Well, I'm about to be back in a MINI too. My last one was an '07 that I loved but had to sell when we bought our house and I've been itching to get back into one ever since.



The last one:


The new build:






I could not be more excited, and on the plus side it went into production yesterday

 

Congratulations! Nice configuration. Mine is the same exterior color and black roof/mirrors. It is a great color.

 

Thanks! and I fixed it for you

 

 

Interesting build...


Good to see someone getting a base (non S) model. I gotta say I'm VERY intrigued by the base model, more so than the cooper S. I would've never considered anything but an MCS in the previous gen. However, the reviews of the f56 base sound great - still a very peppy drive, you get the amazing handling, amenities, etc. THe base is a huge value proposition for someone like me. The S is a bit out of my range for how I'd want to configure it. The base however, ohhhh man its tempting.


Was that your line of thinking as well?


I've denied the coopers so long and I just love them. I'm realizing more and more that I enjoy cars that are more than speed, I just like something different and something where you recognize its cool before you even turn the key (realized this the last time I sat in an r56 and heard the door or seat belt chimes lol). I signed up for my local dealer's launch event - very excited to see them in person and drive!


Sidenote the $2000 boot loot they're offering seems ridiculous - you have to take delivery by end of April - 1. I don't like the cars on the lot and 2. it seems there is no way they'll have enough inventory to even fulfill that.

 

Very nice R56

 

The 2014 MINI Cooper Hardtop (both models) is excluded from the $2000.00 Boot Loot offer.

 

Right you are Cobrabob - totally missed the exclusion part in the disclosure.

 

Yeah more or less. My wife drives a 2013 Clubman that she adores but the R56 base models just never did it for me. But I REALLY like the new 3 cylinder turbo. It's got plenty of power and sounds great. Plus it gets almost as good of gas mileage in the city as the R56 Cooper got on the highway. And I've always preferred the base model styling. They always have had the better bumpers, and they have a cleaner gas cap and hood since they don't have the fake scoop.

And on top of all of that, you can load it up with tons of goodies before you approach the cost of a base model Cooper S.

It's definitely a great bang for your buck now.

My primary motivating factor for this car was gas mileage though. I have other toys that go fast, I just want a good daily driver with lots of gadgets

 

Interesting, this would be my only car, daily driver. And yes the mpg is a real money benefit - I use this calculator all of the time - https://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/savemoney.shtml

I'm beginning to see the futility of a fast daily driver. I've always liked the more special or rare cars I've had. Which is why I like mini, I don't even need to turn the key and I know its just a cool car with awesome style and "feel". I think I'd rather have the nice appointments, the style, the special feeling, than spend the same on another car that is faster but really doesn't give the same unique feeling. I'm getting suckkkked in, eeek.

 

Pics first

Exterior:

Side Profile by jasonwithers, on Flickr


LED Headlights by jasonwithers, on Flickr


Tail Light by jasonwithers, on Flickr

 

Interior:

MINI Connect XL by jasonwithers, on Flickr


Black Pearl Seats by jasonwithers, on Flickr


Black Pearl Seats by jasonwithers, on Flickr


***** by jasonwithers, on Flickr

 

Oh and yay for dealerships running cars through automatic washes. Thanks guys, really appreciate it.

Paint Imperfections by jasonwithers, on Flickr

 

Ok, so after having the car for a couple of days, here are my thoughts

- The Cooper has more than enough power to keep me satisfied, it's so much more fun than I thought it was going to be.
- The level of quality in this car is unimaginable. It's in a different league than our R5x's were and I'd say it's even nicer than the E92 I've been "loaning" from my parents while I waited for it to come in
- BRG2 is by far the best color :P
- The MINI Connect XL setup is amazing and I'm so glad I spent the money on it
- The HK system is flat out amazing and well worth waiting for. It coupled with the extremely quiet interior makes you feel like you're wearing a set of a headphones. It's seriously bliss.
- The black pearl seats are super comfy and look fantastic
- The headlights are seriously bright, and the DRL's are purple! They must be effective because everybody kept talking to me about them. I guess they must be pretty visible since they're such a strange color
- I was averaging 48mpg cruising at 70mph on the way home. I've used up about half a tank and I'm currently at 33mpg averaged and climbing. Unfortunately I'm having too much fun with the acceleration to really try to get the mileage.
- I got accustomed to the new front end way faster than I thought I would. It doesn't look strange to me at all now, at least not in person.
- The new AC is fantastic. It's so much more sensitive than the R5X series. It doesn't really start to blow hard until you've got the fans set to 75% power. I'd say 60% on the F56 is the same as 20% on the R5X. I also noticed that the vents don't blow directly on your hands, which is great.

Ok, so now my "issues"
1. For whatever reason the car didn't come with the Satellite Grey color line, and it's because we couldn't find it on the damn spec sheet so we assumed that it was the default option for the MINI "Yours" package with the cottonwood dash. IT ISN'T, BE WARNED. Now I'm going to have to source those and see how much I can get the dealer to knock off the price (hopefully they'll give it to me for free)
2. With an anthracite headliner, a dark dash and a black color line with grey seats, this is an extremely dark interior. I feel like I'm in a cave. It definitely needs to be lightened up some (I think the color line will do it).
3. Damn dealerships and their laziness. It really isn't that difficult to hand wash a MINI, but now I've got all kinds of imperfections in the paint and I'm going to have to spend a whole day detailing it, grr.


Anyway, I couldn't be happier with the car and now I can't wait to get a set of coilovers and wheels on it. I purposefully went with the standard 15" wheels to get the non-runflats so I have a spare

 

Hey, there is a plus in the dash surface debacle. Since you got the mini yours package you also get enhanced mood lighting in the form of light bars in the doors.

 

Oh that isn't standard? It's a pretty cool feature then, my wife and I were both like "whoaaaaaa" when we first started it after sunset.

 

Nope. Not standard although most dealers say it is and screw over more customers because of it.... Now I need to figure out how and when I can retrofit it into my car.
Side note. How embossed is the wood dash you got. Would you be able to vinyl wrap it? I saw somebody on reddit do it with an r56 and it looked very nice.

 

Awesome. Looks nearly identical to my ordered car (BRG w/ 15"s). Glad you're enjoying it, and thanks for the pics!

 

Yea I'm still mad about the standard light BS...

 

how is that different from the standard mood lighting? (the doors still light up)

 

The enhanced lighting adds even more lights to the door panels.

 

Jason.... Like your photos, love your car! The close ups of the leatherette/cloth seats impress - gotta love cosy seats that are cosy year round and neither stick to you in the summer or give you the "cold shock on first contact" during the winter. A well thought out specification. The Mini Cooper is the sleeper hatch with so much potential. I think they've almost made the car too good tempting all us "has to be a Cooper S" types to part with less $ for a brilliant car. Way to go BMW!!

 

I also ordered the Base Coop after totally enjoying my test rides. I'm trading in my BRG 2006 S ragtop and I was sure I was getting an "S" F56 until I test drove the base model. I felt the base Coop was a great ride and very similar to what I was already driving. Totally maxed out options and still kept it at $28,000. The mileage difference is a huge plus on top of the great ride. I'm getting 22-23 mpg on my ragtop.What a difference the new F56 will be. Enjoy your Mini. Great build!

 

Yeah, I went with the MINI Yours (Cottonwood) and my wife loves the ambient lighting in the door.

 

Thanks guys

It doesn't have a ton of texture to it but I'm pretty sure if you wrapped it in vinyl the ridges would show through. I'll have to take a closer look.

For anyone wanting to convert their dash to wood I would suggest hydrographics though.