Mini Cooper

[Darrell]

My son will be 18 soon and I've been looking at these as a first car.
Don't want to pay more than £2000 so that limits me to a car no later than 2003.
Does anyone have any real life experiences with these?

Thanks.

 

[Lennox]

Check the insurance for the mini first, my neighbour literally just sold a mini he had got his son for his 17th and bought/leased an Toyota iGO instead as the mini was circa £3000 to insure....


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[roadhog]

Yes. I bought one as a first car for my son a couple of years ago. Paid £2400 for a 2004 Cooper with 105k miles on the clock. I ran it myself for a few months to give me a chance to go through it and get it into shape, also used it for him to get extra driving experience over and above the official lessons.
It's been a great car so far. It's now on 129k miles, only things it's needed since handing over have been a rear wiper motor and a front wheel bearing because the magnet for the wheel speed sensor fell apart.
I'm 6'4", my son is a shade taller and there's plenty of room for either of us. They're a bit of a TARDIS.
They're great as first cars, nippy enough to keep them interested but very forgiving. And corner like they've no right to. Each time I drive it I end up grinning from ear to ear, it's a little hooligan.
They're not that great on fuel, son gets around 38mpg according to the OBC. They're easy enough to work on, parts are readily available.
There's some debate about the early gearboxes but I haven't had any issues with it, it did have a clutch before I bought it. Go for a facelift Gen1 and get a Getrag box which is supposed to be better but stay away from Gen2 cars. IMHO.
I'd stay away from cars with a sunroof, they're not great, reduce headroom and are very expensive to repair if they go wrong.
Join a forum like Mini2.com and have a read, you'll soon see what goes wrong with them. I'd thoroughly recommend one to anyone.

 

[roadhog]

Check the insurance for the mini first, my neighbour literally just sold a mini he had got his son for his 17th and bought/leased an Toyota iGO instead as the mini was circa £3000 to insure....


Sent from my iPhone using my fingers

Insurance depends a lot on postcode. I paid £1700 for his first year with a blackbox and 10000 miles. Second year it came down to £700 even without a box. No worse than a Fiesta or a Polo but worth getting a quote or two before you commit to buying one.

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

Curious choice

Bought my son his 2.0 Focus at 21. He learnt late but needed it for local travel and to carry up to three big rowers distances of 200+ miles half a dozen times a year.

The bog-standard 95 bhp MINI One wasn't a contender because of insurance and size.

And the 115 bhp Cooper was definitely not a contender because of insurance, so do check your insurance quotes first.

Forget any suggestion of hiding him as second driver on a second car. The Insurance companies fixed that one long ago. The usual default now is to put him on a car with a black box and either you or your wife as a nominated second driver.

The default choices are normally Ford Fiesta, Corsa and Polo. Typically 1.0 or 1.1 with nothing go faster about them at all.

Answering your specific question about the Cooper, they're fun cars which often lead quiet lives owned by Mummies, Girlies or Workaholics, and can be impeccably reliable. The ones to avoid are the ones doing heavier miles in the hands of 20 somethings who know nothing of how to drive or maintain a car. Two grand will easily get you a MINI ONE with less than 60k.

At 18 the key message is to learn to drive safely and within the speed limit - the fun comes later.

The good news is that my kids only know one nineteen year old who killed himself by driving his car, in a bit of a temper, into a tree less than a mile from home.

 

[swannymere]

A colleagues sons insurance went down slightly when he added his parents as named drivers.

 

[Adrian5405]

Just got a quote for my 17 year old daughter on a 1.1 Pug 206 for £450 full comp, me and wife as named drivers seemed to help.

 

[ShinyF1]

Is the 17yo on a provisional? I had a similar bargain price for my daughter on a provisional, which quadrupled when I checked what it would cost after she passed her test!

Living in London not a great help here....

 

[Adrian5405]

Is the 17yo on a provisional? I had a similar bargain price for my daughter on a provisional, which quadrupled when I checked what it would cost after she passed her test!

Living in London not a great help here....

Yes she is, OUCH, just changed her details on the comparison site to a full UK licence and it's now gone upto just under £1200.
Wasn't expecting that.

 

[roadhog]

That did seem a bit of a bargain but now it makes sense.
Out of interest, how many miles is the £1200 quote for?

 

[Adrian5405]

That did seem a bit of a bargain but now it makes sense.
Out of interest, how many miles is the £1200 quote for?

6k.

 

[Piff]

Traditionally it was always cheaper to add child's mother as a named driver. Now it is supposed to be gender neutral. Self & wife are both named on number 2 son's policy. The first name brought the price down, the second name neither increased or decreased the price.

 

[Darrell]

Gentlemen,

Thanks for all the advice and help. I told my son that if I bought the car then he would then have to cough for the insurance.

He has decided to stick with his scooter and wants to go travelling in a couple of years witch is something I am very happy about.

 

[Darrell]

gentlemen, thanks for all the advice and help. I told my son that if i bought the car then he would then have to cough for the insurance. He has decided to stick with his scooter and wants to go travelling in a couple of years witch is something i am very happy about.