Buyers remorse? An evening rant I'll probably regret later

"Laurence" (mrlaurence) 10/03/2016 at 16:12 • Filed to: Rant, mini

1

30

I’ve had my mini for around 3 months now, and following yet another problem with it, a little regret is starting to sink in. Normally, when something goes wrong on it, I leave it out of oppo, as it’s normally something simple and mundane, and giving whatever the problem is any more attention than it needs tends to frustrate me more, but I’m starting to reach the limit and I’m beginning to question whether getting it was really the right desicion.

Ever since I first watched the Italian job when I was about 4, and first found out about my uncles bright yellow mini, I’d wanted one of my own - I bought magazines and books, watched hours of YouTube videos and endlessly scoured every corner of the Internet for months on end, looking for one to buy, eventually narrowing my search to a later Mpi, ideally in Nightfire red.

Then I found it - a car exactly like the one I’d always pictured, that was also both affordable and a reasonable distance away. I arranged to see it and almost immediately after laying my eyes on it, I fell in love with it. “This is the car I want” I thought as I looked at it. I bought it, costing me nearly my entire life savings and arranged for the seller to deliver it in a few days.

The days leading up to its arrival were agonisingly slow; all I wanted was for the mini to get here, and when it did, I was like a little child on Christmas. I knew it had problems (namely front tyres and a short MOT) but I’d set aside the little money I had spare to fix these problems, as well as any others it may have, so I didn’t see this as a issue.

This is where the problems began...

The car may have been virtually rust free - almost an impossibility in the world of unrestored minis, but everything else seems to be an issue. The MOT was way more than I was expecting, and since it got back from there, I’ve had nothing but issues with it. It’s constantly making noises it shouldn’t, and it’s left me stranded a few times already, and seems to be getting worse. I knew when I got it it would need more work to keep on the road than a normal car, but there’s a limit - and that’s certainly not the new-problem-every-journey that it currently seems to be. It’s got to a point where the car will sit in the garage undriven because I’m too afraid to take it anywhere in case it breaks again.

There’s loads more I could write, but it’ll just frustrate me even more, and right now I really don’t want that. This is my first car, and should have bought something newer and more reliable to get used to driving in, rather than an old British car which (at least for the rover built late 90's models) is notoriously more complicated than any car this size needs to be.

I guess my question for oppo now is this - do I cut my losses while I still can and sell the car (I’ve put more than I should into it already, but I got the car for a decent price initially, so I hope that I wouldn’t be out too much money), then get something sensible, like I should have to start with, or do keep hold of it and hope that things start to get better?

S65 > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:14

1

I’d keep it

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:15

4

I’d keep it and probably put a honda motor in it so it’s less unreliable.

lone_liberal > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:19

2

I’d keep it but look in to finding something else to DD. If you get rid of it you’ll live to regret it, but if you keep trying to rely on it you’ll regret that too.

Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 10/03/2016 at 16:21

2

From what I understand, those swaps can be pretty expensive. A friend of a friend is around $10k into his at this point.

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:21

5

Sounds like an excellent second/project car. But you’re going to need a Corolla or something if you want to keep that.

cletus44 aka Clayton Seams > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:23

2

Two types of people: Those who drive awesome old cars and devote time/money to keep them going. And those who drive normal new cars that anyone can own/drive/maintain.

Wanna be cool? Takes work. Your car is great! Every classic comes with a 3-6 month teething period when you just work on all the issues the PO never fixed. Once you’re past that, classics are easy to keep rolling. Stick it out. A few other Oppos own Minis if you ever need advice/info. You can do it!

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow 10/03/2016 at 16:23

3

Wow, that’s surprising. They’re so popular that I figured they’d be reasonable and well supported. This guy might have an advantage over your buddy being in the EU UK though since they’re more curiosity than transportation here.

Laurence > lone_liberal 10/03/2016 at 16:23

0

This is exactly the problem; I know I’ll regret selling it, but equally I’ll hate myself for having to use it as my only car. Right now I don’t have enough money or space to buy another car, nevermind insuring two cars, which means I get the choice of one or the other

ttyymmnn > Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow 10/03/2016 at 16:26

1

I recently replaced the engine in my ‘03 Odyssey with one that had just over 100k on it and the whole job cost about $4,000. I don’t know how much modification is involved in fitting a different engine in a Mini, but I would think that an engine of similar mileage would be relatively affordable.

Laurence > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 10/03/2016 at 16:27

0

They’re popular, and in the uk where there’s a better supply of cheap donors they don’t cost quite as much, but doing anything like that would probably just mean I’d be out even more than before, with a car that’s too fast for me to not drive straight into a tree which no insurance company in their right mind would have anything to do with

(Having said that though, Honda engine swaps are extremely well documented, and would be something I’d love to have)

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:28

0

Yeah, don’t be Marc Bolan.

DipodomysDeserti > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:29

2

I’d hold onto it. You probably shouldn’t have bought it as your first car, but you’ll regret getting rid of it. Get a scooter so you have something to get around with while you’re fixing your mini.

Wacko > Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo 10/03/2016 at 16:30

0

are you paid by Toyota for every time you mention their products!

DipodomysDeserti > Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow 10/03/2016 at 16:30

1

$10k is a pretty average price to pay on a motor swap that you aren’t doing yourself. You could probably save a couple grand on the engine depending where you look. If you can fabricate it’s going to be a lot cheaper.

Klaus Schmoll > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:34

1

Great second/fun/project car, terrible only mode of transportation.

