Folks, we love MINI GP's and MINI's in general as much as anyone on the Forum but, IMHO, we need a reality check here. It may seem like heresy but, for the projected MSRP, you could just about purchase a new Boss 302 Mustang (tuned suspension, huge brakes, gobs of hp). Granted, two entirely different vehicles but both limited production performance cars.

 

I hear this so much on the Car and Driver site. Horsepower isn't everything.

You buy the Mustang. I'll buy the GP. We can race from Boston to Rockport...in a Nor'easter snowstorm. Loser buys the beer for the night. On top of that, if you can beat me in the snow I'll sell the GP and buy the Mustang.

RWD cars are out of the question for me. They are far too squirrelly in the snow and ice.

 

Well said the new GP is a JOKE!! MINI have sent a vehicle out during MTTS that I am sure will look nothing like the New GP hard top because, they are also talking about making GP's in the Convertible and Coupe and Roadster, Whats next the Countryman and the Van???
I have had two GP's in the past and they were fabulous. Lets wait to see what is actually churned out at the Factory!!

 

Kurtster, You really need to keep your ego in check...FYI, I'm a grad of Skip Barber Racing School, been a certified HPDE instructor for over 30 years, put Porsches thru their paces in Kansas and Colorado snow, BMW M5's in NC snow and ice, have tracked a 460rwhp Vortech/Cobra Mustang and a race-prepped '95 Cobra R.

 

I don't think it is a fair argument to discuss other vehicles and the costs. That debate could go on and on.

If someone wants to spend the money on the Mustang, great!

If someone wants to spend the money on the MINI, great as well!

It is their money and if the car is what THEY want, then more power to them. That is why there are many car manufactures.

 

Gentlemen. This is a baseball bat.



Play nicely please

 

JohnW94, I've got no problem with that. Last time I checked, it's a free country (for now!) My concern is that I know BMW all too well. It's projected that the R56 GP MSRP will top $40K. The R53 GP MSRP was approx. $31.5K. $8.5K difference for adj. suspension, the BBK and Recaros? Oh, yes...I forgot the inflation factor...and BMW's obscene profit!

 

MrCooperS, I respect your authority but must I take that kind of abuse unanswered?

I need to check MY ego? Woah. I'm not the one who pulled the "do you know who I am" card here. I don't care if he's the King of England. People who live in the Northeast tend to buy more FWD and AWD cars than people who live in warmer climates. That's a quantifiable fact. We can't all be "Skip Barber" or "Justin Bieber" or whatever.

I didn't trash the Mustang or any car for that matter. All I said was that it isn't always about horsepower, horsepower, horsepower. There are other factors that horsepower-obsessed car enthusiasts seem to ignore. I live in New England and I think that where winter is concerned, I (as well as many other MINI drivers) would rather drive a spirited, fun, well-handling, easy-to-park, 33MPG FWD car than a RWD, 444HP 21.5 MPG fire-breathing dragster.

Why is this so hard to comprehend? Both are great cars. They are not equivalent. If he wants to make a case for why the Boss 302 is a perfect car for snowy weather, I say give him all the rope he needs.

 

Hold your horses, new news

http://www.motoringfile.com/2012/07/...and+Podcast%29


According to sources on both sides of the Atlantic, MINI has cancelled the highly anticipated JCW GP Coupe. Throughout the spring we had seen GP Coupe in prototype form roaming the streets of Bavaria looking ready to launch sometime in 2013. Based on the R56 hatch GP, the Coupe would have been an interesting product. With less weight loss than the R56 hatch based GP (which loses two seats that are already gone in the Coupe), the GP Coupe never quite seemed like it had the clear reason for being that traditional JCW GP does.

But why did MINI go through the trouble of developing the car before simply canceling it?

According to those same sources MINI was concerned that the GP Coupe would have possibly made the R56 GP less special and less unique. Could it be that MINI is now having second thoughts of making the GP a full line-up of track-ready high performance models? We’re not entirely sure if that idea is dead but clearly MINI wants to protect the brand and choose its products carefully.

