MINI Cooper (2000 - 2005) Reviews, Pricing & Specs

This was the first Mini that I have owned. I found this mini with only 38000 miles on it with the right trim package. It was just under the John Cooper Works. Totally fun to drive and plenty of room for a 6' 1" driver. The fit and finish of the interior was really nice and it kept that european feel as well. I would recommend driving or owning one. Feb 13, 2014

I loved this car from day one. I accept that it is a very small car, so it never frustrated me. In fact, I was surprised at how much actually fits inside, and you will be, too. Keeping expectations in line is key. It is not an SUV. It's a great daily commuter, grocery-getter, fun-around-town sort of car. If you like twisty mountain pass drives in the summer, you will love it for that. F.U.N. Jul 17, 2013

I love the fuel economy, I love it on twisty country roads, and it is great to park. I also like the color of the rims and the upgraded sound system. Acceleration is good but I would like to put an air intake, chip, and new exhaust on it. Even without that the car is a hoot to drive, good on gas, and plenty of room for three people...I am 6'7". Braking is sufficient so no complaints there. I always feel safe and in control driving it! Torque steer is almost unnoticeable. Undetectable in normal driving. The build quality is decent but there are a few pieces of plastic that tend to make noise.Dec 14, 2012

Being made by BMW means build quality is superb. Go-kart quick steering response is great for on-ramps and twisties. Six speed Getrag transmission is extremely smooth shifting with a clutch on the lighter side in terms of effort. Turn the wheel and the car sticks. No power understeer; slight off power oversteer, but that's a good thing and rare for a FWD car. All in all its a fun little car that gets great gas mileage while also delivering awesome performance.Oct 11, 2010

My favorite car that I have owned! Performance: With the supercharger, I had no problems getting anywhere quick. The entire time I had it, I had a whole lot of fun zipping in and out. Handling was a dream, like a go cart with great suspension, and the drivetrain ran smoothly, like a well oiled engine. Build: This was extremely solid. I can not name a car that was better. I was scared at first, knowing it was so small. But after examining everything, I became very confident in my vehicle. Appearance: It turned heads everywhere! The pin stripes were a wonderful addition to the blue, and the white top fit well. Cost: Everything the right price except for the loan payments. Fun: Never had anything better!!Sep 15, 2009

Performance - pretty good pick up for a 4 banger, handles like a go-cart Build Quality - only one major repair had to replace xenon headlight it was under warranty. Appearance - interior & exterior styling is very good. Cost of Ownership - 25mpg on avg between city & hwy, maintenance has been fairly reasonable synthetic oil & filters are a little much but no too bad. Fun Factor - It is a blast to drive. I like watching other cars brake going into a tight corner where I just say is that all you got! Jul 20, 2009

