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It's totally up to you- your behind will be parked in that seat. I wanted to mention something though... the different leather colors feel differently. The cordoba combo is a super soft leather. I thought all the leather choices would be that soft, but not so. The black leather is firmer/tougher. If you look in the back fold-out of the MINI brochure you can see small notes next to the leather combos like "soft leather", "natural leather", "gravity leather", etc. I wish my leather was as soft as the cordoba, but I still love it anyway!

 

I shocked all my friends and relatives by getting the leather. I was a vegetarian for 10 years and not a "leather" person. The leatherette seemed really cheap to me and I didn't like the cloth either! So I decided the leather was the best route to go fo me. weird!

 

I sat in a MINI with leatherette and then in one with leather. I found the leather seats to be of a higher quality and more durable. But, for some people the leatherette is just fine and they would rather spend the extra money on another option.

 

Originally I was going with the leatherette but then again, I also only ordered the sunroof and the sports package only to change my mind several times and eventually add the premium, cold weather package and leather.

I originally liked the leatherette and thougth I'd save $1250. On my first test drive of a MCS I actually thought the leatherette WAS the leather. That's because I never had high-quality leather before - I've only owned "Mustang - leather" - not bad but certainly not the highest quality by any means. With the Mustang it's a no-brainer. Uncomfortable cloth (IMO), or $500 leather. Easy choice. With the MINI it is a much tougher decision. $0 leatherette which isn't bad or $1250 leather. One of the main reasons I switched to the leather is when I finally brought my wife with me for my second test drive, her only complaint about the car was the "hard seats". So I have her sit in a leather MINI in the showroom and she thought it was much more comfortable.

I almost felt guilty spending $1250 on leather, you know, having a wife and kid I just thought that money could go to better use somewhere else. That's the main reason why I thought the leatherette would be fine. But when the wife said she liked the leather A LOT better, I switched. No more guilt! No one had to tell me that twice.It's also important that my wife likes the car and the ride b/c I want to use the MINI everytime we go anywhere together. The last thing I need is her complaining she's not comfortable and she wants to take the CR-V.

I agree with those about that the color should also be a deciding factor and it was with me as well. I just couldn't justify spending the money on BLACK leather when it didn't LOOK much better or different than the no charge leatherette. So I went with the Lapis Blue Leather. Adding together the soft ride with the leather, my wife liking the leather better, and the cool blue/black look that the Lapis Blue Leather provides, it comes out to about...hey what do you know..$1250!

I also really prefer the back seat with the Lapis Blue Leather. With the leatherette, the back seats especially feel and look very hard. They also look very unattractive, IMO. Also, when I first saw the MINI brochure before I ever saw a MINI in person, I fell in love with the Lapis Blue Leather picture. So that was the original interior I wanted before I learned it was $1250.
Sorry this post was so long!

 

I think it also depends on where you are. I am in the Palm Springs area and if I didn't have the leather the car would be :smile:

 

>>I think it also depends on where you are. I am in the Palm Springs area and if I didn't have the leather the car would be :smile:




Hey TMGRobyn! I go to Palm Springs at least twice a year. We'll have to motor this winter! I've ordered the Panther Black Profile leather because I like the feel, smell, and especially, the raised dots!

Cheers!
Clover