I went down to drive one of the new turbo "S" Minis today. WOW. was that fun. I dont have a lot to compare it to, but it handles great, and there is no turbo lag. The body feels solid. I expected to hear rattles and a tinny sound to it, but to my surprise it was pretty nice right out of the box. I drove it pretty hard too. I probably should have kept it below 6500 rpms but I had to find out just what it has. Now, I really dont know what I am going to do. JWC Mini or new turbo, or a fully blown modded "S". I am really confused. Wife says go with new and order what I want. I hate paying taxes on top of maximum loss on depreciation.

Bottom lin, I like the new mini. If you have a chance, drive one.

 

here here!

 

I also drove one today. I like the ride, miss the SC sound and exhuast note. I have a 06 JCW so that is what I have to compare it to. I felt a slight, very slight lag. The center console is nasty, but the rest of the interior is very nice. My JCW has better pickup and handling from what I felt with the short test drive. But I would buy one for sure.

 

I didnt notice lag but I think that is due to me pushing the car to its max. I kept the rpms above 4000 which is at the upper end of the torque curve. I think the salesman took a dump in his pants when we went around one turn. I tried to kick the rearend out and no matter what I did, I couldnt.

 

The salesman went with you on your test drive? Mine didn't...

I test drove an 07 MCS today too. I'm impressed. The one I test drove didn't have the sport suspension or sport package. It did have the leatherette which I found comfortable. The sport button is indeed a Jekyl/Hyde button. Jeebus that thing makes a difference! I had to turn it off to dart out in traffic and not spin the wheels. You'd have to see the road I was on here to understand why darting out is necessary. I also found the 6 speaker stereo to be VERY nice but I'm still opting for the 10 speaker stereo. If any of you are curious about them, go drive one. It's well worth it.

 

Sport button was on the whole time. They borrowed that feature from the ///M3. Nice touch. I wouldnt even think of not having it on.

 

I joined the club and drove one today also.

Let me say that I had not expected them to be nice. I didn't like the new styling or the new interior...until I saw one in person.

This is definitely a car that the pictures can't do justice for. Not to mention, it's very very speedy, always good for people with heavy feet....not me..

I was going [obscenely fast speed here] and it was smooth as anything. Quiet too, that part I don't like. Lets hear that blowoff valve and exhaust baby.

Overall, awesome. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

Today I drove both the S and...wait for it...an auto Cooper and I was well impressed. Actually, the auto Cooper really shocked me. I drive an MCS with a few mods, and for sure I was not left wanting with the auto Cooper. Weird. The sport button could also be called the "magic button". Really good things happen with the button pressed. With the S I was overall less impressed as it's much closer to my car. The example that I drove had a few options (convenience and sport I think) and stickered at 28k, which was way too much for what you got. It had absolutely no turbo whine, but was comfortable and for sure fast enough. I still hate the mamallian protruberances that are the outboard air vents on both cars, but overall, I'm warming to the R56. I can't believe how much I like the 6 speed, manual shifting + paddles "auto" Cooper. That thing rocked! I'm thinking of getting a Clubman to replace my wife's Aerio in a couple of years, and that one would have to be an auto...hmmm...plenty of time to think about it.

 

Glad to see there have been no negative impressions from the R56 so far, Glad you enjoyed it.