# We just bought a Mini Cooper - anything I should know? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 1, 2010, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593 "2010-04-01T17:01:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/1 "2010-04-01T17:01:59Z")
It was totally on a whim…We probably shouldn’t have done it, but I have always enjoyed the way they handled and looked. I am kicking my self for not taking it to the teaming millions first, but now I am open to suggestions, warnings, recomendations, etc. Be kind - we are still in the grip of having a relatively new car. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/2 "2010-04-01T17:18:03Z")
They have a high incidence rate of transmission failure, much earlier than would expect from a car. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/3 "2010-04-01T17:21:37Z")
Yes. If you didn’t get the S you should have. ---
**Author:** ![Scoobysnax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Scoobysnax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scoobysnax)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/4 "2010-04-01T17:21:59Z")
Is it a Cooper S? If so, don’t be alarmed if it sounds like a diesel truck on start up on cold mornings. It is normal. Have fun, they are great little cars. ---
**Author:** ![Not\_a\_Platypus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d26b3c/32.png) [@Not\_a\_Platypus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Not_a_Platypus)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/5 "2010-04-01T17:24:57Z")
> [@Wilbo523](#): > > They have a high incidence rate of transmission failure, much earlier than would expect from a car. I’ve heard that’s just the standards that have that problem, not automatics. That isn’t true? ---
**Author:** ![Hanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b3f665/32.png) [@Hanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hanna)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/6 "2010-04-01T18:06:58Z")
The earlier (pre 2005 I wanna say) non-S, automatics (CVT) had a high transmission failure rate. The S models and post 2005 non-S models should be fine. All the manuals should be OK. too. Tell us more - year, color, model, pics? Congrats! I’m on my second and I love Minis so much. ---
**Author:** ![Scoobysnax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Scoobysnax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scoobysnax)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/7 "2010-04-01T18:39:55Z")
A few more things. It takes a while to get used to the quirks of mini’s. Such as: - No volume level on the radio - No temperature or oil pressure gauges - The turn signal and washer stalks returning to center after making your selection. - The low fuel warning yelling at you every mile after your range drops below 30 miles. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/8 "2010-04-01T19:16:53Z")
Get yourself a good radar detector. And who the _hell_ would buy an _automatic_ Mini? ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/9 "2010-04-01T19:31:16Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > Yes. If you didn’t get the S you should have. It is the “S”. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/10 "2010-04-01T19:34:02Z")
> [@Hanna](#): > > Tell us more - year, color, model, pics? Congrats! I’m on my second and I love Minis so much. 2007, dark blue, S…will try to get my wife’s pictures over here. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/11 "2010-04-01T19:45:48Z")
> [@Scoobysnax](#): > > - No volume level on the radio It has…What do you mean? I can monitor it and change it. > [@](#): > > - No temperature or oil pressure gauges It has. > [@](#): > > - The turn signal and washer stalks returning to center after making your selection. Don’t other cars do this? - The low fuel warning yelling at you every mile after your range drops below 30 miles. [/QUOTE] I don’t know what you mean by this yet. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/12 "2010-04-01T20:09:19Z")
Other problems include the right rear tire coming disengaged and separating from the car unexpectedly, unless you have enough left turns executed on any given day. So I’d make sure that after you get home from work, you drive around the block counter-clockwise for about a half hour prior to parking. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/13 "2010-04-01T20:15:44Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Other problems include the right rear tire coming disengaged and separating from the car unexpectedly, unless you have enough left turns executed on any given day. So I’d make sure that after you get home from work, you drive around the block counter-clockwise for about a half hour prior to parking. I like it!!! ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/14 "2010-04-01T20:37:57Z")
I had one of the CVT transmissions, and it died in the middle of my wife’s commute one morning. It went from our favorite thing in the world to a giant paperweight in a single day, only a few months after the warranty expired. I’m stick fucking pissed about it, but damn did I love driving that car. > [@Gatopescado](#): > > …And who the _hell_ would buy an _automatic_ Mini? People who don’t like manuals. They’re overrated. I wouldn’t have really cared either way but my wife wanted automatic, and it was ‘her’ car. It also didn’t help that the footwell simply wasn’t big enough for my feet to juggle three pedals. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/15 "2010-04-01T20:44:10Z")
What you should do is start _another_ thread about what oil to use and when to change it. We’d all really appreciate that. ---
**Author:** ![Katriona](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/katriona/32/113_2.png) [@Katriona](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Katriona)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/16 "2010-04-01T20:51:17Z")
I don’t know if it was because they were lower to the ground or what, but I felt every little crack and bump in the road, and I got far more carsick in DH’s Cooper than I have in any other car. And all I have to do is LOOK at a car to get sick, so it’s not like the bar was very high to start with. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/17 "2010-04-01T20:58:11Z")
So far the only big problem I have run into is the incredible number of buttons and such. I went to open the windows and I opened the top to sun-roof length and when I tried to close that it changed the gauges displayed on the dash and then trying to get that back, it shifted it into manual, and then I bumped what I thought was the horn, but it turned out I turned on the cruise control, trying to turn off that I blasted us out with the radio…I’m seriously thinking about staying with my old Ford pickup where the only button in the cab is a cigarette lighter that hasn’t worked since '96. ---
**Author:** ![Scoobysnax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Scoobysnax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scoobysnax)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/18 "2010-04-01T22:14:23Z")
> [@TV\_time](#): > > It has…What do you mean? I can monitor it and change it. > It has. > Don’t other cars do this? > > - The low fuel warning yelling at you every mile after your range drops below 30 miles > I don’t know what you mean by this yet. From another of your posts it would seem that you have a convertable. If so, you have a 1st generation mini. The coupes were upgraded to 2nd generation in 2007. I have a 2009 coupe. I believe that the 1st gen minis had a volume level displayed on the radio and had actual gauges. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/19 "2010-04-03T01:01:54Z")
> [@Scoobysnax](#): > > From another of your posts it would seem that you have a convertable. If so, you have a 1st generation mini. The coupes were upgraded to 2nd generation in 2007. I have a 2009 coupe. I believe that the 1st gen minis had a volume level displayed on the radio and had actual gauges. Yes, we do have a a convertable. And we like our volume display and gauges. Another thing I found yesterday after three weeks of driving and not having to fill it up (which I found very neat)…I am supposed to put in premium gas (which was not so very neat). ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593/20 "2010-04-03T01:18:28Z")
> [@TV\_time](#): > > We just bought a Mini Cooper - anything I should know? I hear that [its a young generation society](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0nXDOr1r6A). (…but don’t quote me on that.) 😉 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-just-bought-a-mini-cooper-anything-i-should-know/534593.md?page=2)