Spend most of the time alone in my car. But I need to fit a tall 8 year old and a tall 10 year old in a pinch for 20 minute to an hour rides. Is the Cooper too small?

 

You're not crazy. Nearly every kid / young adult I know seems to love MINIs, even from the back seat. It's quite comfy for rides that're an hour or less. The best way to find out if it'll work is to go sit in one. Bring your kids, too, and run it around on a test drive. My bet is that you're pleasantly surprised.

 

Of course you are crazy. You are posting on NAM, aren't you? Being crazy is a requirement.

As for fitting kids in a MINI, shouldn't be a problem. The'll get to fight over who rides shotgun. This will teach them about sharing and fairness.

 

Just bring them to a dealer and have them try it out. I dont think the back seats are bad and if you get the sunroof theyll have something to look out for the ride. Only problem is legroom in the back if someone tall is already upfront. Im just about 6 foot and I can fit in the back so long as someone taller than me isnt riding in front of me.

 

I wondered the same thing before buying my Mini. I have had it a week now and the kids are always asking if we can take the Mini. I have other vehicles that serve different needs (tow/haul or carry more and/or larger people). My kids are 7 and 9. They fit quite well in the back with booster seats. They put their school backpacks in the boot. I am just under 6' tall and my 7 year old sits behind me with plenty of room. We are 30 minutes from school.

 

Just finished a weekend with my in-laws. My father-in-law insisted we take the Mini to breakfast despite two four-door sedans being on hand. He's 6'4" and about 220 lbs and wanted to sit in the back seat. We consented to take the Mini but did not let him sit in the back (mostly because no one wanted to be back there with him. ) My husband and mother-in-law report the back to seat to be perfectly serviceable. It's hard for a somewhat-stiff 60+ year-old to climb back out, but this shouldn't be an issue for kids.

And as for something to look at during the ride...even if you don't get a sunroof, I'm told by my mother-in-law that the back windows provide a surprisingly great view.

I think an occasional 8 and 10 year-old would be fine . They'd probably like it!

 

Will take a look at one, when I am ready. I am 6' 2" and my 10 year old son looks like he may end taller than me ( 6'7" is the tallest in the family). The MCS is my first choice. I want a fast car, that isn't too big and gets good fuel economy on my commute. I love my 2000 Focus, but Ford doesn't care anymore on the Focus in the US.

Thanks everyone

 

From experience I've found that children get older and bigger as the years go along - thinking about whether they will fit this year isn't going to do you much good in the long run. That said, adults fit - I think they will still want to ride in the Mini.

My mother is 84 and she rides back there on occaision.

Get the car - life's too short not to drive something you enjoy.

 

Like most have posted already, the car is surprisingly roomy.
We made a 2 hour trip with my wife, parents in the back and heard no complaints.

 

Worry no longer...they'll fit just fine!!

 

My kids are 12 & 10 and have said that the back seats are fine. Only complaint is having to fold the seat forward and crouch down to get into the back seat.

 

What did you do? Turn up the stereo?

 

I turned the 'fade' function on the stereo to the back speakers....

 

Back seat? Ohhhhh,...you mean the upright luggage compartment dividers.

I am amazed anyone can actually fit back there. Me being a bit on the tall side there really is no practical room behind me. And the Wife unit is about 5'8" and I really do not see anyway anyone could sit behind her either.

I have no doubt people do it. It is just one of those things that make me scratch my head. Folks inquiring about Romi and how the car is, get this forst reponse from me,.."The Mini is really not a practical primary car for a family larger than two."

I know people do it. I just cannot figure out how.

 

Trust me, people do it rather easily. There is more room back there than you think and it just requires a slight alteration of the front seats. I took a 45 min ride in the back of a Porsche 924 once and that thing had way less room than the average MINI (driver was 6'2 and passenger 6'4). On the odd occasion my gf has taken the back seat of the MINI when there have been 3 of us in the car nad her major complaint then is the configuration of the seatbelt clips. The hump makes sleeping back there difficult supposedly.

 

LOL - good one. Um... have you actually sat back there? True, if someone tall is in the front (with the seat a long way back, it's a bit more of a challenge... but for more "average-sized" front-seat folks, the seat(s) behind them really aren't so bad.

Try this - have your wife sit in the passenger seat and adjust the seat so that she's comfortable but still trying to leave room behind (i.e. don't just put it all the way back, find a reasonable compromise). Then have her get out, and go ahead and climb into the back seat behind it.

You may be quite surprised - it's really not all that bad.

I view the MINI this way... it's a 4-seater for short trips (i.e. same day trips) and a 2-seater for long trips (i.e. need to carry luggage for overnight stays).

 

I got back in the back seat once to clean the inside rear glass panels before I realized I could clean them with the boot opened and reaching in over the top.

The Wife unit's seat is set so she can put her feet flat on the front floorboard forward. Any closer and she would start getting her knees/thighs up off the seat bottom.

I cannot put my feet (admittedly they are size 12) on the floorboard behind the seat. It just cannot happen. There is physically no room for them without trying to them sideways and slide them under the front seat. And I am pretty sure that would not work either.

I thought I was going to kill myself trying to get in and out of there as there was no place for me to put my feet. Fortunately, the Wife unit eyed my predicament, and after a long period of laughter, she moved the passenger seat forward so I could get out. I might still be there had it not been for her.

But then again,...I cannot fit in the back seat, behind the Wife unit, of our Lexus IS250 either. The Wife unit has long legs for her height.