Presently, I can tell you, Mini-S-Man, that I drive my 2006 S to work nearly every day beginning around April 1. The drive is 40 miles one way. I also drive the car to sales meetings all over northern CA from 2 to 7 times per week. In addition, I have driven it to meetings in Ventura and San Diego from the San Francisco Bay Area. There has been no problems to date. In fact, the drive is so entertaining that I schedule more meetings.

 

I guess I meant to say, is that if I'm relying on a car to get back and forth to work, I'll buy something Japanese

Both of my cars are normally aspirated. So I have a base Cooper, and just a regular ol' subaru outback.

Do I get to enjoy my Cooper? Sure, I autocross it as much as I can. That's what I bought it for. Also, our Subaru is a bit of a gas hog compared to our previous Honda Civic (and the Mini), so we often take the Mini to work - in the summer. My wife hates it when we drive the Mini, though, because I park it in the boondocks where nobody will park next to it. Our Subaru, on the other hand, I'll park that thing anywhere It's a great car, but I'm not as attached to it.

 

Thanks Matt & billie_morini for your MINI commuting experience especially since my commute is 50 miles one-way.
Are these run-flats or non-run-flats? (Will similar performance non-run-flats last longer?)
OK, I had to do some service for my Toyota to reach 370k. However, it was always less expensive than replacing the car (i.e. ATK reman.). Is the service schedule available for the R56S?

satay-ayam, Reduced fuel economy is the price one pays (all year long) for all-wheel-drive.

Thanks again guys!

 

I beat the snot out of my car in very twisty roads every day I drive it. I live in some pretty sweet hills. I go to the track as well, but not often. I use high performance street tires that are good with wet roads for the Mini because of fog condensation issues, even in the summer (currently Goodyears) and much longer milage luxo SUV tires for the MDX where traction isn't quite the priority. So my tire wear isn't normal, and tire choice between the two cars biases the relative wear as well.

Matt

 

Two points:

>consumer reports recently picked the (04-06) MINI as the only European built car to make the "most reliable" list. HaHa take that VAG

>The old, low-tech, iron block Tritec engine has gained a reputation among all MINI SAs as being the most reliable, bullt-proof engine they'd ever worked on, even under heavy mods.

The problems with my 05 MCS have been interior, fit/finish and steering rack related, not power train. Warranty work has been wonderful and attentive.

Moral: if U have doubts, then steer clear. Otherwise, welcome to the FUN club.

 

Hi Matt,

Thanks for the tire info. Since I don't have any experience with run-flats, I was simply wondering if they last as long as a similar performance non-run-flat tire.

Thanks again!

 

Hi R56MCS,

Thanks for the reply and your report Living with the R56! It would be great if you could coninue to let us know how things go as you rack up the miles.

Thanks again & congratulations on your new R56S!

 

FWIW:
Link:

 

This was the mellow yellow press loaner car from what I am aware.

I have tried all sorts to replicate the issue on my MCS without success. From what I know of the car that Paul had is was a base spec MCS so would have had the standard suspension (like mine). Not sure how he managed to do this or if there was something different about the demo car.

 

a very early car in the production and dev cycle. And beaten silly every time it's driven.

Matt

 

Thanks Matt. Good to know.

 

Hi sequence,

Sorry for the delayed reply. I wanted to review the back issues of CR first.
FWIW: 2006 was the first year that CR recommend the MINI. I double-checked CR's annual auto issues from 02 to 06.I'm glad the Tritec engine has been reliable and that "Warranty work has been wonderful and attentive." However, I'm curious about the reliability of the new BMW/Peugeot/Citroen engine.

My question is can one have reliability & fun in the same car?

 

You have a motor that's putting out over 100 hp/liter and a chassis that begs to be driven hard. Rest assured that you WILL drive the car harder than others, as that is its nature and no matter how diligent you are, you will drive it harder on average than cars that are less fun to drive. That will take it's toll.

