School me on Mini Coopers

so, it’s a car for @stickboy274 and the rest of the gingers? Gingers have no souls so . . .

 

How do you get 50 mpg? Do ya have a 50 mile down hill stretch into town?...lol

Mine even stock....could barley hit 30 mpg.

A non S can get close to 40...

The only car I know of that could get a honest 50+ is the coveted Jetta diesel wagon.

One thing the Mini had in spades was ..style.
Definatley a upscale luxurious interior....way better than many sport sedans if the day.
The S is quite a bit faster than my Audi A4 , few cars if any are as cool and fun to drive no doubt....like anything these days... maintenance $$$$$ I guess it's all relative?
Shit.... I talked to a bike shop last week in L.A. his Labor rates were $130 buck a hr..that's silly as Fck.
Only in Hipsterville.
Even Yoshi didn't charge me to anywhere near that much.....
If you get a Mini...I'd recommend one with ad much service records as possible, your odds are much better. DO NOT BUY A "ENTHUSIASTS" CAR!!!! Regardless of upgrades
theve been abused regardless of Ridgid maintenance....not that I know...lol

 

Here is my dilemma, I bought a really nice 2009 Mini S 6 speed w/big sunroof, perfect interior at a wholesale auction last spring for $3800 with 108k miles but in really nice shape, family owned, garaged. I drove before I bought and it ran great except slight "ticking" from front timing chain cover. I had 2 other Minis so I knew the risk. Drove it 5k fun filled miles over the summer with check engine light on and brake warning on(a light breeze sets them off) but drove great. Now ticking is louder so took it to local independent shop I use and got a quote of $3,200 to do everything, including timing chain and plastic to metal guide upgrade, front oil seal, fix the common turbo air leak, brake pads all round. So $7000 for great driving fun car that should be worth $6,000+ in today's inflated used car market. But the next big mechanical surprise makes me look stupid, do you roll the dice for another couple of summers of driving fun or do you unload it, Mini Cooper casino time! This is my fun car not a daily driver.

 

i honestly never checked it the average was reading 50 long hwy run michigan to sc .
could been high 30's compared to fullsize trucks i normalu drive it was a lot LOL

 

Bought a 2016 fit tonight. ex-l Navi with a 6spd. Aegean Blue w/black leather and sunroof. Pretty slim pickens out there on the used market, but this was a one owner trade in, and is absolutely mint inside, out and under with only 34k km. I've been looking almost daily for the past few weeks and it's tough to find anything good. Terrible time to buy a car around here right now.

I also didn't want all the extras either, but TBH I've never had a "nice" optioned car. Always base models, so what the hell, mid life crisis mobile lol. Most guys buy a corvette or something .

I haven't driven a stick in about 10 years either, but the test drive was fun though and I didn't stall it once . We'll see how much I truly miss it everyday though.

Keeping my truck for truck stuff, and for those times I feel like feeling the warm glow of a check engine light on my face.

 

Congrats on the purchase! They are a hoot to drive.....more fun driving a slow car fast, than a fast car slow.

We used the Fit for IKEA runs, so you'll be surprised at the space when the seats fold flat.

Also, great find! 34k clicks...that's like what 5k miles

Seriously, really amazing buy. You won't be sorry!

 

Thanks. More than I wanted to spend on a car, especially after just buying a new van, but I worry too much about that shit.

I was playing with the seats in the dealership. Amazing how much space is in one of those little things. The biggest thing it'll probably stick in it is my golf clubs though.

I've always used my cars like trucks, but I'm hoping now that I actually have both again I will treat the car a bit better. I remember going to pick up a 3pt danuser post hole auger for my tractor one time and fitting it in my G6. The old farmer was just floored. Almost brand new car and here I am jamming a 12" auger (and also a 9") up through the seats. 2 augers, frame and driveshaft all made it in no problem. . I've always been an expert dad level packer of things, but that was probably my crowning achievement . It's also why I don't own nice things lol. Hauled a lot of bike stuff in that car too. F3 frame, forks, wheels etc. Almost a whole bike in pieces.

 

Don't go looking at the affamaket/tuning scene for the Fit. Guys are pimping them worse than Groms and they can be pretty badass.
I once saw a vid of a 1st gen Fit passing an old school NSX on the track.

 

They make pretty good racecars

https://www.grid.life/sundae-cup

 

I'm sure autocross will be a thing once it's paid for lol. One of the reasons I wanted a stick.

 

Congrats on finding the right Fit (see what I did there).

Regarding Scions - we had an '08 MT nicknamed 'Short Bus' for a while back in the day. The 2.4l Toyota motor actually handled a trailer decently enough. I did a mild drop, KYB shocks and a TRD short shifter. It drove pretty well and could take the twisties respectably. I even autox'd it once. Thinking back it had a ton of cu-ft available w/ the seats folded and was getting high 20's for mpg. Not a bad little car that was generally reliable as I recall.