So while I wait for my car to be shipped over to me, I will continue to obsess over the forums and reviews of the car. I'll be honest, aside from just a few of you the sense I get about your thoughts on the new Mini are a bit of a mixed bag. Most of the reviews I have read and watched seem to reflect the same general thoughts... The new Mini came close but its still not quite there.

Personally I don't think there is anything out there at that price that covers everything I could want on a car, but I still feel confident with my choice. I am tiring of the constant Fiesta ST coming in as the reviewers favorite. Sure maybe a day on the track would reflect that car as a bit better, but day in and out is there really another car you would have rather gone with in retrospect? New GTI perhaps? I suppose I may get a twinge of regret when the new TT's begin showing up on my local roads (or if I struggle to drive my Mini up the snowy hill to my home), but then I will remind myself that 6 speed manuals are not an option for the US market on TT's.

Anyway, would love to know what specifically you would change about the car to give you the FULL package?

Better breaks, more HP, mechanical limited slip, body kits? What would you need to adjust to feel like you had the perfect daily driver?

Sitting at Heathrow waiting to fly home and it was hard not to jet up to the factory and kindly ask to see the soon to be mine Mini roll off the assembly line that started production the same week I happened to be here. Wish they had European delivery program for this car like they do with BMW!!

 

I considered a ST as well but went with the MINI because I felt it was built, inside and out, with better materials. Just a overall nicer car. Plus the MINI has a ton more options. Check out this review -

 

I have a few thousand miles behind the wheel at this point. While I could go into many details positive and negative, I think the only question is this: would I do it again or is there a different car I wish I got instead. The answer is no. There is no other car in this price point that even comes close. You might hear people complaining about this or that...but get them to answer that question.

 

angrybears,

I've got over 2,000 miles on my F56.

If I had to do it over again, I would demo a car with sport suspension and dynamic dampener control before deciding. I want some of the "old MINI" true go-kart handling back. I don't know how close I can get to the handling my Coupe S had but I'm going to try.

I put so many miles on my car, I will be out of warranty sooner than most and can add aftermarket parts. Maybe a tune, stiffer sway bar (front and rear), stiffer springs, and definitely the rear spoiler for looks. The techs at the dealership are hard core MINI fanatics and they mod the heck out of their own MINIs and would love to mod an F56. Also, I'm going to add the chrome brake ducts, trim, and trunk lid piece. (I like chrome)

I would like to see someone make a YouTube vid of an F56S is battling it out with an R56S in cornering and handling to see the results of the "old" vs. "new" performance. Then again, maybe I don't want to see something like that.

 

The F56 is more BMW than the R56. Less rough around the edges. Some will like and dislike that. I personally found the R56 really noisy and completely insulated it. It was still noisier that the F56. I am not in love with all the "extras" I purchased with the car...but despite that they integrate well. Voice commands are excellent. Also and this is a big plus the hands free actually works as opposed to the 2010 MCS....people would complain constantly and I had ever part replaced!
So now it is like a small BMW to drive but it handles really, really well. This aspect will keep you coming back long after the gimmicky bells and whistles have become dated.

 

I have a bit of different perspective than most on here I think. This is my second Mini, the first was a plain Jane first ten model that we bought used as a company car with a ton of miles on it. So it basically doesn't count for much. Except that I like how certain things worked and I liked the look.

Cut to the new Mini...I've had a LOT of cars. And a lot of high-end cars like a 2012 911S, a Panamera S, a V8 M3, a Boxster Spyder, and a few others that were nice cars, but those are the best I've had. I've also had the latest Golf R and a bunch of pick-ups as well. I'm not telling you guys this to toot my horn but to give you a point of reference. The Mini delivers the feel of some of the most expensive cars I've had at a fraction of the price.

As soon as I drove the MCS, it reminded me of a cross between my girlfriends last gen 328 and my M3. The solidness of the body, the materials used inside the car, the red dash lights, the steering weight, the excellent seats...I could go on. What I'm getting at is that while I do not know the direct comparison between the R56 and F56, I do have an excellent comparison between the F56 and other fantastic cars. I truly feel like the F56 holds it's own with any of them. No it won't win in a drag race, but it has a certain feel and texture that I've only previously found in much more expensive vehicles.

None of the above even touches on the visual character of the Mini. It's distinct and has a great road presence. Again, well above it's pay grade.

Just my .02

 

Yeah I had seen this review along with the Top Gear comparison and both of them more or less give the nod to the ST, even while at the same time admitting that the Mini is much better quality, more refined and better for daily driving. It's the sum of the review and the conclusion that the ST is still a better car when it clearly isn't. If it came down to which is the better track car, well I may go with something other than the Cooper S but since I am not buying a track car why do they always base the reviews around which car is better on the track??

 

I've had similar experiences as TouchUpDirect, and agree completely!

