F54 What happened to Mini?
Super Moderator
Joined: Aug 2016
Posts: 2,166
Likes: 520
From: California Native still livin' in LaLa Land
I may be the odd man out, but I went hunting for a BMW X or wagon and ordered my Clubman instead. Best car decision I've made in awhile.
3rd Gear
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 221
Likes: 82
X1, X3, and X5 are selling well, with the X3 refresh here, it's selling like crazy and the X5 refresh is coming later this year and BMW is already booking orders like wildfire. Hardly failures, IMHO.
I may be the odd man out, but I went hunting for a BMW X or wagon and ordered my Clubman instead. Best car decision I've made in awhile.
I may be the odd man out, but I went hunting for a BMW X or wagon and ordered my Clubman instead. Best car decision I've made in awhile.
4th Gear
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 512
Likes: 53
From: West Chester PA
X1, X3, and X5 are selling well, with the X3 refresh here, it's selling like crazy and the X5 refresh is coming later this year and BMW is already booking orders like wildfire. Hardly failures, IMHO.
I may be the odd man out, but I went hunting for a BMW X or wagon and ordered my Clubman instead. Best car decision I've made in awhile.
I may be the odd man out, but I went hunting for a BMW X or wagon and ordered my Clubman instead. Best car decision I've made in awhile.
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2nd Gear
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 56
Likes: 1
Well it looks like we will be picking up a 2018 Clubman - RED with stick 
Came close to a bleh grey car with zero options (sunroof and CWP only) but the lack of both comfort access and color made that a deal breaker (even though it was almost $10K less than the car we hope to pick up).
I was also pleasantly surprised to see how well her 2010 Clubman S held its value over the years.
Now... must find some stripes for the hood. Who makes those? She does not want the oem black or white - she wants something FUN like checkered center stripes.
edit: I don't think that Mini buyers want the colors that the dealers are stocking (and Mini is making) - and I do think that has something to do with the sales decline. They are trying to be something they are not and it is showing. My 2 cents of course.
Came close to a bleh grey car with zero options (sunroof and CWP only) but the lack of both comfort access and color made that a deal breaker (even though it was almost $10K less than the car we hope to pick up).I was also pleasantly surprised to see how well her 2010 Clubman S held its value over the years.
Now... must find some stripes for the hood. Who makes those? She does not want the oem black or white - she wants something FUN like checkered center stripes.
edit: I don't think that Mini buyers want the colors that the dealers are stocking (and Mini is making) - and I do think that has something to do with the sales decline. They are trying to be something they are not and it is showing. My 2 cents of course.
4th Gear
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 430
Likes: 100
From: Manassas, VA where the Civil War resides.....
Well it looks like we will be picking up a 2018 Clubman - RED with stick Came close to a bleh grey car with zero options (sunroof and CWP only) but the lack of both comfort access and color made that a deal breaker (even though it was almost $10K less than the car we hope to pick up).
I was also pleasantly surprised to see how well her 2010 Clubman S held its value over the years.
Now... must find some stripes for the hood. Who makes those? She does not want the oem black or white - she wants something FUN like checkered center stripes.
edit: I don't think that Mini buyers want the colors that the dealers are stocking (and Mini is making) - and I do think that has something to do with the sales decline. They are trying to be something they are not and it is showing. My 2 cents of course.
Came close to a bleh grey car with zero options (sunroof and CWP only) but the lack of both comfort access and color made that a deal breaker (even though it was almost $10K less than the car we hope to pick up).I was also pleasantly surprised to see how well her 2010 Clubman S held its value over the years.
Now... must find some stripes for the hood. Who makes those? She does not want the oem black or white - she wants something FUN like checkered center stripes.
edit: I don't think that Mini buyers want the colors that the dealers are stocking (and Mini is making) - and I do think that has something to do with the sales decline. They are trying to be something they are not and it is showing. My 2 cents of course.
I know this is an old thread, but felt compelled to add my 0.02:
Don’t know that MINI has lost it’s way, but i’ll agree with the OP. The colors are moving rapidly toward boring. Not as bad as the way Fiat missed on the 500 colors, and not as bad as the Honda dealer where all you can see is silver, black, and white, but not true to the variety that MINI has had in the past. I think it’s also a mistake to force buyers to go to a higher level of trim to access certain colors. A price for the “premium” colors is bad enough, but tacking a 500 paint option to a $3K package is brutal
Not being able to order (or for dealers to build) a la carte is a mistake. See “rapidly increasing sticker cost...”
The BMW model may work for BMW, but if they’d rolled MINI onto the market in 2003 with this mindset, the marque would not have taken off.
