We’re new owners of a black S convertible with a black top. We live in NJ in the NYC metro, so the weather is pretty mild, and we have some trees that block a bit of the sun, but we have no garage so I’m considering a cover to protect the top from sun and make snow removal easier. Does anyone have any recommendations?

I’ve heard concerns about trapping moisture, and it does get pretty wet here, but we would be driving it at least once a week, so not sure whether that would mitigate that. Also wondering whether a half-cover would be better in that respect—it seems like that would really serve my purposes well and avoid the paint wear issues from wind that I’ve heard about.

Anyway, I’d appreciate any advice and experience, especially on brands and full/half.

Thanks!

 

I would treat the top first yearly, it helps protect it from water and stains. Clean and protect. It will bead water off like you have wax on metal. Most have a UV protectant also.

https://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2019-...nvertible_Top/

I use it once a year on my R52


Then maybe a universal cover for the top portion. MINI removed a bunch of their factory outdoor car covers from the catalog.

If you use the half covers you have to put them/ on /off all the time and if may trap water.

 

Thanks, appreciate it. Dealer detailed the car before pick up and water was beading (rainy day), so I'll have to ask what they applied so I know how soon to expect to do it again.

Based on your advice and other things I'm reading, I may go for a less expensive outdoor cover and just use it when I'm expecting snow/ice, then really stay on top of cleaning and protection.

In your experience does the UV protection work really well for fabric tops? I've heard mixed things about uv protection in car wax, eg.

 

My top held up and it was replaced in like ~2006 on a 2005 under warranty and still looks new with yearly treatment. Did not fade that much.

 

Fifty years ago, my sister's MG-B convertible had a tonneau cover for just the passenger cabin. I liked that a lot, much more than the full body car covers. It had a zipper in the middle, so I could still leave it in place when I drove without a passenger.

If such a thing exists for a 2022 MINI convertible, I might want one.

 

Appreciate the thoughts, I may go that route. I got a better-reviewed no-name cover from Amazon that had some nice features, and it leaked at the mirrors in a light drizzle, then soaked through in several places in harder rain. I'm more concerned about easy snow removal, but that kind of performance means I would have to remove and dry after any precip, so this one is going back. If I can find a really well-reviewed top-only that convinces me it's worthy, I may jump on that. Otherwise I'm going with something better from SealSkin or CarCovers.com.

 

Hi Everybody! Proud owner of a 2023 F57 Mini Cooper S from Boston, MA. I have an off street parking spot in muy building, but unfortunately it's not covered which can be challenging in these New England winters. I only drive during weekends so taking care of the soft top has been a priority for me. I normally brush the top before driving if I am planning to put it down...I use a soft wheel brush I got for less than $10 so I remove all the dust and particles so they don't act like sand paper. However it was getting messy with tree sap and bird/seagull poop (I live close to the ocean) so I started researching for a cover that could work well, easy to use and store. After some time I decided to go with a half cover from "North American Custom Covers" (https://www.northamericancustomcover...48fa3f03&_ss=c) for which I paid $94 shipping included.

I got it mid-may so after a couple of months I believe I can share a fair review...it has faded a little but so far is working really well. Very good protection from sun and elements, easy to clean with a dump cloth an easy to install/store as it just takes a couple of minutes. Hope this helps.

 

Thanks very much, appreciate the input! I ended up going with a $70 full cover off Amazon. Full cover makes sense where we are because we have tons of trees that drop sap, but it doesn't get too windy so I'm not super worried about wearing paint. My one significant complaint is that it deposits strands of its liner on the top. It also isn't perfectly waterproof around the mirrors, but that's okay for me because this isn't a trailer queen--easy snow removal and keeping sun off during down time were by far my biggest concerns.

Thanks again!

 

Also available in gray, which my HOA prefers (for some reason.)