Hello everyone!
I had my first test drive yesterday and had a blast! I have loved MINIs for a while and now, I am finally able to get one. I was aiming at getting my MINI in June and my sales person suggested I order in April. Needless to say I am very excited!
There is just one tiny issue: Cooper or Clubman?
The only reason I am considering a Clubman is because of the extra room.
I have done some research and it seems that the Clubman has more issues when it comes to quality.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!

 

Kids? Is it just you? You + 1?

I don't think the clubman and the cooper differ in "quality issues". Think about how much of the car is exactly the same! The parts that could have "quality issues" are... the clubdoor? the boot and parts? most of that... there's just not much there to go wrong, in a fundamental way. I'd say because of the added wheelbase, the car as a whole takes the road irregularities better, probably helping quality in the long term.

But that really doesn't matter. The cooper/clubman question is really about expected usage. Kids over age 2? clubman definitely.

All by yourself? cooper will do and you can save some money.

You + 1 doing a lot of road trips? You and a whole bunch of buddies in the car a lot? Clubman.

You trying to drive the fastest, most aggressive and best handling of the coopers? then stay with cooper not clubman (but I don't think the difference is very large -- on youtube there is a clubman/cooper race of the similar JCW models... it's pretty close ... or was that a commercial? hmm)

 

I'm a new MINI owner, and really don't know anything about any quality concerns relating to any MINI. That being said, you're approach to researching the cars BEFORE you purchase one makes sense to me. I kind of think since you are planning on purchasing a new MINI, that comes with a 4 year warranty, you really should pick the one that meets your needs. Their both really cool.

 

It's just me and my husband, and an occasional trip including my mom and sister.
I'll go check those videos.
Thanks!

 

By all means, if, as you describe who will actually ride/be in the car on many occassions, I highly recommend the Clubby. It is just my wife and I and we love the ability to put the seats down and have the equivalent of a fairly large 3-dimensional "trunk with light". Go for it!

 

If the MINI will be your ONLY car then seriously consider the Clubman. If you ever plan on putting four people in the car for an extended period of time then consider the Clubman. Four people in a regular MINI is tight plus where do you put luggage for four people in a regular MINI? You don't. Not much anyway. Honestly, even in the CLubman it's tight. Now, if the MINI is going to be your second car, then just go with the regular MINI and space isn't a problem anymore because you will use the bigger car. I like the regular MINI but considering MY concerns, I needed the extra space in the Clubman. If you are worried about space at all then it is IMHO a very good sign that the Clubman needs to be looked at. Both are awesome. You'll have a blast driving it!

All that said, the Clubman is only 9 inches bigger. 6 in the boot and 3 in the back seats. In some ways, that's not much. In others, it's a world of difference.

Regarding quality, that's a non issue comparing the two models.

 

Quick lesson first. Not all MINIs are Coopers. Cooper is a performance level like SS or Z28 is to Camaro. However, the base level marketed here is the Cooper. In the UK, the First is the 1st, the One is the 2nd, the Cooper/Cooper D is the 3rd, the Cooper S is the 4th, and the John Cooper Works is the 5th. Someone here on NAM even posted an accidentally badged One here in the US. The lineup in the US is the hardtop, Clubman and convertible. Your question of what to get between a hardtop and a Clubman is relatively easy. Get a Clubman because you can't go wrong. If you need more space but still want the performance of the hardtop, the Clubman wins. I'm one of the original Clubman owners, taking delivery of the first ordered back in February '08 and I haven't had any problems. I believe it is more usual to post about problems than to post that you haven't since many who do are venting and/or asking for some type of help. Get a Clubman!

 

Get an "S" in whichever you get...you'll be glad that you did...the extra horses is worth it.

 

They are both cool cars however, the vertical line from the barn doors coming together when I look out the rear view mirror drove me nuts when I have had them as loaners. I am sorry, I could never get used to looking at that from the rear view mirror. Other than that they are practically identical with the Clubman having a BIT more room.

 

so why did your sales person suggest you order in April instead of June??