The dealers, the cars, the facilities all need to work together to make the MINI “experience” something that owners buy into and identify with, at least to some degree. Losing that coherence is where BMW is taking MINI astray.
Don’t know that MINI has lost it’s way, but i’ll agree with the OP. The colors are moving rapidly toward boring. Not as bad as the way Fiat missed on the 500 colors, and not as bad as the Honda dealer where all you can see is silver, black, and white, but not true to the variety that MINI has had in the past. I think it’s also a mistake to force buyers to go to a higher level of trim to access certain colors. A price for the “premium” colors is bad enough, but tacking a 500 paint option to a $3K package is brutal
Not being able to order (or for dealers to build) a la carte is a mistake. See “rapidly increasing sticker cost...”
The BMW model may work for BMW, but if they’d rolled MINI onto the market in 2003 with this mindset, the marque would not have taken off.
The dealers, the cars, the facilities all need to work together to make the MINI “experience” something that owners buy into and identify with, at least to some degree. Losing that coherence is where BMW is taking MINI astray.
Super Moderator
Joined: Aug 2016
Posts: 2,166
Likes: 520
From: California Native still livin' in LaLa Land
hoonu makes a good point, I think. This time around, the MINI buying experience has been a bit different than just 3 short years ago. And the MINI dealership is moving into the BMW store.
Don't how the rest of you feel about Coral Red Metallic with a Melting Silver roof, but we're getting one, sight unseen, and it required a lot of string-pulling on the part of our dealer's general manager to get MINI to agree to producing this color combo for a US car. And, as has been mentioned before, you gotta pay for the goodies.
Don't how the rest of you feel about Coral Red Metallic with a Melting Silver roof, but we're getting one, sight unseen, and it required a lot of string-pulling on the part of our dealer's general manager to get MINI to agree to producing this color combo for a US car. And, as has been mentioned before, you gotta pay for the goodies.
Coordinator :: Tar Heel MINI Motoring Club
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 896
Likes: 4
From: Highlands, NC
I have been a MINI owner since ‘05 with a chili red cooper. While is was not an S and therefore not the fastest, I added a JCW aero package and S spoiler with silver stripes. Throughout the years, I got a lot of very favorable comments about the appearance.
Recently, I looked to replace this with another chili red clubman. I agree, the colors were blah. Grays, black, etc. we’re all I could find. Recently I did find a burgundy Clubman. It was one color, and rather plain, but my local paint/restoration shop, was able to add a silver roof that changed the whole appearance.
The issue now is this elegant look now, has me wrestling with adding hood stripes. In silver. My ‘06 chili red MINI would have looked plain without stripes, but not sure the Clubman will look right with a sporty look. Can’t find any burgundy w/ silver top that has striped the car.
For what hat it’s worth, I chose the MINI over the X1, because I wanted the sporty feeling.
Recently, I looked to replace this with another chili red clubman. I agree, the colors were blah. Grays, black, etc. we’re all I could find. Recently I did find a burgundy Clubman. It was one color, and rather plain, but my local paint/restoration shop, was able to add a silver roof that changed the whole appearance.
The issue now is this elegant look now, has me wrestling with adding hood stripes. In silver. My ‘06 chili red MINI would have looked plain without stripes, but not sure the Clubman will look right with a sporty look. Can’t find any burgundy w/ silver top that has striped the car.
For what hat it’s worth, I chose the MINI over the X1, because I wanted the sporty feeling.
I have been a MINI owner since ‘05 with a chili red cooper. While is was not an S and therefore not the fastest, I added a JCW aero package and S spoiler with silver stripes. Throughout the years, I got a lot of very favorable comments about the appearance.
Recently, I looked to replace this with another chili red clubman. I agree, the colors were blah. Grays, black, etc. we’re all I could find. Recently I did find a burgundy Clubman. It was one color, and rather plain, but my local paint/restoration shop, was able to add a silver roof that changed the whole appearance.
The issue now is this elegant look now, has me wrestling with adding hood stripes. In silver. My ‘06 chili red MINI would have looked plain without stripes, but not sure the Clubman will look right with a sporty look. Can’t find any burgundy w/ silver top that has striped the car.
For what hat it’s worth, I chose the MINI over the X1, because I wanted the sporty feeling.
Recently, I looked to replace this with another chili red clubman. I agree, the colors were blah. Grays, black, etc. we’re all I could find. Recently I did find a burgundy Clubman. It was one color, and rather plain, but my local paint/restoration shop, was able to add a silver roof that changed the whole appearance.
The issue now is this elegant look now, has me wrestling with adding hood stripes. In silver. My ‘06 chili red MINI would have looked plain without stripes, but not sure the Clubman will look right with a sporty look. Can’t find any burgundy w/ silver top that has striped the car.
