New shape Minis - cost effective to run! (service/tyre costs) - reliability!or would Suzuki Sport be cheaper. Want small car for round town - economical fun to drive manual. Honda civic has been great but terrible seats - and its getting tired!
gabbysnana,
Mar 25, 3:29am
I watched a new mini get demolished by an open car door- wrote off the side and front. amazing.
socram,
Mar 25, 4:59am
Suzuki Swifts are expensive to repair or are written off if you have the misfortune to run into the rear of anything solid.
I have had a Cooper S since December 2002 and to date, 7L/100kms overall.Apart from a steering rack issue and demolishing a tyre after hitting a solid object, so I replaced both front tyres, they seem fine and tyres not as expensive as I expected.
There was a hiccup a few years ago when I parked it without pulling the handbrake full on and for once, didn't leave it in gear.It ran down our short drive and made contact with the concrete block letterbox, so driver's door was replaced, but it was returned as new 10 days later and the insurance paid up!
Touch wood, but I am still on the original battery and servicing cost at 20,000kms was much cheaper than I expected.
I also have a spare set of wheels and tyres for a Cooper I managed to pick up at a fair price.
Senior lady Friend with a Suzuki Swift loves it to bits too, so I can't really help with a comparison not having driven the Suzuki.Try both and see which you like.I am over 6ft tall and Mini has bags of legroom.
msigg,
Mar 25, 1:06pm
Suzuki will be cheaper maintenance, same economy.
kcf,
Mar 25, 2:15pm
What's your budget, and what are you trying to achieve!
There's a couple of Swift and Mini engine options, so comparing say the 1400cc boring spec swift to the Cooper S supercharged/turbocharged might get you a bit of apples and oranges comparison.
A big considerating would be that the Mini is a small three door, whilst the Swift is a slightly bigger inside five door.So if you've got rear seat passengers on a regular basis the Swift might win for practicality.
ezekiel67,
Mar 25, 3:33pm
I borrowed this from someone who has tried to explain about the so called 'high cost of repair':
Insurance companies work on the basis of percentages - if the damage exceeds a certain percentage of replacement they write the car off. You'll find the price of panels, lights etc for a Swift are pretty comparable to a Vic / Jazz, Corolla, Fiesta etc. But because Suzuki choose to market the Swift at low retail pricing (and avoid the "haggling discount" you can get with some other brands), it makes parts appear expensive. In outright terms the parts prices are pretty much of a muchness with others (barring the outrageous pricing for new Euro parts that is).
Secondly, Insurance companies go for the cheaper option. A fairly intact Swift achieves a higher price at auction as a write-off, so the likelihood is that the company can lessen their cost by writing the car off and selling it.
3tomany,
Mar 25, 4:24pm
i have said it before and will say it again dont buy anything until you have driven the latest fiesta
thejazzpianoma,
Mar 25, 5:35pm
The Swift is potentially going to lose a lot of value all of a sudden if you are looking at a secondhand one. They have been great for new buyers keeping value way above their means but cars like that tend to fall over a depreciation cliff eventually.
The Swift is also a very average car for the money.
I like the Mini but I think the Grande Punto is the better car for your needs.All engines are supurb economy wise, its easy to get a manual one (6 speed too) pricing is very good, parts are easily available and cheap and reliability and features are very good. Plus, its Italian so its a heap of fun to drive and very capable, when it comes to small cars Fiat are very very hard to beat.
A significantly better car than the Swift for similar or less money. You can pick up a really nice Grande Punto for about 10K - 11K if you look around.
thejazzpianoma,
Mar 25, 5:35pm
The Swift is starting to fall over the depreciation cliff, this can be a good/bad thing depending on how you go about buying one. They have been great for new buyers keeping value way above their means but cars like that tend to drop all of a sudden and fall back into line with other vehicles. (If you have watched the actual selling prices of the Vitz/Yaris over the last few years you would have seen this happen).
So, if you are buying one make sure you are paying around 11K-13K for a really nice condition 2007ish model sport not the closer to 20K price that some are still trying to get.
The Swift is also a very average car for the money, be aware of that. Its a pretty crazy world where you can get a vastly superior MK5 Golf or Audi A3 for similar money secondhand.
