Buying a used MINI Cooper (2006-2013)

Short history of the MINI Cooper

Rover after the disintegration of British Leyland retained rights to the Mini design and name, but in 1994 Rover was sold to BMW. Sales of the original Mini shape continued until 1999, while battle during that time raged within BMW about what to do with one of the world’s most famous automotive names.

In 2001 the world saw the answer. BMW’s MINI (now wearing all capitals) was completely restyled and re-engineered, targeting a market populated by the offspring of people who perhaps had owned examples of the original BMC version.

BMW’s successor was physically larger and far more modern, while retaining an outline that echoed the original. No one really seemed to care that around 50 per cent more sheet-metal was required by the new design plus masses of extra plastics and electrical items.

In basic form, the new MINI had 1.6 litres and 85kW (1.4 in some markets), with supercharging available. In Australia, an 85kW Cooper and 120kW Cooper S were the only versions initially available, however that would change as the local range expanded.

Generation 2 cars appeared in 2006 and would prosper with minimal change until 2014. During that time the offerings diversified in all directions to offer open-top, coupe and extended-wheelbase versions. These included a Countryman station wagon launched in 2011 that finally gifted the MINI some load space.

This third-generation BMW MINI announced in 2014 remained visually similar to earlier cars, however change had occurred everywhere beneath the familiar shape.  The MINI Cooper hatch grew in size and the mainstay engine was enlarged. When turbocharged, the new 2.0-litre petrol produced 141kW.

By this time, the MINI range had become anything but. By 2018 there were five model streams, ranging from the basic two-door Cooper hatch at under $30,000 to a 170kW JCW (John Cooper Works) version of the Countryman wagon that cost almost $60,000.

Buying Used: MINI Cooper (2006-13) – Quick Checklist

MINI Cooper 2006-13 – Overview of updates, engines and equipment

There are so many variations of BMW’s second-generation MINI Cooper that just listing all of them would occupy more space than we have available. Here then, in no specific order, are some of the more popular variations.

The Gen 2 MINI greeted the Australian market from early in 2007 with six basic versions and internal variations of each. Petrol engines came with or without a turbocharger and from 2009 there was a turbo-diesel option.

Looking to carsales.com.au listings for guidance on which MINI cars were most popular back in the Noughties, we find a preponderance of Cooper and Cooper S versions plus a smattering of others. So, let’s start with the R56 Series Cooper S.

It was listed in dealer guides as a six-speed automatic for $42,100 plus on-road costs, with six-speed manual transmission optional and $2200 cheaper. All Cooper S variants produced 128kW from a 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine.

Suspension was by coils and multiple locating links, controlled via a kiddie-sized steering wheel with 2.5 turns lock to lock and power assistance. If you chose the automatic it came with paddle shifters and a Sport mode. Power front windows, air-con and sports seats were standard, but the S was still fairly bare for a car costing more than $40,000.

A long list of options with typically BMW pricing helped ‘personalise’ your R56 and lighten considerably the wallets of new MINI buyers.

If you wanted a sausage without the sizzle then the basic Cooper with manual transmission and 85kW hit showroom floor at $31,100 plus ORCs. Auto versions were available too, from $33,300.

Opting for a Cooper Chilli boosted the opening price of an auto to $36,990 plus ORCs, adding larger 16-inch alloy wheels, leather trim and a seriously good 10-speaker sound system.

The MINI Cabriolet had been available since 2005 and continued almost unchanged into the Gen 2 era. In basic form and with an unloved continuously variable transmission (CVT), the Cabrio cost $46,500 until replaced in 2009 by an updated R57 version at more than $50,000.

JCW in MINI nomenclature stands for John Cooper Works and pays tribute to the originator of Mini performance.

Updated versions of the JCW Cooper S took a year longer to arrive than did the regulation version, but when they did emerge the range was extensive. A basic JCW ‘S’ in 2008 would cost $48,800 plus ORCs and was characterised by 17-inch alloys and cloth trim. Up-speccing to a JCW Park Lane brought bigger wheels, Xenon headlights and leather trim.

The Cooper S Clubman wagon appeared later in 2008, with extra space behind the seats and three levels of trim. A basic version cost $43,200 and was supplemented by the Chilli at $47,000. Both used 128kW engines, but above them sat the 155kW JCW Clubman which came only as a manual and cost $51,300 plus ORCs.

They were accompanied during 2009 by a JCW version of the Cabrio and the addition to some model streams of a 1.6-litre diesel engine. MINI D models as a basic hatchback with auto transmission cost $36,100 plus ORCs, with the leather trimmed Mayfair priced from $41,800. However, only 10 per cent or so of the cars locally sold were diesels.

MINI Cooper (2006-13) – What are they like to drive?

The BMW-conceived MINI is disconcerting enough to be noticed, but with enough conventionality in its design to stay viable in a market crowded with two-box, high-performance hatchbacks.

Inside, the new-age MINI was a world away from its 1959 forebear, yet BMW was at pains to retain the impracticality of a central instrument cluster. Even the old-fashioned toggle switches were retained, still placed where they can’t be seen and are hard to reach.

Seats in second-generation MINI Cooper JCW cars look like throwbacks to competition seats of the 1960s, but manage to keep a grip on occupants without cracking their ribs with unyielding bolsters. You still sit low, although not like in an original Cooper S, and you aren’t hunched over a nearly horizontal steering wheel.

Reaction from the electrically-assisted steering is instant and precise, and unless somebody has fitted truly awful aftermarket tyres there is barely any understeer. The gearshift in manual versions requires minimal movement, the auto’s paddle shifters even less.

Early Gen 2 Cooper S models weighed just 1205kg and the turbo 1.6 will respond almost instantly, with minimal lag. From a standing start and once it stops wheel-spinning, acceleration is strong and gear ratios nearly perfect.

Second in the six-speed manual is good for 93km/h and third tops out at 143km/h. You probably won’t be maxing out the rest unless indulging in track day lap dashes.

Flat changing your MINI through the gears isn’t going to help fuel economy, but even when flogged mercilessly during media tests, a turbo 1.6 averaged 10.3L/100km. Feather the throttle in highway running and that number falls below 7L/100km.

Look at the MINI Cooper’s compact design and you might dread the thought of being inside one if a crash ever eventuated, but local ANCAP safety evaluation tells a different tale.

That tiny compact package contains the same number of airbags as bigger BMW products, plus electronic stability control (optional on early cars) and adjustable seat belt anchorages. Checking out the video of a real-time crash test shows the cabin undamaged and even the windscreen remaining in place during a 56km/h frontal impact. A five-star occupant protection rating resulted.

Is the MINI Cooper (2006-13) a good choice for families?

Er, nooo… If you’ve got offspring who haven’t reached the lanky stage of growth you might get a couple of them into the back of a MINI Countryman or Clubman.

However, if you need to fit child seats into a hatch then get a folded pusher into what masquerades as the boot, forget it.

Even with part of the seat in a Countryman folded to accommodate just one kiddie capsule, the hatch design will make loading and unloading a pusher of any decent size a struggle.

MINI Cooper (2006-13) – What to check when buying used

Used vehicle grading for MINI Cooper (2006-13)
Design & Function: 15/20
Safety: 15/20
Practicality: 11/20
Value for Money: 12 /20
Wow Factor: 14/20
Score: 67/100

Also consider:
BMW 1 Series Coupe
Lexus IS
Mazda3
Volkswagen Golf

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