Im contemplating buying a new mini cooper what options are must haves? Is the power difference between the mc and the mcs worth it? Please advise, thanks in advance.

 

Rear fogs!

 

Search search, search... LOTS of advice on here!

'07 and beyond MC has plenty of punch, but the "S" has more. Both get decent mileage... good luck in your search!

 

Both rule the bends, which really is the only thing you can *legally* have fun on, so it just depends on whether you wanna reach freeway speeds in 7 or 9 seconds. Search around. We'll help ya out...

 

If your asking about the difference between the S and non-S, it's time for you to go take some test drives. All the research or reading forums in the world is going to tell what you need to experience.

Have fun!





..... YES, even if you are four hours from a dealer!

 

...only problem with test driving is that the dealers around here are all out of cars!

$#@@ $4 gas... someone get the dollar back around parity with the euro and we'll be all set (it's not that oil is expensive, it's that the dollar is devalued! Well, that AND oil is expensive...). Kickstart the economy!

 

If you drive an S you'll never get an MC. I was dead set against getting an S and then ended up driving one and never looking back.

Options are tough to call. If your looking for resale value in a few years I'd be sure to get a sunroof and dont' get an automatic trans. Other than that the price of nav or upgrades radio won't have any real payback as far as resale goes.

 

The current MCS is turbo and base cooper is a normally aspirated engine.

Base cooper-
more reasonably priced with good handling and option for 15" non runflat wheels which give a comfortable ride and less weight.
Manual transmission is good and no real need for runflat tires. Car comes with spare tire underneath. Better gas mileage and good resale. Suspension upgrades are possible but power upgrades are limited.

MCS-
much better power, might even be more than ample for city use. Manual transmission good and option for limited slip differential from factory possible.
John Cooper Works kit is an option for even more power but lower gas mileage. Comes only with runflats either 16 or 17", the 16" are more comfortable and lighter in weight. Cost is about $3000-4000 more than base cooper. More power options available.

If you are doing only street driving and urban travel and want good gas mileage but still a fun to drive car then the base cooper is good. If you want gobs of power then you might be better off with the MCS especially with manual transmission.

Test drive is always good, you might have to be patient to find one in stock to try. Should not be that hard for the base cooper. You can even drive a used base cooper, it's similar to the current model. Older MCS are supercharged not turbo.

Many of the other options are cosmetic, sunroof, automatic AC, leather seats, etc. There is a sport suspension option for the base cooper that makes the suspension a little stiffer.

 

I am in the same position. I think I will buy the basic Cooper and spend extra money on leather seats and the Convenience Package. I am trying to stay in the $25,000 range. If I wanted to spend over 25k than I might buy the MCS .

 

You need to do what I did, spend 100 hours researching on the Net. And NAM is a wealth of information.

In the end it's really a subjective decision, what you need, want and can afford.

Buying a MINI is like shopping at the grocery store. Notice every aisle has brands upon brands to choose from. And any one person will tell you why they buy particular brands over others.

Same here, for the MINI. Some NAM members will tell you why a non-S is for losers [that's me, the loser ] while others will chime in that the non-S is a great MINI [me again.]

There's lots of threads in here that will tell you what options are essential, which are nice to have, and which are unnecessary.

For example, some members in love a leather interior. Others say leather is not worth the money and it's too uncomfortable. And some wishing they had leather have explored having their MINI interiors redone in leather. And yet others will say how glad they are that they have the cloth seats.

As for me, maybe someday I will upgrade to an S, but I see that car as giving me trouble. But that perception is because of my situation. I live in San Francisco and we have the worst roads in the Nation. Putt putting in a non-S is a good thing because the potholes and road hazards are already difficult to avoid going at a slow speed.

Moreover, just last night, for example, I was coming home after teaching a class. I was doing about 72 MPH and a MINI S went zipping by, probably doing about 85 MPH. Doing that is just asking for a ticket.

It's difficult for me to stay just a little over the speed limit in my non-S [going 80 is real easy], so that is why I say an S might be trouble for me all the way around if I got one.

So that's my example of how which MINI and options to get is really a subjective decision personal to you.

 

That was my situation, but I was limited to buying used.

I set a budget for a used MINI, $24,000 max after all taxes [California has 8.5% sales tax], license and add-ons that are must haves after getting the car. I wanted the latest model I could find, with as much of the factory warranty remaining as possible.

I ended up finding a mint MINI convertible with 23,000 miles and two years left on the MINI warranty. Got it for $20,000. Luckily it came with some nice options including the a Premium Package, Cold Weather Package, Harmon Kardon sound upgrade, chrome line interior, and a few other add-ons.

By the way, just my opinion, if you are buying new, isn't the leather a $1400 option? I think that's a bit much for such, especially since the leatherette [which I have] looks and feels like leather. But see threads discussion how hot the vinyl interior gets. So if you are in a hot town [weather wise] may want to not get the leatherette interior.

 

I was dead-set on getting the non-S, the test drive changed that in about 2 seconds. The dealer only had automatics to test drive, but there was a world of difference between the S and the non-S. You'll have to try it for yourself, but don't buy before you try.

 

What is the advantage of rear fogs??

 

More visibility from the rear and they work as a nice tailgate deterrent with a few flicks of the switch.

Oh, and then you don't have the empty switch on the dash.

 

Ok thats another item on my list when I put my order in for my mini.