 

I think he wants it FOR June, so if he orders one, that should be plenty of time for it to get to him for June.

 

IMHO All the Mini's are coopers. They are the Mini Cooper Clubman, Mini Cooper S, Mini Cooper Convertable, and the soon to be released Mini Cooper Crossover ect... Besided the point though...

I say go with the clubby. Really nice having the extra room in the boot.. And they handle just as good as the Mini Cooper if not better. You won't regret it with either one you go with though.

 

Good point!

 

I'm just enlightening those who are new to Mini/MINI and don't know what "Cooper" really means instead of the popular thought. Even in the classic Mini world, a "Cooper", especially Cooper S's are few and far between. If you do see a classic Mini with Cooper or Cooper S badging, it most likely will be like a kid putting SS or Z28 badging on a Camaro when it didn't come from the factory that way. "First", "One", "Cooper", "Cooper D", "Cooper S", and "JCW" are all trim levels applied to hardtops, covertibles, and/or Clubman. It is possible MINI may only release one or two levels for the upcoming coupe and roadster(Cooper S/JCW) and maybe all levels for the Countryman. Again, the MINI First and MINI One are not Coopers, just the two base levels MINI markets.

But back to selling Clubmans, I like the barn doors for a few reasons. MINI played to its Mini historic base having barn doors since the Clubman estate(and maybe other models) had them, even though it(they) had no 3rd door. Also, other than I just love the looks of the barn doors, I use the barn doors to block annoying headlights from behind. The doors also have small but useful storage. You just can't go wrong with a Clubman.

 

Yes In England and about the classic Minis are just that, the mini is just that, the "MINI" . The relaunch in America They are all Mini Coopers. All you have to do is look and miniusa.com site and EVERYTHING is badged Mini Cooper ****** . The trim levels are "S" and Clubman and "Crossover","JCW" and "Convertable". The Classic Minis were just that till John Cooper got a hold of them and started racing them. Now the John Cooper Works , Which is in of it self a very different trim level, is VERY different from just the Mini Cooper.

Anyway just go to miniusa.com and all the models are Mini Cooper ******


Anyway nothing but love for my fellow Mini Cooper owners. Motor On!

 

You mentioned taking 4 on occasion. If you are talking about once a month or more often get the clubman, your mother and sister will thank you!

 

minisizeme, I'm not trying to be a smart Alec but, here in the US, all MINIs are Coopers, yes. It can go both ways on the John Cooper Works badged MINIs. They get the John Cooper Works badging and it does have Cooper on the badge. I'm looking at the bigger picture that we Mini/MINI enthusiasts are a part of. My wife, who used to have an RX330 and then an RX350, would point out and say, "I like the color of that 330/350" and I would keep having to point out 330 or 350 is the engine size and not the Lexus model. I knew what she meant but I was trying to get her to be more precise for better understanding of the car world. I'm not saying that MINI will, but it may be possible they may market non-Coopers here. As I said before, this is just "enlightening" those new to the Mini/MINI world, explaining what Cooper actually means....nothing more.

Oh, one more good thing about Clubman, there is a little more storage area under the false floor in the boot area. You can't go wrong with a Clubman.

 

I went with the Clubman for two reasons. (Well, three reasons if you count the hope that the longer wheelbase would be somewhat easier on my old bones when going over bumps in the road.)

Reason 1: the extra length. Nine inches doesn't sound like much, but it means extra space for rear seat passengers (on the rare instances when I put people back there) and more room for my kayaking and camping gear when I am going kayaking.

Reason 2: the barn doors aren't going to bang into my kayak(s) on the roof when I want to get something out of the back. Nearly every hatch I looked at, and most cars with trunks, would be banging into the bottoms of my boats. And some of them I was only able to open part way when there was a boat on top, making it a royal PITA to get at stuff inthe trunk. (Hatches *do* offer some protection in the rain, if you can get them open far enough to get at the stuff in the back without having to get down on your hands and knees.)

After a month, I no longer notice the vertical bar where the doors meet. I just use the side mirrors more of the time anyway; I find they offer a better perspective and wider view than does the inside rearview mirror -- which is a bit like looking down a tunnel.

