Overall I'm pretty impressed, having now had a chance to drive it over familiar local territory. It's a great little car. First impressions include in no particular order:

I'm not at all pleased with the complexity and difficulty of executing what should be simple tasks (finding a radio station). If it's more difficult to accomplish than it was with the radio in a 64 VW Bug, then it's too difficult.

There is practically NO engine braking. I suspect that's due to Valvetronic closing both intake and exhaust valves at 0 throttle input, so the only engine braking comes from the frictional and windage losses, both of which appear to be admirably low.

The manual transmission and linkage work nicely together, even without break-in. Reverse is fully synchronized, despite what the owner's manual says. You can shift into reverse easily at low forward or backward speeds. The hill-hold is awesome.

The anti-torque-steer is GREAT.

I despise these horrible HANKOOK tires. OMG. Probably the worst tires I've ever had, and that's saying something. They are garbage. Rough. Noisy. Tramlining. Jittery. They're non-run-flat types Optimo H246 and have one of the worst user ratings of any tire at Tire Rack. If you have a choice, get the dealer to swap them for something better.

Checking the oil level is insanely difficult. Very stupid idea from BMW to remove dipstick.

I've never, ever, felt 134HP feel this powerful. Wow. All that torque minimizes shifting which makes for low-effort driving.

The halogen headlights and fog lights are okay. They light the road uniformly and appropriately. There's no way I'd spend $0.01 for LED lighting and its associated absurd maintenance/replacement cost. The auto headlight function works well, switching from DRL to headlight at appropriate times.

Removing the rear head rests (they just lift out with the seat backs tilted forward) enhances rearward visibility quite a bit.

Except for the crappy tires, the car is spookily quiet inside. The engine makes about as much noise as an electric motor.

The sport seats are definitely not for fatties or non-agile oldies. We're both average/small stature, so there's no problem with space. The "wings" on the seatback definitely make entry/exit more difficult. Manual adjustment of seat position is more work than it ought to be. I'd have happily shelled out a few more bucks for a typical power seat adjuster. They seem to have removed the lumbar adjustment in the '15 version of the sport seats. I thought that was kind of cheesy.

My wife absolutely loves the colored light show. Not my cup of tea, but it's her car.

 

Nice, glad you like most of the car, especially the new turbo Justa engine. I've yet to hear anything but good about it. Too bad about the tires, I thought most Justas came with runflats. I never had any torquesteer in my 2007. (btw torque steer occurs when the car is accelerating straight ahead, not turning). I think the light show was meant for females. My wife loves my mood lighting. She messes with the colors.

 

Have you seen your spare tire and jack/tools?
I may order a Justa , just to have a spare!

 

We ordered the 15" wheels specifically to avoid runflats. Those wheels are a better choice for this part of the country anyway because they put more air/rubber between the fragile aluminum wheel and the copious amount of potholes that infest the roads around here. Pennsylvania roads aren't rated among the country's worst for nothing, ya know.

Good question about the spare! You can't actually see it. It's situated on a movable plastic shelf right behind the rear bumper and next to the humongous resonator that's there. I ought to get the dealer to do a demo of removing the spare and jacking the car and then video it for everyone's edification.

Lack of a spare was an important factor for us in not considering an S model.

 

People with MCS models have gotten spares, there's just no well to store it in. They get the donut emergency one and put it on a bag in the back. Quite a few people ditched the original RF tires because of the ride. I did after they wore out. People with 16" were better off. My new 17" RFs ride better than my original 2007 ones that's for sure. I don't know what they did.

 

Lawnmower, very nice report. I'm awaiting my MINI HT manual any day now. Now you've got me thinking about the tires. Does anyone know if the Justas all come with the same tires or is it the luck of the draw at the factory? Any recommendations on better tires? - this is my first MINI so I'm clueless as to what works best on this car. Sounds like it could be a negotiating point for my 3 1/2 months wait.

I passed on the sports seats; I'm not a fatty but thought they were too intimate for my tastes.

Given the cost of LED headlights, it was a no-brainer NOT to get them. Figured how bad could standard Mini headlights be?!

I'd be interested to hear any further observations as you break it in. I've got to do something while I wait!

 

Hi! First Post! Thanks for your input - I feel mostly the same, and have been meaning to write my own opinions.

