Hi.
I am looking to buy my first MINI. Two promising leads fell into my lap today, and I was hoping for some advice.
Both are the same color, which is funny, I thought.
2005 MINI with 58K and the winter package. 14K, dealership. Comes with new, mounted winter tires and non-winter tires.
2007 MINI with 50K and the sport package. 15K, private party. Still under original extended warranty of 100K miles. Has special paint warranty. Comes with one set of new all-season tires.
A few things to know... I live in Maine and am sort of obsessed with heated seats. 05 has 'em, 07 doesn't. Can I get good after market heated seats? How does the MINI do in weather? Is it better to get a new car that has been driven "harder"? Or, and older car which wasn't used as much? Do warranties typically transfer to the new owner? What are the pros and cons of these two years? The interiors are quite different, I preferred the 07, I think. But, both are excellent! I have been on the fence about getting such a tiny car, but absolutely loved the driving. So, I'm sold! Please let me know what you think.

 

Look up on Consumer Reports about that year of coopers if that helps ! It help me buy my 09 just a cooper . It will give you info about the used Mini;s ! 06 models had problems with all i have read . good luck

 

www.motoringfile.com has a great buyer's guide section on the right side of the home page near the top. It will give you all the differences between these two years. I don't know about installing heated seats aftermarket, (I'm sure you could, for a price) but the MINI is so small, it heats up very quickly. The warranty is transferable to any new owner of the car. The fact that the 05 is out of warranty would probably make me lean toward the 07, if these were the only two cars in consideration. Keep in mind this is a buyer's market and there are tons of MINI's for sale, especially if you are willing to travel to see them. Don't know where you are in Maine, but there are tons in the Boston area. MINI's do great in snow; just use dedicated snow tires during the winter...um, I mean from September through May, in your case. Good luck!

 

Hi Annie...turns out I live in Maine also. And I am currently selling my Uncle's 2003 electric blue MINI Cooper S with 23K on it. And it has heated seats! It is listed in the marketplace here on NAM:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ate/1220843623

I am not looking to push the car on you but wanted to just make you aware that it was available. If you want anymore information just send me a private message and I would be happy to give you whatever info you wanted.

Where do you live in Maine? If you are comparing the two cars you listed, there really isnt that much difference between the two in terms of mileage. The extended warranty is a nice plus, but you should spend some time asking specific questions about the warranty to figure out what exactly the warranty covers, is there a deductible, is it transferable to you, with a fee, without a fee? Can you transfer the warranty if you decide to sell? An extended warranty can have many different variations and conditions so it pays to see the actual warranty so you dont have any unpleasant surprises down the road.

I also have an 02 MCS with just about 70K on it. Wish I had heated seats in it also after driving my Uncles with heated seats. It is possible to retrofit the heated seats into a MINI without them, either aftermarket or factory. If you choose the aftermarket route you would need to find someone to install them if you werent up to the task yourself. If you wanted factory heated seats you would need to install that section of the wiring harness, replace the mirror adjustment panel with one that had the seat heater controls in it and of course, find some heated seats that you could swap out. There is information out there on how to do it yourself, I believe a .pdf from MINI even. It wouldnt be a quick simple process to add heated seats, but it is possible.

And veggivet is correct, there are a lot of MINI's out there right now so you should be able to find what you want if you are patient and willing to travel just a bit. Regardless of your decision, there are a few of us owners here in Maine, not well organized unfortunately, but maybe its time to change that!

 

Electric Blue is the best color, too!

 

LOL...I didnt like it at first and I still like my Pure Silver best, but the color has grown on me. Part of me is tempted to sell my car and buy my uncle's!

 

The differance between the two cars are like night and day...drive them both...see what you like. Some LOVE the older ones, and hate the newer ones, or vise versa. The only real similarity is they look similar on the outside, and the MINI name......I perfer the older one....more of a viseral experance when you drive....more connected with the road....more one with the car...a bit more raw....the whine of the supercharger.......
Good luck, and have fun!!