Overall, I appreciate your concerns but I think you're really overanalyzing it. If you want what a Mini has to offer, you'll get one. If you want to minimize risk, get a car that has a good reliability record that has a much less stressed motor.....

Matt

 

I also am a former Toyota owner. I have to admit that the Celica I once had was incredibly reliable, even though I beat it mercilessly and frequently abused it's convenient hatch body by pretending it was a pickup. I loved that car.

However, I have driven my '04 MCS for almost 44K miles in just over three years, and I wouldn't trade it for my Toyota brand new. It is just too fun.

There are a couple of things that I highly recommend in the way of mods for this model: dump the run-flats and make sure you order the lightest OEM wheels possible ("holies" I think they are called). DON'T GET THE "S-
LITES", as they must have been named by MINI marketeers with tongue in cheek. This will improve ride and performance (if you can afford to depend on Auto Club or a can of "Fix-a-flat" in the remote case of a flat).

Second, the OEM brakes shed like crazy and the fluid was prone to boiling. Get some good aftermarket pads and fluid to stop this. The constant dust drove me nuts and the mushy feel after a little spirited driving with the OEM equipment was a bit unsettling.

Third, if the ride is too harsh for you, get Koni FSD's and the harshness will go away but still leave the great handling of the MINI intact (I think even improved some).

Fourth, the power complaints: I have added a couple of HP items and I paln to add more. I acknowledge that I too experienced several of the same small problems that the Edmunds folks griped about. However, I didn't find them to be as horrific as they seem to have, and for the most part I have either cured them with mods (see my sig) or just learned to drive around them (e.g., the "launch problem" - I give it a bit more gas and turn off the DSC on start up and warm up). Out of the box, I judged the power as sufficient, but I just wanted more, and more... The engine has proven it can take a great deal of improvement without fear.

Last, the complaint about "quality of build" I find unjustified for my '04. I have NO complaints about general fit and finish. In fact, I was remarking to my wife the othe day that her Infiniti has not faired as well as my MINI in that department. Interior and exterior have been pretty bulletproof. The only non-performance item with which I've had any trouble was a power window motor at about 39K miles, which they fixed no charge same day.

 

I have owned 3 problem FREE MINIs to date (Former Honda/Acura owner of 12 years that will never look back to ANY Japanese car.)

'02 MC CVT (August 2002 build, last of the '02s made by Oxford), 4 and a half years old, 40,500 miles, daily driver. Still has the ORIGINAL FACTORY WINDSHIELD. Been on numerous roadtrips within Florida (Disneyworld, etc) and 11 states, total and been to lots of shows and parades. This car ROCKS!

Will be replaced next year with a new '08 Clubman as we need an extra door for my baby boy.

'04 MCS (Built 9/2003), kept for 17 months, 17K miles, not a single problem, sold privately 2/2005.

'05 MCS 6MT Hardtop, 22 months old, 20,800 absolutely troublefree miles, not a single unscheduled visit to the dealer/warranty repair, other than the 10K mile scheduled oil service and every 5K miles tire rotations. Hard working daily driver and weekend fun car. its been to the Dragon and Cherohala Skyway once, numerous roadtrips within Florida, and a 8 state adventure that included a visit to the dragon and Nashville, TN back in May. Still on original windshield and original Dunlop SP5000 16" runflats. My car has been to lots of club shows and local parades.

 

Hi markldriskill,

Thanks for the very detailed reply! I wonder how many of the 04 MCS issues about which you wrote:

• run-flats
• needing lighter OEM wheels
• good aftermarket pads and fluid
• power complaints / "launch problem"

have been addressed in the redesigned R56S?

From what I've read it seems that the harsh ride has been addressed.

Is the consensus opinion that 07 (next-generation) run-flats are now well-designed or should they be replaced? Can one order an 07 MCS without run-flats?

"... make sure you order the lightest OEM wheels possible ("holies" I think they are called)"

The lightest wheels listed in the mini2 FAQ are:

• 15" R81 7-hole = 12.0 lb
• 16" R84 X-lite = 17.6 lb
• 17" R91 5-spoke Bullet = 20.6 lb
• 18" R107 GP ET52 = 19.8 lb

Are you suggesting one of these or a different model OEM wheel?

