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So, a bit out of the blue, but after a drunken conversation a few weeks ago, it seems that the wife has a hankering for a mini. Not wanting to be in trouble for not doing as I’m told, a purchase has been made!

I don’t know whether the R50 yet qualifies as autoshite, but with the immense list of just problems these cars actually have, that are only just revealing themselves now, is staggering, especially on the early cars. As preface, I own a very early Modern Mini. Newer versions of the R50 are fairly good, and the R53 Cooper S is even better, as I also have one of those. To start, I got my little early Mini, in the knowledge it needed a bit of “Touching up” but would only take a couple of hours of work. This was some point Summer 2020. I was greeted by a load of butchered wires, attempted fixes, and general, shit. Luckily I fixed that, and the wiring was all neat and tidy, within a few days. However, the airbag light was on, so the carpet had to stay out. Spoiler: It would stay out until just last month. So in April, I got round to tackling the airbag, and checked all the usual problem spots, but the light remained. So I bought a new module, and yay, it worked. Until last week, when I unplugged the battery, and moved it outside, and saw the airbag light was back... AHHH! Now in June, the airbag was fixed, the car was starting to nearly be ready for an MOT. Then the ABS light came on. Its a common issue, yes, and just needs a refurbishment after 20+ Years in the car, but still an infuriating task. These cars may be cheap, but my god are they riddled with issues, especially the more unloved ones. At least mine only has 90K Miles.