Collectible autos: the MINI Cooper S and Works

If you were to pick nearly any person at random out of a crowd and ask them to name the most quintessentially British car ever made, odds are damned good that they'll tell you the Mini. A few snobs will probably say something like the Jaguar XKE and the occasional smartass will mention the Hillman Minx, but nevertheless, it's absolutely undeniable that the Mini is a name which is forever remembered as the fantastic little English car.

Enter the MINI (note the capitalization), launched in 2001 as the reborn Mini—it's small and fun and ... not at all British, actually. In fact, it's an almost entirely German car with a Brazilian engine (the designs for which will soon be sold to a Chinese firm) and the replacement MINI (coming out in 2007) will still have German mechanicals but will be based on a French platform and will be designed by Italians.

Thankfully, us Americans give piss-all about the entire lot and are content to say it's, "European with some other bits," which is just about the same as the British heritage of the original, at least in our star-spangled eyes.

The MINI is available worldwide with at least four different engines—although the 1.4L gasoline and diesel aren't sold here in the US. All markets get access to the MINI Cooper with its 1.6L straight-4 and the MINI Cooper S, which has a supercharger and a few other upgrades. The Works package—available as an add-on for the S models—upgrades the supercharger, cylinder head, and exhaust system.

Now, the suspension (and indeed, most of the car) was designed by BMW—to the point that the rear suspension on the MINI shares its design with the Z axle used to underpin the E36/7 BMW Z3. The odd part here is that BMW doesn't (and possibly hasn't ever—I need to read up on that) produce front-wheel-drive cars, and although the original MINI handles delightfully well, it shares practically no parts with its replacement. Up until the MINIs release, it was unclear whether or not BMW was up to the task of engineering a FWD car.

Thankfully, BMW was up to the task, and the resulting car is often heralded as one of the best-handling FWD cars made recently.

Collectability: Good in another five years. Hold off to buy one because prices will continue to fall for a while.

(+) It's got heritage, with a capital H. Anybody who was anybody drove a Mini back in the day. Heads of state, rock and rollers, big name actors—and even your dad...if you happen to be British. These were cars that nearly everyone in the UK had from the people at the top of the pyramid all the way down to the people lugging big pyramid parts for those on top. It's sortof like the VW beetle but without the embarrassing footnote of, you know, Hitler and all that. The Mini is a symbol of Britain in the 1950s and 1960s—and that's something most people do just fine with.

The new MINI banks on that. Plebes can buy one new for under $25,000 and even Madonna drives one. It's young and fresh and suitable for speed merchants, old hipsters, and treehuggers alike.

(+) It's got track presence. Base models notwithstanding, the MINI is a capable little vehicle. The S makes nearly 170hp which, although the car is significantly heavier than the original at 2,500 pounds, is nevertheless enough to push it around a track with ease. Throw a thicker rear sway bar on and some taughter dampers and the entire car turns go-kart like in the corners. A Works MINI is really very competent for a factory vehicle on a track.

(+) It's usable. This car fits in the same category as a Focus ZX3 or a WRX wagon: it's a quick hatchback that can be used to do serious stuff when you need it to. It won't hold nearly as much as a cheap sedan or light SUV, but it'll also swallow up the Ikea furniture that you couldn't even get close to a Miata.

(+) It's new. It's not old enough to rust, it will (usually) pass emissions, and it'll save your ass in a crash. These are three things that nearly every other car in the collectibles series won't do.

(+) It's really quite attractive. As always, let's take another look.

(-) It will lose value. Even the oldest (i.e., 2002) MINI Cooper S models will run you over $15k, and it's likely that these numbers are going to drop over the next five years or so. I suspect that S prices will stabilize around $7,000, but it will be a while until that happens.

(-) In the end, it's still FWD. This means that all those rear wheels are good for is following the front ones around. The car does have a lower moment of inertia than most RWD cars, but a well-balanced MINI will get outhandled by a slightly upgraded Miata or 3 Series any day of the week. And don't even think of putting it up against something mid-engined.

Expect to pay: $15,000 for a 2002 Cooper S, $24,000 for a new Cooper S, to $30,000+ for a Cooper S Works.

What to look for:

• If you're in a serious bind, the base Cooper model isn't a total waste of money. It's depreciated in line with the Cooper S and although it isn't as performant as its blown brother, it's still a great little car. If it were me, I'd save my pennies for the S.
  
• All S models came with a hood scoop, whereas all base models didn't. Pop the hood and look for a blower if you have any doubts.
  
• Avoid serious powertrain mods to the S models. The drivetrains are solid, but not entirely bulletproof, and anything much over 170hp is a real squeeze for a SOHC 1.6L engine.
  
• Bonus points (and bonus bucks) for cars with union jacks on the roof. This was a factory option and will be worth the price in five years.
  
• Avoid the convertibles. They're not worth the expense, weight, and loss of structural integrity—all things which, in my opinion, make the MINI a really fun little car to drive.