As of the summer of 2005, my mom's A4 had racked up more than 100,000 miles. Time for her to switch out, my dad thought. And since it was her 50th birthday, and my parents' 25th wedding anniversary, he decided to get something special. Which is what he did. Since we lived in France and saw the iconic original Mini still roaming the streets in hoards, she always envisioned herself as an old lady in a Mini. Since she's not old, I told my dad to check out the Mini Cooper S, catering to her "Momma Leadfoot" nickname. Other "mandatory" options for my mother included the Premium pack (sunroof, heated seats, auto AC, Xenons), 6-speed manual, and harman/kardon stereo. The dealer, Mini of Fairfield County, had one in Red with White Roof and Racing Stripes, on order, and since Minis were a hot commodity, we snapped it right up. There were a couple extras, such as the Sport pkg, and driving lights, but all in all it was a very well-rounded sports car for $25k, a bargain compared to the MkII Cooper S. I'm not going to lie, the car looks ridiculous on first glance. People who don't know cars says its too girly, but how many girly cars do you know have racing stripes, driving lights (just like a 1960s rally Cooper), 2-piece wheels with 45-series run-flats, and a supercharged-4/6-speed Getrag manual combo that goes 0-60 in just over 6 seconds? I'm not trying to hit on my mother, but show me a 20-something girl with that kind of ride and I'll buy her dinner. The notion of a girly car is dispelled whenever you climb into the body-hugging seats. The car isn't terribly comfortable if you're over 6-ft, but that's not a problem for me. The diminutive 3-spoke multifunction wheel lets you know that you're driving 1/2 a normal-sized car. The upright windshield is definitely distinctive, as is the giant center-mounted speedometer. My advice: make sure the on-board computer, which resides in the tach housing in front of the steering wheel, is set to show speed, as you will quickly find yourself in trouble with the law if you're not accustomed to looking @ the center speedo - especially in an arrest-me red sports car. The car begs to be driven hard and fast. My attempts to drive it sedately are met with embarrassing jerkiness, and any attempts to go faster are met with a stern "Slow Down!" from my mother. Needless to say, the problem goes away if I am driving alone or with my dad. The ride is what you would expect of a short wheelbase car w/ stiff suspension, and 45-series runflats: harsh. And because of that, I am reminded that this $25k car was designed to be profitable at $15k, with a myriad of squeaks and rattles evident by 3.5 years and 30,000 miles of use. Fuel economy is supposed to be the point of a Mini, and the supercharger saps any efficiency that the Tritec had, which wasn't much. I averaged just 31 mpg on a trip to VT once in the summer time, barely better than the 10-year-old Audi I was driving at the time, which weights 700 lbs more with AWD and a 2.8L V6. And the short gearing of the car amounted to 3000 rpm at 70 mph, and you can hear the engine droning away all day long. Lastly, despite the snow tires, the throttle can be tricky in the snow, sometimes providing more power than intended, spinning the fronts and activating the stability control Still, not bad given the immense driving satisfaction that I get when I drive it. The supercharger whine and exhaust note are spine-tingling, and the steering and shift action both have a natural heft about their action. It remains to be seen whether or not I would consider getting a Mini of my own, but in the meantime I enjoy the drive whenever I get the chance to get behind the wheel of this one.Jan 20, 2009

This is by far the most fun car I have ever driven. I have driven some SUPER performance cars but nothing feels quite the same as a MINI. Dont confuse the Cooper S with the base model Cooper, as the car is completely different. I set out to buy a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, or a WRX STI and as soon as I saw this MINI, I had to to test drive it. My intentions were to test drive it for fun, and continue on to buy an EVO or STI but within the first 2 to 3 minutes I was sold. I went back and bought the car on the spot. I have had some minor electrical problems with the door lock, and window motor on the passenger side but I believe it is a direct result of passengers slamming the light doors. I wish it had an arm rest...but I can certainly live without one. The handling on this car is fantastic, it turns like a go-kart, there is VERY minimal body roll, and you would have a very tough time TRYING to lose control of this car. I drive it in the upstate NY winters where the snow on the road is often higher than the front bumper, black ice is present, slush, hard pack, etc. I bought a winter wheel set for the car which is shown in one of the pictures(black), and this car is fantastic in the winter. When the weather is terrible and everyone on the road is driving slow, i'm actually passing cars. I think every car enthusiast thats driven in the winter has purposely slid around in parking lots or wherever the mood strikes, and I slide it around on purpose all the time and I constantly maintain control. The sound system is amazing and the bass is phenomenal. The sound of the stock exhaust is really nice and sporty, and the sound of the supercharger is even sportier. The power of the car is very nice. It does have a small engine, and these cars arent as light as they look so it does take a second to a second and a half to get it into the power and then when the supercharger kicks in... its indescribably fun in this little car. The interior is comfortable, beautiful, and highly slylish, but there are many points where the plastic rattles. There is MUCH more room than you would ever imagine by looking at the outside, and by folding down the rear seats, you create a huge trunk. I dont even need to mention gas mileage. Overall...this is a great car for the money, and if FUN is important to you while you drive...then buy a MINI S.Jan 17, 2009

Acceleration, braking and handling will give any $100+ thousand dollar sports car a good run for the money. Know that if you ever purchase one of these cars you WILL EXPERIENCE CONSTANT RATTLES. Run flat tires can be a bit costly as any flat requires the entire tire to be replaced in most cases. The warranty and maintenance program on these cars are superb. Jan 03, 2009

