Possible New Daily Driver ?
 

I have a friend who is the GM of a Mini dealership that's trying to sell me one of these for a daily driver. I need a versatile front wheel or all wheel drive vehicle with ample cargo space. But, I don't want a gas guzzling SUV . Other considerations are a VW Jetta Sportwagen diesel or a leftover Saab Sportcombi wagon. Any thoughts ?


JD
p.s This is the color that I'm leaning toward.

It's not yellow.

Yeah, quite the opposite I was thinking. I usually hate white cars but my neighbor has a Mini in that same color scheme with the black wheels & it looks pretty good.

What about the Porsche Macan? Due out next year? I might be a prospect if it's available in 2wd.

The VW Sportwagen Diesel would be my choice.... lots of room, great diesel milage and an all-round great reliable car :-)

No yellow this time. The Dangermobile is already more than most people can handle !

Do your due diligence on ongoing maintenance costs on the mini. Clutch? $2500...

My buddy has one and he spends as much keeping it happy as I do on my old Boxster and will spend on my 550i. The mini is a BMW. Never forget that.

I've had no problems whatsoever since I bought my 2003 Mini Cooper S JCW earlier this year (yes, its even Danger Yellow!). Besides new oil, filter, and a set of plugs, I haven't had to do anything all year. Great car, fun to drive, and good performance. If you like the Mini, buy it.

"versatile front wheel or all wheel drive vehicle with ample cargo space"

Honda Fit if you want something economical and inexpensive. It is as plane Jane as it gets. I can't complain though, as I get around 36mpg and you can fold the seats down with enough room to fit 8 bags of mulch. Definitely not a sporty car, but maintenance costs are low and it is very practical

For the reason of preserving the Porsche, the wife and I decided to buy a beater for her to drive to work. We just got home from purchasing a1992 Honda Accord 2 door coupe for $1250. It is clean for it's age and miles. 238 K. Runs good. PO loved it and it shows. Only reason he sold it is to get a 4 door because his family is growing with 2 kids and another on the way. This car is much better than a beater. It is a beater with a heater.

I owned an '08 Mini Cooper S for about 2 years and loved it. But, I have pets and other considerations now that warrant a more versatile vehicle. That's why I'm considering the Countryman.

Scion? XD or FR-S?
My friend has a mini, nice and peppy, I could see one.. My xD has been quite reliable and a nice moderate size for a hatchback. An FR-S or something better will hopefully be my next DD if my boxster doesn't turn into that heh.

WRX hatch. Faster, more space, all wheel drive, and cheaper. When i say cheaper you can see why when you step inside one. There are really no luxuries in there. It looks great but the interior is the only part of the car that is to simple. With that said Check them out they are incredible cars. Plus who doesn't like a turbo every now and then.

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Every time I see one of those lifted Minis I vurp. 2 family members own Minis, an S and a Clubman (almost vurp-worthy) and have had great luck with them. If it were me, a VW Diesel Wagon would seem the most frugal choice, but I'd hands down choose the Saab, kind of quirky like you JD. ;)

But I honestly see you more in something like this...........


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I don't know how much cargo you need to haul around for work but you might want to check out the Escape. I'm not thrilled about the new Santa Fe looking Escape but the previous model is pretty sweet. The AWD is really refined and includes traction control for the lousy weather. The back is pretty big with the seats folded, as far as mileage it's incredible for a truck, I'm sure near thirty on the highway is about right. You already have one expensive German child, for me I like to make the DD something with reasonably priced parts and less specialized technology to break. Oh and I like my DD to have a spare and a jack too that seems like a no brainer.

It's missing the simulated wood panels . :)

I like the WRX's also; especially the STi model. However, it's just not what I'm looking for. There's an "edge" to WRX, I'd like something a lot more benign.

Well, if someone's gonna start tossin' WRXs into the mix, I might as well throw this in as well...

Got this (a 2007, but you could get a new one :D) last December to replace my former DD ('96 Camry). Not going to give you quite the mileage as the Mini, but good cargo space and good fun to drive. (Keep both hands on the wheel if you stomp it---this car taught me the meaning of torque steer!) All in all, I've been real happy with it.


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My wifes car is a Clubman, base and automatic. Fun car to drive. I had a Countryman as a loaner for two days while they did the annual fix and replace all of the broken parts (keep that in mind for any Mini!) Frankly this is a poorly designed car. The Mini coupe and Clubman are properly powered (even the base engine) and balanced. This beast has the same size engine, and mostly the same suspension, but the car is much higher and weighs more. I even had the turbocharged S version and it was still underpowered with terrible turbo lag. I was surprised by that as my friends Mini S coupe is a blast. The Countryman is just a terrible drive in my experience. SoCal is the largest Mini market in the world and you hardly see any of these, and for good reason.

My DD is an Outback. If I didn't need as much space for ski trips with a family of four, I would definitely have gone with the Impreza hatchback, and possibly the WRX version. Much better car than the Countryman.

I can personally vouch for the '66 rambler S/W. This was the family DD we used to move from Alaska to STLouis via the AlCan Hwy which was half paved & half gravel then.

That's a RWD car, but JD stated he wanted FWD or AWD, which would put him in one of these:
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