I like the Mini but I think the Grande Punto is actually the better car for your needs.All engines are supurb economy wise, its easy to get a manual one (6 speed too) pricing is very good, parts are easily available and cheap and reliability and features are very good. Plus, its Italian so its a heap of fun to drive and very capable, when it comes to small cars Fiat are very very hard to beat. Don't discount the 1.9 Diesel engine option, its particularly feisty (its used in much larger Alfa's etc and pushes them along really well) and its cheap to run at the same time. The diesel is fun and particularly rewarding economy wise around town.
A significantly better car than the Swift for similar or less money. You can pick up a really nice Grande Punto for about 10K - 11K if you look around.
thejazzpianoma,
Mar 25, 5:56pm
BTW, a little more on the price predictions. Obviously I have no crystal ball,but many years of watching the prices of "fashion" vehicles like the Swift has shown me a very clear pattern.
Its more than likely in my opinion that in just 2-3 years the 2004 Swifts will start selling for around 5K. When that happens a 2007 model that looks the same (even in sport form) will quickly fall to not much more than that. Say 6-8K.
Why 2-3 years! Because almost like clockwork once a small car in that segment pushes beyond being 10 years old they usually all wind up being worth around 5K for a nice example. Some wind their way to that point gradually others which have been holding their value above their real worth tend to drop like a stone.
SO, if you are planning on perhaps upgrading again in a 2-5 year interval and you have paid up close to 20K for a sport model you can forget your fuel economy. You may as well have bought a V8 because the loss due to depreciation is going to be killer.
tree51,
Mar 25, 8:14pm
Thats what insurance is for.
msigg,
Mar 25, 11:28pm
Sport model is always going to be worth more. If the price of gas keeps going up those smaller cars are going to be worth there weight in gold.
trouser,
Mar 25, 11:42pm
Had both a mini cooper and a 1.5 swift.
The swift boot is a little bit bigger and you can fit five people in it.
The mini boot could still fit a fortnights shopping for 4 people and was a much more fun car to drive.
Both has similar economy and both had plasticy, rattley interiors. Servicing costs never really worried me.
socram,
Mar 26, 12:07am
I run the Cooper S as a business vehicle (hence the low mileage) so curious to know what it is worth today (leather interior, trip computer etc) on the open market as a 9/10year old car, compared to the depreciation schedule which probably has it down to about $3,000, purely based on age, as mileage isn't an issue. As I 'd expect to get a fair bit more than $3,000 for it today, it would appear to have been a sound purchase and probably a car I may never part with.
thejazzpianoma,
Mar 26, 12:19am
I don't follow the Mini pricing so much so have a look at some actual sale prices on TM. What I would say though from my "general theory of depreciation" is that if you did sell it now you would have likely done really well in terms of depreciation on a new vehicle. It should still be on the plane of good pricing before rapid depreciation sets in. Depending on km's I would say 4-6 times your paper depreciated value could be possible.
That said, quality retro style vehicles like the Mini that still look like much like the current version tend to be a bit insulated from the post 10 year drop off, and are some of the very few vehicles that can throw a real pricing wildcard. I wouldn't be surprised if pricing stays good for some time yet, certainly longer than the Swift which dosn't fall into the Mini/Fiat 500 retro style category.
As and example of a "wildcard" the original MX5 did strange things, a really nice example held its value around 12K for years and years simply because it was unique. Its possible the Mini could do that to some degree for similar reasons. The Suzuki however will not because its not a unique vehicle.
countrypete,
Mar 26, 12:50am
A Swift will cost less to repair than a Mini in any light to medium impact.Simply the parts are cheaper part for part.Also, the poster who jabbered on with his misguided opinions about resale simply hasn't a clue.Any popular car such as a Swift or Corolla tend to continue their strong resale - if you compare the price of a 10-year old Corolla or Swift, for example, as a percentage of its new price, it will be FAR superior to the unpopular euros that the poster seems to be fixated on.Go for the Swift and you won't be disappointed.
morrisman1,
Mar 26, 12:53am
who cares what they cost to repair, just make sure you have insurance and quit worrying about that side of it.
