Golf R Line

[drisser]

I think if you are going to trade it after 2 years or so you might be right, but I think Mini real world (not paper) residuals are without question the best in the business, hence the low discount - its swings and roundabouts.  I had a couple of trade in quotes for my partners Cooper Graphite, its nearly 6 years old now, lowish mileage and cost around £16k new, and I got 2 offers straight away of  £6,500 so i reckon ready to sign I would be pushing £7k, thats nearly 45% residual after nearly 6 years..

Have you driven a previous Polo GTi (1.4 TSi) ?  I actually prefer the look of that one to the new shape, but never driven one.. also wonder about long term reliability of turbo + supercharged + DSG out of warranty..  But there are a few approved used ones for around £16k so price wise its a fair comparison..  As for a new shape Polo, would have thought its pushing £20k easily ?

Mini isnt without faults and some of the interior stuff is a bit OTT, but it was such a good steer when i drove it, I couldnt help but be impressed..

[Exonian]

@ drisser: the new new Polo GTI is a turbo only 1.8T with a manual so should have better residuals long term away from the fears that killed the 1.4 twin charged residuals.

The Mini 1.5T sounds a really good package.
How heavy are they compared to older Minis? Not original Minis obviously!!!

@ MH: the Polo GTI is still a little way from actual release and it seems very few dealers will get demos as the predicted uptake is low. It's a shame vw don't push this car a bit more.

[monkeyhanger]

@ MH: the Polo GTI is still a little way from actual release and it seems very few dealers will get demos as the predicted uptake is low. It's a shame vw don't push this car a bit more.

Low uptake = low demand or rare and sought after 3 or 4 years down the line? I’m doubting it’ll be quite as sharp on the handling as its main competitor (Fiesta ST), but the perception of better German build quality and it having a quicker 0-62 time could get the Halfords crowd drooling when it is old enough to be in the average 18-20 year old’s pricepoint. Or at 5 years old it might look horrendously expensive next to the ST?

I would imagine that from Drisser’s comments above that GFVs for minis are very detached from what these cars can actually sell for, with BMW showing extreme caution regarding PCP exposure (or are out to lowball you at trade-in time). 45% residual after 6 years is as good as it gets. My missus would be keeping it for the longhaul, she won’t get itchy feel after 2 years.

How long for a Polo GTI is the real question, are they going to make us wait 6-8 months like they do for an R? You could probably have a Mini in under 10 weeks if the turnaround of other BMWs are anything to go by.

[drisser]

Yep the dealer said 4-6 weeks for a new Mini order, less if there is something in the system obviously..

I def wouldnt wait 8 months for a Polo I am afraid.  By the way why dont they seem to be offering the monza shadow alloys on the new Polo GTi ?  really like the mini-golf GTi look.

I think as a total ownership cost / proposition with the TLC pack for Mini i think gives 5 years servicing and cover for £349.. so you pay maybe £17500 for a nice spec car, get back maybe 50% of your cash after 5 years, and have no hidden maintenance costs at all in those 5 years, you can see why the Mini is so popular..

[monkeyhanger]

Drisser: Yes the whole package does seem good, especially on the services, VW seem to be getting a bit tight with service packs. I've seen 3 year service packs for £199 before where you didn't have to take out finance, now it's 2 years for £149 if you take out finance, or do the monthly plan that will save you very little (whether financed or not).

The Mini is a bit of a girly car though - I definitely wouldn't buy one for myself as a daily driver.

Although I have a good and (relatively) honest relationship with my chosen salesman at Pulman (which was maybe strained a bit when I got all but his kidneys out of him while negotiating for the R!  ), when you have to deal with the others because he is on holiday, you realise he's the exception rather than the rule.

Being at the Mill car clinic the other week with my GTD (part of the BMW Cooper group), there was a whole new level of customer service. Every person there couldn't do enough for you, even going sofar as to try and persuade my insurance company not to take an excess from me, and when that failed, they rang Aviva and tried to persuade them to pay it directly so I didn't have to. If BMW dealers are all like that, some of us are seriously missing out.

[drisser]

I have found generally BMW and Mini service to be really good, with some exceptions - Cooper actually in another dealership where the salesman really did mis-sell me finance ( given I am a commercial accountant, not a good plan!) - I asked for a 24 month PCP quote with max deposit and he gave me a 48 month PCP quote, minimum deposit and £5k cashback from the mini trade in !??  You can imagine the conversation when I rang up and said why would I want to pay interest on cash I dont need !?

I think it varies from showroom to showroom tbh and def from salesman to salesman.

Of course there is another benefit to mini showrooms, almost always one or two attractive young ladies around 

[Exonian]

The guy who fixes my old runabout bought an older Cooper S that needed a bit of work off someone he knew (on the cheap obviously) for his wife to run around in.
Within hours of it turning up he'd had about half a dozen firm offers on it from customers.
That's why Minis have fantastic resale value, 80% of the female population love Minis and an awful lot of blokes too.
If I was to say to my wife tomorrow I was buying another Golf she'd roll her eyes and start putting up a dozen reasons why I shouldnt (all the while knowing she was on to a losing battle), yet if I said I was off to buy a Mini she'd be on her way down to the showroom to look at colour charts...
Only once I'd got it home would she ask how I was supposed to fold up two lanky teenage sons into the rear.
My step sis sold her Mini recently which she bought new and kept years and it fetched really strong money in part ex.
The new next door neighbours have a Mini. I assumed it was hers but no, she gets the bus to work - it's his and he loves it.
Need I go on?

Everyone loves a Mini.

[ffrank]

Another mini lover signing in!

I've always fancied an S works, but I'll have to be willing for some practicality trade off if I ever did.

My wife and I visited some friends in Denver, Colorado, a couple of years ago and they lent us their convertible Copper S. Bombing around canyon roads in the Rockies with the roof down under the Coloradan sun... it doesn't get much better than that! Cracking cars.

[mcmaddy]

The cooper convertible I had as a loan car was a right bone rattler. God awful car I couldn't wait to hand back!

[ffrank]

Lol!

Well yes, it was a bit of a supermarket trolly in terms of comfort, but that was half the fun (on holiday at least).