Hi,

We are getting a new daily driver -- a Mini Cooper! Does anybody own one? I am trying to come up with an out of the door price tag that I will be willing to pay. Based on the information I found online, it does not look like there is much room for negotiation...

If you bought one, what was the OTD tag?

I bought one years ago when they first came out; I don't have it anymore though.

The prices vary a lot because of the "build your own" option so it's tough to say on the price. Depends what you get.

I remember running across a thread on the CL Automotive board last year about why MINI's are more in the Bay Area than anywhere else in the country. Something about an additional destination charge imposed by BMW.

I know the Used Car Manager at S&C if you wanna go with a used one. He usually has a couple on hand at any given time.

Nah, we'd like a new one. The '07 model was re-designed...

Too little for me, but I hear they're a lot of fun to drive.

While I've never driven one, they don't look that 'mini' in person.

My wife has one.

She loves it....its like a go cart.

Very fun little machines to drive!!!! Especially with gas prices.
My wife drives a Mazda 6 with the 4cylinder and 5 speed and gets 30MPG in the city!!!! And I drive the 16MPG X....oh well its paid for though!!!HeHeHe

Tim

Get the supercharged ones they are really fun.
plus if you do any AutoX they are really nimble

My brother has one. He commutes with it and loves it. I don't know what specs he got, I believe he waited for several months for his order to arrive.

So any tips on pricing? I am going to get one regardless; however, the cheaper the better.

Due to the fact that my gf commutes a lot, we chose to go with the base version. No turbos, better gas mileage and a lighter sticker price.

Just to be nit picky, Mini's don't come from factory with a turbo, the Cooper S comes from factory with a supercharger though.

When I was looking at Minis a year ago, the price I was aiming for (for a Cooper, hard top) was anywhere between 23k and 25k with the sport, premium, and cold weather packages, and a few other odds and ends thrown in there.

My wife HAD one....LOADED!!! She traded it in for her 2005 Pathfinder LE 4x4. I give her crap every day for doing it. I LOVED that little car. Back then, we got $18,500 for it. I found a few similar models (same year, similar options) that are selling today for $16k-$18k on Ebay and $20k+ on AutoTrader.com. It just kills me to see that....

Did the '07 redesign include a redesigned air intake? The original non SC version of the mini had a horrible intake design. It was 5" off the ground and pointed straight down. My Mom took her black Mini through a rain puddle and managed to hydro-lock the engine. BMW covered it and gave here a new one, but come on... For $10 worth of plastic tubing, you should be able to prevent a $4800 problem!

I want one - with the Union Jack on the roof Awesome little cars. Would also be nice to get an original S or 1275GT tho, but finding a Left Hand Drive one would be near impossible unless it came out of Europe.

So get a right hand drive, RiNkY, great fun with all the looks people give you

Would cost more than it's worth to import from England, then there would be all sorts of hassle registering it no doubt.

And drive on the left side of the road too...please! :p

As of the '07 redesign the 'S' is turbocharged. There are no more superchargers.

I'll be damned, I stand corrected.

They're not really "mini" like they used to be... I mean, it's still a smallish car - but it's about twice the size of the original european mini.