[peterg1965]

Our Mini Cooper Auto needs to be changed, it's coming up for three years old and is in for MOT on Wednesday - I cannot remember the last time I have ever had to take a car for an MOT!

According to the dealer it's trade in value is about £2000 less than the amount owing on the 4 year PCP finance package so it will have to be VT'd, which I can do now. Question is what to replace it with? This was our second Mini Cooper Auto, my wife loves it but space wise it is useless. It's use will primarily be local journeys, by my daughter and wife, very occasional use by me but quite rare, it probably needs to be auto, but can get round this by giving my wife complete use of the 640d, as I have no need for it now as weekly transport - the train is cheaper and almost as quick for my 200 mile commute when I am in not at sea. It needs to have a big enough boot for my sons wheelchair, the Mini is crap in this regard, it fits but the rear seats need to be folded flat.

The options are to replace with another Mini Cooper, there are finally some decent finance deals with MIni, or to look at something different. Mini's are expensive though compared with the competition. Thoughts:

- Fiesta S
- new Peugeot 208
- Polo
- Audi A1 1.4 sport

Ay opinions?

[rogerxp]

370Z Roadster

[xenon]

My missus replaced her Cooper with an e87 and she loves it.

[AlwynMike]

In a similar situation as I'm looking to change the wife's Ibiza.

The Fiesta will be a new model by the end of the year. This was the most comfortable car to sit in. However, the Auto will be a 1.6, and the Urban figures for fuel consumption are dreadful compared to the competition - 33mpg.
The Polo was unceremoniously thrown off the list for having seats similar in comfort to a scaffold board.

There are HUGE discounts to be had on a Corsa, if you can lower yourself (others discounted at £2k off a £15k car, Corsa £4k off a £16k car).

A lack of style and poor performance, but the Jazz is very versatile, if expensive (not on the Mini scale though) and little discount.

Our short list is another Ibiza or a Fabia, in 1.2 Turbo DSG guise.

Mike

[davyk31]

Audi A1 is probably a good call, bit quirky perhaps but what about a Nissan Juke?

Is size of the car important, can a bigger car be an option because often the super-minis can be expensive compared to the next size car up relatively.

New 1 series perhaps if you want to keep to the brand?

[creepy coupe]

My Missus changed her Cooper S for a Fiesta Zetec S and loved it.She drives a 2012 SLK now and still harps on about the Fiesta.

[dobbo99]

We've got a new shape Clio which ive been really impressed with, plenty of space even with me in it (im 6'4")
only other car I liked when we were buying was the Audi A1, but they were too expensive for us.

[mowflow]

Have you thought about something like an F20 116i? Got the same engine as the mini cooper. I know you had the revious 1 series but the f20 is light years ahead of it in every way including boot space for your sons wheelchair.

They are doing them for around £280 with no deposit and obviously discounts are to be had on that if you ask nicely. I've just got 11% off on a 125. I looked at the options from Ford, Volvo and even Kia and nearly all worked out more expensive or within £20 of the baby beemer.

[peterg1965]

Originally Posted by mowflow

Have you thought about something like an F20 116i? Got the same engine as the mini cooper. I know you had the revious 1 series but the f20 is light years ahead of it in every way including boot space for your sons wheelchair.

They are doing them for around £280 with no deposit and obviously discounts are to be had on that if you ask nicely. I've just got 11% off on a 125. I looked at the options from Ford, Volvo and even Kia and nearly all worked out more expensive or within £20 of the baby beemer.

The new F20 1 series might be a good shout. I have called the BMW UK Military people to ask for quotes on a Cooper Auto in the same spec as our current one, primarily for price comparison purposes, and also for a 114i Sport 3 door (its a 1.6 litre 102 bhp engine I think) with the two comfort packs. I think i would get about 15% discount plus the cheap finance so interested in the figures.

He offered me a Mini Cooper D Countryman with Pepper pack for £1000 deposit and £199/month - that is a very good deal but I am pretty certain my wife and daughter would not approve of the Countryman's looks!

[peterg1965]

Originally Posted by rogerxp

370Z Roadster

I am sure my daughter would like it, not so sure on the practicalities Roger!

[Guvernator]

Has the car been reliable so far and do you still like it? If so why do feel the need to change it anyway? I can understand if you are bored of it and want to get something else but paying loads of money to swap a 3 year old Mini for a newer one seems a bit pointless. It's not like the car is going to explode when it reaches 3 years old. If it passes it's MOT without any problems, then I'm not sure what you will gain by swapping it for another Mini.

[peterg1965]

Originally Posted by Guvernator

Has the car been reliable so far and do you still like it? If so why do feel the need to change it anyway? I can understand if you are bored of it and want to get something else but paying loads of money to swap a 3 year old Mini for a newer one seems a bit pointless. It's not like the car is going to explode when it reaches 3 years old. If it passes it's MOT without any problems, then I'm not sure what you will gain by swapping it for another Mini.

It's a good point and there is no pressure to change. It is out of warranty at the end of this month and if I can find a deal with minimal deposit which beats my current monthly payment it makes sense to change it for a brand new car with three year warranty for effectively very little additional outlay. I don't like running cars without a manufacturers warranty, so to buy an additional years warranty on the current Mini would be £500 or so I would guess.

I will not be paying loads of money to just change it!

