good or bad years?

[MrBlah]

there any particular good or bad years for the mini cooper S's?

I'm in the market, or will be in the next 6 months, my 74 2002 just does not feel safe without airbags

[RalphzMCS]

The very first '02s had a small issue with the suspension but the dealers should have fixed the issue by now(or will if you end up with one). The '05s and '06s are a little faster with different gearing (shorter), they also had the option of lsd so that might be more appealing to you.

[Blau Moon]

i would go with the 05's or 06's just like stated above the gearing is different so its a little big quicker.

[TSR53]

I really enjoy my 2006 MINI Cooper S. I specifically waitied and ordered a 2006 in Jan last year. I wanted the last version of the R53 (BMW chassis code for the MINI Cooper S) that is supercharged. I also ordered the LSD (Limited Slip Differential) as an option. I've got just a tick over 10k miles on it now-very impressed. I was driving an early 1985 Porsche 944 Club Sport replica and moved up to the Cooper S. The gearing is spectacular, compaired to my long geared 944, and completely close ratio. VERY, VERY entertaining to drive.

I've been doing considerable reasearch on the engine (BMW code W11) in my 2006 R53 MINI Cooper S and have discovered that the pistons, wrist pins, connecting rods and bearings are manufactured by Mahle. A true heart of a German engine. The W11 engine, built in Brazil by Tritec, is a very trick little unit and more German than everyone thinks. The engine was voted one of 2003 10 best by Ward's group.

At the time of ordering in Jan last year, I knew all about the model update/switch over for 2007 with the new turbo engine that was coming. There are always teething problems on new year vehicles, and decided to avoid that route. By today's automotive standards (which seem to change every six months now...) the W11 engine (on it's fifth year of production in 2006) is being passed up today with FSI injection, better fuel economy and basically more efficient engines. This is evident in the new 2007 MINI design.