Lol, nothing could be that bad. They'd have to offer a 2 cyl 65 hp, 2900 lb Cooper for it to be the same.

 

Did I even mention the Mini? Please note I'm referring to MINI... thus the "MINI" nomenclature. And I stand by my prediction that the R56 will be typecast as the "Mustang II" of the MINI generations.

 

Ha Ha your a trip dude.. I dig my R56.. You need to get a grip!!lol I think all 3 MINIs are decent. I find it hilarious that everyone is thinking the F56 will just be problem free and is the next best thing to the microwave oven!! Time to come back to earth!!

 

I test drove one today. Fully loaded. I must say they have done a good job with the car. The 8" screen looks very nice. Overall I liked the interior. And the exterior, I am still not sure. But was surprised that it's only 1 inch bigger than the old one.

 

As predicted...

 

Here is a good explanation of Twin Power.

http://www.autoevolution.com/news/bm...ned-50443.html

 

Being BMW sourced... my confidence in the F56 drive train, even in a first year production automobile is far greater than the gamble you take purchasing any Prince powered MINI. The Peugeot sourced R56 engine has had a long and well documented history of problems / failures. In reality, the F56 drive train is one of the major positive factors one should consider in an F56 purchase.

 

There is nothing to predict.. Ive enjoyed both R53 and R56. And when the F56 JCW comes out im sure I will add that to my collection as well.

 

Excellent lint. Thanks!

 

I believe that both the R53 and the R56 will be remembered equally well as time goes on. Some prefer one vs the other for the way it drives, or the way it looks. Some like the more modern interpretation of the R56 after the refresh. But it seems like with the F56, MINI is now once again a premium small car, with an interior that matches its average price point.

As much as I love my car, all of the hard plastics in the interior just seem out of place for what I paid. Dont even get me started on the Countryman interior! But the F56 seems to have given the MINI an interior equal in many ways to a BMW, and that IS a good thing.

 

The F56 MCS is about 4 inches longer than the R56 and 8 inches longer than the R53.

 

Even Frank Stephenson thinks the R56 is an abomination of his classic design:

Oh, my gosh, I don’t like it. I mean I don’t like the whole new trend at all. I think they just wildly abused the brand. They’ve lost it. [When] they chose to change the design, [c. 2007] perhaps that would have been the best moment to break away and really innovate like the original Mini did.

With the advent of the F56, and the Prince engine now history, we get some very cool BMW drive train tech. Additionally, the F56 electronics are a real progression forward for MINI. My hope is that the F56 repairs the "abused brand" bestowed on MINI by the R56 series, similar to how Ford revived the Mustang brand, helping us all forget the Mustang II era.

 

Ask any female how big of a difference 8" makes. I mean the waistline....

 

Your comparison of the R56 to the Mustang II is bit like comparing apples and oranges. The R56 is, arguably, an evolution of generation I, and just as arguably less successful. The Mustang II was a paradigm shift away from competing with the GM pony cars and the MOPAR products to competing with the likes of Toyota Celica and the Chevy Monza and it's derivatives. It was also in response to the oil crisis and tighter emissions standards. It was interestingly enough Motor Trends' Car of the Year, which is questionable praise. I will agree that the Mustang II should be forgotten, but will respectfully disagree that the R56 is in the same company.

 

Frank Stephenson held a hard line with the bean counters, and insisted on design over cost. The result was an expensive vehicle to source parts and to manufacture. Stephenson was able to hold this line because he was attempting to establish the MINI brand. On the other hand, the design emphasis for the R56 was to cut cost. The R56 was a response to these high manufacturing costs.

I happen to agree with Frank Stephenson on the R56... I think they just wildly abused the brand.

The Mustang II was also driven by bean counters... same as the R56. When you think about it, there are actually many parallels between the Mustang II and the R56.

Its refreshing to see MINI returning to its roots with the F56... and producing what appears to be a performance centric high quality vehicle that has kept the bean counters in check.