That said one of our sources are adamant that the GP Coupe was cancelled but may not be permanently dead. Knowing that MINI has developed the car, it likely wouldn’t take long or much money to bring it to market late in the life-cycle of the Coupe.

 

Knowns:
$31,100 JCW base
$700 Black Xenon headlights (Xenon, blackout, white turn signals)
$2750 Recaro Sport Seats (includes heat)

Unknowns:
? Difference in cost between rear seat delete kit, minus cost of rear Recaro seats
? Difference in cost between base suspension and adjustable suspension
? Difference in cost between RFT Performance Tires and Kumho's
? Difference in cost between standard Borbet R112 Challenge Spokes and GP2 wheels
? Difference in cost between JCW brakes/rotors and 6-pot BMW brakes/rotors
? Unknown interior differences (low production red seat belts, etc)
? Stickers, stickers, and stickers

Then there is the X factor (Larger intercooler? Tune?, handbuilt items? shipping to alternate factory?)

Hard to say, but still think it will land somewhere in the high $30's. It was said that the original GP was sold at a net loss. I think marketing will again have a huge influence on the final US price point of the car. We should know in a few weeks.

 

Or just scroll back a bit to post #150

 

I guess a lot of people hate the stripes too. I dunno, I dig 'em. I never even knew the original GP existed until this year. I think one reason why I never heard about it is that it doesn't look any different than other MINIs. Like the Indy Pace Car, sometimes I think it's nice to make it clear that a model is a special edition via some visual identifiers.

I also dig Hot Wheels. If I could get this car with side pipes and flames on the hood I would. :-)

As for the GP Coupe, I'm kind of glad it isn't coming now. I had a little anxiety that I would buy the Hardtop and see a Coupe GP on the road and wish I had waited. I actually like the Coupe more than the Hardtop, but I need a car for winter so I couldn't wait until the GP Coupe was finished in 2013. Maybe they'll make it later and I'll have GP Coupe envy then. LOL.

 

$40k? That's outrageous! Look what else you can get for that price!



This one is LOADED. Navigation and everything:




You can even fit a MINI or a Mustang on the back of this thing! Does you MINI have an air horn? No!:



If you want a vehicle like any of these I'm sure they are worth every penny. I want a GP.

 

I jumped in here late, and don't have much to add to the discussion, other than to say that this may be the only time these two names will ever appear together in print.

Just thought that was interesting.

I will, however, say that I find it very easy to justify spending $40k on either the Boss 302 or the GP - if I had the wherewithal myself, I'd probably get one of each. But if I could only choose one...I'd probably take the GP, because it's more usable for more of the time. Add snow tires, and that usability increases massively. (I suppose that's somewhat true for the Boss as well, but it's never fun driving a heavy, high-powered RWD vehicle in slick conditions no matter how much you prepare for it.)

Carry on...

 

My dealer emailed me to say that the GPs would be produced in November. Anybody get the same/conflicting info?

 

I heard the same thing.

 

Also look at how much difference even regular Cooper S's are costing now from when they started being produced... So the price increase isn't just for the GP.


On another note, for $40,000 this beautiful bird is for sale!



And I could have even more fun in that than the new GP

 

That Pitts Special is one beautiful bird! What a great way to burn fossil fuel! Talk about "snap your neck" power! I used to live in Wichita as a supplier to the airframe industry: Beech, Boeing, Cessna, Lear...even Great Lakes, Bede, etc....

 

Few more from MTTS in Boulder

 

Just bought a raffle ticket to win a GP at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, considering buying 1 more. MSRP $43,000

http://www.natividadfoundation.org/f...Letter_Web.pdf

 

$100 a ticket?! That's a lot of money but...

Very tempted to buy one...

 

Who decided that? No official MSRP has been released on any site that I've seen.

 

"MSRP $43,000 Donated by MINI USA, a division of BMW North America"

http://www.natividadfoundation.org/f...Letter_Web.pdf

 

http://blog.caranddriver.com/2013-fo...and-270-lb-ft/

 

I find it hard to believe that the MSRP would be released on a fundraising flyer, but, who knows, we'll see.