Hey,
I was reading over on Mini2, and some has posted that he went to his dealer for a test drive, and somewhere in the conversation between him and a salesman, it came up that they are going to start to make a Cooper "S" in an automatic, because of the high demand. Personally I think that to have a fun car, you need to have it as a stick, what do you think.

 

I personally think that it would take away some of the sport feeling that is unique to the S...

 

obviously i'm new to stick... (the other thread) but i feel the same way as you.. i think all sports cars should be manual and if people want an S they should learn stick... like me

 

I think the stick is more fun to drive, and it keeps me busy.

 

An automatic Cooper S definitely wouldn't be an option for me. I learned to drive stick less than a year ago and am hopelessly addicted.

 

I own an MCS and have 3100 miles on it over the last few months. I've been driving a stick since 1975. Like the 6 speed transmission.
I got a loaner cooper with CVT and drove it a 100 miles. I was very impressed with the CVT. It did fine and was fun to drive in manual shift mode. While there was ample power it still lacked the raw power of the S. The manual shifting was actually pretty good once you got used to it. Think of it as a clutchless manual- a proven technology in other race or sporty cars.

If Mini came out with an S with CVT I would get one for my wife. She knows how to drive a stick but won't bother to drive my S after repeated invitations. She did drive the cooper with CVT and thought it was fine. Mini will have to make sure that for whatever version of the CVT they put into the S-they will have to beef it up to handle the power of the S.

 

I drive a Cooper with a CVT and would have bought the "S" if it was available with the CVT. I'm sure that that MINI would have sold a lot more "S"s if they had offered it as an option. What I don't understand is why some "S" drivers and against having a CVT option. No one is saying that you would have to buy a "S" with CVT and this will be the only trans
that it will have. It's a matter of choices and "S" drivers could still purhase their MINI with a standard trans.

 

You can’t blame the manufacture for wanting to sell cars to the public. If an automatic will put numbers and dollars in their coffers then as a business they will do it.

Maybe they will do a MINI SUV. I can hear the cash register caching now.

 

Stick shifts are fun, except in cities and traffic. I think manual trannys will be extinct before too long though. There is a reason so many race vehicles have clutchless shifting nowadays. I'm betting that if they do offer an S with an auto, it will have a Steptronic mode like the Cooper, Porsche, Audi etc...

 

First, rumors of softening the damper settings and now this. Not good. Seems BMW hasn't heard of the adage "if is isn't broken, don't fix it." May have to order a stablemate quickly.

 

I 1st drove a stick in 1969.
I prefer it ...personally.

MINI is in the business of making money....
If they can sell more MCS's by putting a CVT in it...they surely will.

It's our choice as consumers to decide..... what we need/want/desire :smile:

I choose a 6 speed....:smile:

Peace,
d

 

>>If Mini came out with an S with CVT I would get one for my wife. She knows how to drive a stick but won't bother to drive my S after repeated invitations. She did drive the cooper with CVT and thought it was fine. Mini will have to make sure that for whatever version of the CVT they put into the S-they will have to beef it up to handle the power of the S.


The same happens to me.
In my case, my wife hates a stick. She says "Why I should hold a steering wheel by one hand. It's so dangerous...Fun to drive? What is that? I don't believe it."
She never understands what the motoring means and the heel and toe technique...
Well, she would rather like to be a paasenger although her manual navigation system doesn't work properly.

 

I like the idea of keeping the car's RPM at max torque or at max efficiency using the CVT. I just don't think the idea will fly very well with sports car enthusiasts, since sticks have always been the preferred tranny. However, I think the MCS will perform much better with a CVT, instead of having to change gears to keep near the magical max torque peak of the engine. Remember, you loose acceleration when shifting and also you're losing max acceleration when you're not at the max torque of the engine. Also the CVT tranny is lighter than the 6 speed getrag tranny and it has fewer moving parts.

 

Only if they offer it with paddle shifters for sport mode.

