hey guys - just wanted your take on the differences of the cars... supercharged vs. turbo.. new seats vs. old.. etc. I am looking to get into an auto/steptronic S and want a used one preferably. Obviously I can get an 05 cheaper then an 07 so just wondering in your opinions if the 'new' mini is worth it..


Cheers! Cameron

 

This is the first time I've ever been tempted to use a popcorn smiley

I'm afraid you'll probably get different opinions all around, it is so subjective; as I always say when it comes to car choices, drive them both, look at them closely inside and out, and sit in them awhile and decide from there (sitting some will also help in choosing what seats you like best - regular, sport or sport with lumbar adjustment which is only in leather).

Have fun making your choice, I'm sure you'll love whichever you get.

PS: We have enjoyed our 05 MCS auto, perfect city car

PPS: One thing to consider overall IMHO is what your service options are and how close, some here have quite a ways to go for Mini dealer service - just something to consider if you care.

 

this is a loaded question and will no doubt spur many spirited responses

if you want to get it used, the selection for r53 will obviously be wayyyy better. how do you like your s4? do you have the twin-turbo or the v8? what do you like about it? this may affect which mcs you like. you'll just have to go drive them. most mini dealers should have some used r53's on their lots so you can compare. they'll push the 6-speed on you tho

 

I say go drive both cars, wait a few days and then go drive them again. Then and only then return to this thread and read what folks have to say.

Eval makes a good point about service.

Both cars have pluses and minuses.

Good luck!

 

I live in LA, so I think a MINI is perfect for here.. Do the sport seats have the colored inserts, how can I telle xactly? larger bolsters?

 

I agree, drive both and DON'T come back and read the responses here until you do. The ride and overall "feel" between R53 and R56 are considerably different.

 

The S4 is a great car, i have an 04' with the v8, just a wonderful ride.. fast as hell but my warranty is expiring and 9mpg with all the driving i do in Los Angeles just isnt practical. I think the mini would be a fun car that is practical.. better mpg's etc.

In your opinions though how are the two rides different? Is there A lot more space in the R56? seats more comfy? and ofcourse reliablity is very important to me.

 

The R56 feels a bit more...refined...I guess. The ride seems a bit smoother, the cabin quieter, etc. So like where the 1st gens were more like a go-kart on crack, the 2nd gens have a more mass-market-friendly feel.

Just based on statistics though, I would think the R53s (05-06) are more reliable than the first couple of years of a new generation (07-08). We're seeing a lot of the same sorts of issues in the 07s that were seen in the 02-03s...gotta work those kinks out.

 

Agreed!!! This was a hotter topic some months back when there were R53s on the lot and the R56 was just showing up, a largely unknown product. Now I think things have settled down a bit. R56 is very nice...R53 is, too. Very different cars in many, many subtle ways. It really depends what you want.

 

i have owned both 2004 MCS, 2005 MC and now a 2007 MCS. get the R56 hands down! but all you have to do is take a test drive and im sure you will come to the same conclusion. i think they started selling the 08s already or are very close to doing so.

 

Having driven both, I just bought an R56 auto and just love it. But!!..the supercharger sounds really cool on the R53. No problems so far on mine with almost 3000 miles. They are both great but besides the VERY similar looks, they are very different cars. My opinion if you lean toward luxury, get the R56 but if you want something a tad smaller with a terrific price tag, you could probably find a great deal on an older one. Either way, you will come out a winner.

 

like all's been saying, you must drive them. the v8 s4 is a bit of a german muscle car; the mini is a very different kind of car. it's small and light and very nimble. it feels pretty quick but if you come from an s4 it might be a different story. it's also very small. in either the r53 or r56 there isn't a lot of room. the trunk is tiny and the back seats are merely adequate. as a two-seater, it's fantastic and way more useful than a roadster. 9mpg is ridiculous, but also know that if you have a lead foot and like to drive spiritedly, the mcs may guzzle more than you'd think based on its size. the r56 is more torquey than the r53. it's more comfortable and more "refined" and if you wait a while for the newer ones, bmw's bringing more fuel-saving gadgets

 

It is, and you do have good service (and MSRP sales) options

The sport seats do have bigger bolsters, and then another option up is lumbar adjustability. If you want to compare apples to apples when test driving check to see the cars wheel size and tires, those factors can change the ride and grip quite a bit as I'm sure you know.

Another tricky think about the auto tranny (well I found it tricky anyway) is that the transmission adapts based on how you drive it. The test drive we took in a new MCS was a tad off, I was left a bit concerned about the responsiveness - when we got our car, though, after driving it in manual mode for several times the aggressive way we tend to (winding it up a bit; we are almost always in man mode anyway), and it improved the overall pickup. I suggest test driving in manual mode to help with that anyway, and getting as much seat time as you can of course.

(Note I have not tried the R56, but as far as I know it has the same transmission, in any case I've found all BMW steptronics improve after adapting for a few uses.)

 

I own a 1995 Audi S6 and a 2006 R53.

Audi quattros are fast, smooth composed cars in ALL weather conditions. My 20v turbo S6 has leather Recaro bolstered sport seats and just coddles you every minute you drive it. It's not a V8, but is deceptively fast and quiet. I drove an S4 V8 with a chip and Miltek exhaust the other day - OMG - I can understand your 9 mpg.

My R53 is a spunky little unit and drives with all hands on deck. The Cooper S is quick and nimble, easily handled and just a complete enjoyment to drive up and down through the gears, into and around corners. The added exhaust burbling on throttle lift-off is uber kewl too. I begs to be driven quickly and hard.

