From photos I personally like the new look better, especially the rear. I was never a fan of the huge MINI logo in the middle of the hatch lid, which now seems to be more proportionately sized.

REALLY disappointed that the Cooper S isn't available with a manual gearbox. It's a show stopper for me.

 

Me too. It had better be rectified!

 

I HATED that offroad body kit that all the press shots have, but it didn't look that bad when I saw it in person. I would still never get that package, but...

 

No. I see no improvements at all. Just more fat.

 

Definitely a smart choice to go with the spare rather than the picnic cushion, especially if you plan to keep the car long enough to need new tires. Not having to buy run-flats will save you hundreds and you'll get a better ride.

 

I hate to have to agree with you about manual transmissions being a dying breed, but you are right. Long may MINI hang in there and keep producing them for those of us who prefer three pedals and a manual gear shift. I realize this is a personal choice, but I grew up with manual gearboxes and it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks. I rent many cars, all of which are automatics, and the number of times I conclude that some of them would be so much better with a manual gearbox. The most noticeable recent disappointment was a Golf GTI with an automatic.

 

I keep buying manuals! I am doing my part! My '12 Countryman is manual, as well as my Mustang and Ranger... Our new '17 will be manual as well...

Although, the last time I had service done to the Countryman, I got a loaner (auto, of course) and it wasn't actually bad... I would never buy one, but it definitely seemed better than the ones I've driven before...

And is it me or are their WAY less a la carte options this time around?!

 

We ordered a manual transmission too. After living through the Smelly Clutch fiasco in our 2011 MCS All4, the clutch was not an issue in our 2014 MCS All4.

Yes - very few a la carte options. No matter how I configured it, pretty much had to have the Loaded Package to get what I wanted.

 

Luckily, most of the stuff I wanted is now "included"! The only thing I really want that is not included is the Car Play, which requires the Nav option, which requires the Tech Pkg...

But I also kind of want the rear view mirror with the garage controls, but you also need to get the foldable side mirrors for that (which turns a $250 option into a $750 option) and I am not sure I want to spend that much on something I don't really need...

 

CarPlay won't make it for the 2017MY - It's been strongly hinted at by some MINI reps I've talked to that CarPlay won't be available until July production, which will make it a 2018MY. He also hinted it will NOT be retrofittable.

That being said, unless you absolutely need it for Apple Maps, 3rd party app integration through MINI Connected works well wirelessly in the new nav units and supports more music apps than CarPlay.

 

We have Mini Connected now and I hate it. I played with the Nav that was in the new Clubman and it wasn't much better. I played with the Car Play feature in a car we rented last week and LOVED it. The maps feature alone is handled WAY better... It's so much better that I will wait however long I need to to get that feature (if that means waiting till a 2018 model, then that's what I'll do)...

The sales guy I talked to said that it would be coming out in July as well, but didn't mention anything about not making it into this years model... I have another email into him to clarify more...

 

July is typically when MINI changes model years.

 

That would make the 2017 model year extremely short... Since they *just* started making them... Not to say it won't/wouldn't happen, just that it seems like a strange move if true...

 

Not at all unusual for MINI. The Clubman was the same way and in fact, was even more complicated as the ALL4 debuted as a 2017 despite production starting around March of 2016 - the other models didn't switch over until July 2016. Same story with the JCW Convertible. Oh, and who can forget the JCW F56 manual which was in production for a week in the 2016MY and only produced about a hundred cars?

 

That seems very inefficient! Why go to all that trouble when you can just wait a month or two and just release it as the next model year?! Seems crazy to me...

 

That's why we love MINI.

 

LOL! If you say so!

 

So, I heard back from my sales guy and he confirmed, the 2017's will NOT be getting Car Play. And the 2018's *might* be getting it, but it doesn't sound like it will be available at the start.

Sounds like they are waiting for Connect 6.0 to be released. Also, touchscreen is needed (which I assume will be part of the Connect 6 or an upgrade of some sort). So yeah, since it needs the touchscreen capabilities, it won't be retrofittable... :(

 

Well touchscreens are out now with the nav units for the Clubman as of Nov 16 production and will be available day one for the F60, but it must still be missing some sort of hardware for CarPlay (or licensing problem). It will connect to CarPlay wirelessly, making it one of the only car manufacturers to do so and I've heard WiFi is how it's connecting, so maybe that's the delay?

 

Maybe... Is wireless is confirmed? Cause that could be a hold up (why not at least release the plug in version in the meantime though)...

Or maybe it's Apple's licensing (even though BMW already has it, I could definitely see Apple making MINI get their own license)...

 

No more optional BiXenon HID headlights, and no headlight washers.
Two negatives for us. Living in remote areas with winter make the cheaper LED headlights a serious negative.
Our 2016 Countryman All4 has some of the best headlights I've ever used in any make.

 

So we saw the new 2017 Countryman at a dealer event yesterday and then again at the Philly Car Show. Having seen it in the metal, we are incredibly excited about the new model and are very anxious to receive ours. Our new F60 S All4 is scheduled to be production complete on Feb 2.

So many great new features, interior quality is orders of magnitude better, love the new styling, bigger dimensions make it more comfortable and useful (for us anyway) and LOADS more room in back seat. I think this is a real winner!

 

Yes, wireless CarPlay is confirmed

LEDS > Xenon

There's a reason everyone is switching to LEDs - they have better light output, require no warmup time, draw less power, and will last longer. Having had a R60 with xenons and a F55 with LEDs, I can say firsthand the LEDs are better.

 

LED superior to Xenon, with adaptive and cornering lights I can actually see things.