Overview & Reviews

Few cars are as instantly recognizable as the Mini. Loved for its diminutive dimensions and cheerful good looks, the British-born car has inspired passionate devotion both in the U.S. and abroad. The brand was briefly discontinued, but was revived in 2002 with help from BMW. Successfully paying homage to the original Mini Cooper of the 1960s, the reincarnated Cooper combines an athletic, BMW-engineered chassis with a space-efficient interior and a generous standard features list.

The history of the Mini make began in 1959. The original Mini car was produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) in England and its mission was to be a lightweight, agile four-passenger car that took up minimal space. In a sense, the brand was born out of necessity. The United Kingdom was subject to fuel rationing in the wake of the Suez crisis, and British consumers clamored for vehicles that offered optimum fuel efficiency.

The car was originally sold under BMC's Austin and Morris brands; the Mini name didn't make an appearance until 1961. Although it had just 34 horsepower, the Mini was the ideal urban car and proved popular in crowded European cities. In 1961, John Cooper, a man who built Formula One racecars, put his magic hands on the Mini and the result was the ferocious Mini Cooper. His Cooper S model had (at 76 hp) more than double the output of the standard Mini. That infusion of power, along with suspension tweaks and some really good driving, had Mini winning the Monte Carlo Rally four years in a row (1964-'67). The marque landed on American shores in 1962.

The '60s truly was the decade of the Mini. New variations on the car's theme came with the introduction of vehicles like the Mini Pickup and the Mini Moke, a vehicle that resembled a quirky cross between a Mini and a Jeep. The car's abbreviated proportions are even rumored to have played a part in sparking a fashion trend; the miniskirt raised hemlines and became emblematic of an era. Mini motorcars tore up the asphalt on the silver screen, with the brand's appearance in the 1969 film The Italian Job. By the end of the decade, more than 2 million Mini motorcars had been produced. Sadly, the vehicle was pulled from the United States in 1968, in the wake of strict new emissions regulations.

Though no longer available in the U.S., Mini remained in production in Europe through the '70s and '80s. By the mid-'80s, more than 5 million Minis had been produced worldwide. In 1994, the brand was acquired by the BMW Group. The marque went on hiatus in 2000, but was resurrected (and brought back to American shores) in 2002 with the launch of the entry-level, front-drive Mini Cooper hatchback. Thoroughly modern in every way, right down to its BMW-engineered suspension, steering and brakes, the Mini Cooper is sold alongside its cousins at BMW dealerships.

Today, Mini's offerings include various derivatives of the Cooper, including a coupe, a roadster and a convertible; the slightly longer Clubman; high-performance John Cooper Works variants; and even the crossover SUV-inspired four-door Countryman. With such a diverse, fun-loving lineup, it's no wonder that Mini has become one of America's most desirable small car automakers.

User Reviews:

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  Think twice-Novelty wears off quick - 2003 Mini Cooper
  By Peter Rorie - February 21 - 7:10 am

  Im a medical rep. that drives 70 miles a day of hard driving. Ive put 10,000 miles and 3,000.00 bucs into the car!--all new brakes,fan assembly, electric windows,clutch, ect,ect. Its cool for the first month, then guess what? Its just another gutless little car. Resale is still good-(x car salesman). For a toy, its great. If your gonna make it your work car--buy something else.--If I had it to do again, Id of bought a clean used BMW 325. I paid 14k a year ago for it--Ill get 9500- in trade for it next month-(already had a quote)- make sure you love em if you make the purchase--your gonna spend a little $ on it. (Also, MAKE SURE theres a dealer close by) Youll be appreciated.

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  Why did I even bother with this car? - 2003 Mini Cooper
  By Jasen G - February 2 - 2:00 am

  It was a nice car at first, but then everything started to go wrong. In ten months Ive spent $2000 in repairs (half of which should have been covered under warranty), and Im about to spend more to fix the faulty brakes. The car eats through tires, the oem windshield is too thin and fragile, and the brakes have never been properly functional, and all the problems the car has, isnt covered by any warranty...

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  dont waste your money - 2008 Mini Cooper
  By dan - December 21 - 7:06 pm

  we bought this to fast ,it is very small inside and hard to get to anything in the back after only 6 months the dealer will only give us 19,000 trade for a 33,800 loaded mini , they told us the mini was hard to get and has a good resale value ,these were just lies to get us to buy the car if you dont mind a bumpy ride,no room inside ,or want to loose 15,000 on your car in 6 months than this is the car for you ,i learned my lesson the hard way , hope this helps you .