I just drove the S6 today on my rallye tarmac twisties and was a little let down, too smooth, too quiet, it didn't want my driver input. The S6 just did it's thing and cruised very well. The stereo and music were great and relaxing. Best for the interstate, couldn't really stretch it's legs. What it left me with was a yearning to drive my R53 again.

 

Man it's so hard not to contribute to these threads! I won't pretend to be above it all, though, so here goes:

I've driven both and am a card-carrying R53 guy. That is, I appreciate the strengths (steering feel, road feel, quick, nimble handling, rougher characteristics, design, supercharged engine, etc...) of the R53 more than the strengths (power, MPG, refinement, size, ultimate power capability, etc...) of the R56.

But that all means nothing if you don't go drive them to decide which car's personality you like better. The reason this argument always degrades is that the R53 camp can't logically defend their car based on numbers or stats - the R56 has that totally covered. Thus, we resort to things like "feel" and other subjective, intangible aspects of what makes a car a car - the things that made the R53 a success. And some are philosophically against cars that are designed and marketed to the masses, as is BMW's MO (see the e36).

Good luck with your literature review (search this topic and sit down) and your eventual decision!

mb

 

I appreciate all the input.. I guess I am just trying to see if spending the extra money is absolutely worth the new platform. I am selling my car to save money across the board, payments, gas etc.. I just bought a house...

I have found some great 05 S's for around 20k and I just wonder if spending the extra 5-7 k is worth the new model. I guess I need to just drive them and see.

 

I doubt you'd drive both and then intentionally spend the extra money, but who knows, many here have done it for good reason (to them).

mb

 

 

Everyone has different opinions on what is better, what I love you may hate.
People have stated above to drive both twice or three times. which it a great idea..
In my work I have "Driven" VW (08 R32; GTi), Audi(R8; RS4,RS4 convert, S4, S5, S6, S8) plus pretty much every car out there from Lambo's to kia's / Chevy to BMW including the R56......

At the end of the day I can't wait to get into "Merlin" and "Drive" him home everyday.
I love the bumpy ride (hate potholes) S/C whine the list goes on


Scott

 

If you are looking for an Auto Transmission, go for the R56 due to its torque advantage over the R53. I have the driven the auto R53 (MY2005) and I would say very good and close to my stock 2004 MCS (have not modded yet at that time) maybe because of the the gearing change on that year. (?) Also, auto is not as efficient as manual, so it requires more power to achieve the same level of performance as manual that will be felt moreseso on small displacement 4 cylinders.

 

See now, I like winding up the SC on the small nimble Mini, and it feels quick as these little guys do esp without all the delays of having mess with neutral, the clutch and all More torque *might* be better, but on the other hand it might not - I don't know that I'd opt for it if it meant more torque steer. Plus there are all the little things, like steering feel, that can make a difference in the whole package, so it goes back to you never know until you drive it IMHO

 

I agree with the other posts here, drive both and then decide. I own an R53 and I am partial to the feeling I get which is reminescent of the MGB I owned years ago. If there were anything I would highly recommend, that would be to go with the 6-speed. I like the feeling of being part of the motoring process as opposed to just steering the MINI.

The R53 is very go-cart like, and there is nothing cooler than the sound of a supercharger winding up (if you have a cold air intake) on acceleration.

The imprtant thing, whether R53 or R56, is to become a MINI owner!

 

hmmm I test drove an R56 & decided I needed to look into getting extended an warranty on my R52 cause I prefer the 1 generation MINI by a mile. So to say the OP "will" come to the conclusion that the R56 is better could not be further from the truth

That said... to the OP, I agree you should drive them both & make your own decision as the opinion on R53 vs R56 is a very subjective one. For me, I pray that MINI makes some big changes in the 3rd gen MINI cause I have no desire to own a 2nd gen MINI. For others the 2nd generation is better.

 

Firstly, the advice that has been given time and again here is sage: drive them both first. Then decide. That being said...

There is soooooo much disdain for the R56. Everyone says it's "different". As mbcoops astutely pointed out, nobody can say why. The reason? It's not that much different. It's a go kart with body panels. Only now, things probably won't fall off it when you hit a bump. Some folks want to say that's taking away character. Others will tell you that it's a "mass market" vehicle a la the E36. I've owned two E36's in my life, and I'll tell you that a MINI is nothing like an E36. BMW saw that there were quality problems with the R53, and addressed them in BMW fashion - superior engineering. When I test drove my first R53 S - a new car, mind you - the shift **** came off in my hand when shifting into second. Nobody wants to spend 18K+ dollars for that. So, they corrected it. As for mass market, this is also a load of bullhonkey. How many of us have been snubbed by another MINI driver when out motoring? There are already mass market consumers that bought the R53. To say that the R56 is somehow going to ruin the club with "mass marketing" is to say that these "snubbers" don't already exist. We all know that isn't true.

There isn't really any difference between the two cars. They are both outstanding value, that provide excellent gas mileage, and are a blast to drive. Neither is more luxurious than the other, as either can be made to be bare bones, or mini Mercedes.

The simple fact is that people prefer what they have, and will defend to the death their decision. We all do it. To each their own. But just because you like your R5x as much as you do doesn't make it a superior car. I know people that would tell you an R53 is a PoS compared to their <insert make/model here>. There are still more who would argue that the R53 is a poseur wannabe Mini classic. We can go on and on. The bottom line is we all have MINI's! And they are the coolest little cars on the planet. R53s? Have you heard the S/C spin up? R56's? Have you pressed the "sport" button?

Go drive it. Seriously. You can't ask anyone here. We all love our cars for one reason or another. You will too.

 

I could not disagree with you more