12 replies to this topic

[Minimoke8394]

Hi all,
I want to get something straight right off the bat, I absolutely adore Mini's, and never had any concerns with my old Mini Neon being unreliable, even though she had her problems bless her (Doing a 150 mile round trip with no starter motor is a fond memory) But I've just got a better job, and thought I'd treat myself to a Cooper, namely an MPi, for the economy (no Carb vs Inj fights please! ) I've got my eye on an absolutely gorgeous '96 with 90k on the clock....Seems it's been well looked after and everything, and my daily commute would only be a 30 odd mile round trip, but it would be used a LOT throughout the week for the forseeable future (I don't like modern cars anywher NEAR as much, just isn't the same)

I'd be on dual carriageways for quite a bit of that commute too. Is there anything I want to look out for before buying? I'm not as familiar with later Mini's. Is 90k high if I plan on using it a lot?

Sorry for the long post, I just like being sure before parting with my wedge.

Thanks in advance,
Chris.

[Juju]

As long as it has been well cared for & serviced regularly, it should see you fine.

The bodywork, on the other hand....weeeeelll.........that's the think to watch out for on the later cars.

Don't let it deter you. My daily is an Mpi (36 mile round trip, country lanes & dual carriageway) & I'd sooner get the bus than do the same commute in a plaggy Eurobox.

I've had her just over 5 years & put 43,000 on her clock (poor thing - she started her relationship with me on 20,000km). I get her cervixed twice a year (FULL cervix), and she has had a few crises, but we've got through it.

Do it! But watch the rot....

[Minimoke8394]

Thanks for the reply :) I've heard the later MPi's can have some awful rust problems (Would have thought they'd have sorted that by then ) It seems to be very straight. I look after my cars, and she'd be washed often and kept under a cover when not in use. I could get something like a newish Golf, but they're just so bland....I don't care if they're faster and safer, would never be as fun as a peppy Mini. What kind MPG do you find you get?

Ta.

[bcjames]

I use my MPi as a daily. Rust is no bad than any other Mini I've had. I service it regularly, and keep it well cleaned. MPG I get around 30-35 on average, it will probably do more on a traffic free commute, but mine is often stop-start.

The ECU system is quite clever and can keep itself, and your travel plans, working when if a fault develops.

[Minimoke8394]

That's pretty good to be honest. Would have got modern petrol car anyway if not a Mini, as my family have had some ghastly problems with their diesels recently, costing thousands. I'd rather pay the extra on juice if it was a Mini anyway, is no substitute in my eyes really. As for servicing, do you do everything? And how often?

[bcjames]

I change my oil, check and adjust the brakes, and grease the suspension every 3000 miles, or 3 months. Oil filter and plugs last a year, and I do the leads and coolant every other year. I have a reusable air filter and I clean that whenever it's happens to apart for maintenance.

Having seen some of the bills friends have received for ~5 year old diesels, I'm glad to have my simple little petrol car

[nev_payne]

When I had SirD as my daily drive (250/week) the primary problems I had were due to the offset from the sportspack wheels. Wheel bearings, ball joints and CV joints were changed out twice over 18 months. As bcjames says - regular oil changes and grease points.

[bogstandard]

As going with the flow of replies there is no reason why it should not be a daily drive as long as you look after it either yourself or via a good MIni garage. Personally not into Minis being show weekend cars and keep them out there on the road.

I have a daily drive MPi which I bought with 8,000 miles 10 years ago. Now up to 62,000 and has taken me to Germany and back several times plus the IMM in Switzerland last year. The Mini functions best when used and after about an hour everything gets warmed up and even the Oil temp goes up ;). They will keep on going....... once going ;)

I understand the worries you have as I have had previous non injection MInis and weather/conditions could have them spluttering. Purists may not be fond of the engine management but it makes the car much more reliable.

As for the bodywork beware. It's a lottery and random. Some rust to bugger and some don't. Have not found The MPi to be any worse despite other views and mine is still very solid and only has cosmetic tin worm around the usual front seams which will need to be sorted.

