https://johna.motortraders.net/ Australian automotive blog with used car reviews, and posts about cars including BMW and Volvo. https://johna.motortraders.net/blog/1682/1712-mini-r50-r52-r53-2002-2006-review/ Many owners love their Mini but they can be expensive to run and have some serious common problems.<br><br>The CVT transmissions are not at all reliable and should be avoided.<br><br>Manual transmission models can require clutch replacements much earlier than typical.<br><br>Cooling system leaks are common and some parts are made of plastic which don't last very long.<br><br>The electric power steering system can also be problematic.<br><br>Superchargers require occasional maintenance to avoid costly failures.<br><br>There have been issues with strut tower failures.<br><br>Minis have run-flat tyres so there is no spare. Some owners may have swapped to cheaper conventional tyres.<br><br>Image credit: Vauxford, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons<br><br><div class="row"><div class="col-6 col-sm-4 col-md-3 mb-3"><a href="/blog/uploads/img1682_F79A66A8-8E79-11EB-B976-A501D5CB2D6C.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="" src="/blog/thumb/img1682_F79A66A8-8E79-11EB-B976-A501D5CB2D6C_md.jpg" class="img-fluid"></a></div></div> https://johna.motortraders.net/blog/1682/1712-mini-r50-r52-r53-2002-2006-review/#comments 2021-03-27T12:00:00+10:00 Mini Reviews https://johna.motortraders.net/blog/uploads/img1682_F79A66A8-8E79-11EB-B976-A501D5CB2D6C.jpg https://johna.motortraders.net/blog/1682