R53 or R56

4267 Views 6 Replies 7 Participants Last post by 390712, Mar 3, 2021

britishclassic

Discussion Starter · Feb 23, 2021

Hi all,

I'm new to minis and new to this forum so hello!

Looking at getting a mini. I test drove an r56 the other day which made me fall in love but having recently rung a mini specialist they told me that the r53 was the one to go for. Apparently they have far less issues, the engines will go on forever and it will hold its value. As opposed to the r56 which he said would be on the scrap heap in 10 years time when the r53 is still strong.

Can anyone concur with this opinion and agree that i should be looking into r53s rather than r56s? Reliability coming first and foremost.

Thanks in advance all.

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JTownPBX

· #2 · Feb 23, 2021

R53S with R56 rear trailing arms retro fitted as well as the R56 control arms. Would make the R53 more reliable? Also the Sprintex supercharger system. Aside of that it's lookin like the R56S.

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2Bags

· #3 · Feb 23, 2021

I've had both and the 56 is more refined, but the 53 was probably more fun, my 53 was a 2003 and my current 56 is a 2008. A few months ago I was looking for an R53S, but they were few and far between and finding a well looked after one would be even harder, so opted for the 56 Clubman, which I love. I guess the 53 is more likely to become a classic and therefore more sought after. Good luck what ever you decide.

Here's a pic of my R53S - this was taken about 2005.

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JohnnyC

· #4 · Feb 25, 2021

britishclassic said:
but having recently rung a mini specialist they told me that the r53 was the one to go for. Apparently they have far less issues, the engines will go on forever

Whoever you spoke to, they're absolutely right.
The Prince engine in the R56 is a total lemon regards reliability.

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mike1967

· #5 · Feb 25, 2021

JohnnyC said:
Whoever you spoke to, they're absolutely right.
The Prince engine in the R56 is a total lemon regards reliability.

yes your totally on the money with that prince engines are fragile for sure,, i like the r53 more and if wanted a track car or something for giggles r53 forged and 250bhp 280 bhp deffo would be what i would buy,,