mini cooper spoiled (Mini Special)

Member Name: miniboy

Product:	Mini Special
Date:	01/05/02 (817 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great fun to drive, cheap standard/modified parts, Simple to maintain

Disadvantages: Production has stopped, Wife won't let me have two, Too many Mini Shows to go to

I bought one of the last Mini Cooper Sports from a dealer approx. 6 months after Rover/BMW stopped production. I was actually looking to replace my exisiting Cooper for a newer second hand car and saw this in the dealer showroom. Brand spanking new, unregistered, red/silver, full leather, sports pack, everything I wanted. I paid extra for a three year warranty, had it fully undersealed and protected inside and out with their Supaguard compound. I love the car to bits, it turns heads wherever is goes and is great fun to drive - like all Mini's. I take it to shows up an down the country and am always buying shiny bits for it. Unfortunately, this has all been spoilt by frequent trips to the dealer to sort out a number of problems, namely 3 attempts to sort out crunching reverse, three coolant sensors, rusty chrome trim, replacement ECU, jammed throttle peddle and synchro on second gear is a bit dodgy now, etc. I've had it for just over a year now and am still experiencing niggly problems. Whilst I have the warranty, the dealer is quite good at sorting these out for me without any quibble and I even got a free service from Rover as compensation. But I still can't understand why a car that has been made for 40 years can be suffering from these types of problems. In my humble opinion, it's just penny pinching and quality has suffered. Even the paint on the engine block/head has peeled off and it now looks like it's been taken out of a scrap car. None of my previous Minis have suffered like this. If this is as a result of Rover's brief ownership by our German friends, then they're well shot of them. If you're considering buying a newish Mini, especially twin points from 1997, check the car thoroughly, preferably by an independant inspector. Despite all this, I love the car to bits and if something goes wrong, I don't thump and kick it , cos I know it's not doing it deliberately !! I'll forgive it anything. Any moans and groans ar
e soon forgotten when fellow mini drivers flash and wave to say hello. They even park next my car when I'm shopping, just so my Mini isn't lonely !!! Bet you won't see BMW drivers doing that with their clapped out 3 series in 40 years time !!!!! Go on, treat yourself. Get a life, get a (real) Mini.

Summary: