Just wondering when Mini changes their model year? If I order a Mini now, I won't get it (8 weeks I'm told) until mid-late June. That only leaves a couple of months of driving until winter sets in. And then before you know it, its a model year old.

Had I known of the time lag in ordering, I would have ordered the car in mid Feb and would now be receiving the Mini (and the snow would be gone).

Also, anyone know what the deals are for the Spring Sweeps this weekend. Wondering if it will be worth stopping at the dealer or not.

 

IIRC, the 2013 models started production some time in October, don't recall if it was early or late. As far as time lag goes, the new models have the same time lag as the car you ordered so the relative availability of the new models is unchanged.

Personally, I'm not a fan of some of the 2014 changes so that would more than make up the time between order and delivery for me.

 

Thanx's for that information.

What are some of the changes coming in the 2014 CM?

 

We don't know. The hardtops are getting significant makeovers - www.motoringfile.com has what details are available.

What isn't clear is what changes that are going into the next gen hard top will come across to the Countryman and when it will happen. Currently the ONLY talk about 2014 changes has been that the current version of the Hardtop aka R56 will be replaced with a newly redesigned version aka F56.

In the past, major changes like this have come to the hardtop first and then filter across the rest of the line up over the next year or more. For example the Convertible didn't shift from the supercharged engine to the turbo until over a year after the rest of the line had.

MINI has made their model year changeover as early as August and as late as November.

 

Brian -

Hang in there. If you do take delivery in mid June, come on over the the White Mountains for MINIs On Top!

 

There is a thread in this section with some interior pics. The center pod is becoming a mess IMO.

 

And then there's this...

 

When MINI switched from the R50/R53 to the R56 in 2007, there were only the hardtops and the convertible. Only the hardtops changed. The convertible carried on based on the older platform until it was changed in 2009, and the Clubman came along shortly thereafter. It seems likely that for the switch to the new platform, the changes will occur similarly: Hardtops first, then convertibles, Clubman, Countryman/Paceman, and Coupe/Roadster. We likely won't see any changes to the Countryman until at least MY 2015 (just my theory, based on past events). I'm sure there will be color changes to the Countryman for 2014, and they will likely shift around the option packages (they seem to do this quite regularly), but that's probably it for next year.

 

Actually, the Clubman came out in 2008, a year before the new convertible in 2009.

 

You're right, but my point was to note that the Clubman came out AFTER the switch to the new platform.

 

But it doesn't change the fact that MINI doesn't necessarily refresh their entire product line at once. The 2014 changes that are being leaked impact the R56 replacement, there hasn't been any talk of these changes coming to other versions yet...

 

And that is exactly the point of what I wrote above.

 

I believe I read that the changes will happen to one model per year. The first is the R56. The last is suppose to be the countryman and paceman.

 

Now that sounds like a great way to break in the Mini. The pix's of previous year's rallys really have me wanting my Mini sooner.

 

I ordered my 2013 model in late June 2012. Check with your dealer - you may be able to order a 2014 in June and have it in August.

 

Not to mention that you will be exposed to about 250 other MINIs and the collective wisdom of 400+ other owners! And then there's the 8-mile climb up Mt. Washington (closed to the public) to watch the sun set! PM me if you need any more info on the event...