 

Almost 1300 miles, I look forward to getting in and driving every time. Very minimal prior generation experience, but plenty with high performance small wheelbase cars over the past 20 years. I looked at many different cars over the past year before deciding on an F56 MCS. In my opinion our car offers the best overall of everything I currently want and very little of what I don't. The overall comfort level is outstanding, seats are very good, noise level is low, general look and feel inside the car is high, driver fatigue on my longest drive 2 hours was very low. Even a one hour 37 mile commute is tolerable now. Performance is very misleading, especially given it's size. Time will tell obviously, but I believe, just like the earlier generations set standards, the current one while different is an exceptional car. Another great thing is that the car has several different personalities that should please a large market, which is good for all of us long term.

 

My exact thoughts, Steve. I love this car. There is NO other car that I would like to drive daily at this point. Maybe in a couple of years my thoughts might change. But at this point my MINI-S is everything in a car that I want.

The only options I wonder about, as far as things I maybe should have considered, are the sport suspension and dynamic dampener control. However, I am pretty content with the handling when I'm in Sport mode. One of things that kept me from going with the sport suspension was the possibility of a rougher ride. With such a short wheelbase, I didn't want to be jarred on rougher roads any more than I had to. So for daily driving I prefer (I think) to not have the optional sport suspension. But for having fun on the twisties, the sport suspension would be a plus for sure. I cannot comment on dynamic dampener control since I've never driven a car with it. All things considered, I have to say that I am content and happy with the base 'S' suspension.

 

I haven't pulled the trigger on a new Mini, but I just test drove a couple of F56 Minis this past weekend. The first one (non-S) had a very rough ride, whereas the second rode (S model) much smoother, but still taut. I pointed that out to the female specialist when we were done with the second ride and she agreed with me. I asked what was the difference. It took a while to figure it out, but it looks to be the Dynamic Damper Control option that had been added on the second vehicle. That $500 option seems very well worth it.

I haven't tried a vehicle with the Sport Suspension. My concern is that it would be too rough a ride, but I'd love to hear from someone who has.

 

There is a whole thread going back and forth on that. Some feel the sports suspension is a must. Others, myself included prefer the dynamic set up. Personal preference really, but it doesn't sound like they will spacing any cars with the sport suspension unless it's a custom build so it will be hard to compare them side by side.

 

I cant speak for the sports suspension but I have the DDC in mine and think it is great. Makes a noticeable difference for sure between driving modes.

 

Ditto, on not knowing the sport suspension as I have the DDC and I'm very pleased with the performance. I do believe that with the quote 30% increase in stiffness provided by the sport suspension vs. the 10% increase from Mid to Sport with the DDE would result in a ride I would find to harsh. If I were into autocross, it would be something to consider, but as a daily driver, weekend carver, and occasional track day the DDC will be just fine.

 

If we were talking features, I almost got a KIA Forte5 SX (very similar to your Kia Pro_Cee'd GT, with the same 201 HP twin-scroll turbo engine and chassis). Ours is packaged differently. I was attracted to the ventilated seats, 10-way power seats with memory settings, heated steering wheel and leather seats. On the other hand, the fuel-economy sucks compared the competition, but it had an a available manual.

Unfortunately, Kia has yet to deliver that exact configuration, over six months of waiting later.

Prior to that, I very nearly got the Mazda3, but the packaging is insultingly skewed toward the S-GT, or the fully-loaded version, but then, here we're forced to go with the automatic teansmission. I pretty much hated the ergonomics and odd money-saving design choices Mazda took, so I ultimately nixed that.

As for the Mark7 Golf, it's not even here yet, and to even approach the MINI's level of kit, one has to buy the top-spec Autobahn packaging. Speaking of packaging, VW USA gives you VERY little option over how your car comes. That turned me off right there!

I had had a 2005 MC for nearly 7 years, so I knew MINI already, but hadn't paid much attention to the F56 until recently. My test-drive wowed me, and once I realized how well I could outfit it, and how great the seats are, it was, like, Kia who?

So, I will miss those powered and ventilated seats, and that heated steering wheel, but get far better things in its place, in a more cohesive, more mature and more evolved package, with great gas mileage and more smiles per mile.

No regrets about my decision, but of course I've only just this week organized my order and submitted it to the dealership, so I don't even have the car yet.

Here in the U.S., if you want a premium (or near-premium] hatch with a manual transmission on the top-trim levels, you pretty much only have three choices total:
1) Hyundai i30/Elantra or KIA FORTE5/Cee'd
2) Ford Focus
3) VW Golf GTI
... Or a MINI

THAT'S it!

 

I'm extremely happy with my purchase. The F56 is a massive improvement on the R56 in every way that I care about. The only thing it still needs is a set of coilovers/bags and some new shoes.

No one car will suit everyone's needs so you really can't expect there to be an overwhelming consensus. For instance, harshness of ride is irrelevant to me, as is most performance attributes. I care about quality materials, gas mileage, aesthetics and noise (how the car sounds versus how actually fast it is). The 3 cylinder has an amazing exhaust tone and that's worth way more to me than an arbitrary BHP or torque figure.