The starter motor is often very much taken for granted. As soon as the key is turned or the starter pressed, depending upon how old your Mini is, the starter motor is expected to perform. Most of the time it does perform, as the units are very reliable, but sometimes the mechanism can become sticky and noisy and engagement or disengagement becomes slow. Earlier inertia-type (see below) starters are more prone to this sort of problem, but both early and late types eventually wear out. Lower mileage Minis are sometimes the worst for this as the starter will have been used many more times on a car that is used for a lot of short journeys. The good news is that often a slow or noisy starter only needs a clean and even if the unit is worn out, replacement is a very quick and easy job.
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