NAM Test Drive and Review of the R56

[Motoring]

Originally Posted by Yo'sDad

From your engine pictures it appears to me that MINI has turned the engine around with the exhaust in the front and the intake in the back and the flywheeo on the passenger side and the timing chain on the driver's side... am I seeing this correctly?

YD

The engine is mounted the same way... flywheel on the left, accessory belt on the right. The direction of flow has changed. It is now back to front, where the R50/R53 was front to back.

[Built-by-Bones]

Nice review Dave

Very glad to hear that the EVO school helped you set some fast times, that is great.

Any news on the adjustable camber? From the pics I have seen, both on your review and else where on the web, it appears the strut towers are unchanged?

thanks Dave

Grant Barclay

[dave]

Originally Posted by Built-by-Bones

Any news on the adjustable camber?

Grant,

Front Camber is not adjustable. I asked about making front camber adjustable to support MINI owners racing stock class SCCA and was told that wasn't likely.

Dave

[Built-by-Bones]

Dave,

thanks for the reply. That is what Per (GRM) had posted, but there were rumors of adjustable camber.

Glad it won't have an immediate advantage over the early models in stock trim.

thanks again

Grant

[homerwest]

Thanks Dave! Sounds like a great trip!

Did they mention a schedule for when they will be updating the Cabrios?

[rrcaniglia]

You should change the question mark in your logo to a smiley face. ;)

[jmelrose]

Dave,

(This is a repost... I don't know if you missed it yesterday or if I'd used up my question quota already )

In regards to the Tucsan Gravity compared to the lounge leather, how would you describe the difference between the two textures? Could you give us a more in-depth analysis of the difference between the styles and leather qualities?

I have a lightning blue MCS on order, white details, sunroof, and the Florida sun. I was thinking a light interior made more sense (and tinted windows). This is my first leather seated car, so I'm not sure what to look for or expect from this type of seat compared to cloth.

What am I missing out on by not going to the black (which I strongly considered, but was afraid of the heat factor) lounge leather, besides the lovely piping?

[dave]

The lounge leather struck me as being a little softer, particularly in the area toward the front of the seat cushion. For me, I liked the lounge leather cushion a little better. The general appearance of the lounge leather seats appealed more to me too (they seem more fitting of a "british" car to me, if you're into that kind of thing). Both leathers were nice though.

Since you're concerned about heat though, and the Red Lounge leather isn't an option with Lightning Blue, I would go with the Tuscan leather over the black lounge leather. Get it, enjoy it, and don't look back.

[gokartride]

About the english oak trim...the configurator show it on the dash and on door pulls, but mentions (in text) the e-brake and gearshift knob. Did the MINIs you saw in this trim also feature oak in all these places? It's hard to get a feel, even from the configurator, how the entire package looks (although it seems you liked it).

Also, the sport mode button.........is that an option or standard on Coopers? Was snooping around the configurator for into and didn't see it (unless I missed it). Thanks.

[dave]

Originally Posted by gokartride

About the english oak trim...the configurator show it on the dash and on door pulls, but mentions (in text) the e-brake and gearshift knob. Did the MINIs you saw in this trim also feature oak in all these places?

I didn't get enough time with that car to be able to recall.

Originally Posted by gokartride

Also, the sport mode button.........is that an option or standard on Coopers?

Standard.

[gokartride]

Originally Posted by dave

Standard.

Awesome!!! Thanks!

[vazquezgordo]

Excellent source of information.

[ncdave]

Dave - Thanks for taking the time to write up the preview. I was playing around with an R56 at a recent auto show and was surprised to find a hidden storage compartment where the passenger air bag used to be. I was pushing on that section of the dash to see what it was made off and a nicely-damped door opened up. Very nice. Not too thrilled with the appearance of the lower center stack but all-in-all, a well-done execution that would have been equally well-received if it came before our versions.

[jmelrose]

Thanks Dave. I'll stay the course. :-)

Awesome work on all this coverage. I am SO excited for my MCS to arrive now. It will be a VERY long 2 months now.

