Used 2011 MINI Cooper Hatchback Consumer Reviews
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MINI is a big LEMON
You could buy a MINI...or you could throw a pile of cash into a burning dumpster and get the same value. I have a 2011 MINI S, with 63k miles. Car is CONSTANTLY in need of repair. To date, I've replaced the ignition coils and spark plugs three times apiece--THREE TIMES!-- plus hoses, a water pump, drive wheel, fly wheel, water pump pulley, and the AC compressor. Now, the radio is fried and the replacement is $1,000.00 installed. It's hugely expensive and frustrating, and I would NEVER buy another MINI. I've spoke with the customer relations team several times, and although they are very nice and do their best to placate customers, that's all they do--placate you. There is never an actual solution provided. I'm hoping a class-action suit is filed against MINI soon, because I believe they are defrauding consumers with poorly-built cars and hiding the true costs of ownership. This is the worst ownership experience I've had in 25+ years of driving.
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Wish I had read up more on the common problems....
I bought my 2011 manual base Cooper with 35,000 miles on it....now, at 54,000 miles, it has had a failure of two coils. This turns out to be VERY common with Minis when you go to the various forums. The car will sputter on acceleration, take up to 10 seconds to turn over in the morning, etc. and the problem only worsens unless tended to. Cost at an independent mechanic to fix? $650. Another common problem is dirty injectors at this point. Oh, and it needs a full synthetic oil....so, when you were hoping to get the $19.99 oil change at Car-X, it quickly triples that cost. :/ And the brakes are about gone now, too, despite mostly highway driving. And the worst part? Don't get a flat tire. There is NO SPARE. NONE. The only good part of this car is the gas mileage, but even then, it's not as good as other manuals out there. I get about 33 mpg with, as I said, mostly highway driving.
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Small package - Great reward
Having owned several lower-end sports cars in my life (Fiat 124 and X-19, a 1972 Mini, and a Matra-Simca Bagherra), I can happily say that this car has been more fun to drive than anything before. I am a bit of a stickler for traffic laws, but there's a large playground between zero and whatever. Even on highways with higher speed limits, the turbo-charged engine has sufficient zip to give the driver an adrenaline rush and cause a passenger to grab for the panic handle. Having said all of that, the potential cost to replace the high pressure fuel pump (MINI has extended the warranty for this to 100,000 miles.) or the turbo charger gives me chills, but not the good kind. When it came time to replace the tires, I got rid of the run-flats and added a spare to the already small trunk. Big increase in handling and ride comfort, with great savings to the pocketbook. Overall rating for me is AWESOME!
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love my mini " not the mouse"
find a 2011 or newer , get as low a mileage car as you can afford
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I knew it was a mistake
I bought a 2011 Mini Cooper for my son to earn to drive on because it was like a go-kart. I knew what I was in for, it being a perfect storm of unreliability being a German car made in England. All of my other vehicles are either a Toyota or a Scion. You buy them and drive them. They are like purchasing an appliance. We had the Mini for 5 months when the timing chain broke at a red light, destroying the engine. Now, although this is a known defect, BMW waned nothing t do with it. This left me with a $6000 engine replacement and God knows what after that. Know this; if you are not rich, buy Japanese every-time. Here's an update: the engine that replaced the one that had the timing chains fail, HAD ITS TIMING CHAIN FAIL! TWO ENGINES, SAME CAR LESS THAN 3 YEARS. BMW KNOWS IT SHOULD ISSUE A RECALL AND REFUSES. THIS IS A SAFETY HAZARD. WHEN THE TIMING CHAIN SNAPS, THE MINI IS INOPERABLE. Bad Motor Works.
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