When I was at University friends of mine bought an OG Mini. “We want a cheap, little car, why not buy something that’s cool?” They even had a guy who wrenched for a case of beer/free/small tips. What could possibly go wrong? After a few months they got bored by the constant niggles here and there, and it not being able to get them to their jobs on time. So they listed it for sale.

Another friend of mine whose DD was a Rover SD1 at the time got interested and he boutght it. Had to pick him up from an Autobahn service station late one night... Fast forward a few months later and he bought an old Prelude off ebay.

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > Wacko 10/03/2016 at 16:36

4

... Paseo

lone_liberal > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:37

1

That sucks. I daily drove an old car for a couple of years, a (at the time) 25 year old Chevy, and know that feeling of doubt and apprehension that it can cause. I ended up crashing it which forced me in to something more modern but I was lucky enough to be able to eventually replace it with a similar project car, though one that was in much rougher shape. There really isn’t a good answer for your dilemma. The brain answer and the heart answer both have pluses and minuses which only you can really weigh.   

d15b > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:39

1

Keep the MINI, figure out a way to get another set of reliable wheels.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 16:57

1

I would stick with it. There is going to be a teething period where you discover and fix the issues that the previous owner ignored. Sure you are going to have to put some time and money into it now but in the end you will have a great little car.

Montalvo > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 17:35

1

Here is the way I would look at it. Is this your forever car? If so then it has no price tag, these cars arent going to get any cheaper and I would rather have a structurally sorted car rather than one which is only mechanically sound. If this car was more of a fleeting fantasy then cut it loose. Cars are just like any relationship, sometimes it needs a bit of work to get something to last a lifetime.

1111111111111111111111 > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 18:13

0

What’s gone wrong so far? And how much are you willing to put into it? I’ve always wanted one too.

DynamicWeight > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 18:44

1

As many have said here, it all depends on what issues it’s having. If you’re at risk of losing a job because of it, then it needs to go. But if you’re so young that you don’t have a job, just be open minded to walking home/throw a skateboard in the back/ see getting stranded as an adventure.

Also, be open to fixing things yourself and keep at it even when things get tough. Also, keep in mind, any car is a constant drain on finances. Whether it’s payments for something new enough to not break down or fixing older cars you will constantly be paying some amount of money every month for a car. Plus things like maintenance and fuel. If you stick through it and make it work it will build character, skills, and problem solving.

That being said, I have a nice new truck that is an absolute pleasure to drive, and an old (93) weekend car that needs fixing (but is driveable). Plus a motorcycle. I drive my older vehicles as much as possible, but when they develop a problem, they get parked while I browse forums to figure out whats wrong, do tests, order parts and tools, and eventually get around to fixing them. If I had to do it everyday it’d stress me the hell out.

random001 > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 18:46

1

Sell it....

To me!

Not really, I think they are awesome little cars. I wish we could help.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > Laurence 10/03/2016 at 22:11

1

If the body is in good shape, how bad can the mechanicals be? I would think rebuilding engine and trans and braking systems would be a simple affair.

Rover-mini > Laurence 10/04/2016 at 00:07

1

Just actually bought myself a 1999 Rover Mini (Japanese import). I bought mine as a second car, vs my primary driver. I would agree with Dr. Ziodberg, get yourself something more reliable, and keep the mini as a secondary fun car. I have not put a ton of KM’s on mine yet, but I am still figuring out its quirks. For me long term, if mine really starts giving me engine issues, I will do a Honda motor swap.

PetarVN, GLI Guy, now with stupid power > Laurence 10/04/2016 at 03:50

1

look, i just put $10,000 USD in to making my (twice hit) Volkswagen to get it up to 300 wheel (360 crank) horsepower. i regret it for every moment when i’m not in the car.
When i find myself on an empty piece of open road though, oh man! i do not regret anything :)

and neither should you! Enjoy your car for what it is man

Laurence > Rover-mini 10/04/2016 at 12:39

0

Nice! Mines a 1999 too, but I’m aware that there’s a lot of differences between the uk and the Japanese cars. Got any photos

The ideal situation would be to have the mini as a second car and buy something else to daily, but unfortunately money and space are big limiting factors for me right now

Laurence > merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc 10/04/2016 at 12:45

0

You’d think so, but you’d be surprised; this one is a later car with dual point fuel injection and a load of other stuff. When it works, it’s great, but when it doesn’t, it’s an over complicated mess with an engine bay that makes anything other than simple work pretty tricky because there isn’t much space to work with.

The same applies to the condition of the mechanicals; the cars been well looked after and looks nice, but a lot of it is still original, so everything that doesn’t need changing often and won’t move around much has seized into place, and was likely never replaced, meaning that it’s now getting to a time in its life where things are starting to fail and the car needs constant attention

However, having said that, even difficult mechanical work on a car like this is easier than welding and repairing the rust that seems to have plagued every single mini but this one

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > Laurence 10/04/2016 at 22:35

0

Understood now, but yeah, mechanicals are simpler to fix than body work.... at least to me.

Rover-mini > Laurence 10/04/2016 at 23:01

1

I still have not got too much into the engine, but from what I understand my motor has the bottom end of an MPI, but the top end of an SPI. But that allowed for the room to add air conditioning, but it also means the ECU is different than the British ones. After I pull my back out after winter, I was going to go through the mechanical’s, to see what maintenance needs to be done.

I waited 25 years, after the first time I looked at buying a classic mini to finally buy one. I know it will be a tough decision, but in the end, there always will be another car to buy. But few are as fun as a mini.