For me, the big question was "S" or not.... And I decided -- with the help of some replies to my questions here -- to go with the non-S model. I'll let you know how that works out when the weather gets warmer and I get the kayaks out of winter storage again.

--
Darryl

 

Sounds like you made an inteligent, informed decision. Personally I don't think it's possible to go wrong with any MINI.

Good luck with your new Clubie.

 

You have been doing some thinking about what you want, and what you need and that's good. I did the same when I got my MINI.

My kids are grown, and no grandchildren yet (much to the dismay of my better half )

My wife drives a Toyota Avalon, so when we need to take friends and family, that's what we drive. I also have a Dodge Dakota pickup, for all the practical things that are needed around here. And I have the MINI, for fun driving

So just keep thinking about what you want and need, take some test drives, and MOTOR ON!

 

We (me and +1) go on long road trips in the Cooper (not Clubman) and it works out fine for us. You have to be able to pack so as to fit the luggage in the boot.

We've occasionally had 4 in ours, it is a tight squeeze and wouldn't recommend it for trips much more than an hour. That depends on how big the driver and passenger behind them are, we couldn't fit me driving and one of our larger friends behind me, my wife had to drive that one.

3 people is no problem.

 

Personally, I'm still wary of forced induction but the S is so much fun. The Cooper still runs good but if you do any driving in the hills, the S is the one to go with. I'm really not in the market for an S hardtop or Clubbie but my MA keeps pestering me about great deals. As I type this, he is working the numbers for an S hardtop. I will only go with the S if it is a lease. It is that buy/lease program MINI has where I can walk into another vehicle after 3 years. Free maintenance for 3 years for a 3 year lease on a MINI I don't own but could, lower monthly payments... I don't see how I could go too wrong. We will see how his deal goes because I'm not really wanting to get rid of my Cooper Clubman.

 

I may have a slightly different take on the Clubman vs Cooper. I have the 08 Clubman and love it. That said, When I went out looking for a new car this year to replace another, I looked at the Cooper, not the Clubman. (ended up with a Miata, but that is a different story). It all had to do with the ability to carry stuff. We rarely have rear passengers, so the Clubman spends most of its time with the rear seats down. That gives you nice depth of carrying capacity. But in my opinon, that capacity is somewhat shortchanged by the dual rear doors. Because they are not angled like the Cooper hatch, it is harder to put things into the rear area. A guy I work with has a Cooper and it is far easier to load his Cooper than to load my Clubman. My only advantage is that I can load slightly more than he can.

So get the Clubman if you plan to carry around passengers. The extra leg space is an absolute must. Get the Cooper if you plan to just carry around packages from the store in the back. Get the S is you like to go fast and don't mind the likelyhood that you will experience more mechanical failures as it ages. Get the MC if you like 40mpg. Get a manual transmission, a color line and leather seats. Also a sunroof IMHO, others will disagree.

Don't get the Miata. No personality after you've owned a Mini anything. And the only thing you can carry is pocket change......

 

this is an interesting thread and touches on exactly the same q&a i was after, but probably asked in more effective manner.

with that said, i am very much on the fence between the hardtop and the clubman but am slowly coming around to the clubman's advantages for my personal needs. it's only my s.o. and myself, with two small/medium dogs (they don't ride often) and no children. although in the near future the car will likely be an only car, so capacity and flexibility are key factors.

but...

the driving experience with hardtop (especially in s/jcw guise) just seemed so much livlier and fun compared to the clubman. but was it that much better? probably not.

in any case, many thanks for all that have taken the time to post their input on this topic. it's been extemely beneficial/helpful!

 

The Clubman is a 3 door stationwagon and the hardtop is a 2 door hatch. Would you rather have had a 2 door '57 Chevrolet Bel Air or a 2 door '57 Chevrolet Nomad? They are both cool cars and so are the hardtop and Clubman. The Clubman rides a little better, being a tad longer and the performance, as opposed to the hardtop's, is like always having a full grown person with you due to the extra weight. Get the Clubman?