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  2012 Base Mini, Manual Trans, Lemon - 2012 Mini Cooper
  By Kevin - December 4 - 11:13 am

  I traded in my trouble plagued 2002 Mini, for what I thought was a major upgrade. I purchased my 2012 Base Model Mini with manual transmission last Aug. with 31,000 miles. While driving down to my favorite eatery, shifting from 1st to 2nd shifter know came off in my hand. I managed to replace it and continued on. A couple of days later a aprox. 32,000 miles I began to notice a clatter from the engine at first start up in the morning, during the next few weeks it became progressively worse. I took it to the local Mini dealer and was informed the clatter was the clutch failing. Being a mechanic for 40 plus years I called BS, told them to keep the car for a cold start test the next day. Low and behold it was determined the timing chain was at fault, these engines apparently have chain tensioners prone to failure. The timing chain was replaced along with tensioners and gears. The dealer Seattle Mini stuck by their story that my clutch was failing and would be 2400.00 to replace, but offered me an extended warranty that would cover the clutch for 1895.00. What a way to cover the cost of the warranty work. About 2 weeks after having the work down, the engine began to misfire badly, had it towed to the dealer, they replaced the coil packs for the ignition, and spark plugs and wires. So here we are today, 41,102 miles, the engine is beginning to clatter again from the exact same location. Under warranty to 50,000 miles. Soon as it gets worse to justify the warranty work and before 50,000 miles back in again for another timing chain, followed by a quick trade in for another car, not MINI. Oh and did I mention that Seattle Mini tried the whole your clutch is failing routine on me a 2nd time with offer of the extended warranty when I took it in for the Misfire problem I mentioned earlier. By the way the clutch still works perfect, however the manual transmission has always been clunky when shifting, the transition from 1st to 2nd requires a firm pull, it also has no reverse lock out, on 2 separate occasions I have been at a light and forgot to downshift into first, while quickly doing so as to not block traffic, it went into reverse. Luckily caught it before I hit someone behind me. Been driving manual for years.

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  Mini car; major problems - 2004 Mini Cooper
  By Cooperfan - November 8 - 2:00 am

  This car looks wonderful but the build quality leaves a lot to be desired. There are rattles and noises that no- one (not even the unhelpful dealership where I bought it) can find and resolve. The car draws attention even from the blind but I just cant get past the cramped feeling from the interior.

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  My MINI Cooper S nightmare - 2008 Mini Cooper
  By tdi owner now - November 2 - 7:53 pm

  I thought when I bought my MINI Cooper S 2008, I was buying my dream car. I was proven wrong as soon as winter in New England came around. First morning below 0 it left me stranded on the side of the road for 4hours (until Roadside could get me). At that point, it was in shop x 3 weeks, they needed to get a modified "snorkle" part for the manifold. There was water in there. I thought doesnt it get cold in Europe..well yeh! The car come May and June wasnt any better. The car was at the dealer on ave. 1x every 6-8 weeks with less than 20000mi. I lost a ton of money when I traded in my completely unreliable MINI contrary to what the dealer says it does lose value!

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  Dont buy one - 2002 Mini Cooper
  By minilemon - October 2 - 2:00 am

  This car had "de-acceletrated 4 times, going from 50 MPH on the highway to 20 without warning, cant make it up a hill, lost power in the middle of a busy intersection. The BMW dealer in SF told me that other MINIs have had the same problem and required the engine harness to be re-wired, but according to their service protocol, they would first do a series of software upgrades to see if that would fix the problem (that did not fix the problem on other cars, so why would it fix my problem? Their mechanics are not trained to work on MINIs, they gave me a hard time about paying for a rental car or giving me a loaner

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  Expensive to Own - 2007 Mini Cooper
  By mnw - September 29 - 6:28 am

  I have had a blast driving my S. It is a sports car noisy and stiff ride but you would expect this. We removed the back useless sets and installed Seat deletes.

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  Inconsistent Build Quality - 2002 Mini Cooper
  By babyboomer - September 20 - 10:00 am

  Having driven my MINI CVT (Automatic) for 5,000 miles, I have mixed feelings. When operating properly the most fun Ive had in a car. But, and this is a big but, car has intermitent issues, ie. stalling, idle variances and lack of power. These issues are sporadic, which makes it difficult to feel safe. Service does what it can, yet issues keep coming up again. Car has been in 6 times with almost 30 days in service. I suggest waiting for the 2003 model and avoiding the CVT. Hopefully the 2003 S will have worked all the bugs out. Also, order the car, shop around as many dealers add up to $3000 in mandatory accessories above MSRP!

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  I knew it was a mistake - 2011 Mini Cooper
  By sanscrainte - July 5 - 11:13 am

  I bought a 2011 Mini Cooper for my son to earn to drive on because it was like a go-kart. I knew what I was in for, it being a perfect storm of unreliability being a German car made in England. All of my other vehicles are either a Toyota or a Scion. You buy them and drive them. They are like purchasing an appliance. We had the Mini for 5 months when the timing chain broke at a red light, destroying the engine. Now, although this is a known defect, BMW waned nothing t do with it. This left me with a $6000 engine replacement and Gid knows what after that. Know this; if you are not rich, buy Japanese every-time. Never, ever, buy German or English. Bad Motor Works.