Hey everyone...
I'm a 2009 MINI Cooper S wanna'-be owner.
In the 2 test drives taken so far, my wife commented that the air conditioner didn't seem to cool things down very quickly in these cars (compared to ours, which are T*y@tas). I didn't seem to notice, since I was "high" just being behind the wheel of the thing!

Can you guys chime in on how BMW-built A/C's might differ from other manufacturers?
My local dealer commented that the A/C performance is tied to RPM's and that things have to be rev'd up to cool well (seems odd 2 me).

Thanks!

Scott O'
Houston, Texas (USA)

 

I have an 08 Clubman S with the climate control option. I live in the DC area. We don't get as high with the temperatures as you do in Texas, but boy, do we get some high humidity, which I think is worse.

So far this summer, we have had some scorcher days here and I have been very impressed with the cooling abilities of my MINI. I almost never have to go to the "Max" setting. I keep the Auto on 68 degrees and may bump up the fan on occassion.

On my way out to the car on hot days, I use the comfort access remote to put down the windows and vent the sunroofs. I guess because the car is so small, the hot air is gone very quickly. (In my old SUV, it seemed like it took forever to cool the car down). I'm very happy with the air. And very happy with the car!

 

I have the auto ac and it does keep it cool even on the 105-106 degrees days we just had. CR/black roof in Oklahoma plus I had the windows tinted but it still did a great job even before tinting. No sunroof either and I think that also helps.

 

It better cool, I live in Phoenix and in the summer it starts at 100 and goes up, I'll let u know in a week as soon as mine arrives, of course will be tinting the windows DARK first.

 

The biggest problem is the sunroof. All that glass and a perforated sunshade allows alot of heat in. My second, third and forth Minis don't have a sunroof and the A/C does a great job and even on the last few days here in the Dallas area the car stays cold.

 

I have the black roof, the sunroofs, and no tint, but my A/C still does a great job. I'm impressed since its justafour-banger.

 

I've had Bob for about a week, and I find the a/c to be more than adequate. Yesterday Bob said outside temp was 102, but I was running the fan on the lowest speed.

So far, I've been very happy with summer a/c performance.

 

Adequate. Not robust. Not as cold as other cars. But adequate.
2003 MC without sunroof.

 

Having dark leather all over the place makes me die a bit. I find myself having to turn the AC up to 2 in order for the cab to get cool, but only when it's past 100 outside. Other than that, it is adequate.

 

I have a 2003 MCS with a white roof and no sunroof in Florida and it DOES NOT keep up in city driving. When the revs are down, the temp goes up. The system is charged correctly and it works fine when the engine is spooled up, but when it's idling in traffic it just doesn't cut it.

I've resorted to leaving it on recirculate almost exclusively, or better yet, just driving with the windows down. Honestly, this is the only fault I have with this car and it's certainly not enough reason to not buy the most fun-for-the-dollar car out there. Also, they might have improved the A/C system from the first gen models.

 

I have owned Audi's, VW, & BMW's and I love German cars but the Japs have the coldest A/C for sure. I live in Miami and my friends who have Nissan's/ Toyota's make me feel like I'm in a meat locker when they turn it up....bbrrrrr

 

Thanks for all the input so far, gang...very helpful. Any other thoughts?

 

Big difference without the sunroof....new one is much cooler

 

I don't have my Mini yet - but hubby wanted to go and take another test drive, as he is thinking of making us a 2 Mini family! I also wanted to go along and test the air... we live in Florida and arrived at 12 noon.. it was hot outside and the car we tested had a sunroof. It was NOT inadequate at all! It cooled down quickly and keep it just as cool as my Toyota 4Runner. Hubby (who is also much hotter than I) agreed - it was fine! We tested a 2007 MCS

 

Thanks, Tink'.
BTW, how nice does that English Oak look? I think I'd love to have that in mine. Haven't seen it close-up yet, however.

 

Scott, I saw it - and think it looks pretty nice! (guess that's why I ordered it! LOL) There are some photo's posted around that show it too. We had to drive a bit of the way to get to a dealer, and he had only customer ordered cars on the lot, except for 1 clubman and an auto MCS for test driving. We spent A LOT of time there looking at the colors. If you read very first post here - I ended up ordered and cancelling 2 times (my dealer had my orders into production like the next day!! - except the last and final order - is taking longer ). Doing it over, I wish I found THIS site first and spent MORE time going over every option on the MINI USA site. First order was purely a color change.. but I ended up ordering a sunroof on dealers advise. Then after reading here, I decided against the sunroof, and the sports suspension and 17" wheels... well, in any event - I am waiting for my order - and can't wait! Good luck with your future purchase!!


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These last weeks have been tough, 100 degree weather and top up most of the time. We have yet to have our windows tinted, which I think will help keep us cooler. The AC has a tough time cooling the car after it's been baking for a while. I think our malt brown leather seats also absorb and release a lot of heat.

The AC, at least in our convertible, can't compete with the big cool blast from the AC of the big tree SUV, but the MINI has other charms.

 

I have always been a stickler for AC. Have had many cars with great AC, some with so/so [back when inadequate A/C was called "mouse air"]

I have a friend who had small 1995 Toyota pick-up. That thing had the best A/C I have ever enjoyed. In 100 degree weather it would freeze you out, so you had to put it on medium.

My 4Runner that I no longer have also had excellent A/C. So maybe it is a Toyota thing, having excellent AC.

My various Mercedes A/C were all crappy, on the floating sofas [sedans] and the SLs [expensive buggers.]

My BMWs' AC were all good.

It's against this experience that I would be judging the MINI and I did not expect much considering the MINI's small engine. And since I was getting a soft top, I thought the MINI's A/C might blow only a whisper of cool air, even on max output.

When I got the MINI I put it through its paces on the A/C. We had a few 100 degree days so I was able to see how well it worked under such conditions.

The MINI A/C was ice cold. Even with the top down I tried it out. The sun was baking the top of my head, but the A/C blew cold air on my face and chest. Was a weird concept, 100 degrees, top down, but the A/C blowing cold. I was lucky no one noticed that I was at stop lights, with no wind, but my hair was blowing around from the A/C.

With the top up, even though it's canvas, the A/C still kept the car very cool. [And it's a black canvas top.]

Another thing I look for is how well the engine cooling system handles cooling the block when the A/C is on and it's a hot day [especially when idling in stop and go traffic.]. The MINI temp gauge did not move from where it normally indicates, whether the A/C is on or not. Most impressive, especially since all my Audis had overheating problems when it was hot and the AC was on.

Only thing, that is expected, with the A/C on engine performance suffers [as in any car.] I don't know how the S is affected with the A/C on, but my little mouse engine squeaks instead of putt putting. I imagine the S model would still roar, just not as much.

The A/C is not an issue on the MINI and I would not be concerned at all about its performance. I would go so far as to say it's right up there with the Toyota AC that I have had. [And that's a pretty tall standard to meet.] Your wife will be pleased, I suspect.

Bonus Comment: In early June I bought my MINI used, it was two years old and had 23,000 miles on it. So the A/C is working well, even on this "older" car, albeit I don't think a June 2006 production date MINI is all that old.

 

It's excellent until the dewpoint gets ridiculously high. When the dewpoint got to 75-80 last week, I had to switch to recirculated air.

Very happy with the AC. Doesn't affect mpg much and handles all temps.