Small hatches

[st13phil]

My wife had a couple of R56 Cooper S's.

They were great fun to drive but the ride is terrible on the optional bigger wheels, although perhaps less likely to be an issue on the One or standard Cooper. The boot is small and the rear seats are cramped: bear in mind that the R56 is a similar size to a Golf MkV and you realise how much the packaging has been compromised for aesthetic reasons. They vary enormously depending upon spec as the options list is very long. The Chilli Pack is a good option and not too rare, so a good chance of finding a car with it. The standard audio system is somewhat feeble, and clutch replacement is a ridiculous price.

All in all they look good, can be a hoot to drive, and have strong residuals. They're far from the best packaged hatch though.

 

[MercedesDriver]

My wife had a couple of R56 Cooper S's.

They were great fun to drive but the ride is terrible on the optional bigger wheels, although perhaps less likely to be an issue on the One or standard Cooper. The boot is small and the rear seats are cramped: bear in mind that the R56 is a similar size to a Golf MkV and you realise how much the packaging has been compromised for aesthetic reasons. They vary enormously depending upon spec as the options list is very long. The Chilli Pack is a good option and not too rare, so a good chance of finding a car with it. The standard audio system is somewhat feeble, and clutch replacement is a ridiculous price.

All in all they look good, can be a hoot to drive, and have strong residuals. They're far from the best packaged hatch though.

Read about clutch issue and price of 1200-2000 for a replacement
Are there any obvious pointers except when it's gone it's hard? How much hard?

 

[st13phil]

Read about clutch issue and price of 1200-2000 for a replacement
Are there any obvious pointers except when it's gone it's hard? How much hard?

I honestly couldn't say as we never ran my wife's cars to the sort of mileage it would have been an issue.

 

[brucemillar]

My daughter just purchased a new (six months old) Toyota Aygo X-Press. This has all the bits as standard.

Sat Nav
Air Con
Reverse Camera
Phone & Bluetooth + Music Connectivity
Alloy Wheels

70MPG.

She bought it based on the stinking reliability reviews and absolutely loves it, as do I.

Happy to offer up any help I can.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[MercedesDriver]

My daughter just purchased a new (six months old) Toyota Aygo X-Press. This has all the bits as standard.

Sat Nav
Air Con
Reverse Camera
Phone & Bluetooth + Music Connectivity
Alloy Wheels

70MPG.

She bought it based on the stinking reliability reviews and absolutely loves it, as do I.

Happy to offer up any help I can.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks Bruce, highly appreciated.

 

[brucemillar]

Thanks Bruce, highly appreciated.

No problem. I meant to say STONKING REVIEWS in my post and not STINKING.

Oh I forgot. For a small hatch you can have two or four doors and not lose (that we noticed) leg room.

A pic for your enjoyment.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[gaz_l]

Happy owner of an R56 Cooper S here. Phil mentions the ride quality, I've got the 17" alloys on runflats and don't have a problem with it. Mind you, I did own a Fiat Panda 100HP for years, a car with possibly the hardest suspension ever.

There are two version of the 1.6 engine in the R56; the N14 up to MY 2010, and the N18 afterwards. The N14 has a reputation for eating the timing chain tensioner, the N18 less so so that's what I went for. I was also specifically looking for an automatic, so I wasn't aware of the clutch replacement cost! Steep, indeed. If you decide to look at automatics, be aware that the One and Cooper have CVTs whereas the S has a torque converter. The automatic S of that vintage is quite rare, but they are out there. I think mine had every single option box ticked - it must have cost the original owner a packet.

I absolutely love the car to drive - it's a little hooligan. Decently quick with 190BHP pushing along 1200Kg. Sits quietly at fast motorway speeds, and thanks to the 6 speed box it's barely breaking a sweat. It's not the most economical thing, however; I average 27 to the gallon. But that could be the lead foot again.

Cheers,

Gaz

 

[MercedesDriver]

Happy owner of an R56 Cooper S here. Phil mentions the ride quality, I've got the 17" alloys on runflats and don't have a problem with it. Mind you, I did own a Fiat Panda 100HP for years, a car with possibly the hardest suspension ever.

There are two version of the 1.6 engine in the R56; the N14 up to MY 2010, and the N18 afterwards. The N14 has a reputation for eating the timing chain tensioner, the N18 less so so that's what I went for. I was also specifically looking for an automatic, so I wasn't aware of the clutch replacement cost! Steep, indeed. If you decide to look at automatics, be aware that the One and Cooper have CVTs whereas the S has a torque converter. The automatic S of that vintage is quite rare, but they are out there. I think mine had every single option box ticked - it must have cost the original owner a packet.

