MINI Clubman estate (2007-2014) | owner reviews: MPG, Problems & Reliability

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No Red thumbs down

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perfect - nothing has gone wrong

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Works well. Starts first time. No problems so far.

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No Red thumbs down

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No problems so far.

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No Red thumbs down

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No Red thumbs down

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No major problems, just a problem with the electric window. Also, erratic handling over bumps but dealers states that is is just a characteristic of the car.

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No Red thumbs down

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2 clutch failures in 55,000 miles - replaced under warranty. Other than that - very good.

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No Red thumbs down

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I sometimes wish i hadnt bought it. Its a bit slower than i hoped and is sometimes a bit uncomfortable.

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No Red thumbs down

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For the price and considering the badge the build quality, especially inside the car is poor! Runflat tyres also make for a very harsh ride - especially over pot-holes.

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No Red thumbs down

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No Red thumbs down

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A smart little car that is very economical and cheap to run with brilliant handling and a practical load space. Good residual values are an icing on the cake. I do over 20000 miles per year, and this car is still fun to drive.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Excellent little car and a big improvement in passenger space on the hatch back. Good performance for a diesel and good economy for an auto. Handling is very good, only complaint is a little skittishness on bumpy surfaces.

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No Red thumbs down

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Practical poor gearbox, poor heating controls, 3rd door on wrong side

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No Red thumbs down

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This is my third mini the other two were also coopers, if the countryman gets the 140bhp engine (as roumered) then i will seriously consider that in cooper s "d" trim.

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No Red thumbs down

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Fun car but a little too small

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No Red thumbs down

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Utterly reliable

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No Red thumbs down

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Broken air con pipe after 8 weeks

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Three problems so far: fan ran for a very long time after engine was switched off (once); rear wiper failed; and some rubber protection has fallen off underneath engine.

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No Red thumbs down

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Never let me down

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No Red thumbs down

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My mini clubman is a fantastic car, does everything i want with fabulous performance and great economy too.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Great product

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Yes Green thumbs up

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- high pleasure of driving - acceptable fuel consumption (6.5-7.0 l/100km) - individual design/styling with good suitability for daily use

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Fun to drive, more practical than the hatchback

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Yes Green thumbs up

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My car is amazing to drive and cannot be compared with any other car for the fun factor. However, the number and serious extent of the problems that i have had with the car is unforgiveable. The engine required a full strip down after oil went into the inlet, the rear door required a new switching mechanism, the radio had to be replaced, the windscreen and headlamp washers have jammed, and there have been countless rattles requiring the dash top to be replaced, the door card to be padded and a rear airbag to be screwed back on! Not good as the car is less than 18months old and only has 14k on the clock.

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No Red thumbs down

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Wife loves it for it's looks, but it's not the most practical of cars. However, it's well built and reliable with enough toys on it to be enjoyable.

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Overall the car has met my expectations. The problems i have encountered have been fixed by my dealer without further issue

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Just a few quick thoughts about living with the ‘MINI experience’ for anyone else looking at getting a MINI. I purchased a Clubman Cooper S for over £20,000 back in late 2008. At first all was well, I enjoyed driving the car and it put a smile on my face. The handling, the willing free revving engine, the styling, all good. Then the little squeaks and rattles started. The cam chain tensioner was replaced under warranty, then an item of plastic panelling failed and again was replaced under warranty. This was OK as you expect a few problems but the main problem on this particular model was the R98 web spoke wheels. The reason for this statement is that after just one winter I noticed corrosion on all four of the wheels. I was fastidious about keeping these wheels clean and only used warm soapy water and no chemicals. These wheels were replaced under warranty in the spring. My local dealer mentioned this doesn’t happen very often and appeared surprised. But the surprise is that the same thing is happening again the following winter! The replacement wheels were less than 10 months old and were corroding again – this time on only three wheels. I mentioned to the local dealer that Id like to swap these for a different set of alloy wheels that don’t corrode but they said that I was just ‘unlucky’, and would only be able to offer a ‘like for like’ replacement . Not to be perturbed, and I do like minis and MINIs, I swapped my PSA engined Cooper S for a 60 plate BMW engined Cooper D Clubman. Again really nice to drive and quite a punchy little engine, good for B roads and motorways, but really cheap to run (giving just over a real 50 mpg on steady motorway trips) and only £20 per year tax. The diesel engine was surprisingly smooth and free reving, I was really impressed. Unfortunately, the fly in this ointment was the reliability of the BMW engine, which was a surprise. With less than 20 thousand miles on the clock the turbo failed. This was replaced under warranty and everyone at the dealership was quite surprised and explained that this type of failure hardy ever happens. I was getting quite used to seeing the dealer at this point as I had been to see them 3 times in the previous 10 months as there were diesel fumes coming into the cabin when driving – this was fixed at the third visit and all was well. Then not long after that the DPF failed and again was replaced under warranty. Then the suspension started squeaking which I just got used to. Then a few months short of the warranty finishing the turbo failed again, 20 thousand miles after the last one!! The dealership has been good and has always been able to give me a loan car when asked. I have now got to 90 thousand miles and the dreaded ‘death rattle’ has materialised. The AA was called out and confirmed cam chain issues. It was taken to a local specialist who diagnosed the same issue and added if I hadn’t addressed this when I did the engine would have been a right off. It was also noted that the dual mass flywheel was nearing the end of its life. On balance it may have not been worth getting the work done to fix these problems – so several thousand pounds out of pocket the MINI was back on the road. The cam chain really needs replacing way way before the recommended replacement interval. At this point I decided to sell it before something else failed spectacularly… But in my personal experience the BMW engine has got a reliability issue, and personally I wouldn’t rate it highly in that area. Ive owned six minis/MINIS (4 of them proper minis) over the years and although the BMW MINI is in no way related to the original, it does try to capture some of the driving fun. However, there are now quite a few models on the market which provide the same if not more levels of driving enjoyment for the money. On a personal level I wouldn’t buy another BMW - which is ‘perceived’ as a premium brand.

