MINI Cooper S - Car on HP, engine blew up! Still have a year left

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Wed 7 Mar 2018 19:34
MINI Cooper S - Car on HP, engine blew up! Still have a year left - Sharon Bowles

We bought a 09 mini Cooper s in 2015 and looked after it well, yesterday the engine was leaking out oil and there' a hole..spoke to mechanic who has said we need a new engine, cost in excess of 2k! My question is, we're over half way through our hp agreement which means we can hand the car back, how does it work with them charging us? Will we just need to pay for the repair? Its 9 years old and would have been paid of next September, I'm going to struggle to pay for the repair so feel I haven't got many options? Many thanks in advance

Edited by Sharon Bowles on 07/03/2018 at 19:36

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Wed 7 Mar 2018 20:00
MINI Cooper S - Car on HP, engine blew up! Still have a year left - RobJP

Your HP agreement will have exact details of what is and is not 'acceptable' conditions.

It will almost certainly be a hell of a lot more expensive if they pay for the repair and then charge you, rather than you getting the work done yourself.

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Wed 7 Mar 2018 20:06
MINI Cooper S - Car on HP, engine blew up! Still have a year left - sandy56

You need to check and determine how you financed the car. If it was a Hire Purchase agreement then you own the car and are paying off the loan. If it was a lease or PCP type agreement then the supplier still owns the car and you are leasing it, and can hand it back at the end of the agreement.

If it was HP then the problem is yours.

If it was lease of PCP type deal then it depends on the T&C's of the agreement. Due to the age of the car it was probably a HP type deal.

If the repair is down to you then there are some options, buy a second hand engine from a written off car, or buy a reconditioned engine, get another garage to quote for the repair, and have it fitted.

You normally get some guarantee( maybe six months or even a year) if you buy from reputable suppliers. Check out this site, HJ, for a list of used/ reconditioned engine suppliers.

Or you could sell the car as is, but you wont get much for it.

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Wed 7 Mar 2018 20:12
MINI Cooper S - Car on HP, engine blew up! Still have a year left - Auristocrat

If it was a Hire Purchase agreement then you own the car and are paying off the loan.

No. In the case of HP, the car belongs to the finance company until the final payment is made.

If you bought the car with a personal loan (from a bank or similar), the car is yours.

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Thu 8 Mar 2018 12:22
MINI Cooper S - Car on HP, engine blew up! Still have a year left - Gibbo_Wirral

If the repair is down to you then there are some options, buy a second hand engine from a written off car, or buy a reconditioned engine, get another garage to quote for the repair, and have it fitted.

I'd go for that and return it. I did this when the cambelt went on an Astra and warranty wouldn't pay out and nobody (car dealer, warranty company, HP company) seemed to care.

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Thu 8 Mar 2018 17:43
MINI Cooper S - Car on HP, engine blew up! Still have a year left - Miniman777

Sorry to hear you've blown the engine, but Mini engines do have a certain reputation.

I had an R56 Cooper S (58 plate), blew a piston after 6 weeks of ownership. Luckily it was under BMW/Mini warranty, and they sorted it. My plan was a 2nd hand lump and get it fitted by a garage I trust (know the owner and family), never came to that.

If fitting a second hand engine, I'd have someone check the timing chain and tensioners are up to par (think tensioner was redesigned?) hich is a weak point, also the inlet ports which coke up.

Good luck.

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Fri 16 Mar 2018 22:32
MINI Cooper S - Car on HP, engine blew up! Still have a year left - Darryl_uk
It may not sound it but £2k is very cheep for a new engine. Expect for this price the engine will be a long way from new.
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Fri 16 Mar 2018 22:50
MINI Cooper S - Car on HP, engine blew up! Still have a year left - Mr Carrot Cake

Get it fixed, run it for a year or two, then buy something else more reliable.

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