Where each one leads
BMW Z3
- Against cars of the same age, the BMW Z3 comes out better at its first MOT test (passes 10% more often than average) than the MINI Cooper (passes 7% more often than average).
- Against cars of the same year, the BMW Z3 comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 43% less often than average) than the MINI Cooper (fails 22% less often than average).
MINI Cooper
- Fewer MINI Cooper cars in the Netherlands carry an illogical odometer record (2.5% against 13.9%).
- On Canada's official test the most frugal 2026 MINI Cooper uses 7.4 l/100 km, the 2002 BMW Z3 11.0.
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| BMW Z3 | MINI Cooper | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1996–2004 | 2001–2026 |
| New cars registered in Europe | — | 799,739 (2010–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 6,697 | 509,288 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 2,422 | 77,946 |
| In traffic in Finland | 417 | 2,681 |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| BMW Z3 | MINI Cooper | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | 68% | 84% |
| … against cars of the same age | +10% | +7% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 1.0% | 1.9% |
| … against cars of the same year | −43% | −22% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 13.9% | 2.5% |
| US owner complaints | 207 | 2,236 |
| Most complaints about | Air bags | Steering |
| Model year with most complaints | 1997 (47) | 2005 (372) |
| US recall campaigns | 3 | 27 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 90 | 2,719 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | — | 18 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Fuel, emissions and price
| BMW Z3 | MINI Cooper | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 11.0 l/100 km (2002) | 7.4 l/100 km (2026) |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | — | 7.1 l/100 km |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | — | 129 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | — | 100 kW (134 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | — | 1,294 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €41,176 | €33,498 |
| Average odometer in Finland | 164,000 km | 168,000 km |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).