Seems like they are pushing the GP for the last year in sales before the supposedly new version of The Mini comes out in 2021. I like the manual in my 2019...great for AutoX and fun to drive. I still
wouldn't mind a fast DCT in some other vehicle...lol

 

I think that has been the way that MINI has done it. Although this year MINI has made more of a pre-sales year hype about it. I don’t recall there being this much hype about the GP 1 or GP2... Or did I just miss it?

 

Am I wrong in my understanding that the true, totally redesigned Gen4 Minis will be the all electric Minis, or are they going to redesign the gasoline powered Minis as well? Because although I'm intrigued by an electric car for many reasons I'm not sure the limited mileage will suit me. I skipped the Gen3 models for my JCW Coupe in 2014 and it's been great. But I'll wait for a Gen4 if it isn't electric. The G3 doesn't do much for me, my car would probably blow it away on a tight road.

 

Is the hype on this car about dead? I have been trying to track down a Supra LE at MSRP ( I am hopeful as I bought a TRD Pro 4Runner from my dealer) anyway, the news on the GP seems to have vanished. Wondering what Mini's plan is here or to just wait for the debut.

 

BMW got away with their lowend add campaign with the 1ST gen. And then they brought the second gen that was a total POS. The third gen is a very good car, but they spend very little promoting it. I don't get it. They totally screwed the dealers. Disclosure: I no longer own a MINI, and I have owned 4 of them.
When I bought my first MINI, an '08 S, the clubs were full of car enthusiasts, most of whom owned the first gen.The club runs were a blast. In my area we had REME and NorCal. The whole thing has changed. REME is long gone and NorCal is more of a social club, not necessarily a bad thing, but as a car enthusiast, it just doens't fit my interest.
Put this together with the horrible add program, and I can see why their sales are so dismal.
With the first gen, MINI had the cat by the tail. But when they brought in the second gen and wouldn't fix all the new gens problems, they established an extremely bad reputation. Next thing you see, don't buy a new MINI, it will be worthless, and it happened.So they bring out the third gen car, but it could never survive the horrible reputation of the second gen. And add to the lowball add campaign of BMW, and here we are today. Now they're doing the same thing with the new GP. ?????????????????

 

Obiously they have sold all 3000 upfront. So why spent money ? However I cross fingers that they tried hard to present a time under 8.50 in 2 month at the IAA.

MINI is facing competitive times, the pending BREXIT , WLTP costs them a fortune, and in times of CO2 discussions Iam more than happy to get this car, as long it is possbile.

 

It seems their marketing plan is dazed and confused. I am back with a #2 slot at my new dealership and I fully expect to have the new GP. I am keeping my current 2016 JCW and thoroughly love it with the tweaks I have performed. It is a proper beastie and fun to drive. I expect the GP3 to take things to another level. I am expecting to officially place the order sometime this fall if all goes well.

 

I ordered a GP30 instead from The Galaxy Dealership and Hans Solo is going to deliver it in a couple of Light Years

 

Beautifully said...

But with respect to the GP, Clutch is right. The GP, being a unique car, it has generated its own hype and with sales already booked, their is no need to hype it more. I don’t remember a lot of hype for the GP 1 or GP 2. They just seemed to show up in the showroom and went out the door. They sell themselves.

Same can’t be said about MINI in general. They need to advertise more and capitalize on their race program. They had the national manufacture’s championship last year and did nothing with it. They are still pushing the 1950’s Monti Carlo win. They are sitting in the past, thinking that will work for them.

I saw a BMW M240i at the Dealer. Standard on the car is an 8 speed automatic; not even a DCT... the way of the future. Can MINI be far behind? I have my 2019 JCW, MT, smooth roof. Maybe the last new car I buy?

 

LOL...obviously? Have any evidence to back that up? I spoke to my dealer yesterday when my 2019 went in for a oil change and the GM said outside of my slot at 1 they have had no inquiries leading to a deposit , not one...the largest BMW/Mini dealership in the USA. I doubt they have sold all and if lucky maybe a 1/3.

 

That's good news for me!

 

They had the same sales problem with the first two GPs. Just wait a year and there will plenty of them for sale. That's not to say it isn't a great car. It's just the market's perception of MINI. And the car magazines aren't helping either. I think BMW needs to take some of these guys from Motortrend, Road and Track,etc. out for a few nights on the town.

 

They need to do something, before we find ourselves driving the modern equivalent of an Edsel.

 

I think they're two more big problems for MINI: the coming of electric cars and the fact that so few of millenials are car enthusiasts. With electric cars, cars will just become an appliance with a nice stereo. Worrying about range will replace performance driving. And with the appliance perception, more drivers will just rent or take Uber. We baby boomers will look like dinosaurs.
I hate the thought of getting into a quiet electric car and pre-programming it for maximun range.

 

Iam totally with you, but you miss over there some major changes in Europe.
I bought one GP2 Zero milage, 2 years after launch with good discount , and that was one of a 2000 Shoot. New markets have opened since then like CHINA,but if you would know how low the percentage of JCW sales is among F56, the GP3 will be more than a sporty approach. They guys at MINI have no Fantasy, as said by Eddie07S, they still stress the MC 1951 and call the GP "Kleinwagen", tradtion sorry are ugly wheels.

