We deleted the armrest in our F56 with manual because it
was in the way.
It seems the new F54 has a different armrest that will
be more manual shift and emergency brake friendly?
Anyone have any first hand experience with the F54 rest?

 

It is MUCH better than any other armrest MINI has done yet and, in fact, the entire center console is different. The parking brake is now electronically controlled so no more handle, just a paddle button. The arm rest can't be moved up and out of the way anymore, but it's positioning is much better - think a 3-series BMW. It now also has TWO compartments, one like we're used to, and a much deeper one below.

 

so how do you do e-brake slides?

 

They should have done this on the F56. The positioning of the iDrive is boneheaded and there's no reason why it had to be that way, as evidenced by the F54. It's the one design area by BMW that I can honestly declare to have been a screw-up.

 

I have manual trans and the center console is perfectly fine imo. Just takes some getting used to I suppose. Multi-positioning makes it worry-free! I almost didn't add it, but changed my mind at the last minute and not having an armrest would feel odd now that I have it there. Once I realized that it goes all the way down, that made my decision easy to add it, and I'm glad I did.

 

O2,
To engage the E-brake in your 2015, you must lift the console to vertically upright?

 

No, as you lift the brake handle the console just moves up out of the way. You only need to lift the lever on the front of the console to move the console downward (I think).

I'll have to double check that.....all I know is the console hasn't been a problem getting in the way. Honestly, after awhile it becomes second nature, and the console won't bother you one bit....it doesn't bother me. I like the extra storage it provides too.

 

The console moves a couple of inches at most when you apply the brake. When you release it, it is almost second nature to grip the front of the console and lowering it into position. You can adjust it to the angle that you want after releasing the brake.

This console is a marked improvement over the R56 unit. I have zero complaints.

 

I'm more annoyed by the armrest/iDrive controller position than the handbrake. I never use the write function just because I can't write legibly with my wrist bent awkwardly. Shockingly, it's still a better design than my A3.