[Gibbo]

Yeti, from memory your Mrs likes an auto and you can get a 1.2 DSG if its just for the town run. Trim levels availible all levels from basic to high spec across the range and all in the car as standard.

[dxb335d]

How about a clubman if you need more space.

[Kerr]

Originally Posted by peterg1965

It's a good point and there is no pressure to change. It is out of warranty at the end of this month and if I can find a deal with minimal deposit which beats my current monthly payment it makes sense to change it for a brand new car with three year warranty for effectively very little additional outlay. I don't like running cars without a manufacturers warranty, so to buy an additional years warranty on the current Mini would be £500 or so I would guess.

I will not be paying loads of money to just change it!

I can't see a Mini being £500 per year to extend the warranty when a 335i is less than £400 for the highest cover from BMW.

[peterg1965]

Originally Posted by Gibbo

Yeti, from memory your Mrs likes an auto and you can get a 1.2 DSG if its just for the town run. Trim levels availible all levels from basic to high spec across the range and all in the car as standard.

I showed a picture of the Yeti to wife and daughter, less than complimentary! So thats off the list!

Originally Posted by dxb335d

How about a clubman if you need more space.

Clubman, not liked by them either.....

Originally Posted by Kerr

I can't see a Mini being £500 per year to extend the warranty when a 335i is less than £400 for the highest cover from BMW.

You are right, its £300, letter came through today offering the extended warranty.

Countryman is a possibility, wife think its looks ok, spoilt daughter thinks otherwise! We are off to look at one when our current Cooper is MOT'd at the dealer on Wednesday! If the boot is big enough it could be a possibility. What Car review slates it though and says the engine is very unrefined and noisy.

[Palmnuts]

Citroen DS3?

It's a great driving little car - I remember 'trading up' to the 135i after the DS3 and feeling extremely disappointed in the BMW's lack of body control in comparison.

You have to live with it being 'a Citroen' though.....but is that really any worse than having a Ford or Peugeot? Not in my eyes it isn't (although when talking about 'real' Citroens...i.e. the up and down ones....I admit I'm a bit of a fanboy).

As a relevant comparison, we test drove a Polo GTi a few months ago as a potential replacement for our Mini (and then proceeded to buy a Range Rover doh!). Not only was the Polo a big disappointment in direct comparison to the Mini (I'd never have changed out of the Mini for that thing!), memory tells me that the DS3 was much better to drive too. If the promise of superior quality was to sway in the Polo's favour, this was quickly dismissed with the amount of buzzing coming from the rear of the (brand new) car we test drove...funny, because these trim noises seems typical of a lot of premium cars yet the lowly Citroen was relatively tightly made.

Anyway, there's my 2p's worth.....now ignore that and go buy a German car

[mjh93sa]

Yeti is pretty decent, and the 1.2 surprisingly good in town with a DSG box. Have one on hire at the moment (work stuff) and have to say I like it.

But... I'd rather have a MINI Dumpyman.

Yeti is soft and more difficult to place accurately on the road. The Dumpyman drives so much better. The diesel in the Dumpyman is the N47 BMW lump, but they haven't soundproofed as well as a BMW so it sounds a little rougher from the cabin.

Both have rear seats that adjust for angle and can be moved fore and aft to make more room as needed. Dumpyman has a flat load floor option which might help you, rather than the distinct lip in others.

Or you could do like me... MINI -> F20.

[peterg1965]

The Mini Countryman is now the front runner, I have one reserved with BMW Park Lane at a cracking uk military rate. I just need to check out one in the flesh tomorrow to make sure it is suitable and can fit the wheelchair in with the back seats available for use. The car in questions is:

Mini Countryman 1.6D Cooper
- manual gearbox
- light white paint
- 16" 5 single spoke alloys
- Pepper pack
- TLC

Forgot to ask if it has the black roof and mirrors, it will be too white otherwise. It's 65mpg and £30 year VED and will save me £80/month over the current Cooper Auto.

Some good alternatives suggested, but this deal stands out, is available straight away and requires minimal effort to buy.

[davyk31]

Countryman is a bit of an acquired taste but certainly a lot bigger than a standard mini and boot is quite decent.

They REALLY need bigger wheels than 16" though, even 18s look just about ok on them.

[peterg1965]

Originally Posted by davyk31

Countryman is a bit of an acquired taste but certainly a lot bigger than a standard mini and boot is quite decent.

They REALLY need bigger wheels than 16" though, even 18s look just about ok on them.

I tend to agree re the wheels, but frankly this is as much about value for money and practicality as it is aesthetics and it is not a car that i personally will be driving very often. My wife and daughter (the main drivers) would not really give two hoots about the look/size of the wheels. The main questions would be has it got bluetooth and can i plug in my iPhone!

[shrink]

'er indoors just got a mini cooper. The deals on finance just now are so generous that a lot of the other marques can't even get close in terms of monthly costs. I think with 5 year service pack, paint coat, gap insurance and the chilli pack, my girlfriend is paying £220 a month.

You can barely get a half decent fiesta for that. The A1 is a naff looking polo in drag so you'd be as well buying the polo, and the 1 series is good enough, but will cost a bit more even on a basic model.

I'd get another mini, they are giving them away just now!

edit: what about a fiat 500? even an abarth doesnt cost much more than a mini!