looking to buy

[spongy]

Hi all as per title I am thinking of getting either a cooper s or just a cooper.....looking at about an 02 or 03.Is there anything to look for on these cars....I have noticed some issues with pas pumps, but this for me is not a deal breaker. This will be a third car used as my main car and some occasional use by the wife. my mileage will be very low and I am not afraid to use a spanner, please any advice welcome ps am leaning heavily towards the s;)

[Bungleaio]

Coopers have weak gearboxes. The S is the better car by far. Other than the PAS pump they are very reliable.

The S makes a fantastic noise too.

[spongy]

Thank you sir for the reply, have been reading about the problem with the timing belt is this a problem with the cooper s or just the coopers......not really too worried about it if there is an upgrade that can be done to cure the problem just don't want an engine fail for a stupid part which could have been avoided......been here before with another make many moons ago....that cost me a new engine with no help from the dealers .my second car is a tvr so I don't want any more worries about engines going pop

[Zippee]

spongy said:

Thank you sir for the reply, have been reading about the problem with the timing belt is this a problem with the cooper s or just the coopers......not really too worried about it if there is an upgrade that can be done to cure the problem just don't want an engine fail for a stupid part which could have been avoided......been here before with another make many moons ago....that cost me a new engine with no help from the dealers .my second car is a tvr so I don't want any more worries about engines going pop

That's on the turbo charged S, R56 model which I believe is late 2006/early 2007 onwards.
Rear calipers are a common seizure and the rear discs can corrode so do check those. PAS pump as you're already mentioned and also the water pumps are a common ish failure, but being a fellow TVR owner I guess you should know that the majority of negatives stated will still be very rare occurrences.

[spongy]

Zippee....good man another tvr owner with a mini thought I may have been loosing the plot. A cooper s will be on the way very soon... cant wait to get one out for a blast will probably feel really nippy in comparison to my old tvr

[CO2000]

Try and stretch to a facelift, a wee bit more power and far better gearing. Ohh and get rid of run flats if fitted !

[Lord Warwick]

Just into the market for a Cooper S and noticed your comment about run flat tyres. What is the difference between the two is the run flat a harder ride and why is the non run flat the better.

[CO2000]

Lord Warwick said:

Just into the market for a Cooper S and noticed your comment about run flat tyres. What is the difference between the two is the run flat a harder ride and why is the non run flat the better.

Night & day + chalk & cheese spring to mind. You really need to drive both to feel the difference. There must be hrs of reading on the subject too. Search on here + google in general for info.