Thanks again

 

run flats are an opionion thing. Some actually like the crisp turn in. Since they come with the car, see if you like them. You will get better traction and a bit of a softer ride with the non-run flats.... But to be totally honest, I was very glad when mine were shot....

The lighter wheels issue is real. But you have to think about what you want to do with the car to know if you have to do anything about it. Many take the stock wheels (whatever they are) for winter driving. But if you want larger brakes etc, you need a larger wheel, depending on the brake kit you're interested in. If I were to do it over, I'd have gone with a lighter 16" instead of the S-Lites (22 lbs each). But I did like the S-Lite look. Like a modern Panasport. So this is an opinion call as well.

Good aftermarket pads and fluids will help with braking, but the stock pads are very linear and controllable, but don't take track work well, and dust more than some aftermarkets pads. And they are free during the survice period! The fluid I'd upgrade to higher boiling point, but once again, reports of brake fade on the street are few and far between. So you can think of this as an optional upgrade as well.

Not mentioned were replacing the rubber caliper bushings with metal. That's a good thing, but I don't know if this is an option to do on the new cars. I haven't looked at the calipers.

The Launch problems have to do with a heavy handed traction control. I have this modified on my 02 MCS, so it could be fixed on them (need a custom ECU tune). I don't know if they changed it's nature in the R56.

For the wheels, on the 02 S, you could only get 17" or 16" wheels. The base Cooper could come with 15" or 16". Don't know what you can get with what, but get the free wheels that you like the most. They charge SO MUCH for upgraded wheels that you can do better in the aftermarket.... The lug size on the GP and R56 is different, so there's not a large choice out yet. But they're coming....

THere is little difference in run flat technology, but it is improving. The suspension has more travel in the R56. so that will help all around. You can't get a MCS without run-flats, as there is no room for a spare. Just get whatever, drive them and ditch them when the tread is shot, unless you like them. IF you do like them, just never buy them from Mini. Wayy to expensive!


Hope this helps, but whatever you want to do will be fine. All it takes is money to fix!

Matt

 

FWIW, check out this thread about Paul's new R56:
"I'm currently without my S due to....."

 

Dude, please don't buy a Mini. You're way too negative on the whole thing.

Toyota doesn't make the Celica anymore, but you can still get nice, low-mileage used ones. The Acura RSX is also a nice car, which recently went out of production. The Subaru WRX is also a great car. I'd check some of those out if I was you.

 

FWIW, I would almost never buy a model in it's first year. If I were in your shoes, I would wait until the second year of this new model. If you can't wait, then buy a good extended warranty.

 

First year blues are a lot less than they used to be due to virtual prototyping. I got a first year MDX with a brand new electronic 4 wheel drive system, no problems in 80k of miles. And while the 02 Mini was the first year here, it wasn't the first year of production.... The 07s are already shipping in Europe before they come here.....

This all has to do with not seeing all the numbers.... For example, I'd bet that the 10-20 cars just below the average in defects per car are all much better than the average from 5 to 10 years ago.....

Matt

 

Agreed. I'm going to patiently bide my time until 09, hopefully by then a R56 JCW will be out, and it will have been two years to work out the bugs. Funny tho: the wait isnt that bad when U already have a MINI!

 

Yeah, if I already had a MINI, I wouldn't be jonesing so bad for one now. I wouldn't worry too much about the first year issue either. The first year is almost over. BMW has been very attentive of each problem so far, and it seems that with each problem discovered, it is remedied in the cars that come after that run.

It's not like any other manufacturer, most of them wait until the first year is over before making any real changes. I love that you can get your MINI built to order, you always get the latest fixes. So far as teething problems, ordering a late year '07 is just the same as buying an '08 made by any other automaker. I will probably trade my Infiniti G35 for a new MINI, a decision I would not make if I didn't think the MINI would be as reliable...