As a SOS action i would recomand the following
- Touring Version like Porsche does
- Clubsport- stripped no AC / Enterainment combined a new Challenge Cup, and all the goodies to buy. I rather spent 2000 on magnesium wheels ex works, than a fu.... panorama roof , thats serious bussines, and would reach the promised "Few" !!!!!

 

They would do well to bring the MINI Challenge race series here, too. Just look at what Spec Miata racing did for Mazda....
Oooooo - just think of the neat MINI parts we would have available to us in the States.

That is true about Millennials, but also a lot start out saddled with debt out of school and, compared to Boomers, the jobs don’t pay as well (comparatively) so they don’t even buy big stuff (cars, houses, etc). So that makes it doubly bad for the car market and enthusiasts cars in particular...

 

My daughter and son are millenials and do very well. Both have purchased their own homes without my help. A lot of the student debt problem can be attributed to the greediness of the college system. I went to Cal (class of '74). The TA's were not paid but had full ride scholarships. The management ( college presidents and such) were not paid millions of dollars. The professors maid their money doing research.
And,today, with these exhorbitant costs of tuition, many of these graduates( i.e. majors in social sciences) are not trained to succeed in the world after education. If someone graduates with a degree in some field of engineering, he or she can easily pay off their debt. Unless they decide to take a low paying job in an expensive, metropolitan area. Life has many choices. Your decisions when you're young can really make a difference in your financial well-being through the course your life.
And also, I read that the average college debt is about $70,000. In my fraternity house, there were plenty of guys that had debts close to $20,000( in real dollars greater than today's average debt). They got jobs and payed it off ( not from parent's help).
Sorry to get on my high horse, but the Universities and Colleges are the major cause of this college debt problem and it can only get worse if the debts are all forgiven. The schools can just continue to rip off the students.

 

Won’t disagree...

Now back to GP3s...

 

Who really want to spend $50K on a Mini with furthermore just 2 seats and questionable apparatus?

When these will come to the dealer showrooms, of course most will look at them as curiosity but unpractical and way too expensive. They will be highly discounted from being for too long on the dealers lots. The story will repeat again.

 

I still plan to get one regardless, and plan to have some fun with it on and off the track. Fortunately, for me I live in an area with a plethora of some of the best twisty roads in the US and I plan to wear it out on them! Just time kill central here today!

 

And why not!

There are impractical cars out there (Miata) and expensive (Ferrari), but people still buy them for whatever reason. My MCS is now a 2 seater. I don’t have a need for any more than that. So that wouldn’t be a limitation to me for buying a GP3. The price - well, now this comes down to individual taste. In the case of the GP3, “best” is in the eye of the beholder.

So, KYDan, Enjoy! I will look forward to reading your thread about your adventures in your GP3...

 

Here is the latest blurb on the motoring file on the GP3.
http://www.motoringfile.com/2019/08/...and+Podcast%29

 

Very nice Dan. Go for it!....I’m tired of seeing that camouflaged paint scheme tho. The GP3 will look waaaay better in real paint! 👍

 

Interesting article. I wonder how many of those bits and pieces will be available for the F56 in general?

Do I understand correctly that this is totally a different 2 liter engine than what they currently are using in the F56? I see that they say it has different internals, but the article also gives a BMW block number. I take it that block number is different from what they are currently using. Sorry, I’m not fully up on how BMW makes different engine designations. Also, did it loose a few Hp from previous reports? I thought it was reported to have 305 hp; this article is saying 301 - Not that it makes any difference with that small of a change. Just an observation and likely things like this will fluctuate until production.

I find it interesting that they totally redesigned the gages in front of the driver:

GP3 Gages in front of the driver.

It looks to be better than what is in my JCW, where the tach is totally useless, unless the dash lights are on. Then it is barely useful The GP tach in this one seems to be more readable. It would have been nice if the tach was more dominant to make it more functional and not just used to artistically balance the fuel gage.

I also wonder if the “speed” display can be changed to “gear” display? That would be nice.

Hmmmm - More to come, I am sure.

 

I think the block is essentially the same as the current one, but totally revamped internals. I hope they offer the chrono pack removing the useless lap timer and put a small tachometer in its place. We drove the F56 JCWs on the Indianapolis Speedway before we bought our F56 JCW and I did not like the dash layout. The heads up was useless for me. I have the heads up in my corvette that is projected onto the windscreen and is programmable and moveable. It is really functional and useful. I also liked the original concept GP3 that was black with the red. I realize that the rear air scoops would never fly, but the design was cool. I am planning on wrapping it in black if it is the traditional red/gray combo. It should protect the front end paint somewhat as my JCW is really pocked with rock and debris chips as well as the windscreen. I have seen reports from 301 to 308 HP for the GP. And, that it will be offered with very limited options, hopefully, one or more will be how you want the vital information instruments placed.