No expert but PM me for more thoughts.

[all4sreturns]

Yes I use a 43k Paul Smith mpi as a daily drive, mostly 10 miles of A-roads. The only time it let me down was a crappy battery, so struggled to start if I turned engine and and off a lot, all sorted now though. It has been down to -6 here in the sticks, and it starts every morning (it is garaged mind you, but still cold!). When I bought there was bubble rust around the front and rear valences but got that sorted. The scuttle panel under the front window screen and the drivers door are starting to be eaten by tin worm, so will need sorting soon. The body really is the thing to check out thoroughly, check for any quick-fixes owners might have done to hide rust/bubbles.. Engine if well looked after will be very reliable..........famous last words.

[AVV IT]

The buying advice for any classic mini is always "check for rust, check for rust, and check for rust". But this has never been more important than it is on the MPi models. The few I've looked over were utterly horrifying, far worse than many cars that I have seen that were over twice as old! Whilst they may have made some advances with refinement and reliability on the MPi models, they certainly took three steps backwards in corrosion protection to compensate. So either get yourself one that has been properly restored, or one that had some decent after market rust protection pumped into it when it was new.

[Jake Didsbury]

They are fantastic!
I drive one everyday, they rot same as any other mini, they run real smooth and good on fuel, ive had 50mpg out of mine :) 1275

Not bad on the power side either as standard, maintain it and it will look after you, some sensors go nw and again but the carb engines have their problems, and the mpi engine id in my experience is more reliable then the carb engine :)

[AVV IT]

I drive one everyday, they rot same as any other mini

I'm afraid that just isn't the case in my experience. It's a well recognised that Rover recouped some of the development costs of the MPi models by making cutbacks on other things such as rustproofing and paint coverage. It's also suggested that some sacrifices were made in terms of the thickness of the panels that were used on the later models as well. In the latter days at Longbridge, there were even reports of unprotected MPi shells being stored in the open air outside the factory, before they were allocated onto the assembly line. Meaning that corrosion was taking place in some cases before the car had even been built, let alone before it had left the factory.

Something that I have noticed is that if you put your head inside the boot of an Mpi model and look upward at the underside of the parcel shelf and the inside of the rear panel, you will often see that the panels are barely covered in primer, let alone body coloured paint!

Of course you will always get good examples that have either been restored, or well cared for and have benefited from after market rustproofing, but those that haven't will generally be far more vulnerable to corrosion than earlier models are. Having looked over a few MPi models with a view to buying over the years, I have been quite frankly horrified by the level of corrosion that they have all had, particularly for such relatively new cars. In the cases that I have seen, I would suggest that the level of corrosion on an untouched Mpi, is generally comparable to cars that are around 5-10 years older.

Edited by AVV IT, 12 March 2012 - 10:27 PM.

[bluedragon]

Count my vote for those who feel that the MPI Minis can be much more prone to rust than earlier models. I see many areas of corrosion where there is no perforation of the visible paint coat. I can't fault the quality of the paint job where you can see it, but where you can't - I completely agree, I see parts that don't seem to have been fully covered in paint or primer, and I suspect that (along with the potental installation of already corroding parts) is responsible for the bad corrosion I have seen.

If you see any visible corrosion on the scuttle, deal with it IMMEDIATELY. You may well regret it if you let it go, saying it looks minor and can wait. I made that mistake, and it was a month of miserable work repairing the problem (cutting out old metal and replacing it.) It probably would have been better just to replace the whole scuttle, but that daunted me as well, and since I paint my own bodywork, it's OK if I have to redo it in a few years. (if you're paying someone else to finish and paint, the more complete solution is preferable.)

In MiniWorld, one of the regulars (Kay Drury) bought her MPI brand new and obviously works to keep it in shape and maintained, but had to commission major rust repairs in the past couple years. I cite this as one piece of documentation - it's far from the only such story. Again, the point being that the oldest of the MPIs is still only 15 years old, and they weren't all parked outdoors and driven on salty roads...