2009 Cooper S convertible, N14, 88,000 miles, sudden pop when driving, now cranks but no start. Towed to dealer. Not in a position to trade it in for a newer model.
What are my options?
My pain point for repairing it is not more than $3K.

 

Yikes - sorry it happened. I'd think a dealer will take the $3K and maybe more, depending on their mark up and if anything else broke or needs to be/should be done when apart. Find a good, fair independent and you might get up to 1/3 off of that. At least a 1/6.

 

If the engine indeed broke the timing chain and the engine continued to spin, or you actually tried to restart it after the break, more than just timing chain will need replacement. At that point, you’re talking valves and pistons making close friends.

IF it is the timing chain that broke, cheapest option would be low mileage used full engine swap. In and out and on your way. Unfortunately, the dealer likely won’t go down that path.

 

What year is your mini? There was a class action lawsuit for 2010. I am aware of I am aware.of one that was building some steam for the 2011 and up model. PM me for details.

My repair was over 5k.

 

2009

 

Any updates ? Fingers crossed !

 

Scrapped the car today after due diligence chasing down repair estimates at area independents within 60 miles. Estimates vary from $4,200 to $13K. I'm a liftetime DIYer, but this is too much to take on and a 15 year old MINI is a ticking time bomb, even if I were to get it done.
What have I learned?
1) a 10+ year old BMW product is worthless, not a daily driver and is to be avoided regardless of cost (I paid $5,200 for it in 2019 w 77K on the clock)
2) if dumb enough to ever be tempted to buy a used MINI product again, budget at least the cost of the car for repairs (I spent $4K in repairs to keep it on the road for 4 years, 88K miles)
3) If you buy/lease a new MINI, TRADE IT IN IN 5 YEARS or less. They are interesting, different and fun but not engineered for Americans like me, who expect toaster-like reliability (i.e. Japanese)

All of this is my own humble opinion. If the moderator chooses to strike this post for being negative, oh well.

 

Were you able to verify that it was indeed the timing chain had broken?

 

If any consolation, this can happen to non Mini / BMWs too !
BTW - there seem to be plenty of people who like to buy minis with blown engines and replace them - if that is an avenue still available for you.

 

The timing chain was not broken but the timing chain was slack to the point it jumped timing on the cam sprocket and bent valves. Unknown as to whether pistons were damaged.
Yes, I did find a guy who buys em, fixes and resells them, he was 55 miles away. Cost of towing it there would exceed what he offered, so I dropped it at the dealer and let them "deal" with it.

 

Hard to say what my next fun car will be. I would like to have a fun, year-round driver engineered to survive in the salt belt. I'm thinking the new Toyota Land Cruiser?
I had a '72 MG Midget for close to 40 years and I loved restoring it over the years. It was SIMPLE to understand and work on and I learned a lot. Its timing chain is original, still intact and running 51 years after it left the factory. Designed and drawn up by hand by men with crew cuts, slide rules, white shirts with skinny ties who were smoking cigarettes over their drafting boards. Plastic was new and "space age" and anyone who proposed saving money by using plastic parts in the engine would be quickly shown the door.

 

Times have changed. My grad school years were spent on a Lotus Elan Conv. This was a fiberglass car - so I really become one with the Prince of Darkness. But the engine was solid. I did trade it for a near new Miata later on !

I was a fan of the original Land Cruiser ( it was a tank ! ). And like the looks of new Bronco and I do have a Wrangler TJ for fun ( albeit with an L99/LS driveline ! ).

 

I have a 21 year old 145K mile BMW 330Ci that I have owned for the past 17 years and have only had very minimal problems. Mainly rubber components that have deteriorated. May be the exception but has been very solid.

Pre N18 Minis at this age are problematic and the N18, although have their own issues are much better. I would not touch anything earlier than this. That being said, many N14 and earlier Mini owners were able to put a ton of miles on their cars without major issues. The F56 & later Minis are pretty solid. I can put up with the minor R56 N18 issues I have experienced because outside of the Miata, they aren't too many Asian true driverd cars that come close to the Mini's driving experience. I refuse to drive a toaster since it makes me hate driving. It should be fun. I'm also fortunate enough not to have to rely on my Mini as a daily drive.

I understand your frustration and having a unreliable car negates all the positives of owning this car. Sucks to have such a catastrophic failure. At least you only paid $5200. Cheap car to drive for ~4 years. Many peoples annual car payments are more than this. Take care.

 

He bought the car with 77K miles and it currently has 88K miles - so 11K total miles during its tenure. He bought the car for $5200 but put in another $4000 in repairs ( not maintenance ).

So 11K miles for the price of $9200 ( again - not counting gas, insurance, etc ).

 

I did miss that & understand now.

 

BMW learned a bunch on the challenges with the R56 platform. It's definitely a platform for the DIYer. It's not a platform for someone that can't repair it themselves. The upkeep cost of a 10+ yr old car, the random CEL's, odd noises, and oil usage (thanks PCV system), would kill your wallet and give you PTSD every time it alerts you that it's below 37 degrees (it's the same sound as a CEL). I've learned a ton through my hobby of restoring Mini's, but the typical owner doesn't have the unique tools, space to work, special code reader, or multiple vehicles when the Mini is down. It can truly be exhausting to own one.

When they run good, they are amazing, but when a 10+ year old car breaks over and over again, it really wears people out. I have so many local Mini owners bring me their Mini's for all kinds of repairs and what I noticed is once we get all the little annoying things worked out (the impacts of an aging vehicle), they run like champs. So, unless you have someone locally that tinkers with Mini's for fun (pretty small group nationwide), the R56 platform could be quite challenging to own.

HOWEVER, the F56 platform is bulletproof. My friends & contacts at the dealer tell me they never break. They did have a slight issue with motor mounts on some F56, but mechanically, they are solid. The dealer comments they stock mostly maintenance parts because they never break down. The F series is a true BMW product and you can see the lessons learned from the R series, that have been applied to the F series.

So before you throw in the towel on the Mini, check out the F56. I think you'll be much happier with one of them.