Ordered a MCS on Saturday and got the premium package with sunroof. I'm having serious second thoughts about the sunroof. I don't need it. I don't know if I'll use it. I don't know if I really want it.

Trouble is I don't want to delete it if it would hurt the ability to sell the car later on. To those with the "S"....when you were in the market for a MCS, would having no sunroof be a deal breaker? Or do the majority of MCS with 6 speeds not have sunroof?

I have a supercharged NSX which I track during the summer. I'm not planning on the MCS being my track car, but you never know. It might be fun to throw around the track.

Should I walk into the dealer on Monday and remove the sunroof or leave it in?

 

I live in Oregon, so I call it a cloud roof. I would not by a MINI without one.

 

I would not have one without but I know others that wish they didn't have it. these are hardcore autoX guys.


I think you kill your resale but that is being said with no empirical data.

 

If you haven't taken delivery yet, you don't have to. Order another one w/out the sunroof if you feel so strongly against it.

 

I personally would not have bought my MCS without a sunroof. That said, life is too short to buy a car with something you do not want on it just for the sake of resale IMHO. When you do need to sell it I'm sure that given time you will find people who do not want the roof for various reasons.

Get what you want and enjoy

 

I don't have a sunroof and I didn't want one. I have never been big on sunroofs and I like the cleaner look of the roof without it.I know that there are alot of people out there that love their sunroofs, but if you otherwise have a great car that is well cared for, I don't think that the absence of a sunroof would do anything to you resale value, you may just have to wait a bit longer to find the right buyer when the time comes

 

I just ordered one without. I have other cars with sunroofs and never use them. I saved the $850 when I bought the car, so selling it will be less $$$ and that will always attract someone. There are plenty of people out there who would do without.
I asked the dealer about resale and he told me that they mostly sell them with, but there is plenty of hardcore performance buffs that want them without.

 

The idea of having a sunroof but not "using" it does not make sense to me. You are using it even when it's closed! That's because you still enjoy a soft natural lighting that makes men look more manly and women look fantastic!

I have a sunroof on my MCS and would not want to be without it.

I have tried autocross and the weight of the sun roof ain't gonna make a lick of difference unless you are a pro! IMO

I also like eVal's notion that you should not buy for resale... life IS too short!

 

I bought my first MINI, an 02 S with premium and cold weather, off the floor at P&W in Pittsburgh in Nov of 02. I didn't think I'd want the roof, but there was no wait and I bought the car the way it was. I ended up loving the sunroof. It's big and with the windows down is really great cruising around under about 40mph. When I ordered the 04 I have now, I ordered with the premium pack, cuz I had to have my sunroof. Go talk to the used car buyer at your MINI dealer and ask him how much more he gives in trade on one with a roof as opposed to one without . . . bottom line, get it the way YOU want it.

 

Originally, we were going to order it w/o a sr but when we compared the two the SR just made the interior that much more airy. It doesn't get open all that much here but the light is appreciated. We added a checked flag to keep too much sunlight from heating up the interior.

 

I got the premium package for other reasons instead of the sunroof and didn't plan on using it that much. Now though, that it's getting warmer I find I use it alot! It's good on hot days when your are at places, you get in your car and it is steamin' you use the vent/crack function on it to draw out all the warm air and your ac to bring in cool air, it's great! I do use the fully retracted function but not as much. I strongly support CooperBeagles opiniongs though, I really don't think it'll make that much difference on the track, and it provides awesome natural lighting!

Mikey

 

Get rid of it if you don't want it.

Get yours specially tailored to you.

im glad i have my sunroof. I use it all the time in tilt mode.

 

I've had both - my first MCS didn't have it as it was a pre-spec '02 - I promptly sold it six months after I bought it for a MCS with a sunroof. If you get a MCS with a sunroof and decide to dump it in favor of another one w/o a roof - you shouldn't lose a ton of money as MINI's have one of the highest residual values on the market. So get it with the roof.

 

I've had sunroofs on other cars but I DID NOT want one on my MCS. I don't think it will make it harder to re-sell the car at all. It has the extra-lightweight, high-performance, non-sunroof option.

