much as anything else we preferred the looks.
Hope this helps,
Matt.
In terms of facelift yes the facelift cars are worth seeking out. The Ones and Coopers got a far more reliable gearbox (common failure point on earlier cars) whilst the S got a little more power. All cars had the headlights revised and those with Xenon lights received much improved units. The dashboard on all cars was also changed to a three piece rather than a five piece item to reduce squeaks and rattles. There were also cosmetic tweaks across the range that in my opinion improved the looks.
In terms of Cooper or Cooper S we plumped for an S as they've had a solid six speed Getrag gearbox from the start and whilst they're juicier than the Cooper the Cooper isn't that economical in the first place so it seemed worth having the S for the extra power, often better kit, and the six speed gearbox. We sought out the facelift as as much as anything else we preferred the looks.
Hope this helps,
Matt.
My wife has had her Cooper from new in 2003 and it's a great little car but has only done 30k miles.
I wanted a nippy runaround and started looking at an S until I tried an '05 JCW that I paid £5700 for on 53k miles and high spec.
The S is much better than the Cooper (for me) but the JCW is fantastic fun.
This is what you can get for under £6k.
My wife does steal it every now and then as well so beware.
I wanted a nippy runaround and started looking at an S until I tried an '05 JCW that I paid £5700 for on 53k miles and high spec.
The S is much better than the Cooper (for me) but the JCW is fantastic fun.
This is what you can get for under £6k.
My wife does steal it every now and then as well so beware.
I viewed this a couple of weeks ago....
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/m...
We ended up buying a Cooper S auto in the end, but would have probably bought this if it wasn't for my wife's medical condition. the only negative was the plastic wheel arch cover needed replacing (about £50 for a replacement, I don't know why they haven't). Nice people, based in Warwick.
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/m...
We ended up buying a Cooper S auto in the end, but would have probably bought this if it wasn't for my wife's medical condition. the only negative was the plastic wheel arch cover needed replacing (about £50 for a replacement, I don't know why they haven't). Nice people, based in Warwick.
I have an "S" similar spec to the one advertised. I think the later mk 1 Coopers are the ones to go for (biased opinion)look out for a 55 plate like the one in the advert. Loads of character, great fun and build quality, a little thirsty (28--30mpg average) but worth it on every level. 
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