Id avoid the mini purely because it is more of a fashion statement than a well designed car, the original was a far better design.
socram,
Mar 26, 1:19am
Sorry Morrisman.Have to disagree this time.I have owned many (original) Minis continuously from February 1967 to December 2002 and still have a warm 1300cc engine and box under the bench. The only Mini that came close to the modern S, is an original 1293cc (bored 1275) S in rally trim, that I ran for a short while - and that is based on the power to weight ratio as much as anything else.Heaps of fun. The original was very raw in comparison, with lousy, tiny disc brakes, but pin sharp steering and throttle response.The modern S surprised Mike Eady (driving instructor) by stopping from 100kph in just 26 metres, a figure only bettered by a Ferrari 360.The ABS brakes make it much safer than the original and the shell is heaps stronger abnd overall, much better built with better paint and durability.Given the choice between the original and the new ona long journey, no contest. Ona short journey and for hooning around, yes, the old.
I think I prefer jazz's assessment to countrypete's opinion.
cjohnw,
Mar 26, 1:50am
I have also owned both these vehicles and have to agree more with Jazz than countrypete. Probably not really comparing apples with apples but when selling both vehicles (a year or so apart), we lost less on resale with the Mini than with the Swift, and there were more than twice as many enquiries about the Mini than the Swift. We did find genuine dealer servicing to be much more expensive with the Mini and run-flat tyres are expensive to replace, but I would still vote for Mini above Swift.
countrypete,
Mar 26, 2:13am
I hear what you're saying Socram and cjohnw, but socram I think you have the words "opinion"and "assessment" around the wrong way.And don't forget, the op's question was whether the Mini or the Swift was cheaper to run.The Swift wins hands down.Cjohnw states that.
socram,
Mar 26, 6:44pm
Not sure how the Swift wins hands down on economy.Fuel figures I have seen for the Swift range from 5.8 to 8.2L/100, so my 7.0 to date covering all types of driving (too much local stuff stuck at traffic lights) is no different from the Swift.
Servicing costs at 15,000 for Swift (20,000 for the Mini S)seem similar too - depending on main dealers of course.I saw a quote of $375 for the Swift at a main dealer whereas I paid less than $250 for the 20,000 service, also at the main dealer.So beg to differ.
I don't think there is much difference at all.I paid $500 I think, for two branded 'run flat' tyres - which is a lot less than I expected to pay and that was from damage caused and not as a result of wear, which has been negligible. (I always get good distance out of tyres anyway.)
I doubt that there would be many cars that would have lasted me almost 10 years with such minimal running costs, combined with outstanding performance and such low depreciation and also fun to drive.
You are entitled to your opinion as we all are, but it is not an assessment, given thatas yet, there are no facts to support it.
socram,
Mar 26, 6:44pm
Not sure how the Swift wins hands down on economy.Fuel figures I have seen for the Swift range from 5.8 to 8.2L/100, so my 7.0 to date covering all types of driving (too much local stuff stuck at traffic lights) is no different from the Swift.
Servicing costs at 15,000 for Swift (20,000 for the Mini S)seem similar too - depending on main dealers of course.I saw a quote of $375 for the Swift at a main dealer whereas I paid less than $250 for the 20,000 service, also at the main dealer.So beg to differ.
I don't think there is much difference at all.I paid $500 I think, for two branded 'run flat' tyres - which is a lot less than I expected to pay and that was from damage caused and not as a result of wear, which has been negligible. (I always get good distance out of tyres anyway.)
I doubt that there would be many cars that would have lasted me almost 10 years with such minimal running costs, combined with outstanding performance and such low depreciation and also fun to drive.
You are entitled to your opinion countrypete, as we all are, but it is not an assessment, given thatas yet, there are no facts to support it.Supply some facts and it then becomes an assessment.I can't assess the Swift as I haven't owned one, but I can assess the Cooper S based on long term ownership and not just a test drive or the opinions of others.
wrong2,
Mar 26, 8:29pm
either are fun. the supercharged mini moreso
both are hideously ugly tho, the people who buy them get what they deserve (afaic)
bellky,
Mar 26, 8:35pm
Suzuki Swift Sport is neat. Must have nice wheels and preferably stripes. The Swift Sport is the only newish small car I would consider owning. (v8 Ford and Rotary lover here)
countrypete,
Mar 26, 8:39pm
I'm not really interested in "jazz-bashing" as he makes the occasional good post.What I am trying to do though, is correct mis-information he is putting out.Unfortunately it tends to hijack threads, and in this case the o.p. is trying to make a decision on which car will be most cost-effective.(it's the Swift)
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