Writing anything would be an understatement for this car, you just have to drive the damn thing. 100% pure F-U-N! It has history, it has some sort of uniqueness and carisma in the whole package. The car definetely turns heads and the handling alone is unbeatable. The Mini also has a very good tuning potential and its superchared motor really gives an even boost to the cars performance. A must have for every car lover!Aug 03, 2008

This car has a very special place in my heart. The handling is just superb. Mine is plane stock, nothing extra on it, and it handles like a go cart, much much better anything else in the same pricerange. I have been going to trackdays with it, and its so easy to read. Very easy to go very fast around the bends. Acceleration and top speed is better than I had hoped for, esspecially when you consider that it only has 115 BHP and it still does 6.2L/100 KM when outside of the city, in the winter it only does 9.2L/100km in the city. The looks is better than the new new mini, the hood is much nicer with the bigger curves. But the build quality is not the best. No the typical BMW standart. The mark.II mini is much better build. I had it from new, and it still gives me a smile on my libs. My girlfriend loves it for the looks and the handling. I changed the gearbox, the generator, a computercontrolbox. All under warranty. Oh, yes and the servo pump as well. This is not okay for a new car. The price is a lot here in Denmark, actually is over the top. Very pricy. But still, this is the best money ever spend for me!! Jul 24, 2008

For the price, the mini cooper S is a steal. The stock suspension feels wonderful, and the brakes are really excellent (I would know >.<). It's a compact car, but you can fit 3 very, very large people in it with a little effort. Because it's made for auto cross, the 2nd gear is suuuppper long. You can go from 20mph to 70mph before you have to change gears if you're willing to push it to 6 or 7000rpms. The acceleration is great, but you get super charger lag until about 3500rpms. The interior is kind of like a space ship.. the speedometer is HUGE, and the tachometer is where the speedo normally is, but honestly I find that more useful. The tacky silver-colored plastic trim is a nuisance, and the steering wheel is kind of chunky, but you can control the radio with switches on the back of the wheel, and that's pretty awesome. My biggest complaint is the cupholders. For some reason, the designers thought it would be cute to have two little black hoops on either side of the switches above the cupholders, so any drink larger than, say, 6 inches can't fit in the damn things. The newer models have improved the interior substantially, but I can't say the 2003 design really works for me. Although it's pretty funny to see people who have never been in the car before search around for the tiny round door handles. :P Also, it's front wheel drive, so the turning radius is absolutely abysmal for such a small car, but I guess on the bright side it handles fairly well in the rain. I have the model with Run Flat tires, so a little sensor/alarm goes off when it senses a tire is going flat, and then you have (reportedly) 100 miles to go if you go 50mph or lower on the flat before you need to fix it, but I've gone around 250 miles doing highway speeds, so they're actually more useful than described. All in all, it's a great car, and I'm going to run her into the ground before I get another. :)Mar 28, 2008

If you want a car for fun and also for driving day to day, then this is just the ticket. If you get the S model of the mini cooper you will never want to part from it. I have had mine for 18 months and I can't fault it. It handles like a go cart in the corners and is so much fun. Inside you have got full, heated leather seats that are just perfect for cold winter mornings. Climate control, rain sensor wind screen wipers and cruise contol are an added bonus. My ar also have an electirc sunroom, which is brilliant for summer time! Mine is very high spec, but if your going for a mini that's what you should aim for in order to get the best experience.Jan 27, 2008

The new mini was always going to be an issue, as the old one had always been the 'classic mini' and the new mini could really not do this status justice. However, when you put the production into the hands of BMW, you know that they will not mess the project up. And so in 2001 the first mini rolled off the production line. This car looks good from an overall point, and the interior is very 'retro and old school' but this is what people love. The engine is only a small 1.6 litre, but dont let the sound of a small engine decieve the speed of this car. I have tuned my mini and so it can do 0-60 in sub 8 seconds, it has a great roar sound about it, which comes from its sister cars (BMW's) and the handling is extremely responsive, very much like a large go kart. The downside to this car is that it tends to break (clutch, gearbox, power steering) and the list goes on. BMW didn't build this car as well as they could do, but try owning an old mini and not breaking down! 10/10 for looks, speed, sound 2/10 for reliabilityJan 18, 2008