I wish we could get Recaro's for ourselves as an option...

 

NO kidding! I will just have to look at my boy in envy. And to think that one day he may fight me on him getting into it.

 

I just got to drive the '07 S! It has Fake-aros that are extremely comfy and supportive... not that you need another car (but your panasports would fit...). Any pictures of the car on the new wheels, or is it just to wintry? Hope all's well. 10 months ALREADY?!? You can use this thread as a sort of a journal!

 

You know, I HAVE used it as a journal. The back and forth with my husband about do we keep it or do we sell it. Gosh, I just look at that car with awe on a daily basis. Perhaps I love my car TOO much. But I will say I would have sold him had he been deemed unsafe for baby boy.

No wheels yet. There was a lot of trouble with the factory in Japan. They would have taken another month at least with no exact ETA. Well, my tires are bald, my rims are bent, and the roads are snowy/icy. So I went with ASA JH6 instead. Same look.

We are definitely going with the Recaro car seat. Now just to decide what color?!?!?! haha

 

Ok, I got a Cosco... they aren't making the model you reccomended anymore (at least it's not available here) but they have a similar model. With a little work and a lot of body pressure it is snuggly in my car. It has TONS of room compared to the others we tried. Well worth the whopping $38.95 I paid for it. It definitely isn't as plush as the Britax etc but for a seat that will be used about once a week for a grandbaby it will be just fine. Thanks for the help.

 

ASA JH6 is a great wheel - and assuming you got them from Tire Rack, you'e getting them from the best online merchandiser (IMHO, YMMV, etc.). Shoot us a pic once you've got 'em, and congrats on that. Nice look.

I got to "really" drive the mini last weekend, winter driving school (PittStop Mini Club). FUN. What a wonderful car. My wife came along, all she could say was, well, interspersed with LOUD laughter... she called home to talk with our babysitter *just as* I pulled onto the snow track. Our sitter later told us all she heard was laughing and screaming... and I never exceeded 30MPH!

 

Bought the Roundabout

Ultimately the decision on which seat was made by the child's mother (my sister), who just couldn't get her head around buying a $70 car seat, so we went with the Roundabout. We installed it rear-facing for now.

First we tried to install it using the seat belt and a device called a "Mighty Tight" which is used to tighten down the belt (just to see if we could). We could get it in place, but there was so little room on the side the Mighty Tight had to go on, that it was impossible to use it without accidentally unclipping the clip the belt goes through. So that does not work.

However, installing it using the LATCH system was fairly simple. You do have to put a rolled-up towel under the front of the Roundabout to get it to sit right, and you have to position it fairly carefully. I used a rubber seat protector which made it slightly more complicated. However, once we got the hang of it, the two of us could probably install it in under 5 minutes. The first time we tried took considerably longer, until we figured out exactly what angles to use. You can tighten it well by leaning down and back on the top of the car seat and pulling on both LATCH straps.

The top tether (which could only be anchored into the trunk) appeared worse than useless, pulling the back of the car seat bottom up and obstructing access to the seat interior, so we're not using it. The seat seems very secure without it.

To get the child (10 months) in and out, I find it far and away simplest to put the other rear seat back down, and get him in and out through the boot. I don't think I'll even attempt to take him out through the door with the seat rear-facing.

Now: LEG ROOM! With the Roundabout installed, the front passenger seat is about three clicks back from the front, and reclined one click. This is enough for my sister (a petite 5'4"ish) to ride along, but not quite enough for my husband. He's about 5'10" and his knees just brush the dashboard. For now, we take his car when he and I go out.

Overall I'd say I'm very happy with the seat, and I think it gives you probably as much front passenger leg room as you could hope for with a rear-facing infant seat. You can get it online for between $40 and $60 less than in the store, as long as you're not picky about color. I got mine from a place called Albee Baby for $170.

 

Interesting thread.

I'm the guy in my area that the soccer moms boggle that I have two child car seats in the back of my MINI. Additionally, I can fit a dual seat stroller in the boot. Unfortunately, it doesn't leave room for much else, however, we get on just fine. Getting the children in and out of the MINI usually requires an adult to enter and stand in the rear area in order to secure or release the beasts, but it hasn't been a problem. The only time we seem to have trouble is if you cannot get a door open wide enough in those tight parking situations. It is then you must be a contortionist.