I absolutely love the car to drive - it's a little hooligan. Decently quick with 190BHP pushing along 1200Kg. Sits quietly at fast motorway speeds, and thanks to the 6 speed box it's barely breaking a sweat. It's not the most economical thing, however; I average 27 to the gallon. But that could be the lead foot again.

Cheers,

Gaz

Thanks. Timing chain issue, is it only related to S or 1.6 Cooper in general?

 

[gaz_l]

Not 100% sure, but it's the same engine, the difference being the S is turbocharged and the One/Cooper aren't. Same timing gear, I'd imagine.

Cheers,

Gaz

 

[gaz_l]

Perhaps not..

R56 MINI N14 Death Rattle/Timing Chain Issue Explained | Lohen

Cheers,

Gaz

 

[MercedesDriver]

We have finally found our new to us small hatch which we both liked -> R50 Mini Cooper without an S
It’s low miles (74k) for its age,03 model, with Pepper pack and most important it’s ULEZ compliant.
Took it today for a spirited drive and I didn’t have so much fun driving a car for a long long time, probably since W215. This is definitely a licence points catcher. You get over the limit so easily that the extra caution is a MUST. I didn’t go over the limit once but the bloody thing kept asking for more more more.
What needs to be done:
AC serviced/re-gased and
Radio (single din) needs to be changed - it’s dead. Any pointers which one to look for and not brake a bank (bt connectivity is a must), doesn’t have to be with CD at all.
And here she is:

 

[gaz_l]

Nice one! Don't know about the head unit - mine's an all built in thingy (and therefore, presumably, only replaceable with the same one - that'll be an arm and a leg, please). Back in the days when I last had a single DIN - my Mk. 4 Golf IIRC - I got a Sony BT head unit which worked really well and sounded good. The outfit I got it from are still going, apparently - might be worth a look:

Road Radio

Cheers,

Gaz

 

[MercedesDriver]

Nice one! Don't know about the head unit - mine's an all built in thingy (and therefore, presumably, only replaceable with the same one - that'll be an arm and a leg, please). Back in the days when I last had a single DIN - my Mk. 4 Golf IIRC - I got a Sony BT head unit which worked really well and sounded good. The outfit I got it from are still going, apparently - might be worth a look:

Road Radio

Cheers,

Gaz

I can’t remember when was the last time I had to look for car stereo. The one that comes to my mind was Alpina cassette player for my BMW 2002 some twenty five years ago and so much has changed since then.
Thanks for the link

 

[MercedesDriver]

Stereo now sorted. I was lucky enough to find at my local Halfords unboxed Sony DSX-510BD with DAB and Dual Bluetooth connectivity for a third of a retail price and with 1 year warranty. The compromise I had to make was blue light of a stereo but once I got it installed, it doesn’t look bad at all as a contrast to red Mini instrument lights.

Mini came with its original plates which really bothered me how scrubby they were so new one were ordered online and fitted today.

Have to say that I’m starting to like this little car a lot. The ride is not too harsh at all thanks to 15” wheels with 176/65 tyres, it’s nippy and, did I say, pure fun.

 

[MercedesDriver]

Mini is no more and changed for this Yaris 1.33 vvt-i dual s/s 6 speed manual with full Toyota service history and impeccable MOT record.
Almost bought W169 with only 23k miles but when I heard it ticking from the rear end of engine got scared and ran away from it.
Here is the new whip for commute and school runs.

 

[John]

The guy in my team at work still has the same 14 plate SS I mentioned in my previous post!

Has proven to be very reliable and probably incredibly cheap given it didn't cost much to start with.

Might be an alternative if the Aris doesn't work out although I doubt it won't...

 

[MercedesDriver]

Wanted to keep Yaris with good service record and had her serviced at local Toyota dealer. All fluids (oil, coolant, brake and clutch fluid) and all filters changed, with usual safety checks, came to 310 quid (VAT included). That’s cheaper than at Halfords ffs.

 

[BTB 500]

How old is the Yaris? Toyota are now giving 12 months/10k miles warranty cover after a dealer service provided the car is under 10 years old (and under 100k miles).

 

[MercedesDriver]

How old is the Yaris? Toyota are now giving 12 months/10k miles warranty cover after a dealer service provided the car is under 10 years old (and under 100k miles).

It's 2009 model.