Mini One 2003 - trade in or keep
Discussion
Hi, be grateful for your opinions/advice. Need to make a quick decision on trading in my old Mini One 2003 or BMW 120d 2006 for a Mini Cooper that's 3 years old, both have got about 130k mileage. I'm keen to keep the Mini but am anxious about the cost of future repairs and the stress it might cause. Live in a village so need cars working.
I know that there are some issues with the Mini eg AA did a temporary repair on the gear cables and coolant is always disappearing. As you can tell I haven't got any mechanical knowledge.
Please can anyone give me their experience with a similar 2003 model, a very rough idea of problems and how much cost I'm likely to incur and any good garages in the Cambridgeshire area that would be best placed and good value to work on the car.
Many thanks
I know that there are some issues with the Mini eg AA did a temporary repair on the gear cables and coolant is always disappearing. As you can tell I haven't got any mechanical knowledge.
Please can anyone give me their experience with a similar 2003 model, a very rough idea of problems and how much cost I'm likely to incur and any good garages in the Cambridgeshire area that would be best placed and good value to work on the car.
Many thanks
Challo said:
I would keep the Mini. It will be more reliable than the BMW especially if its petrol.
Thanks Challo, the Mini One is petrol. The suspension on the BMW 120d recently collapsed on one side; passed its MOT but the handbrake feels a bit dodgy, apart from that it's OK for the moment. Are they known for dying around 130K?Cheers
With the bini.
The coolant is probably the thermostat housing which warp or the actual coolant reservoirs that split.
TaDT
My daughter was told by an RAC man that the steam was head gasket failure. It wasn't. It was a pipe between the thermostat housing and coolant reservoir that had been rubbing for 19 years on the engine block with a pin hole. I'd previously replace housing about 2 years before.
My only reservations would be the age of gearbox.
It's an 03 which means the Rover built gearbox which never had a great reputation.
A replacement recon box with a new clutch probably costs about £600 to £700 fitted, which is probably the value of the car. Personally I'd keep it and fix it anyway if that happened, but that's just me.
Over the years my daughter's needed front wish bones, exhaust, top suspension mounts, a body control module, a gearbox and a battery. And an aerial module.
And servicing.
The coolant is probably the thermostat housing which warp or the actual coolant reservoirs that split.
TaDT
My daughter was told by an RAC man that the steam was head gasket failure. It wasn't. It was a pipe between the thermostat housing and coolant reservoir that had been rubbing for 19 years on the engine block with a pin hole. I'd previously replace housing about 2 years before.
My only reservations would be the age of gearbox.
It's an 03 which means the Rover built gearbox which never had a great reputation.
A replacement recon box with a new clutch probably costs about £600 to £700 fitted, which is probably the value of the car. Personally I'd keep it and fix it anyway if that happened, but that's just me.
Over the years my daughter's needed front wish bones, exhaust, top suspension mounts, a body control module, a gearbox and a battery. And an aerial module.
And servicing.
Pit Pony said:
With the bini.
The coolant is probably the thermostat housing which warp or the actual coolant reservoirs that split.
TaDT
My daughter was told by an RAC man that the steam was head gasket failure. It wasn't. It was a pipe between the thermostat housing and coolant reservoir that had been rubbing for 19 years on the engine block with a pin hole. I'd previously replace housing about 2 years before.
My only reservations would be the age of gearbox.
It's an 03 which means the Rover built gearbox which never had a great reputation.
A replacement recon box with a new clutch probably costs about £600 to £700 fitted, which is probably the value of the car. Personally I'd keep it and fix it anyway if that happened, but that's just me.
Over the years my daughter's needed front wish bones, exhaust, top suspension mounts, a body control module, a gearbox and a battery. And an aerial module.
And servicing.
Thanks Pit Pony. If I'm lucky and I know this is a daft question, any ideas on approx how long/many miles the Mini Ones are capable of before they pack up?The coolant is probably the thermostat housing which warp or the actual coolant reservoirs that split.
TaDT
My daughter was told by an RAC man that the steam was head gasket failure. It wasn't. It was a pipe between the thermostat housing and coolant reservoir that had been rubbing for 19 years on the engine block with a pin hole. I'd previously replace housing about 2 years before.
