Both of my previous BMW products had very optimistic speedometers. The high readings really helped the 0-60 times. The 318i, most recently, showed 10 percent high - a pain. BMW said their specifications allow up to 10 percent error. I eventually analyzed the circuitry and added an adjustment to get it more real. Our more recent cars have both been dead on with their readings.

Out of curiosity I used my GPS to check the speedometer display. I found a consistently high reading of about 5 percent, or 4 mph at around 70. I wonder if this is a legacy of the BMW involvement in the new MINIs. Does anyone know if this can be adjusted (other than by changing tire diameters)?

 

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My previous MINI's had this problem (which also falsely boosted MPG) - my new Countryman does not appear to have this issue.

 

Countryman with the 18-inch wheels reads 2 mph high. (according to my Droid GPS). R56 read 4 mph high.

I kind of liked that because you could think you are going faster than you really are. I drove the R56 for two years and when I got the GPS found out why people were mad at me going 4 mph too slow.

Bill

 

I have had 7 BMW products over the years (4 BMW, 2 MINI, 1 motorcycle) all have been off about 3-4%. Multiply that over several hundred thousand vehicles and then figure how much BMW is saving on warranty claims.... On my MCS I went up 1 tire size which brought the speed to a 0% error... how did you adjust the circuitry? I would be interested in doing that, it bugs me the car is off a few mph.... I understand the real reason for the difference is that European laws require that the speedometer can't be less that real speed..

 

I've found that whatever GPS device I use is always a few mph short of the speedometer, no matter what car I'm in.

 

The speedo reads high but the ODO records correctly. A few member have logged trips on GPS and the MPH was high but the miles traveled was dead on.

 

Awww heck, so when i hit 100 I was only going 98?

Need to Fix that today .

 

I inserted a 10K-Ohm potentiometer in series where the speed signal was supplied to the speedometer display (the appropriate value for that circuit) and adjusted out the error - right on. I haven't looked at the Countryman electronics yet to see what is appropriate for that huge speedometer display.

 

09 MCS reads 2 mph high with stock 16" rims
11 CM also reads 2 mph high with stock 17" rims

My feeling was that the biggest stock wheel option was 17" on the 09 and 18" on the '11. So mini did the 2mph difference so if running the larger option wheel the speed wouldn't get anyone a ticket.

 

Interestingly, the digital display and giant analog display show exactly the same (high) values, so tweaking this would have to be by altering something central to the system.

 

Countryman speedo reads +2 mph with the stock 18's as well. The diameter is the same with the tyres having different sidewall heights.

Bill

 

Mine is the same with the 18" wheels. My 2008 MC was 4 faster. Drives me crazy and wish they could be like Toyota and show the exact figure. When I first got the 2008, I couldn't figure out why I was getting all these dirty looks when my speedo read 70.