Also, our other vehicle is a 2004 Subaru Forester XT. Sure its more convenient and has loads of space compared to the MINI, but it certainly isn't more fun to drive. As a matter of fact, I really don't like my Forester. :(

My wife and I have pretty much agreed that we're dumping the Forester and keeping the MINI when we return to the States. Its just too fun not to have and has been a reliable vehicle thusfar.

 

SOOOOO glad to see this thread still moving along!!! I really think it's a great thread for those who are expecting.

For the latest news, Ben is now one year old, and he is in fact facing forward in his Recaro Young Sport car seat. I cannot say ENOUGH about this car seat. It is built 100 times better than his Graco car seat. In the Graco, he would slide all around, the base that is. This Recaro? You can take it and pull on it, shake it from side to side, lift it up and down, and this baby just DOES NOT MOVE. It's almost like it was MADE for the MINI. And I did get the midnight sky (blue and black) and it color coordinates with the MINI SO very well...

Expecting parents: You CAN keep your MINI!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I was looking at used minis today and someone is selling there mini becuase it is not child friendly. So I thought I would once again come to the experts with children. Is it a pain in the neck to own a mini with small children?? Or is the mini worth the pain and hassle? Also I posted another thread about car seats, but just incase you didn't see it..what are some of the car seat brands that you use, that work well with the Mini?

 

If you are of the sort who must pack every child-related possession you own to go on a weekend trip, then, yes, the MINI is a pain. If you aren't, it's fine.

 

I just spoke to someone with a newborn that sold her MINI because the infant childseat wouldn't fit. I have read that seats will fit, my guess is that if the one you get doesn't fit, go get another that will.

 

We did alot of research on which car seats had good ratings, then went to Babies R Us to try them out. They let us take the car seats out to the MINI to try, not that we ended up getting the car seats from there in the end. We wanted to find one that didn't require the front seats to go all the way up in order to fit them in the back seat backwards. We then decided on the Peg Perego SIP 2006 for each baby, and we are really happy with that decision. It has a lot of safety features, along with a smaller base compared to many other car seats. Also, this car seat is the only seat that you can secure in your car with out the base all together. They are more pricey than the typical grayco, etc. but worth it for the little ones; (and that's what grandparents are for - right!) Also, there is a book called "Baby Bargains" that rates all baby products out there and gives feedback from parents. That book was a life saver when overwhelmed with the task of registering for stuff.

As far as the stroller is concerned, we are screwed. There is absolutely no way for us to fit one in the car with two babies and us unless we do 2 small umbrella srollers, which we might do when they get a little bigger. But for now, our plans are to get a roof rack that is interchangeable between the two MINIs, that doesn't have to screwed through the roof. We ended up gettin the Yakima system for the roof rack, and this bubble is easily moved off and on, but we don't need it too much. I think with one baby it's do-able depending on what type of stroller you get, because the baby can be in one seat, while the other seat is put down - and the strolled can slide in right next to the baby - Those were our thoughts before we found out we were having twins anyway.

Anyway, Good luck to you! This info is just what we found works for us. I think there are many possibilities!

Anything is do-able with creative determination

 

And that's the sort of person Foxworthy was referring to when he talked about someone who "buys a 747 for the peanuts." Hmmmm... get a new car seat or get a new car????

 

^^ Or 100 martinis for a jar of olives.

Two young children here - no problems. Youngest was motoring with us from birth. I will admit, however, that it's a heckuva lot easier getting the kids in and out with the convertible (top down).

 

My 6 y/o and 10 m/o have no complaints, and love going out in the MINI! We can easily do day trips with all four of us. As for strollers, we have the baby in a Quinny Zapp now. I'll bet that you can easily get two of those in the boot, and have space left over for the old diaper bag. If you're looking at adding a roof rack, you're laughing.

PS Loading the baby into his rear facing seat through the rear hatch works well for me.

 

We've got two kids, 6 year and 7 months. IT's really rather easy having the 6 yo get himself in and buckled down. The 7 mo, of course, needs assistance. People think I'm nuts to do it, or risking permanent damage to my back, since I'm 6'-3", but it's really not that hard, even with the rear facing seat. I put my right leg in, and rest the baby on my knee, then duck into the back myself. I then lift him around to the middle of the back seat, then into his own seat. From there, it's a snap to buckle him in, too.

