Lets see, the 12 or so times that i've had to drop it off at MINI service in the 13 months that i've owned it. That is more times than all my other vehicles in my 19 years of driving put together. Not including regular oil changes and whatnot. Still a fun car though.......I wont keep this thing past the warranty, I can tell you that.....

 

I think as far as dislike on styling is the turn-single lamps on the front of my 53.. Soo I removed them..will post pics when done. love the look of the 56 fronts with the lack of turns on bumper face.

 

oh man
-hi-fi is a joke
-interior plastics are awful (endless noises and rattles)
-ipod interface should have a scan or something to get through a list quicker
-antenna is goofy
-wipers don't cut it most of the time
-armrest situation (lack of one or the bad optional offerings)
-no chirp when locking without the alarm
-no auto lights - i have a 2$ night light that senses when to turn on, could mini not sort it out for us?
-one touch roof operation
-the siblings (i'm just not a fan of the other models - no offense to anyone)

all of that can be fixed up but shouldn't have to be.
Mechanically and the performance/fun is fantastic though, it's just the little bits that are dumb. a worthy trade off. I’ve had some drama with service but the dealer has taken care of me pretty well

i'm impartial on the stupid tack and gauges, just not my taste
cupholders aren't great but i'm not really ever using them

 

My main issue:

- The premium, Harman Kardon sound system is by far the worst OEM car stereo I've ever owned. I can't adjust Mid-range?!? Only the Bass and Treble are adjustable?!?!? FAIL! I also have to re-adjust the balance and move the sound over to the right side because when it's centered, it's far too loud on the left side (perhaps it's because it's such a small car). But as an AC/DC fan, not having the option to bring the mid-range down to bring out Angus and Malcolm SUCKS!

 

Love the Chili Red color. But your mechanic is right. The front end on that year is suspect. Keep an eye on the front shock mount towers, they tend to mushroom and deform.

 

That's funny that you guys have gone so long w/out having to use the horn. Here in Bergen County NJ, where everyone is an insanely aggressive driver, I'm pretty sure I recall having to use mine on the way home from the dealership after I picked it up

When my MA was going over the features w/ me inside the car, after I signed the paperwork, I was so curious as to what the horn sounded like, I asked him if I could be obnoxious and honk it right then and there. To my surprise, this above average car has a pretty average horn.

 

The proper balance on any car audio system is to adjust the sound from Back to Front..in other words, the rear Speakers is where the sound comes from, the front Speakers should only be felt, meaning the Bass should be felt in the front Speakers and barely any audio coming from them at all.

 

Concur. I fade to the rear first. I will say, the bass is almost overpowering on the Premium Sound, which is nice, but I can't get over "tinny" Gibsons (I also listen to Airbourne...twin Gibson Explorers, baby!) from the lack of mid-range...

 

wow.. i guess it's personal taste but thousands of car sound quality fanatics would completely disagree. many don't even use rear speakers at all other than a subwoofer.

The ideal is you would want it to sound like the stage is centered in front of you.

 

I think this is programmable, but I am not with my car at present so I can't confirm this. Actually, I prefer no sound. Chirps AND lights are too much. It lets EVERYBODY know that you just locked you car...

 

Then what would be the point of surround sound?

 

It's a love-hate relationship! LOVE my MINI but hate the noises, since I drive every day I become oblivious to them but recently bought a Ford Edge which is super quiet, and after driving it for a week I went back to the MINI and "heard" all those sounds again, most of them are really not a big deal, just part of the MINI's personality but here they are:

- tachometer seems to buzz around 2K rpm, can't figure out how to stop it. I stick my finger in between the tach and the column and it stops but if I wedge a piece of rubber in there it does nothing.

- on and off vibration coming from the dash near the base of the windshield and from the overhead light control panel.

- mysterious noise coming from either the boot or under the car, sounds like a broken shock but can't find the source -- this one really annoys me.

- the air flow through the sunroof when tilted is way too loud. When completely opened I need to crack the side windows about an inch to reduce the loud reverberating sound.