I have had my MCS for about a month and 2000 miles. Here's my impression, in case this turns into a good thread for prospective buyers:

I bought a Volcanic Orange MCS after driving a couple different cars over the course of a week. I was trading in my 09 BMW 535i. Just to get it out of the way, I love that car. Never have I experienced such a blend of luxury and performance, with fantastic acceleration and pinpoint handling. Problem was it was constantly in need of service, as is typical with those cars. I had a slush fund to keep it on the road, and seldom went more than a month without at least one light illuminated on the dash for one reason or another. When it was time to give it up it had 118k miles and still drove like new. I just made the decision that it was a big hole in the road that I threw money into, so I parted with it.

Back to the Mini, I drove the MCS, a Z, a couple muscle cars, a BRZ, and a brand new 528i. I chose the Mini for a few reasons. Price was a bit higher than I liked but I didn't lose too much sleep over it. Second was having some kind of backseat. If I didn't need to move a 5 year old and an 8 year old around on occasion, I may have looked elsewhere, but that definitely eliminated the 370z, among other cars. Third factor was driving enjoyment. Just more fun than the other cars. I'll get to that in a bit.

So - after a month of use, what are my thoughts?

Build - I do think there is a marked improvement in build quality over past generations. I needed a loaner for about 3 days and they gave me a 2014 Clubman S. The plastics were hard, and the car rattled a bit after only 7000 miles. First Mini I drove was my dad's 05' MCS convertible. It creaked out of the box, and we joked that that was part-and-parcel what you would get with British build. Well, this car is a definite step above both of those cars.

The other cars I mentioned, the Nissan, the Subaru, and the American muscle, all felt cheap by comparison. I've been in Miatas and felt the same way. The plastics used in those cars seemed comparatively low-grade, with no padding etc.

Engine - I have to say I really like the engine. Has just about enough power to keep me happy. It's very smooth and actually inaudible at idle, rising to great sounds when you step on it. Adds a lot to the fun factor.

But . . . now it was a long time ago, but I remember liking the 1.6L supercharged engine in my dad's car more. At the time I was driving an Audi A4, and dad's MCS was just way more fun to drive. The gears seemed tighter-spaced, and racing to any speed required a great run through the gears. My MCS seems to have taller gears, which is a bit less fun for me.

Compared to the Clubman S, I call it a draw. The new 2 liter is more refined, but the old 1.6l Turbo really hit you in your back when the engine spooled up. Thats missing a bit. It's arguably more fun with the old engine, but I also found it a bit harder to modulate speed. I still appreciate the unbridled enthusiasm of that engine. That clubman, in short, felt a bit faster.

Handling - Fantastic. Everyone calls the Fiesta ST and Miata the last word in handling at this price point. Maybe, but this car seems spot-on to me. Some have said the steering feel has been deadened in the fashion of a lot of recent BMW's. I just don't see that. I never feel isolated from the road - I just don't have any sense of disconnect that I have experienced in other cars.

Fuel Economy - I'm averaging 30.3 combined MPG, and have been known to hit the pedal a bit hard at times. That's fantastic. I was happy getting 23mpg in the BMW.

Seats - I really like the seats. They are very supportive with excellent side-support. Maybe "too" excellent. I'm not a big person at 5' 6" 160lbs, and the seats felt tight for the first week. I've gotten used to it now. My MCS has the plaid with satellite grey back and bottoms. I find the cloth (kinda stretchy nylon) to be a bit cheap,and wonder how long it will last.

Niggles I've had mostly revolve around the electronics. Control of my iPhone's audio via bluetooth is hit-or-miss. Sometimes I can access iTunes audio, sometimes I can't. Sometimes it'll let me stream files I haven't downloaded, sometimes it won't. Running Beats or Spotify further screws things up. In short, it's not reliable or logical, and needs work. My 160gb iPod works flawlessly.

The iDrive dial (is that what Mini calls it?) to my mind operates backwards. Spinning the dial clockwise makes my mind think things will scroll down (as it did on the bmw), but the opposite happens. I got used to this.

Navigating menus is unintuitive, i.e. going back and forward by pushing the dial left or right. I just don't get the logic, but again I became used to it, and it's now second nature.

Incidentally, I have been using these iDrive systems for 4 years, and do not think they are safe in any way, particularly if a person is unsure how to use it. One can find themselves focusing on the screen instead of what's in front of them. Gimme buttons any day.

Climate Control - The BMW had a very powerful air conditioning system that was perfect for my neck of the woods (Arizona). It's temperature sensor also allowed the auto climate control to work perfectly. Only rarely did I have to adjust a ****. Amazing actually.