 

Mini Cooper S direct comparison with an A1. And a few other angles. Rear wing has a nice shape. I think I really dont like the chrome brake intakes. They would be black for me. They help to accentuate the over done and much too busy front end.

 

Interesting comparison.

 

I think its time to forget the Mustang II comparison, it just doesnt fly. Also, I would say that most people prefer the look of the R56 to the R53. It could well turn out to be the best looking MINI on the outside. Its another story inside, it looks like the F56 really improves the quality and adds the tech that most people want in a car today.

 

What cannot be disputed is that Frank Stephenson, MINI visionary and car designer extraordinaire, said plainly of the R56, that it "wildly abused the brand"... and many folks absolutely agree with his assessment. The R56 was created the way it was so BMW could make back the money they missed for over engineering the R53 in order to deliver on Stephenson's original vision for MINI.

Looking at the "Issues" forums, I would say its one sided. the R56 just has a mass of problems. Just way to many things that should not be wrong, timing chain stretch, tensioners falling out, and so on. Given this, I stand by my Mustang II comparison, as both it and the R56 were born out of corporate bureaucracy vs. passion & vision.

It appears there is hope for MINI though. From the look of things, MINI kept the bean counters at bay... and the F56 looks to be a winner.

 

Ha, you must be new here.

 

Sorry. Have to disagree big time with that one. I have an R56S (2007) since new and love it. It is a lot of fun to drive, and everything still works.

I would be in the market for a new one, in a year or two, but not if it looks like the F56S with its downright ugly (to me) front end. It looks like a fish with a bar in its mouth.

I love the styling on the R56S and the way it performs. And I haven't seen any numbers where it shows that the F56S is faster in acceleration than the R56S, even though the F56 has a new, bigger and more powerful engine. It also weighs more. Granted, it has a better interior, but the electronics look over-engineered.

So no thanks, I guess I will just keep my R56S. It is nothing close to the failure that the "Mustang II" was to Ford. I think Mini (BMW) has ruined the car with the F56, especially with the styling.

 

Bumped..

 

Kellmark, I agree with you that in no way should the R56S be compared to the Mustang II. That is just silly. But, it is equally silly to say that BMW has ruined the car with the F56. No, it's not perfect and some don't like some of the styling changes, but overall it is far superior to the R56 in every way. BMW has transformed this car and I believe the buying public is going to love the F56 in so many ways. The front end is a big change so it is understandable that many will prefer the simpler styling of the R56 front end. I'm not knocking the R56. Just simply touting BMW for doing such an amazing job with the improvements and upgrades on the F56.

Just out of curiosity, when you say that you love the way your R56 performs, in what ways? Have you driven an F56 to compare how IT performs? I've driven both the R56S and the F56S. The F56S feels like a big step forward in overall performance. I've read numerous reports stating that the F56S is faster than the R56S. I'm sure the performance upgrades will be proven in the near future as owners take delivery and magazines run their tests and state comparisons.

Tons of R56 owners absolutely love their cars. And rightfully so. But I predict that as more R56 owners upgrade to the F56 we're going to hear directly from them how much better the F56 really is. So I personally thank BMW for doing such an awesome job with the F56.

 

You have a 2007 R56S and fail to see the Mustang II parallels? Anyhow... don't kid yourself on the performance gains of the F56 over the Prince... not to mention reliability gains. Both will be significant. Oh... and about those "over engineered" F56 electronics... lol, yeah that sounds like a bad thing!

 

Your Mustang II parallels comparison just doesn't work. The Mustang II was a feeble attempt to adjust to market conditions and the world oil crisis and a shift away from emissions strangling regulations that were emasculating the muscle car market. No such thing happened with the R56. Certainly Ford bean counters were heavily involved, but MINI's less so. Your intensive focus (pardon the Ford pun) on the Mustang II is interesting. Did you own one?