Incredibly lucky to find such a low-priced, unmolested '98, NOW, let alone 2 years ago.
Sellers always want more, and buyers less, but there comes a point when it is too hard to swallow to sell a car for too low a price. I have a '98, super condition, 42K miles and would have a hard time letting it go for less than $17 - 18K. It's just too much a car and has been too well taken care of to be given away. I've thought about selling mine a few times this past year or so because my drive to work is approx 40 miles each way, and until recently was mostly highway - that's not the way to enjoy this car. Fortunately things have changed these past several months and I have some really excellent S. Ohio roads to take to work that enable me to do some shifting, reving, and handling. Selling the car for $17 really wouldn't leave me many options for a replacement without putting in a lot more money. I'd rather just keep the thing and enjoy it for another few years of reliable enjoyment than give it away. My buddy will be selling his 2002 M5 in another 2-3 years and that may just be worth waiting for, since I'm first on his already growing prospective buyers list!

I think the Mini Cooper S is a really cool looking car, and seems to be a good buy. When I drove one, however, I was disappointed in its total lack of low end torque - really felt sluggish from a stop. Was fine when it got going and the supercharger kicked in, but was enough of a turn-off from a standing start that I don't think I'd buy one. I'm sure BMW will lose sleep over that!