The Mini is less powerful, but still was able to hold its' own during a couple 105 degree days. However the auto setting doesn't seem to work very well compared to the BMW, but is by no means bad. What I do find bad is it's insistence on sending air to the floor and windshield, even on days that are so hot you can't touch the steering wheel. Aside from the air hitting my ankles being annoying, during an Arizona summer you want all the air you can pouring out of those vents. At least I do - maybe I'm weird that way.

Auto Start-Stop. I can't imagine this saving much in terms of fuel, and can imagine it causing a lot of wear and tear in the starter. So mine is always disabled. At least it can be permanently disabled.

Driving modes. I might be in the minority, but I like having the sport and regular modes. The Green mode is really overkill, asking me to shift at 1500rpm? The driving mode seems to derate the power as well, requiring a real stomp on the accelerator to get any acceleration. I appreciate it conserving fuel, but I found green mode, overall, to be a bit heavy handed.

Suspension - I like it. Minimal roll, feels very tight. Some complain that it's too tight. I'm not complaining about it, as the stiff suspension also give a lot of feedback on the road you'r driving on.

Run flats - my first time having them. My 535i had standard tires and I was grateful. I imagine they are contributing to the stiff ride, but I'm ok with it for now.

In the end, after driving this car for a good month, I keep asking myself why I'm the only one, of anybody I know, who appreciates this car? My wife thinks I'm a bit nuts, my brother is personally hurt that I didn't buy something with 300+ horsepower. Why am I the only one who finds it "insanely great?" I guess my priorities are different than the typical car owner. I wanted a fun performance driving experience on the cheap, and I got it. Im in my 40's, and we've had Audis, Porsches, BMW's, a Maserati, and Minis in the family. The Mini is in that list of performance cars for a reason.


BTW - I've been lurking on a few of these forums. This is a terrific resource and and glad I found it.

BBTW - Volcanic Orange is awesome. I think I smile every time I open the garage and see this car waiting for me. I usually go subtle, but I found this color to match the car very well.

 

I think the particular OEM tire that appears on your wheels is solely a result of availability/price at the factory. I think Porsche, Ferrari, Bugatti, and a few others give you the option for a few $K, but not BMW in my experience.

Better tires... yes! Michelin Pilot Sport all season is available in this size. I'm a big fan of Michelin Pilot Sport and Super Sport series tires. So much so that I'm thinking seriously of visiting a tire store that has both brands and seeing if they'll do a trade-in.

Negotiating a swap.... Sure can't hurt to try, but know ahead of time that these 15" tires aren't a popular size, so your options are limited.

I thought it was significant that NO ONE could give me a compelling reason to spend the $1250 on LED lights other than "Gee whiz, they're cool!" There's not a bit of objective data out there that I've seen that develops a convincing value proposition for them.

 

I have the standard Halogens as well. They do a nice job. When changing to the hi beams it seems a bit weird though as the area near the car becomes un-illuminated a bit, but they are certainly bright enough. I do miss my xenons though - thought they provided better light.

 

I saw some Justas on the lot with Michelin Energy Saver. My Justa just came in and I had ordered 16" non-runflat. It came with Hankook Ventus Prime2 195/55 R16 non-runflat. I don't think there is a way to predict what will come. Some F56S that came in with mine are the runflat version of Hankook Ventus Prime2 and others on the lot were Pirelli.

 

Crimguy (You either ARE a convicted felon or you convict felons, right? Prolly the latter.) raises a lot of great points. There are several parallels in our buying process, too. My wife had an E30 325iX (the one with the real AWD system) that she absolutely loved. With repairs though, we paid sticker for that car about 3X over. Talk about moneysink... Anyway, it was a great car for her. Got through all kinds of obnoxious weather, easy to drive, very easy to see out of. I finally talked her out of it when it hit ~280K and needed a bunch more maintenance. She drove a "spare" car for a while, and was foot-dragging about a new car until the "spare" developed its own age-related ills and I dragged her (leaving tracks in the dust from her feet) to the Mini store and said "We're buying a new car." So she picked out what she wanted ("I hate this automatic transmission") and now we have the results. She's thrilled. I'm impressed.

I'm totally onboard with your take on electronics. The iDrive was one of the principal reasons I gave up on BMWs. I absolutely HATE pointless crap like that. Not only is it difficult to use and unintuitive, but it diverts your attention FROM THE ROAD all the while you're screwing around with it. I feel approximately the same way about smartphones and the way users exist in a fog around them while they're poking at them.