 

Hmm, the only time I would consider an automatic is... well... never. Mom mom's XJS and allroad are both autos... and both quick... but they lack the flair of a stick. The only time stick has been slightly annoying to me was while driving in heavy traffic in San Francisco. Those hills...

 

I'm in the anti-CVT in S croud... I think it would dilute the 'brand ' of an S... kind of like how I think that the Jaguar brand name is becoming diluted now that they sell them almost everywhere... They might as well start selling the S with the smaller rims and the softer suspension...


Rocketboy_X

 

Can anyone find any proof in this? I would really like to know if this is real or just a rumor

 

If adding the CVT to the S line increases sales w/out a corresponding increase in dealer allotment, then the wait for the S is going to go to 1.5 years. I'd rather hear of a 250 horse S. Would a normally aspirated, non-hoodscoop 200 horse Cooper be possible?? I'd do an awfully lot to get my hands on something like that

 

Before they could really make this work with an S they would need to solve the 0-20 acceleration lag -it is a slow starter but then really strong once past 20mph or so, this apparently because of the complexities of slow movement in a CVT without a torque converter, combined with less low end torque on the Cooper. Perhaps the raw power of an S would compensate for this, but would be slower than a regular S unless the trans is programmed differently.

I also wish they would develop the virtual manual side more, what I really want is a dual trans that I can shift or not. The steptronic mode is the quickest I think in my Cooper CVT, but no one has yet turned a track time in the CVT that beats the conventional Cooper, regardless of the 3 modes.

I agree the potential is there for very advantageous sliding gear ratios, but I guess the technology is so fresh they still have a ways to go. The potential exists to program a CVT mode to behave like a manual trans. I think that is exciting.

It would be really cool to 'set user preferences' on a software driven car like on a computer program!

 

I am with those who do not understand why anyone would be AGAINST Mini offering an S with CVT.

Dilution-of-brand?? Let the corporate types worry about marketing.

I suspect that some S drivers subconsciously confuse the cars stick with their own, or lack thereof. If you catch my drift…

If MINI offered pink cars with lavender tops, I would not buy that color combination. But I would not OPPOSE the offering.

 

>>
>>I am with those who do not understand why anyone would be AGAINST Mini offering an S with CVT.
>>
>>Dilution-of-brand?? Let the corporate types worry about marketing.
>>
>>I suspect that some S drivers subconsciously confuse the cars stick with their own, or lack thereof. If you catch my drift…
>>
>>If MINI offered pink cars with lavender tops, I would not buy that color combination. But I would not OPPOSE the offering.
>>
>>
>>


AMEN BIGBUD!!!

It seems the great majority of 'S' drivers seem to have either very low self esteem, or an ego they size of Texas tighted up to the stick shift and the clutch pedal!!!

The CVT is fantastic and would love for MINI to make it part of the MCS experience!!!


Viva la CVT!!!!!!

 

A wonderful idea. Especially (sp) for handicap drivers. I am quite handicaped but I can still handle a stick, but some days i wonder if it is worth the pain. I would buy a SMG in a heart beat. Alast I doubt that is in the works The transmission case would be much to long.

 

would not bother me one bit if they offered an automatic transmission S. It certainly won't affect how much I enjoy shifting myself

 

I agree with the "why not" crowd. I enjoy my 6 speed immensely, but do not see it as a ***** extension. A CVT "S" would be a great option for some. My EX ruined her left knee in a skiing accident, she still has a HotRod heart, but she can't tolerate the clutch on a daily basis. A steptronic type tranny would thrill her. It will also broaden the market and increase sales, why would'nt BMW do it?

 

>> It will also broaden the market and increase sales, why would'nt BMW do it?

I agree with you.
MCS/CVT would definitely broaden the market, but Consequently, I believe, BMW would have to make one important and critical decision.
That is increasing its production capacity of MINI.
Otherwise the balance between supply and demand would be lost and the line in the dealer could be much longer. Probably the premium will go up too.
But still I want to say, it would be wonderful if we could see more people motoring with Mini!

Oops, one more thing for BMW to decide is to increase MINI dealer to respond to increased demand as well!!
(I have my dealer 60 miles away from home...