We also did a lot of research when replacing the child carrier with a rear facing seat, and opted for the Evenflo Triumph. When reclining this one, it rotates and slides down in the base, rather than a straight back recline. This made for fitment in the MINI really easy. The base is not overly large, either, which is another bonus.

The stroller we have for the MINI is the Combi Cosmo EX. The rear wheel assembly comes right off, and fits in the boot with no problem. Our other stroller was just too big to fit without putting one of the seats down, and that just didn't work out totake all four of us.

If we're going on a longer trip where we'll need multiple bags or anything, we have a Thule roof box and rack. 16 sq. ft. storage on the roof is plenty when we've needed it. Fits the pack and play, stroller, luggage, and if the olrder child is acting up, him as well. OK, maybe we haven't resorted to packing the 6 yo in the roof box.

My hope is I can convince the wife that the MINI is the car we need to take if we go to Reno at the end of August. Motoring around Tahoe would be so much better than in the Subaru.

 

How hard is it to get a 2 y/o in?

 

I found it easiest to get a 2 year old into the car by telling him he CAN'T go in the car, that its full of shiny object that BREAK, and for good measure I throw a lollipop in the back seat.

Voila! - 2 yr old is in the car.

Its now your problem to buckle him in!

Actually we started with a 4 yr old, and had no issues- so I have no useful info for you

 

Hopefully, OctaneGuy will see this thread and respond. He's had his son, Lukas, in the MINI since he was born, and Lukas LOVES the MINI. It worked fine for OG and his wife.

 

You got suckered. The Graco SnugRide is consistently the highest safety-rated infant seat (rates higher than the new Graco model). Consumer Reports screwed up their test and subjected all the seats to 70mph testing by mistake. Still, the Graco SnugRide was one of only two seats that didn't fail (the other one was a Baby Trend, I think). The Peg Perego SIP failed with Latch (which nobody should use anyway, as it is clearly less safe than properly using the seatbelt). Oh, and most infant seats can be installed without the base.

 

Do you have children? Are you over 5'2" tall? The center position is the safest for infant seats, so a responsible parent should seek to put their infant seat there. Even if the MINI could accomodate a seat in the center position (which I doubt), no rear-facing seat would fit there without radically altering my seat position. I would hazard a guess that no rear-facing seat would fit behind the passenger seat without seriously altering the passenger seat position, either.

Why judge people based on your own ignorance?

 

after reading most of these posts on this subject...im happy i wont be having any children anytime soon..
but then again...im only 20 (in less than a month)
have you guys (that have children) thought about the new mini clubman coming out?
i'll stick with my mini. but the clubman is more child-friendly..right?

 

In our carseat safety class, they told us that information had been taken back, and that the test situations were faulty somehow. I think they publically retorted that information in Mid February, but it's really about what fit well, and worked for us - just passing along our opinion. The depth to which the car seats took up had a pretty big influence in fitting 2 carseats in back with two people up front.

 

Yeah, it was faulty because it was done at an effective 70mph vs. the 38mph it was supposed to be done at. The results weren't "fair" to all the seats that failed at that high speed, but that just gave us a rare look at what happens in more severe crash situations, as opposed to the "industry standard" or government mandated test speeds. The whole retraction was because they didn't want to get sued by the failed seat manufacturers, and they wanted the issue to go away because it exposed the fact that they can and do make testing mistakes (even if we get great data from those "mistakes"). Evenflo threatened to sue them for calling for a recall of their seats. The Evenflo miserably failed the test, but met the crappy NHTSA crash test standards. Consumer Reports thought their tests were at the 38mph NHTSA speed.

No offense, but it doesn't sound like you did much research at all (seriously, where did you get the idea that the Peg was the only one that worked without a base?). I hope you learned to install your seats properly using the seatbelts as opposed to the LATCH system. The LATCH webbing and hardware fails at much lower stress than the seatbelt system. I have no idea how one would properly install a seat like the Peg or Graco without the base in the MINI, and still be able to get the kid in the seat. The seatbelt crosses over the seat, making it difficult to snuggle the little one in there and ensure proper positioning (you couldn't safely install it, with the child already in it, in the MINI, unless you were five feet tall, slender, weighed at least 160 pounds, and had three hands, LOL).