I ordered my 2013 Countryman without the Sirius radio upgrade for some $250. Do you think the radio will have it, but it just won't be activated? And I can just activate myself by following all the guidance on the web. Or am I SOL--Siriusly Outta Luck?

 

I believe you'll, indeed, be SOL.
Your radio won't have a Sirius receiver, just AM FM HD.

 

you won't be missing anything

the sat-radio sucks, very compressed, sounds like my old transitor radio from my childhood

most stations seem to be on a 45 minute loop, listening to the 60's channel you would think there were only 25 songs produced in the 60's

same on the 50s, 70s, 80s, etc etc etc

after my free year is up, i won't be renewing

the hd receiver is fantastic, i listen to chicago hd in wisconsin

scott

 

Unlike Mr. BMW, I really enjoy Sirius. Though I didn't think I'd like it, it's replaced my iPhone as my primary in-car music source. I generally hang on Ozzy's Boneyard and find the playlist to be pretty deep.

 

Isn't that funny, my hubby and I love the Sirius! We don't have the HK sound but we enjoy the 60's station. They do repeat, but not that often... and we get to hear songs that we don't hear anywhere else. We have had it for a year, just renewed in my MINI, and paid extra for it in the new MINI. Your mileage may vary. :-)

 

Oh, and I played LaughUSA (clean comedy) for hours and hours on a road trip. Some of them you can't hear well, because they are live recordings of comedians, but they have some classics too... Bill Cosby is a favorite, as well as Jeanne Robertson and Bob Newhart. And you hear some comedians you never would otherwise. And hubby loves the sports stations.

You can buy the receiver from Sirius, and carry it around in whatever car you drive in, my cousin does that with his RV and truck.

 

Love my Sirius! I listen to a lot of different genres of music! You just can't find radio stations, HD or not, that will play what you can find on Sirius!

 

I got the sirius free for a year, it does have a tnty sound to it. The reg stations, ipod, and cds sound so much better. I will not be renewing.

 

Another one here for loving his Sirius!! But yes your screwed because you won't be able to access it on your radio without the Sirius receiver.

 

The Sirius is great - something to be said about going on a long trip and not having to scan to find stations

 

I haven't been too overly impressed with Sirius. I do not think I will be renewing when the free one year service is up. I like pandora and slacker radio much more.

 

We do enjoy it most of the time, but yes sometimes it sounds too "digital". My GF often enjoys several of the non music stations. The verdict is still out regarding a renewal.

 

Hint on renewal... let some time lapse and they will start calling and offering you deals. :-)

 

I thought Sirius was standard on the 2013's?

 

As of 2013, Sirius is now a $250 option, but Bluetooth/USB is standard. That's just a reversal of how it was on earlier year MINIs.
If you're getting both satellite radio and Bluetooth, the net cost is the same.

 

Or you can keep calling them for a better rate. I have a friend who did this...took him calling back 3 times and got a rate of $25 for 6 months. So you can get the rate if you want to haggle and not settle.

 

Chalk up another person that didn't really care about Sirius but ended up loving it. I'm glad it was standard when I got my Mini 2012 since never having it before I don't think I would have paid for it. So many great music channels plus loved the extra sports channels (MLB football etc.) and BBC tons of PBS etc. When our subscription is up I plan to bargain to get a good rate to renew. Also major cities news/traffic/weather has been really helpful when on road trips. I quick turn of the dial to find out what's going on instead of endless scanning to hopefully hit on a local traffic alert.

Now that I've had it I kind of can't imagine not!