[hgsbnt]

Dave,

Excellent review. A few weeks ago, I also drove a Sparkling Silver / Black manual R56 COOPER S with the Red Lounge Leather interior. Compared to my R50 Cooper, I'd say I very much prefer the engine noise of my Mini specially at > 4,000 rpm. The R56 doesn't make any engine / exhaust noise. I was so disapointed and frustrated. Other than that, the R56 feels smoother on every aspect but drives like crazy. Quite impressive from a preformance point of view but dull.

Like you said, new sport seats are way better than older ones, no contest but that's probably my only good point for the interior. I really don't like the new dashboard. It is just too big now.

My 2 cents.

[cct1]

Got to spend some more time with the R56 this weekend at the Chicago show. Still haven't driven one though.

Positives: The sparkling silver is fantastic. I was in the "Oh no, not another silver camp", but this one is worth it. Looks great with a black roof/stripes. The new seats are definitely improved over the old (and I have the English Panther Leather in mine--despite the fact that these are supposedly more comfortable than the standard seats in the previous generation, they're not nearly as comfortable as the new cloth seats). I prefer the old interior to the new, but my friend who went to the show with me definitely preferred the newer interior (He doesn't own a Mini, and has no biases one way or the other). The higher waistline has grown on me--I love the way the rear windows slant down; gives it a more sporty appearance.

Negatives: It looks bigger. They had a previous gen Cooper S (Convertible) next to the R56 MCS, and the newer version looks significantly bigger in the flesh. My friend picked up on it right away. The gap on the wheel arches was present on each R56 there, as was the headlight gap, and it really gives the car the look of a less than stellar finish. The arches maybe correctable on future variants though and I suspect it will be, given how it looks. I still like the more subtle black wheel arches on the earlier model; the new ones are just too big. My friend (without any prompting from me) picked up on this too, and felt the fit/finish on the previous gen convertible looked perceptibly better on the previous generation too. And the boot...It bubbels out, for lack of a better term. Would have been nicer flat, or at least flatter--it really doesn't coordinate well with the rest of the car. And this car is begging to be lowered; I felt I was riding substantially higher than in the previous generation.

Ok, yes, I prefer the previous generation, and the above may seem to negative--I actually like the R56, and if the previous generation wasn't out, I'd be all over it. I've warmed up to it a bit over the past few months--when my current MCS dies, I'll be right back in line for another (Probably sparkling silver with a black roof--I'm getting to the point where I think it may be the best color I've ever seen on a MINI), provided my wife will let me....

[bee1000n]

Thank you for the write-up and all of the pictures. MINI should hire you to shoot the car because it looks much better in your photos than in anything I've seen previously.

[msh441]

Originally Posted by bee1000n

MINI should hire you to shoot the car because it looks much better in your photos than in anything I've seen previously.

+1.

What I saw from you and Gabe were miles ahead of any of the MINI press release pics I had seen up to that point.

[erickvonzipper]

Dave, great write-up. I'm off from work next week, so I'll be heading over to either Hassel or Habberstad to check out an R56.

Zip

[GBMINI]

Nice to read more opinions Dave - thanks.

You didn't mention the one thing that really shocked me last night - how soft the clutch was; straight to the floor when I pressed it with no feel to it! Nothing like GPMINI, and not in a good way.

[dave]

Originally Posted by GBMINI

You didn't mention the one thing that really shocked me last night - how soft the clutch was; straight to the floor when I pressed it with no feel to it! Nothing like GPMINI, and not in a good way.

This varies car to car and most of the R56's I drove felt like they had clutch engagement more comparable to my R50. The really light clutch engagement R56 seemed to be few and far between (at the press launch at least).

[GBMINI]

I read somewhere that that compartment is going to be sealed shut at VDC, to prevent rattles

[pbraun]

Originally Posted by GBMINI

I read somewhere that that compartment is going to be sealed shut at VDC, to prevent rattles

If not there, at the dealerships, before delivery. No more secret compartment! unless you un-do the sealing!

[lava]

And the word is they will open it up again when the replacement for the rattly hardware arrives. Yet to see...

[ncdave]

That would be unfortunate as it's a really cool and useful feature. Besides, if they took away all the rattles, it just wouldn't seem like motoring, would it?