I am looking to buy a Mini Cooper. I hear that repair costs are higher. How much higher? If I keep the car for 15 years, what can I expect in repair costs? I have a warranty for the next six years.
Also, how much mileage will this take? Such as 100,000, 200,000, 300,000
If you are buying a Mini with a standard trnasmission, expect to find out that clutches are considered “wear items” which will not be covered by your warranty. Read the fine print. I have not had one yet, but I’d love to have a Mini. Fortunately I can install my own clutches.
Fifteen years is a long, long time to own anything and there is no way of knowing what costs will be. Much will depend on how the car is driven and maintained.
MG McAnick is correct about reading the warranty and understanding what is and is not covered because many car owners assume, often incorrectly, that it covers everything from stem to stern.
Google Mini cooper clutches. You’ll see that a lot of guys aren’t getting many miles out of their clutches. Mini apparently is claiming no fault. Mini is claiming that the driver’s don’t know how to drive stick correctly. Mind you, some of these guys “burning out” their clutches are guys who have driven stick for decades.
I’m not trying to discourage you. It’s just something that I keep hearing. Again and again.
But I also hear that the cars are a blast to drive.
If you drive a Mini cooper to 200K or 300K, I expect you’ll have spent thousands on maintenance and unforeseen repairs.
Just my opinion.
No car is perfect.
You could hardly find a car les designed for durability. Fun, yes, durability no.
Recent poster here has 05 mini conv and it needs new motor. Is debating scrapping car. What does that tell u?
Be prepared to spend about twice as much on upkeep over the 15 years than your friends driving Mazda3, Toyota Corolla or Honda Civics. If you drive a lot, like 20,000 per year, the car will not last 15 years economically. At 10-12 years you will likely reach the point where any major repair will far exceed the value of the car.
A Mini is an unreliable BMW with BMW prices for all services.
There are other cars that are a blast to drive, such as the Hyundai Veloster with the turbo engine, the Mazda3 Sport with the higher output engine, the VW GTI, the Subaru Impreza sport, and the Ford Focus sport coupe. All will cost less and last longer.
Agree with @oldtimer11. The only proven fun and sporty car that’s also reliable is the Mazda Miata MX-5.
Edmunds has a feature called True Cost to Own. They estimate annual costs over the next 5 years for cars. I’ll quote a 2010 model since it’s out of warranty. The 5 years estimated maintenance is $9600 and repairs are expected to be $3600. Compare that with a VW GTI, with maintenance and repair (M&R) for 5 years estimated at $6500 and $3200, respectively. A 2010 Mazda3 Hatchback should have 5 year M&R costs of $5000 and $2400. The MINI’s maintenance costs are far higher than either of the other cars. And maintenance is much easier to predict than repairs. If you still want a MINI knowing this, go for it. Just expect annual upkeep to be twice that of other, similar cars.
@jtsanders Well said! I would add that a 5 year old Mazda or other Japanese car has another 15 years of life left in it, while the Mini will start to age rapidly at this point. Agree with Missileman that with a Miata you can have your cake and eat it too. Provided you can make do with the tiny interior and trunk.
Adding up 5 years of Maintenance and Repairs on my 2007 Corolla, I get $1693 total!!!, including a complete set of Michelin X-ICE tires and rims! For the 1994 Nissan Sentra we get $2547 actual outlay for the first 5 years, also including a complete set of Michelin tires. I’m not sure how Edmunds computes these figures, but they must be based on driving 20,000 miles or more per year. Our Nissan had 71,075 miles after 5 years of ownership or 14,215 miles per year. The Corolla has only 40,000 miles so far.
However, since everything is relative, the exhorbitant cost of owning a lowly Min should scare off serious owners.
Five year maintenance on my '05 Camry has been around $850. Part of it is over-maintaining with ATF changes and changing the front brake pads to ceramics (was getting tired of the dust). No repairs. Of the $800, half is the price for 4 new tires 
Consumer Reports magazine also has a total cost estimate for the cars they rate. The current’ month’s issue is the car issue, so that’s a good place to look.
If ou want low repair costs, I’d stick with Honda or Toyota econobox, a model that has a high sales volume and as close to the base model as you can tolerate. Options – especially air conditioning, anti-lock brakes, stability control, and electronic gizmos are a source of expensive repairs even in the econoboxes. But you only live once, and those Mini’s seem like they would be fun to own and drive. And all the modern conveniences are a nice luxury to have. It’s a compromise.
Five years of maintenance and repairs on my 2008 Toyota Matrix has been tires, wiper blades, cabin and air filters and about 15 oil changes. Zero “repair”; can’t imagine the rest exceeds $800.
The “S” model Minis have been particularly bad for repairs. A non-“S” would be OK, maybe like a VW GTI as far as repairs. Which I’d get instead, anyway.