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MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - EMminihunter

Hi

Would really appreciate any opinions here.

So I have narrowed down a search to two cars mini cooper 1.5

one on a 20 plate comfort pack (25k miles)

one on 71 plate comfort plus electric wingmirror/comfort access/rear parking camera etc 8.5k miles

Both white.

20 plate is on foe 13750

71 plate on for 16750

Seems to be an enormous difference in price. Is this worth the extra 3 thousand ?

Opinions thanks. Both approved main dealer and manual/petrol 5 door.

I've just been stung with a rotter and had to send ack to Dealer hence opting for thr 8.5 k miles... but wondering if my bad experience has made me fret.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - badbusdriver

Really not my cup of tea, but if it was i personally wouldn't pay the extra for the lower miles example.

It's not like 25k is a lot on a 3/4 year old car.

Edited by badbusdriver on 23/12/2023 at 16:10

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - EMminihunter

Thanks

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - EMminihunter

Thanks. I appreciate the different opinions on this...

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - Adampr

I don't think I'd be paying the extra £3k, but it's really down to whether you think it's worth it.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - EMminihunter

Thank you

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - bazza

Buy the cheaper one and enjoy about 2 years of free motoring on the money you've saved!

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - EMminihunter

Again. Thanks aswell for taking time to respond.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - Andrew-T

It's some time since I studied the used-car market in any detail, but that price diff is about what I would expect for a newer plate and lower mileage, plus the extra goodies. It's your choice, allowing for the results of any test drive, colour and other personal preferences.

Depending how long you keep the car you should recover some of the extra money when you part-ex.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - badbusdriver

Yeah, I was wondering about those "goodies".

I'm assuming the dearer car having electric wing mirrors means power folding?. As opposed to the cheaper car having manual mirror adjustment!.

Also curious as to what comfort access entails?

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - leaseman

Assuming full Dealer Service History (Does it have that??) the 71 plate car will have a good number of months Manufacturer's Warranty left, and, no matter what warranty is promised on a used car ("Approved" or not) you will have a reasonable window to ensure that it is in good order. Despite the price difference, the extra spec. and the warranty position would make it my choice.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - EMminihunter

Thanks this is all really good feedback really appreciated

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - Sparrow

Comfort Access is BMW speak for keyless entry. I assume it means the same on a Mini.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - FoxyJukebox
One quick point-being a 20 plate , when’s the MOT due?
MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - Ethan Edwards

Let's say you were selling your mini with super low mileage. How much extra would you receive? A few hundred at most. To be brutal that's all its actually worth. Throw in dealer markup maybe a thousand? Certainly not what's being asked.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - Bromptonaut

At that level I'd not let the mileage influence me at all provided servicing etc is all tickety boo. Ex works manufacturers warranty might influence me but not to extent of £3k all ealse being equal.

Bought my Roomster, a diesel, with nearly 70k racked up in around 5 years. Ex Demo then one local owner in nearby town. It was fine until I wrote it off in a sc***e although it did need an EGR valve replacing but that was covered by a warranty as it was Skoda approved used.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - EMminihunter

Thank you 70k is a lot more mileage than I'll ever get to

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - EMminihunter

So an update and if anyone kindly wants to offer an opinion as I'm genuinely stuck

The 71 plate went I decided it was too much and Iver my budget for a small car.

Thing is I'm really stuck part of me thinks is an approved warranty worth the paper it's written on... due to a bad experience previously.

So it's coming down to three new choices as those got snapped up.

I've seen a mini cooper countryman no extras classic 19k mileage 20 plate car supermarket motorpoint ex motability 3 months warranty £15999 seems to have service history from mini on the electronic dashboard which stacks up to mileage some advisorys on tyres on mot.

Mini hatch cooper 1.5 classic with heated seats, 17inch alloy looks in good enough nick 17k miles, dealer has said he would do it £15k approved used. Have test driven.

Other end of the scale there one just come on at car giant ex lease £11699 but very basic model only 10k mileage but 69 plate and has come from lex autolease. Assume they would have had to done the servicing in those years. Can already see parcel shelf is missing from photos ... but wondering what can go wrong at 10k miles...

I know there's probably.more reliable cars out there but.ive got my head set on a mini for some reason.

Any opinions greatly welcomed. On what you think would be the most common sense option.

Thanks

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - leaseman

Do not assume anything! A Lex car could have been on a non-maintained Contract and could well have been neglected. Do Not Assume Anything.

Ask to see and read any warranty documents and study the restrictions, limitations on costs and cover before deciding whether an after-market warranty, whether "Approved" or not, is worth a dime.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - badbusdriver

Are you not able to get something within your budget from an actual Mini dealer?. The warranty on an approved used Mini from a dealer is surely going to be reasonably comprehensive and much better than some third party aftermarket one being offered from a generic used car place?

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - badbusdriver

Just had a look at approved used on Mini's website. Assuming a max budget of £16k, there are over 400 (5 door) Mini's of various types available ranging in age from 2013 to 2022. Granted this is nationwide, but presumably there are means to get the one you want to your nearest Mini dealer (for a fee no doubt)

If your heart is set on a Mini, this is where you should start.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - EMminihunter

The second one 17k mileage at £15k is mini approved used.

I did have a bad experience, and had to return and reject an approved used last year. ??

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - EMminihunter

That's solid advice. Thank you.

I'm learning to assume nothing your totally right.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - Andrew-T

Other end of the scale there one just come on at car giant ex lease £11699 but very basic model only 10k mileage but 69 plate and has come from lex autolease. Assume they would have had to done the servicing in those years. Can already see parcel shelf is missing from photos ... but wondering what can go wrong at 10k miles.

Assuming that cars often come with service intervals of 12K miles or more, I would guess that your 69-plate vehicle may never have had a proper service. But it will (should) have a MoT history for you to see. At 10K miles the car should be 'new' inside and out, but the mechanicals would probably need a thorough going over ?

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - Terry W

Purely a personal view - I would buy newest subject only to meeting the minimum spec I need (not like or want), service history, and average or below miles (<30k??). Condition should be unmarked aside from possible wheel scuff and minor stone chips.

With a budget of ~£16k you can get a car with up to a year of manufacturers warranty remaining - gives reassurance against any major faults developing.

I would not pay much extra for gizmos - possibly nice to have but largely unnecessary.

Nor would I pay much of a premium for a fancy showroom and a lot of prep to make it look pretty - unless you dress the tyres, polish it every week, and valet the inside once a month the gloss soon wears off.

MINI Hatch 5-door - Is lower mileage worth it. - badbusdriver

I did have a bad experience, and had to return and reject an approved used last year. ??

What was the problem with your approved used car?, and was it a Mini?

Also just want to clarify that we are both on the same page re what is meant by a manufacturers approved used scheme. In this case, a used Mini being sold by a Mini dealer, as opposed to anyone else. While I don't know how good or otherwise the Mini one is, there are certainly manufacturer approved used schemes which are considered very good. This is especially helpful when it comes to makes which are considered very desirable, but which are also not considered very reliable(!), such as Land Rover/Range Rover. The reason I'm asking is because of this comment:

Mini hatch cooper 1.5 classic with heated seats, 17inch alloy looks in good enough nick 17k miles, dealer has said he would do it £15k approved used. Have test driven.

I don't know for sure, but I'd have thought any and all used Mini being sold at a Mini dealer would be approved used as a matter of course, rather than whether the salesperson "put it through" as such?