Time to start saving up for that Mini Cooper S!

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Soldato
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Hey guys

I thought I'd come in here and ask if buying the car I've wanted to buy since I was 17 is still a good idea?

I'm think of spending about £5,000 on a 2003 Mini Cooper S with around 40/60k miles on the clock.

I'm pretty new to the whole buying scene so I'm wondering if there's anything I should be on the lookout for? Aren't some of the minis supercharged whilst the others have a turbo in them?
 
The first generation (R50/R53) was supercharged.

You're really scraping the barrel at £5,000 though. I'd keep saving for a bit longer.
 
Mini cooper buying guide which will be of some use

http://www.evo.co.uk/buying/buyingguide/233668/mini_cooper_2006.html

and page 2

http://www.evo.co.uk/buying/buyingguide/233669/mini_cooper_checkpoints.html

Old shape cooper S are supercharged, new shaped (called R56) are turbocharged correct.

New shape with the turbo was introduced in 2006 so buying at this price you wont have to worry about it. But it looks like this

http://www.carpages.co.uk/mini/mini-new-mini-15-08-06.asp

and just to echo Fox's comment. With 5k you really are scraping the barrell and buying yourself a whole heap of problems. You need more really for something like this:

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1897251.htm
 
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Haven't you had 4 years to do this research?:confused:

It does seem a bit odd that somebody can 'want' something for over 4 years yet still not have got as far as working out which ones are turbo and which are supercharged.

Heck I don't want a Cooper S, never have done, and I knew :p
 
[TW]Fox;17254676 said:
£5k doesnt buy a 2003 Cooper S with 40k on it surely?

Get more money, then get one.

It does :)

If you look hard enough that is. Better off with 6k though, but I really can't hack working in tesco any longer than needs be! :p
 
[TW]Fox;17254676 said:
£5k doesnt buy a 2003 Cooper S with 40k on it surely?

Get more money, then get one.

As above.

While £5k will get a Cooper S no doubt, do you really want a £5k one? I was looking at normal Coopers last year with wanting to spend around £6k and I found very little that was decent. I eventually gave up and will probably buy an S in around year and half when I can realistically insure one, for around £7k which I think should just about be good enough for a good one.

Unless the market has drastically changed, then I stand corrected.
 
well if you hadn't been fronting on your mum's insurance you'd have had 4 years NCB by now.

Pays in the long run to take it in your own name.

What a give away it is when you say you've not been "the named driver" on "my car"

Thats insurance fraud, just so you know ;)
 
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