- Not a noise, but the sound quality of the speakers is less than favorable. This one can be fixed with new speakers, etc. -- I have an XM Roady XT with the FM tuner (the audio input jack sounds like AM Radio), I've tweaked the settings to give the best sound experience for me but still not quite there.

- I'll end with this, a sound I love...I recently modified the intake silencer with some tape as listed elsewhere in this forum, and while the engine noise is only marginally louder (which is good), the car is definitely quicker and more responsive which makes me drive harder, making the engine louder...a win-win!

Happy Motoring and Happy New Year!

 

"Hate" might be too strong a word, but I "disliked":
MINIs approach to recalls and known design flaws
Using premium fuel
Unnecessarily complicated gadgetry
Over-emphasis on performance
Price increases
Any MINI bigger than then a coupe

Of course, there was a lot that I did like, but in the end I bailed and found a mini-car that seemed equally Mini to me...in some ways not as good, but in some ways actually better.

 

Not small enough to take it with me as a "carry-on" on the plane when I leave on vacation (hard to explain to my youngest why is easier to rent one at our destination )
Been serious, I am lucky that my car doesnt have issues with noises or other problems as described by others so after a year We are still in love with our clubman!

 

Love the car.Only complaints are:
1.Lack of adequate instrumentation
2.Not quite enough punch( stock)
3.Runflats
The foregoing are easily remedied (it's only money!,right?).I wouldn't even think of trading it despite the protestations(and the refusal to ride in it on any sort of run outside of our metro area!) of my gal who shudders in fear every time she sees a semi truck.She insists we take the big ol' crewcab Silverado.What's a fella to do?
Cheers all,
Rod

 

Surround sound is for movies. Not music - unless you want to feel like you are sitting in the middle of an orchestra.

 

It's a teeny little car! All the speakers are close to you! Other than right and left, the placement of of the speakers is irrelevant! You might as well be wearing headphones, the speakers are so close!

Dave

 

Most of the cars I've driven have the bigger speakers in the rear which equals better sound...

 

I give up.. not worth arguing over.

 

LOL, bigger speaker mean better sound. Thats the same logic behind all these huge SUV's. If its bigger it must be better right?

 

I hate having to pull the door handles twice before they open. It drives me nuts!

 

I'm wondering if the owners complaining about the HK stereo are aware of all the various settings available to customize the sound, other than the basic bass/treble/fade adjustments. I downloaded a good guide on how to set up the HK for various different effects and it's pretty remarkable what it can do. Of course, I'm not an audiophile with a sensitive ear, but anyone who hasn't played with the custom settings should give a try.

Eric

 

I'm not aware of it...got a link to the guide(s)?

 

Yeah, Please tell because after ordering the HK system (when i test drove one with it i wasnt too impressed but figured the settings were screwed up) Never intended on paying extra for it but it came with the package and ended up being a few hundred more so i said WTH.

After having my new Clubman S for a week i have to say this sound system is *****. I Run a company designing and installing home theaters and get to play with some amazing audio gear and then i hop in my new car and am saddened by the lack of mids/control/quality of the system. Now being in the business HK's home stuff is garbage i dont know what possessed MINI/BMW to choose them. I test drove a brand new Audi A3 before i orded my mini and there system sounded worlds better (bang & olufsen designs Audi's sound system across the board)

Please share where you found it because I am a techy guy and have been through the menus/manuals over and over again trying to figure the settings out.

1) HK system blows
2)The stupid dongs and alerts, no way to turn them down or change them. I think they are very "cheap"
3) rear tail lights do not match in the 11's only the right side has a clear area for the reverse lights, bothers me the tailights arnt the same. Anyone have a explanation for the lack of dual reverse lights? ive already been told i had a reverse light out and i pulled the Ohh its because in Britain they park on the left side and this is the only light you can see as your reversing?!?! have no idea if thats true or not lol

Besides these three little issues I LOVE my clubman

 

The other side is the rear fog lights I do believe, they tried to get all of these functions into those little tail lights and not clutter up the bottom of the bumper.

Change that if you want to pull once, then turn off the auto lock feature.