Buying a used 2007-2013 MINI Cooper - things to look for - Gen 2 R56 R55

Looking to buy a 2nd generation MINI? Check closely and don't get a lemon. Avoid the common pitfalls and have more money left over for mods! Check out the other videos on my channel - fix your MINI, track your MINI. Generation 2, Gen 2 MINI can have a lot of issues. You want to check closely.

Diagnostic scanner - Foxwell NT510 (Bidirectional, all modules, BMW/MINI only):

Notice anything different about this video? Thanks to my friend John Prentice for special guest video camera / production work !! He works in television so it doesn't get any better than this.

Attributions:

[ModMINI]

Looking to buy a 2nd generation MINI? Make sure you are getting what you think you are getting. This video shows what to look for when buying Gen 2 MINI Cooper. Avoid the common pitfalls and have more money left over for mods! Check out the other videos on my channel - fix your MINI, track your MINI.  

Diagnostic scanner - Foxwell NT510 (Bidirectional, all modules, BMW/MINI only):

Mod MINI Tip jar:

Notice anything different about this video? Thanks to my friend John Prentice for special guest video camera / production work !! He works in television so it doesn't get any better than this. 

See all the Mod MINI Videos on my channel: www.youtube.com/c/modmini #modmini #modminiYouTube


Attributions:
Music by Bensound.com

[katelinerosen]

Me walking into Mini's show room with a blue overall and white gloves ready to inspect after watching this video 😂

[sirraymondluxuryyacht]

Listening to this with headphones: My right-ear feels neglected

[johnmarkpadillo]

4 years after this is still very helpful. Thanks for the video.

[mireyaprosapio]

As a new car buyer this was incredibly helpful (and a lot of the things apply to general car buying) so thank you !!!

[MrTheknittinglady]

We have just bought a 2009 Mini Cooper Clubman today. It has almost 112k miles on it. I test drove it because I’m not easily hoodwinked by old cars, or dealers. It was such a smooth, quiet drive, and it just purred like a kitten. I’ll keep you posted on my experiences.

[swiftishttv]

You are the only reason I work on my car so regularly, thank you so much man! You've inspired a 16 yr old to race q mini cooper!

[heatice]

Thank you, I was not AT ALL looking at Mini's for my son's first car but there is a very good deal on one with only 2 owners with the right engine, clean inside that I want to go look at so this video was super helpful. While I can't do all these things, a lot of them are simple enough.

[hilmicooper]

My mini now at 230, 000km and still working good.

[SqeakyToy]

Bought the 2010 R55 Clubman JCW in 2013 with 43, 000 miles. Now has 89K.

We have fixed:
new clutch and flywheel
thermostat housing
barn door solenoids
update 2/23/2019:
new water pump, water pump drive wheel and tensioner pulley for $1000! Ouch!

Other than that just normal maintenance, but having the oil changes done at the shop is too expensive so I now DIY it.
Also replaced the door solenoids myself. I like the car better now that I've been able to work on it.
It is very fun to drive. More expensive to maintain than my Mustangs.

Also bought the 2012 R56 Inspired by Goodwood model with 14K miles in 2014. Nothing but normal maintenance so far at 38K miles.

[Blinkwing]

Dude, you literally blew my mind within 10 seconds. New, fresh intro and a bloody face reveal! Damn!

[michaelvanna]

Finally i saw the wholesome face behind Mod Mini. But thank you for sharing...avid fan/follower here🙂

[ashovelhead]

I haven't seen any newer videos of yours lately, but I do still consider your videos the "GO TO" when working on my R53 S and now my R56 S Mini's, Thank you very much for the excellent information with your insight and great video angles and commentary throughout. VERY USEFULL...

[VCRrepairman]

These types of guys, their expertise, and videos Are so special to us men raised by Single Mother. Be well, Good sir.

[AW-xvdq]

r53 and r56 for me. All the new cars are so muted. You don't feel anything. I sometimes wonder if we're so stressed that people just want cocoons to drive around in. Life has overloaded their stimulus but it seems that being able to have other stressors so we can put down the ones that eat at us 24/7 is super rad! I love being able to feel all the bumps in my r56 I imagine it's an even more raw exp in the r53. May get one down the road or maybe a miata and supercharge it for the rwd action.

[shankarbalan]

I have an R56 Cooper S mid 2012 model out here in India. Auto Transmission. Bought used from a chap who had hardly used it. It hasn’t done many kilometres at all. When I got it a year ago it had done 33700 ish. I did a thorough service when I got it. And I ve put another 9000 joy riding kms on the clock in these last 12 months. I’ve changed the oil properly. And I keep checking the dipstick every couple of weeks and so far despite this being a turbo, I haven’t found signs of oil starvation. Even the oil colour one year down the line isn’t like it’s turned black or anything. It’s fine really. I have changed out the Auto Transmission Fluid and yes despite the car not having done many miles, I believe changing it out was a good thing mostly on account of the age of the fluid. I’ve changed all the 4 disc rotors and brake pads and brake wear sensors. Now the car is due it’s second service after it came into my hands. I will be replacing the V Belt or Serpentine Belt as it is called. The existing one is showing some signs of wear and becoming slowly a bit brittle around the edges. It is very probable that this has never until now, been changed. I will also be changing the oil again even though I use only fully synthetic BMW LL01 FE as recommended. And synthetic oils do last much longer than mineral oils. Still, I will follow the annual oil change method. I did face one issue around two months into ownership where the coolant pump which is made of plastic by the way, started leaking.so I bought an OEM-replacement for it and luckily the replacement is a metal one. We changed it. I also changed the spark plugs to Iridium Spark Plugs from the original BERU standard ones. Because Iridium Spark Plugs are much more efficient. If at all there is any issue, I think the vehicle status on board display gets confused and the brake wear sensor at the rear seems to show that I need to change my brake pads at a faster rate than normal. I believe this is due to dirt and dust interfering with the brake wear sensor. So I am going to remove it and clean it and re fix it back. I know that my brake pads do not need changing again, I haven’t done enough kilometres on them as yet. Otherwise this car is a real pleasure to drive and it’s linear power delivery and fantastic handling never fails to bring a big grin to the face!
From a safety and general preparedness point of view I always carry a bottle of OEM BMW blue coolant, a bottle of distilled water and a bottle of BMW LL01 engine oil with me in the car.
But truly. This R56 Mini Cooper is a real modern classic.

[cameronbennett-ferland]

This is a great video. I'm buying a 2010 R56 with the N12 motor, and I was delighted to see that a lot of the new components on the particular one I'm getting are things you mentioned to look out for. Sure makes me feel better about my purchase!

[r.five.]

3:15 is all you need for this video lol

[bijdikh]

Always go for the N18 ones. If you can, get a 2013 those are hands down as reliable as an R56 will ever get.

[Bradafer]

Great production quality on this one!!! Glad to see you in front of the camera!!!