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No Red thumbs down

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The car has been fine overall, apart from the timing chain needed replacing not long after I had it (done without fuss at Stratstone MINI Derby!) plus a little thirst for oil every 1000 or so miles! Apart from that it has been great!

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Everything works, first time everytime & feels solid

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No problems so far.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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startswell, drives well

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No Red thumbs down

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I think it is the best car i have ever owned

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Pros: excellent build, great fun,surprisingly large boot space, Cons: not as economical as mini claim, averaging 45mpg. Heavy front tyre usage,

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No Red thumbs down

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I am very pleased with it

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Great little car, extra room with clubman model, could do with a little more power but running costs are very cheap

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No Red thumbs down

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Everything i expected and more

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Bought 2 years ago when the vehicle was 4 years old and started to have gearbox problems within 6 months, first clutch plate replaced after it failed when driving on motorway in dark, then clutch cylinder failed six months later when driving in dark in rural area. Today gearbox failed on motorway. All failures had high potential to cause accidents as caused catastrophic transmission failure and were unexpected, no prior indication of defect. Car driven for normal commuter use. I do not recommend this vehicle to anyone. Not reliable, potentially dangerous, don't waste your money on one.

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Owned my car since January when it was a 2000 mile demo. Has now covered a further 18,000+ trouble free miles. The only qualm is that the sports seats aren't overly comfortable. I have the new Cooper D on order and the seats appear to be much more supportive (I am 6' tall). The only fault was the need for the passenger door seal to be replaced as it let in water if the car was pressure washed.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No problems at all.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Hasn't missed a beat

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Nothing has gone wrong other than me breaking a wing mirror

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Not experienced any problems so far

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No issues to date

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Yes Green thumbs up

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numerous faults, had timing chain tensioner replaced 4 times!!!

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No Red thumbs down

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

No Red thumbs down

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

No Red thumbs down

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Great fun to drive given it's low running costs, and copes well with family duties and long journeys like a bigger car. A great blend of characterful driving with sensible costs.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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I love my cooper s, however the treatment i had from mini over my problem will stop me from buying another. Great performance and reasonable economy when driven sensibly

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No Red thumbs down

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Excellent performance, brilliant handling. Refinement and build quality not as good as i expected from a bmw-owned company (mini). Fit to parts of the dash not great (speedo rattle) and dab radio not connected at factory requiring dealer repair. Dealer service very good but glad work has been done under warranty! Criminal that i had to pay £43 for the ipod connecting lead on a £20,000 car. Overall a fun and fast car but regret paying £20,000+ for a mini and should have bought the diesel.

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No Red thumbs down

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Very practical poor heater controls, poor gearbox 1st gear next to reverse easy to select reverse by mistake hard ride runflat tyres expensive to buy but good resale

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No Red thumbs down

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I love my mini - great to drive, great dealer service, would not hesistate in having another - not something i would say about any other car i have had

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Yes Green thumbs up

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The car has always, started and performed as new

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No Red thumbs down

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First class

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Faultless

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Great image, good on fuel, great to drive, love it!!

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Fantastic car. I tried lots of other cars before buying another mini and nothing else can touch it for driving dynamics, comfort and running costs.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Excellent styling, nice drive. Poor build quality tho

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No Red thumbs down

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It's the best car i've ever had-it is so practical with loads of space, fairly comfortable on long journeys, very economical, fast with incredible road holding and stylish-what more could you ask for?

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Able let down by dealers

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No Red thumbs down

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Very reliable and, whilst not as much fun as the cooper i had previously, it is still fun to drive.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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More practical than the mini hatch, every journey is an opportunity to smile. The handling is excellent but a bit more oomph would have been welcome. The main advantage of the cooper over the more powerful s is the significant reduction in insurance costs. It's a pity that the club door couldn't have been engineered to be either on the correct side or both.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up