 

I have owned two MCS and none had sunroofs or the "premium Package" only parts of it (MFSW and Trip Computer). The first MCS was a 2004 which I owned for 16 months and 17K Miles. I sold the car in early February for $700 ABOVE of what I originally had paid for it in early October 2003 when I took delivery. Actually the person that bought the car from me had been actively looking for a MCS with no sunroof. MCS with no sunroof and Premium Package are actually rare birds in my neck of the woods as most Cooper S are fully decked out cars from factory.

My second MCS, a 2005, which I took delivery 2 months ago, also has no sunroof and no Premium Pack either. I don't feel the lack of those options will hurt its resalability as this was evidently not a problem when I sold the first MCS.

Miami is a damn hot city, specially in the summer months. It is so hot and humid here that the act of opening a sunroof is short of suicidal. A/C is a REQUIREMENT for safe driving here, period.

But yes, there is a market for non-sunroof MCS. If you don't feel comfortable about it and think you won't use it, save the 55+ pounds of weight off the roof, get a couple of more inches headroom and save the $800 for other options/mods

Hope this helps.

 

If I lived in the colder/rainy but beautiful Northwest, I would consider a sunroof, but I think it is not a good idea if you live in the sunbelt states.

Just my opinion...

 

Negatives of the sunroof aside from extra weight/cost/possibility of leaks when the cars comes of age, is that it is loud and noisy at speeds above 50 MPH. I have had loaners with sunroofs and while the added light inside the cabin makes the car look bigger, the thing becomes useless at near highway speeds. And it is noisy even when it is closed at said speeds.

Maybe I am used to my tight, silent non-sunroof cabin. I love it. Oh and the A/C works mucho better here because the interior does not get as hot as in a car so equipped with a sunroof.

 

Most Minis around here have them, BUT I have only seen a VERY small percentage of them open, on the road - not counting gatherings. I personally drive with it open and the windows down all the time unless it's raining, I would never have one without it. My other car is the only one I have ever had without one - I thought I wouldn't use it, but I really missed it. I seem to be in the minority however.

 

Totally.

I will take as much light as I can get. I live in Portland too, and with 8 months of clouds, you tend to want daylight...

Also, it makes the rear seats feel far more spacious due to the fact that you can always see out the roof.

No sunroof was not an option. This is not a race car.

If I bought it for the track, then sure, I'd skip it. Otherwise, it's "Sunroof or bust"

 

I wasn't intending on getting a sunroof on my MCS either. But the car the dealer already had in stock was pretty close to what I was ordering so the dealer pretty well gave me the premium package for free. So I took it.

If you really don't want the sunroof, then don't get it unless it's given to you.
I must say, though, that the sunroof does make the car feel bigger inside.

Also, if you open the sunroof wide, you do get quite a bit of wind noise. Passengers in the back like the extra light.

 

I love my sunroof, will have one on the next MINI as well. Sometimes it's the only way to get a good picture with the digi-cam while driving!

 

my sunroof was hands down my favorite and most used option on the car. combine the sunroof with the heated seats on a sunny winter day and you have a great driving experience. it add's a bit of fat, but i couldn't imagine a MINI without that huge sunroof.

 

I LOVE my sunroof. I was just cruising, on a particularly lovely Saturday roadtrip -- windows down, sunroof open, highway driving 70+. It was fabulous.

Yes, it's a bit noisy when open. But I suspect that that's part of the point -- you know, the wind in your hair... There is no more noise than any other sunroofless car when it's shut.

All that said, if you don't want one... don't get one. MINI's have held their resale value very well. In pure speculation, this is probably going to take a downturn relatively soon as people "trade up" into a cabrio or trade into the more mechanically sound 05's. And moreso when the 2007 body style changes take effect. I've seen a MINI sitting at the local BMW dealership (IB/W MCS, premium, leather, no sport pack) for at least the past month.

Just get what you want -- you're going to loose money on a car purchase either way.

 

I do not have the sunroof in my 05 MCS...I ordered it that way specifically because I wanted a roof graphic, and I love my car.

The car I traded-in for the MCS was an Audi A4 with a sunroof. I used the sunroof in that car all the time (winter, summer, rain, snow). However, that said, I don't miss it at all in my new car.

I wouldn't worry about cancelling your order (if that's the route you decide). Oh, and I would think the money spent on the sunroof at order time, would be a wash to what you would lose in trade-in value. Just my .02.

Get what YOU want... :smile:

 

I never considered not getting the sunroof. Even if I never open it I like the light it allows in and like the way it looks in the car. I would not buy a mini S without one. ski