21 replies to this topic

[Cambelt]

I just got my 850 today for my first car I got 7 months till my 17th birthday so I've got plenty of time to get  it all set up but I do have my brother and father who are both mechanics so I will get alot of help.

bit like me think I'm 8 months off from being 17 just I can't get help off my family which sucks a little but I'm learning slowly

[Cooperman]

In the end it comes down to whether you are prepared to pay a lot more for a good Mini and still more to keep it running (repairs are not cheap, but they are necessary) for the privilege and pleasure of driving a slow, but iconic, 55-year old design and engineering classic and joining the UK's Classic Car Movement.

 

When I started driving in the year the Mini was first introduced, if someone had asked me to choose between a modern car or, say, a 1910 model, I know which I would have chosen!

 

My Grandson had a Mini 1275 MPI Cooper as his first car when he was 17. He soon decided that, although he could do everything it ever needed himself (with my help) it was simply too much work and money, so he bought a Fiesta 1.25 for a fraction of what the Mini cost and it simply never went wrong.

 

To be brutally honest, unless you either have a lot of spare cash and/or can re-build a car yourself, don't buy a Mini as a first car.

[Ethel]

..... cheaper until he comes to sell the Festa.

[Cooperman]

I did a quick calculation and I reckon that as he paid c.£2000 for the Fiesta and got rid of it a year later having spent around £200 on parts he lost about £700 in parts & depreciation. I never saw a £2000 Mini that didn't need a lot doing, so to get a really good one needing no welding or major mechanical work would look like about £3500. With a Mini, or other classic car, the zero to positive depreciation is balanced by the repairs if a fairly high mileage is done. Most classic cars only do about 3000 to 5000 miles per annum.

Assuming you keep a Mini 'up to scratch' in all respects it will show a gain in retail value, but let a bit of rust come along and it's another matter if you can't weld and paint it yourself, do any re-builds and keep it fully maintained.

Look at the unfortunates on here who have bought a 'good' Mini, then come along and ask what they should expect to pay for new wings, front panel, A-panels, re-spraying, etc., or who find the need for a gearbox re-build, or other engine-out procedure. That is why we are so busy answering questions.

But, if the commitment and dedication to classic cars is there and the realisation that a Mini is not a modern car is accepted, then there is not much more to be said really.

I just know my Grandson got fed up with getting up on cold mornings, driving a bumpy & misted-up slow Mini to work, then having to 'fettle' it a lot to keep it in top form. The Fiesta had power steering, 5 gears, did 40+ mpg, had fantastic brakes and suspension travel, had comfortable seats, a heater which worked and air con for Summer, good wipers and super overall driving capabilities. It cruised at 70 mph all day long, used no oil, had a great audio system which could actually be heard and it was available for use at all times.

But, and here's the but, it had no character, unlike a classic car.

[Ethel]

I do basically agree with you: Minis can be excellent, cheap, first cars, but they can just as easily be money pits, almost certainly with higher initial outlay. A cheap, undesirable, modern hatch is a safer bet if you're a typical new driver whose budget is already stretched close to breaking point by the insurance.

[skinnyminny]

After driving my dads car for a bit I bought my mini. He is all stated above (the bad points and the good points) but I wouldn't change my decision for the world. I've met some wonderful people in the mini community and I have never had another car that can put a smile on my face.

 

However - I have owned my mini for 2.5 years. In that time I have been abroad 9 months of the year (mini staying in a dry garage). The remaining 3 he has been my daily driver. I have still, over the past 28 months, owned 2 'modern' cars and used my dad's an awful lot for long distance/while he's in for work.

 

I have, to be fair, had him resprayed and am currently having the engine replaced with a modern one. Which results in one of those 'modern' cars. But he is a complete money pit aside from that work (no time to fix him myself beyond the basics e.g. head gasket once, a few solenoid/starter issues - I can't weld).

 

Once he is finished I should have a fairly reliable 5 gear car, customised to exactly my taste, for just a gnats whisker less than £8k. £8k will buy you outright a modern city car or a higher spec car that's just a few years old.

 

So it's very much your personal needs and tastes. As has been stated they're not as reliable/comfortable and the rest as a modern car but you can't put a price on smiles per mile!

 

(Quick comparison to an old school Nissan Micra - my 1994 998cc was £300, a hundred times more reliable than the mini, more economical and cheaper on insurance - but had half the character!)

[henri1972]

I had a series 1 xj6 at nineteen bought it cheap and used it as my daily going to college whilst doing my training i loved it but to fill up 24 gallons of fuel i would still have an old car rather  than my pajero but i could never get rid of my mini been in my family for to long he is part of the family as long as it is maintained it will be reliable like all cars