So, after 12 months or so of deliberation, I have finally found a worthy replacement for my 2013 Civic. Along the way, I have considered a truck, a Jeep, a V6 Mustang (all too expensive), a cheaper, new car (Fiesta/Accent) and a pre-owned Focus, Cruze and Mazda 6. However, driving home the other week, I drove past this little beauty on a used car lot locally. 2010, only 82k, no accidents, full MINI service history and the 6 speed manual (my preferred transmission of choice). Anyway, the test drive was done, a deal was struck, $9000 for the MINI and $13000 for the Civic (2013 EX sedan manual with 62k), which wasn't bad considering that my local Honda stealer who are apparently desperate for used stock like mine offered me $10000 against a new Civic! So, I managed to lop 20% off my payments, 2% off the interest rate and 2 years off my term and am now the proud owner of a fine piece of Anglo-German engineering (ironically my first British car)!
So, what's it like? Well yes, the rear seats are pretty cramped and the load area MINIscule but I hardly use them and our family car is a Grand Caravan, so not a major issue. The lack of a spare wheel (there's no spare wheel well), is of some concern, so I may have to purchase a donut to chuck in the back for longer journeys just in case! Sitting in it feels like a pretty unique experience. You sit sports car low and you're up close and personal with the dash and windshield and the interior has some neat and rather quirky retro touches. It's just a regular Cooper, so with only 120hp, performance is nothing to write home about but I'm averaging better FE than the Civic (around 6.9L/100km) and on 16s, the ride is surprisingly decent and it's surprisingly refined on the highway thanks to that 6th gear. However, it does only weigh around a metric tonne, so rev it beyond about 5k and it goes surprisingly well. The real joy is in the handling and steering though. It's a bit of a cliche when it comes to MINIs but it really does turn-in like a go kart and I haven't driven anything with this much steering feel since my early 90s Peugeot 205 GTi sport hatch with its unassisted rack (one of my all time favourite cars). MINI is owned by BMW and surprisingly it also reminds me of another favourite, my early 90s (E30) BMW 325i. The controls (steering, clutch, shifter) have a BMW-like weight to them, which is surprising on such a small car where everything is usually finger light. I like that! In the UK, my wife owned a Fiat 500, which was quite a fun, endearing little car. However, although the MINI would have to give second best to the Fiat for passenger and trunk space, the MINI has vastly superior ride, handling and performance, so I can accept that compromise. Also, it's the only one in town, which is quite nice compared to the fleet of Civics around (including some Sis).
The only proviso is that I promised my wife that I would keep this one for at least 3 years. Provided that I don't find practicality too much of an issue, I could see myself trading it in for a Cooper S in a few years time. 140mph and 0-100km/h in less than 7 seconds in a MINI sounds pretty hilarious but from what I read, the Cooper S suffers from more engine-related reliability issues and I would need to be looking at a 2012/2013 Cooper S (currently around $14-$15k) for the updated engine that supposedly addressed these issues. Other options would be a Toyota 86 or a Focus ST/Golf GTI if more practicality is required (or a truck if that's still an itch that I need to scratch by then)!
Anyway, I'm happy now to own a vehicle again that makes me smile every time I sit in it and go for drives that aren't strictly necessary after the kids have gone to bed (I have not owned a car like that for a while)! My wife after some incomprehension as to why I wanted to change the Civic and a massive Fiat 500 fan after borrowing it the other evening grudgingly admits that it's the next best thing to a Fiat 500, so i guess she likes it! Anyway, thanks for the advice and patience over the last year or so and here's a pic!