BMW air conditioning: You might not have experienced truly BAD BMW a/c as it was in the mid-80's, say E28 series. They were essentially "integrated" hang-on units without reheat, so they didn't work worth a damn. There's a story about how the dealers in Texas were sick of hearing customer complaints about weak a/c so during a big BMW conclave in Dallas in ~1985, they held a bunch of BMW bigwigs captive in their own products, in July, in Texas heat, to get them to appreciate exactly how crappy it was. (Evidently, they had assessed the performance of their a/c only in Deutschland) The results showed up in the E34 which had GREAT a/c! I wasn't there of course, but I totally believe it. BMW a/c has been up to industry standards ever since.

We test-drove two 2014's (S-auto, non-S manual) in early July on a 94 degree day with a 74 degree dewpoint. The Mini a/c worked perfectly. Ice cold. I was sold.

 

It may be on the sunny side of the seat.

 

I have not heard about the maintenance / replacement costs involved with the LED headlights. Can you tell more?

Paul

 

Sure is nice to finally see some new first impression threads again!

 

I have not personally priced out replacement headlight assemblies, but rumor has it that they're circa $1K. You can't replace the just the "bulbs". Even if that figure is high by $500, I still wouldn't touch them with the proverbial 10'.

 

Nope. Your lumbar shall remain unadjusted.

 

Almost - i represent the people who are trying not to become convicted felons ;-D

And Lawnmower, I used to live down the road from you, if you consider 611 to be your road, and Abington/Jenkintown to be just "down" it.

 

Good question about the spare! You can't actually see it. It's situated on a movable plastic shelf right behind the rear bumper and next to the humongous resonator that's there. I ought to get the dealer to do a demo of removing the spare and jacking the car and then video it for everyone's edification.

Lack of a spare was an important factor for us in not considering an S model.

Please
That would be great!!

 

Close enough for jazz. We have friends in that general area. One can therefore safely assume that you have personal knowledge of the species Odious Roadius that's commonly found around here and that is largely responsible for the choice of 15" wheels and fat rubbery tires.

 

I may give it a try myself.

The car we traded on this had a similar arrangement for the spare. There was a long bolt that you had to crank to lower the frame that held the spare. In this case, the spare was visible which had its pluses and minuses. On the plus side, with a little effort you could find the valve stem to check the donut's pressure. Good thing too since keeping it at 60-70 psi required semi-annual attention. The minus was that it became encrusted with road dirt, dead possums, hornet's nests, etc. making it slightly unpleasant to put into use.

Mini's arrangement avoids the dead-possum problem I think, but from what I can see without actually crawling under there, checking and adjusting the donut inflation isn't trivial.

This is a good question and worth knowing about ahead of the time you actually need to use the spare. I'll try to investigate further this weekend.

 

It's a little more than the Xenons were in prior generations. I guess time will tell, but you shouldn't ever have to replace one of the LED fixtures. The light output is well worth the cost, IMHO.

 

I have this exact complaint as weel. It almost seems worse with the high beams on. Thinking of installing auxiliary driving lights to replace the OEM high beam function, so the foreground lighting remains.

 

Everything's going very well so far. My wife is thrilled with the car, and I'm still impressed. Far as we know, we've escaped all the niggles and glitches that have popped up for other owners. There hasn't been a hit of engine stalling or other misbehavior, though we do not use the auto start/stop. We both are particularly impressed with the power and smooth driveability of the 1.5L motor.

Our biggest "complaint" (which isn't much of a complaint at all) is the lack of engine braking. Having driven nothing but manual transmissions with conventional engines, it's something that both of us miss. I can't say there's any serious downside to it, except for the learning curve and the probable additional wear on brake parts. If anyone doubts the value of it, the vehicle we traded had 77K on it and has lived its entire life in hilly Eastern PA terrain. It still had the original brake parts which had plenty of life left in them.

It looks like the fuel consumption is going to be excellent -- far above the EPA rating. On the second fill up covering 220 miles, it took a paltry 5.1 gallons. Yowser. And that consisted of travel on hilly secondary roads without any highway miles at all.

The next project with it is to have X-Pel or the 3M equivalent installed, based on the number of reports of thin, easily chipped paint. If anyone has done this, I'd like to hear comments on what you covered and how it has worked out.

Bottom line, two big thumbs-up.

 

I agree 100%. They put out a ton of light. Not just in front of the car, but far down the road. I am very happy with mine.

 

You can get LED conversion kits for fairly reasonable prices, e.g.:

http://www.gtrlighting.com/led-conversion-kit/

I haven't looked too deeply into the subject, but the general consensus is that they put out a very nice light. Replacing bulbs is pretty reasonable.