First gen BMW mini cooper

It's always the fun factor. My Duc is more fun than any Japanese crotch rocket. That's how I justify the rediculous maintenance expenses.

Joe Gearin wrote: FWIW--- My father had a 2004 MINI Cooper S that he recently sold. It was a well taken care of, but not babied. He ran it up to 70K miles without any major trouble. It was a 6pd manual. From what I understand the CVT autos are junk. I think he had a computer module in the radio go bad under warranty, but beside that, it was reliable, roomy (at least in front) and a ton of fun. He sold it to a friend, who hasn't had any issues.

I think there are quite a few of them out there like that. When I owned mine, I was active on the MINI forums and noted after a while that people came on to complain, but rarely (which makes sense) did anyone post that their car was running fine without any issues. Combine the "post when there's an issue scenario" with a very active user forum, and I honestly wonder if they get a worse rap than what's really there? How many were sold? What percentage had issues? Sure, lots of guys on here have talked about working on them, but it's rare to see a post like yours of one with zero to no issues.

Not saying they are flawless by any means, and perception has a LOT to do with it. I had an '03 Cooper that I put 77k miles on before selling. In that time, I had a cruise control model not work the day I picked it up (software flash under warranty), a radiator popped a leak (not a common problem) and my LCA bushings were gone. I did not baby the car. If you looked at internet rumors, by 77k miles, my windshield would have looked like parchment paper, my transmission would have given up the ghost, my power steering pump would have stopped and caught fire and my headliner would look like 30 year old granny panties. I sold it for financial reasons, but had I kept it, I'm confident I'd still be driving it.

My son was bitten by the Cooper bug and wants one as his first car. I've seen lots of them with over 120k miles that, although not perfect, seem to be in typical shape of a car of that age. Furthermore, they're still pretty darn pricey for ones with high miles. I can't find an S in Texas for under $4k that's not been wrecked. If they were that big of a lemon, wouldn't prices reflect that?

And, to the Fiat 500 suggestion, I doubt a man of his size would be comfortable in one. The seating position is way to high and very cramped. I'm about 5'11" (and rather rotund) and my head is about 1/2" from the ceiling.

I've joked before, keep knocking them so prices can drop and I can pick up one (or two) on the cheap!!

-Rob (perhaps a little too much of a MINI enthusiast since I'm defending them.....)

Really big guy here (6'1 490 although I'm working on it), the only problem I have is that I'm kinda squished up against the door. No headroom problems or leg room problems. I had an 05 MCS with over a 100k before I put her in a guardrail. I replaced the passenger side engine mount outside of warranty, and under Carmax's warranty did the slave cylinder, lca bushings, the air conditioning compressor, and a few other things. I was starting to think about the supercharger and clutch, but when she left me, the most pressing problem was the sagging headliner. Bought a 2011 MCS as a replacement. I would check the R50 and make sure it has the multifunction steering wheel, without it you don't get cruise control. CC was an option on the first gen cars, ask me how I know. Not important if you're staying in town, but necessary for long trips imho.