After years of wishing, researching, and test drives, I picked up my first Mini this weekend. My most recent cars were a 2013 FR-S (Sprintex supercharged), 2007 350Z, and 2005 S2000. The list before those goes much longer, including a few Mustangs, WRX, supercharged Civic, V8 swapped Fiero, Z28, Integra GSR, and a bunch of motorcycles.
I really wanted a 2nd gen, N18, auto (daily commute sucks) that was either black or white. And I found this gem with 1 owner and 19K miles. Everything was stock except a surprisingly nice Alta catback exhaust. I don't foresee any future mods this year but plan of researching as much as I can for the inevitable suspension upgrades that'll be needed for SCCA/NASA events.

So here's my initial questions I didn't find quick answers to in searching:

I have the basic radio with the Mini CD Boost. I found that Bluetooth will only pair with Phone Audio and Contact Sharing on my Android phones. The option doesn't show for Media (music) Streaming when pairing. I've tried it on a Nexus 5X and 6. The Mini website didn't show any available updates when I put in the last 7 of my VIN. What are my options, short of a whole new receiver?

What are the differences in the 2011-2013 models? Any easter eggs you've found on your R56? Tweaking the ambient lighting from pink to red was the first thing I was happy to stumble across.

I'm sure I'll think of more questions to tack on to this thread later. Thanks in advance for the answers.

 

V8 fiero swap, wow.


Congrats on the new MINI.

Dont know about the paring on the andriod side , but it works good with the iphone.


On the 2011 -2010 not much changed, bit change was 2010 to 2011. In 2012 and 2013 interior options and colors options changed. Some features like bluetooth standard vs option and siuirs XM also. Thats about it.

 

Welcome to NAM! A supercharged FRS, very nice. I've driven a few and a pretty fun boosted BRZ that was almost completely carbon fiber (minus the doors). An S2k is on the list of cars I would like to add to the garage as well. I run with NASA as well! It's a blast. Looking to maybe break into SCCA in the future. Are you doing autox or their HPDE?

 

The FR-S was a hoot, especially with E85 and the smaller pulley. But it sure wasn't a good feeling to void the warranty at 5000 miles. Sadly my wife can no longer work so I had part ways with it last summer. At least a good friend in MT bought it and I get to visit that baby about twice a year.
The S2000 was simply amazing on the track, but I was far too tall to be comfortable in it. It's amazing how much more room I have in Mini.
I haven't run with NASA yet but plan on doing their HPDE since the Arizona group has access to a few nice tracks. In the past I did autocross with SCCA in my '95 Mustang GT.

 

Here's a few pictures. I'll have to dig up the Fiero pictures. That was a project I bought on the cheap and decided to flip. The wiring harness was destroyed and it was too much of a pain to get running smoothly.

 

Ya, that warranty thing sucks. They look for any way to void a warranty quickly though with those cars. Ah, yes... corn is good for the soul! Glad to hear it went to a good home though. I honestly never really think about height issues with smaller vehicles, must be because I'm so short hah! I can definitely see the s2k being an issue with height. My buddy boosted his s2k and then took everything off of it about a month later and sold it. He said once he slapped a turbo on that thing it really scared him. Awesome! You'll see the Snail Performance crew out there then. Snail Performance, the owner (lives in NorCal), is my tuner. Taylor is their head guy in AZ and has a really crazy hatch WRX. How did the Mustang do with autox? We have someone here with a complete autox Challenger and I am amazed at how well it performs. Just never thought of it as an autox vehicle.

 

The Mustang was bone stock, but that 5.0 and 280lbs of tq was an absolute blast. It was great driving experience when I was 18.