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Looking into buying a used Mini Cooper S 1st Gen(R53) or 2nd Gen(R56). Anything I should know?

I was wondering if any Mini owners could give me some advice.

I got into a car accident earlier this week and am afraid that the car may be a total loss. It was a 2008 Honda Fit, with coilovers, rear sway bar, front and rear strut bars, wheels, tires, your basic bolt-ons, short shifter, and other fun JDM bits and pieces. So it was a fun little car to drive. Not fast, but had lots of fun.

The car had only 47k miles on it and IF it's a total loss I'm expecting to get roughly $8-$9,9XX from insurance. I've looked into the Cooper S' that are available at that price range and have seen 1st and 2nd Gens available with 50-70k+ miles on them.

In your experience, are there any Gen specific issues to look for in the 1st or 2nd Gen Cooper S? Issues with the supercharger, issues with the turbo? What is considered "high mileage" for a Cooper S? IMO, mileage for a Japanese auto compared to a European auto is similar to age comparison between a human and a dog(figuratively speaking). At 47k miles on my Honda, I have not needed to do any major maintenance. Just synthetic oil every 5k miles and had the brake pads replaced once(the car didn't even squeak at that time). Have never had to call road-side assistance or anything like that. Can I expect the same level of reliability from a Mini?

What kind of maintenance have you guys had to do and at what mileage? Any info would be much appreciated. Thank you!

5 Answers

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  • Anonymous
    8 years ago
    Favorite Answer

    Hi these Minni's are not the original at all but a BMW dressed up to sort of look like one.

    bigger bolder and far more expensive nothing so reliable as your old honda.

    so expect all sorts of things to go wrong and be very expensive after all it is a BMW.

  • 6 years ago

    This Site Might Help You.

    RE:

    Looking into buying a used Mini Cooper S 1st Gen(R53) or 2nd Gen(R56). Anything I should know?

    I was wondering if any Mini owners could give me some advice.

    I got into a car accident earlier this week and am afraid that the car may be a total loss. It was a 2008 Honda Fit, with coilovers, rear sway bar, front and rear strut bars, wheels, tires, your basic bolt-ons, short shifter, and other...

    Source(s): buying mini cooper 1st gen r53 2nd gen r56 know: https://biturl.im/E0VMo
  • Erika
    Lv 4
    5 years ago

    R53 Vs R56

  • 8 years ago

    front section is so short it's almost certain death in a collision fine for europe but a no go for the USA where SUVs are 30% bigger and heavier

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  • Anonymous
    5 years ago

    It sounds pretty good, but try to get something newer with lower mileage, cars with high mileage tend to break down VERY often.

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