My only reservations would be the age of gearbox.
It's an 03 which means the Rover built gearbox which never had a great reputation.
A replacement recon box with a new clutch probably costs about £600 to £700 fitted, which is probably the value of the car. Personally I'd keep it and fix it anyway if that happened, but that's just me.
Over the years my daughter's needed front wish bones, exhaust, top suspension mounts, a body control module, a gearbox and a battery. And an aerial module.
And servicing.
c_comm said:
Pit Pony said:
With the bini.
The coolant is probably the thermostat housing which warp or the actual coolant reservoirs that split.
TaDT
My daughter was told by an RAC man that the steam was head gasket failure. It wasn't. It was a pipe between the thermostat housing and coolant reservoir that had been rubbing for 19 years on the engine block with a pin hole. I'd previously replace housing about 2 years before.
My only reservations would be the age of gearbox.
It's an 03 which means the Rover built gearbox which never had a great reputation.
A replacement recon box with a new clutch probably costs about £600 to £700 fitted, which is probably the value of the car. Personally I'd keep it and fix it anyway if that happened, but that's just me.
Over the years my daughter's needed front wish bones, exhaust, top suspension mounts, a body control module, a gearbox and a battery. And an aerial module.
And servicing.
Thanks Pit Pony. If I'm lucky and I know this is a daft question, any ideas on approx how long/many miles the Mini Ones are capable of before they pack up?The coolant is probably the thermostat housing which warp or the actual coolant reservoirs that split.
TaDT
My daughter was told by an RAC man that the steam was head gasket failure. It wasn't. It was a pipe between the thermostat housing and coolant reservoir that had been rubbing for 19 years on the engine block with a pin hole. I'd previously replace housing about 2 years before.
My only reservations would be the age of gearbox.
It's an 03 which means the Rover built gearbox which never had a great reputation.
A replacement recon box with a new clutch probably costs about £600 to £700 fitted, which is probably the value of the car. Personally I'd keep it and fix it anyway if that happened, but that's just me.
Over the years my daughter's needed front wish bones, exhaust, top suspension mounts, a body control module, a gearbox and a battery. And an aerial module.
And servicing.
My other thought was that given the number of warranty claims Rover/BMW had initially which caused them.to eventually fit the gettrag box in about 2005, that if they survived 100k you'd got a good one and it would last forever. This is probably ballocks.
Ours went at 105k.
My main thoughts are that it's a £700 car, so run it until it breaks and at that point assess whether.its worth spending 650 fixing it. Given that if you get a recon box, you'd have to be unlucky for it not to last the car out.
Thanks everyone for your advice and comments. Going to take a risk and keep the MIni.
I know that the gear cables or gear box need changing, there's a coolant leak,
plus past advisories on
exhaust back box is corroded but not blowing
rear coil springs corroded
N/S/F top mount starting to split
O/S/F brake pipe corroded
Hoping this and more won't be too much for my limited pocket!
I know that the gear cables or gear box need changing, there's a coolant leak,
plus past advisories on
exhaust back box is corroded but not blowing
rear coil springs corroded
N/S/F top mount starting to split
O/S/F brake pipe corroded
Hoping this and more won't be too much for my limited pocket!
mike9009 said:
I 'think' the BMW will be an N47 engine which are notorious for timing chain issues. Essentially if the timing chain goes it will be a write off - or new engine time.
Stick with the Mini with a potential gearbox issue, far more tenable.
2006 bmw will be the M47- which has a good reputation for reliability. N47 came in 2007Stick with the Mini with a potential gearbox issue, far more tenable.
Keep the mini though - if the gearbox does go you can upgrade it to the 6 speed gearbox - people sell used sets with everything you need
Elliot2000 said:
2006 bmw will be the M47- which has a good reputation for reliability. N47 came in 2007
Keep the mini though - if the gearbox does go you can upgrade it to the 6 speed gearbox - people sell used sets with everything you need
Thanks Mike. BMW has been solid and good when I used to do lots of motorway driving but I'm really enjoying driving the Mini. My wife is convinced it's a bad idea as the power steering died on her as she was on a roundabout.Keep the mini though - if the gearbox does go you can upgrade it to the 6 speed gearbox - people sell used sets with everything you need
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