For what hat it’s worth, I chose the MINI over the X1, because I wanted the sporty feeling.
I almost ended up with a burgundy/black Clubman. Then this pre-owned White Silver showed up...
I went with the MINI over an X2 because I couldn't take the dealer. Unfortunately they're moving BMW Preowned into (taking over half of) the MINI shop.
Short-sighted...
Coordinator :: Tar Heel MINI Motoring Club
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 896
Likes: 4
From: Highlands, NC
I liked my ‘06, but the Clubman rides really great, and handles my mountain roads fine. I needed more interior space, Utah didn’t want an SUV. (Looks like we are in the same portion of the world).
Don’t know that MINI has lost it’s way, but i’ll agree with the OP. The colors are moving rapidly toward boring. Not as bad as the way Fiat missed on the 500 colors, and not as bad as the Honda dealer where all you can see is silver, black, and white, but not true to the variety that MINI has had in the past. I think it’s also a mistake to force buyers to go to a higher level of trim to access certain colors. A price for the “premium” colors is bad enough, but tacking a 500 paint option to a $3K package is brutal
Its clear that MINI understands the importance of color choice to potential MINI buyers. That's why they so eagerly restrict color choices for the lower priced trim levels, attempting to focus buyers into the more expensive trim levels. Otherwise, why restrict the Oxford editions to only 5 colors? The problem is really, this only pushes potential buyers away from MINI all together.
The BMW model may work for BMW, but if they’d rolled MINI onto the market in 2003 with this mindset, the marque would not have taken off.
The dealers, the cars, the facilities all need to work together to make the MINI “experience” something that owners buy into and identify with, at least to some degree. Losing that coherence is where BMW is taking MINI astray.
The dealers, the cars, the facilities all need to work together to make the MINI “experience” something that owners buy into and identify with, at least to some degree. Losing that coherence is where BMW is taking MINI astray.
4th Gear
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 430
Likes: 100
From: Manassas, VA where the Civil War resides.....
While not a popular color, I still love my Digital Blue. While I thought it would be more popular than it was, I'm happy I got it. Sets me apart from most of the Clubbys I've seen.....
6th Gear - AX Champion
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 3,301
Likes: 300
From: Pittsboro NC
There should not be a BMW 1 Series and probably not a BMW 2 Series. If a potential BMW buyer wants something small, simply send them next door, over to MINI. If a potential MINI buyer wants something large, send them next door, over to BMW to check out an X7. Don't try to make a BMW Cooper, nor a MINI 7 Series.
if bmw brought the 2 door hatchback M140I over I would own one
6th Gear - AX Champion
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 3,301
Likes: 300
From: Pittsboro NC
all those turbo I6 1 series or 2 series with full bolt on and a tune make 400hp at the wheel, my toy is a N54 powered 135i, 3400 pounds and 400whp are a fun ride. It in no way shape or form could be replaced by a mini, the power and RWD difference is simply too great.
OVERDRIVE
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 5,602
Likes: 107
From: Arizona
I think that the (RWD) Beemers are quite a bit more money than the FWD Minis for one thing. You can't spend much over $40k on a Mini but the BMW 1 & 2 cars can get way above that price I bet. So they are marketed to largely different markets IMO. I had an 88 BMW 235is and a 2007 MCS and they were completely different cars.
6th Gear - AX Champion
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 3,301
Likes: 300
From: Pittsboro NC
at the time my first 135i was 38 out the door, the m240i has crept up in price along with minis. I went from a new 2007 mini to a new 2008 135i then back to a r53 and back to a 135i,
I disagree with your assumption on the markets. I also owned E30's at the same time and I really enjoy them, I find them very similar to the mini when autocrossing or doing HPDE or mountain runs, really fun cars. I've owned 30+ bmws and 8 minis. The mini was the closest thing I could find to the e30 that had modern safety. in fact this is what I currently own, I cross shop bmw/mini
2019 toyota 86 TRD wifes mountain run car (closest to modern e30 that I could find)
2011 x5 diesel
2008 135i
2006 r53 jcw
2006 Z4 (kids beater car)
2005 r53 track car
2004 F150 tow vehicle
I disagree with your assumption on the markets. I also owned E30's at the same time and I really enjoy them, I find them very similar to the mini when autocrossing or doing HPDE or mountain runs, really fun cars. I've owned 30+ bmws and 8 minis. The mini was the closest thing I could find to the e30 that had modern safety. in fact this is what I currently own, I cross shop bmw/mini
2019 toyota 86 TRD wifes mountain run car (closest to modern e30 that I could find)
2011 x5 diesel
2008 135i
2006 r53 jcw
2006 Z4 (kids beater car)
2005 r53 track car
2004 F150 tow vehicle
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