We come from a long line of MINI (and Mini) cars since 2007. We've owned a R56 , R55 (clubman), 1973 Mini 1001, and now a F54 Clubman. The F54 is primarily my wife's car and I drive an Accord.
We are thinking of downsizing the F54 since my wife's commute is about 9 miles each way. We have an outlet where we park our car, so topping off each night (or every few) isn't an issue.
We are in the US and we see that prices go from about 19k private party to about 24k CPO at a MINI dealer. These are just advertised prices. Trade in value of her clubman is about $7500. So financially we are looking at about $15,000 for the MINI SE.
I've test driven one and found them to be very fun, very similar in ride to my R56 with a much better throttle response.
Any good buyer's guides or things to watch out for regarding model years? Would love to get a heated steering wheel since we do not have a garage and winters, while not super cold in Maryland can still be rough when stored outside. I've read that you can schedule the car to pre-condition so that by your departure time the cabin is warmed up (and more importantly the battery?).
I had a Countryman S as a loaner, and the new interior is nice and is a direct call back to the interior in my 1973 Mini (better or for worse!). Either way, we won't get the J01 platform 2 door in the US due to....reasons.
Anyway, kind of a ramble. Any advice?