I am sure that all of you out there with that nifty factory cup holder have discovered that it is pure crap! I like my Starbucks in the morning. The cup holder so nicely placed at the level of the radio (well slightly above) does an excellent job of setting you up to hit a bump and launch a nice stream of (beverage of choice) onto the face plate. Well that is what happened to me.

Eject quit working first with a CD stuck in the radio. I took everything apart and pulled the radio out and had to clean all the switched and environmental controls below the radio and then tried to use a bit of electrical contact cleaner to see if that would fix the problem. Alas it has not. To make matters worse the majority of the bottom buttons have slowly been dieing to where now I can use 1 and 2 with the rest all dead.

The dealer want $525.00 + tax for a new radio. Do I shell out the cash for a stock head unit or go aftermarket?

Do I have to get the MFSW kit from newmini.com to use the steering wheel or have radios caught up with the cars and will now work with it? Any suggestions would be welcome as to a head unit also. My requirements are:

Must have IPod support
Must be able to be red (Not blue)
MFSW support required

thanks for the help.

 

Look around in the marketplace for an 03 or later head unit - I think people are selling them for $100-200

 

Actually, if you check the marketplace, try to get an 05 or later radio as they will play MP3s from a CD. Not a huge deal since you use an iPod, but it never hurts. Plus the volume control **** is much easier to use.

 

$525 for an OEM replacement and you want to know if you should get it or an aftermarket replacement? You can get a nice Alpine iPod control unit model that makes teh stock one seem archaic. You could sell your OEM iPod connector and net cost would be not much. Yes, you can wire up the steering wheel controls as well with a PAC adaptor.

 

Can't help with the radio but I'd get the MiniFini cup holder if I were you. I have it in my '06 and it holds cups much more securely than the factory one.

 

........and keep a lid on the cup


LOL

 

Check ebay for used headunits as well. Just be careful.

 

Yeah Mini Fini cup holder on order.....

And would you believe that the lid was on the cup? It was that little hole in the top of the lid that you drink out of that got me.

I have been looking at ebay and found a replacement but when they bench tested the thing it displayed "-Disabled-" Is this because it wasn't in a mini?

A salvage yard also has an 06 that they want $300 for. Even this is still putting me squarly in the range of aftermarket though. I mean heck if I am going to spend that kind of money on it I might as well go with an Alpine head unit.

 

Correct, the headunit needs to detect an iBus connection before it will enable itself. Older headunits asked for a security code after being disconnected; newer units check for an iBus. See this thread: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...d.php?t=121179

 

Any 50 watt (18wpc/rms) Alpine head unit will do wonders for your stock Mini speakers. I would choose the CDA 9885. $249 at Crutchfield...iPod adaptor cable and shipping included. I have the CDA 9857, discontinued but very similar. To me the improved sound was well worth the loss of the oem look.

Consider that latte douche a blessing and come join the aftermarket crowd!

 

All good suggestions...

Another one... never allow open containers in your MINI ever again (even for yourself). I don't.

 

The upper cup holder is so wide that any normal size beverage container is loose and wobbles a lot, and that's probably what did you in. MINI sells a travel mug specifically for the upper cup holder that fits snugly and has a sliding cover over the sip opening. Looks and works great. It was about $20 at my dealer.

 

You'll be buying something new I'm sure but you might want to try this just for grins: soak the head unit in some distilled water (about a dollar a gallon just about anywhere) for an hour or two, swish it around some, then remove and let dry. You can use an old soft-bristle toothbrush to help get rid of obvious residues and a very lightly warmed oven to quicken the drying process.

 

My B-in-law did this with a 'ruined' ipod.
Being an engineer he stated that the issue was not the water, but the impurities in the water that cause the issue.
He actually boiled it in distilled water for a few minutes. After replacing the battery, it was still looking a bit dishelved, but functional!

 

Lots of good suggestions. I appreciate them all.

The stock cup holder will be hanging on the wall of shame in my garage from here forward.

I would go aftermarket but after you add in the cost of getting the MFSW controls to work even that route is fairly expensive. I am not going to go with a new unit and will hopefully be able to get a good used one somewhere. I have had a couple of leads off this forum already. I really do appreciate the help.

 

And remember, Starbucks is evil.
The old Mini-finicupholder does make a good ipod holder though. Wouldn't dream of putting a liquid in it.

 

I don't remember seeing any warning on the Starbucks cup advising not to position it in your car in a way that would prevent damage to surrounding materials or devices. Here is Ca, that's the formula for a lawsuit. After all the government and corporations are responsible for the well being of all of us.

 

I have a 04 stock stereo sleeping in the garage. PM me an offer if you would like to take it...
Cheers
Stephen

 

Lawsuit???

Give me a break.



If you absolutely have to have your morning fix, while piloting your MINI, then I recommend using the larger cup holder in the back of the center console, (behind the hand brake). That way, if it spills, no electronics get damaged.

I've become very good at reaching back there to get beverages in and out, on the rare occasions that I have needed a beverage in my MINI.

You cannot blame Starbucks or MINI for your head unit getting ruined. It's not their fault.

 

I'm pretty sure that was a joke.
I only drink water in the MINI, but I use the rear cupholder as well.

 

Your language doesn't translate smilies? Tongue in cheek my friend. We don't need to discuss how much of a waste many lawsuits are.

 

I have switched over to the rear cup holder at least until my MiniFini cup holder shows up. Even then I think I may stay with the rear cup holder just for the lack of electronics to get pwn'd in that area.

And for the record, I know that starbucks is not to blame. I would however like to find the SOB at Mini that designed that poor excuse for a cup holder and beat the daylights out of him. Or maybe just make him sit in the passenger seat after stopping by Starbucks. I mean come on this guy must have been the dude they just felt sorry for in class and passed him because he tried so hard. Mini did a lot of things right....the cup holder aint one of them. I still can't say that MINI is to blame for my dead radio though.

On the bright side, the cup holder does work well for cell phones.

 

Keep in mind that the downtube-mounted cupholder was designed as a last-minute "throw-in", primarily for the USA market. This is because the Germans believe (and I happen to agree) that driving is a time for driving, not drinking, eating, etc.

You can be mad at the designer, but he would probably just snidely say something about "stupid Americans trying to drink their coffee when they should be driving".

We were lucky to get that cupholder at all. I actually removed mine the day I bought my MINI... before I even drove off the lot! (no, I'm not kidding - I had my screwdrivers with me and everything)

 

Hindsight being 20/20....I so wish I had done the same.