On 2013, flat load floor was standard. Is it possible to remove the flat load floor? I don't want to pull too hard and break it. Thanks.

 

I was at the dealer the other day looking at the 2013 Countryman. The window sticker showed the flat load floor option and a price of $250 and it had the rear bench seat. I looked in the boot area and only saw a single floor that covers the hidden stowage compartment; it did not have the extra cover like the prior year and the one installed did not look like it folded near the top, also like the previous years. It also lacked the latches that would hold the cover in the up-right position. The dealer told me the flat load floor is now built into the back of the rear seats. He said without the load floor option the rear seat back is a soft material and could be damaged by loading heavy objects. So, what is the flat load floor on the 2013 model? I may find another dealer and look at two cars, both with the rear bench seat, one without the flat load floor and one with and see what is different.

 

The 2013 flat load floor does not fold up and stay upright (as in pre-2013) to reveal the hidden storage below. For 2013, it folds in half and you only have access to half of the storage compartment.

 

It's good to see that some things never fade away . . .

• MINI's lack of information on the boot floor and options there of.
• Sales Rep lack of product knowledge and willingness to BS a customer.

Sealy - One of the original Flat Floor WTFers.

 

Well said, Sealy!

 

My 2012 only folds up halfway as well and it doesn't stay up. Lol

 

My 1950 looks like it's been folded one too many times and hasn't stayed up in years.

 

That's what she said...

 

Lol. Set myself up for that one.

 

I pulled the flat load floor out of my 2012. This is the one that comes with the bench seat option. It's held in with the same type of clips the trunk privacy cover is held in with.

 

hmm..
this is something i never really understood and bothered to look into actually.
so the official "flat load floor" is just the flapper piece that covers the bottom of the boot and the non flat load floor leaves this bottom drop in the floor exposed or is there something else to it ? pics if it's more than this please.

 

+1 on the Flat Floor WTFers club

 

Flat load floor is simply the piece that covers the hole. That's it. Nothing more. Oh, and it folds in half!

 

so they actually offer it without the hole covered ?

the cover over the hole seems so... basic to offer as an "option" i thought there had to be more to this great flat load floor legend.

 

I thought the flat load floor was a board that sits on the seat back when the seats are folded down, mainly for rear buckets to cover the rail and not the portion the covers the rear storage area

 

Back in the olden days, the CM came only with bucket seats. This configuration came standard with a well cover. It was wall to wall, and seat to hatch, and had a hinged ~4" wide section along the hatch. It could be lifted, fastened against the seat back and the little hinge section folded and fastened to the now vertical floor (sort of like a reinforcing bar along the top). This sealed off the boot (with the cargo cover) and provide security and kept back stuff from becoming front stuff in a panic stop. It also left a gaping hole in the floor that made people like me (dog owners) say WTF, MINI? A few months into accepting orders, rumors started that there was a flat load floor option that supplemented the standard floor. In typical MINI fashion, no one at the dealerships knew of it and there was nothing on the official web site. Many people bought standard not knowing or being told anything. It should be also noted that things were further confused by MINI who sold CMs with no floor as standard in some foreign countries. Posts on this board generally went around in circles on the topic. Then, about mid-way into this, MINI configurator started listing an optional flat load floor for $250. Sales reps, of course, insisted that this was the standard floor and there was no optional floor. Hilarity and more confusion ensued. I, being brave, was one of the first to order and receive the mystery floor. It was, actually, a pretty nifty addition. It fit inside the rim of the well, was hinged at the back to lift up and in the middle so you could half open it. It snapped in and could be easily removed. With the standard floor against the seats, it provided a flat, side to side, front to back floor. You can also flip the seats forward with the standard floor and have a flat floor all the way to the front. And, still keep a secure covered storage area in the well. We also have at least one member who bought the optional floor as a kit. Last I heard he had about 500 pieces and fittings, needed to tear out the back of the car and do some welding and cutting. It was not going well.

So, that is the story of the flat load floor up to the advent of the bench seat era. I have no idea what you guys are getting or doing. And don't want to know. I just wish you luck.

 

It seems like the flat load floor served a purpose for pre-bench seats on years before 2013. For 2013 with bench seat, it just folds in half.

 

Yes, it is possible to remove. Pull hard, it won't hurt anything.

My "$250 mandatory in 2012 with bench seat flat load floor" has been gathering dust against a wall in the garage for months. I'm glad I got the bench because of the dogs, but throwing the $250 at a slot machine would have been a better investment.

 

Ok, I'll pull hard. But I'll try at the dealer first.

 

I'm confused....

I thought the flat load floor was the flat piece that hinges up and down?

It is either clicked in and locked in the upright position or laying flat... There's a small slip that folds and hangs down so you can close the hatch, but not in half?

I'm just confused... nevermind...

 

The flat load floor differs depending on whether you have bench or split rear seats. From what I have gathered reading various posts here there are three versions of the flat load floor. Your comment leads me to believe you have rear buckets with the FLF option.

Option 1. Standard with rear buckets (i think) is a piece that covers the boot well but leaves a gap between the rear seats 100% of the time. I am not sure if it is a single piece or has the split in the middle like option 3.

Option 2. Optional on the rear buckets ($250) is a two layer floor with a piano hinge that allows covering the boot well and can also fold up against the rear buckets in order to fill the space between the seats. It sounds like what you have based on your question.

Option 3. The bench seat setup comes with a single layer that covers the boot well. It splits in the middle with a piano hinge so you can access the boot well area. The second layer that folds against the seats (option 2 above) is not available with the bench seat cars which makes sense since there is no gap to cover.
The controversy at the time the bench seat cars started production (Nov 2011) was that the configurator initially did not indicate that there would be a charge for the flat load floor on the bench cars yet they all came with a $250 charge for the single layer cover. The configurator was later changed to reflect the FLF as a mandatory option for the 2012 bench seat cars. That mandatory charge has since been eliminated with 2013 cars.

Disclaimer:
I could be wrong about option1 but I am 80% sure it's what the bucket cars come with. I am 99% confident I described option 2 correctly. I know for a fact option 3 is accurate cuz I ordered and waited for a bench seat car so I lived it.

 

So if we got option three and were charger the $250 fee is there a chance to get the money back? I know for the '13 it was an added option on our car but there was no charge. I need to look at the '12 sticker to see what that was.

 

I don't think so. It was the official price during that model year and it was changed in 2013. MINI and BMW often tweak the equipment and packages from year to year. It is not atypical to pay for options early in the vehicle life cycle which become standard as the model ages and loses the new to market fizz.

 

Option Two - I cranked up the Way Back machine and came up with this.

 

I definitely don't have a flat load floor. I need to check my sticker and see if I was charged for it. Thanks for the info Sealy.