I'm new to this site. Hello to all my fellow MINI owners and future owners. On a waiting list for an S model. How are you all holding up? Isn't the waiting killing you? I was a loyal Honda backer. I have noticed that their cars are slowly going downhill as far as sex appeal is concerned. Great motors but no personality. I'm going to say good by to my 1999 Civic Si sometime in 2003. It's been a good car but not a grear car. The Cooper S should be a great car!

 

Welcome to the site......

I can relate.... I'll be trading in my 99 Honda Prelude for an S in 03.
Not that I don't like it.... I just like the Cooper S more.
One thing I will hate to loose is the power. I guess I'll just have to find a way to get it back....

One thing I just realized..... My Prelude only has 8.7 cubic feet of cargo space..... .... Won't be loosing much there!!

SW

 

Hi minican, the waiting is by far the worst part. It's the ultimate in that whole 'watch pot...never boil' adage. Each day goes by sooooooo sloooooooow. It gets even worse when you're tracking the production of your car via the Owner's Lounge or Wallenius Wilhelmsen. To add insult to injury, they're not even always accurate, especially the Owner's Lounge. Maybe it's time for a support group . (Enthusiast sites like this one certainly help though.)

 

Well, I have not yet put my name on the waiting list yet, but I hope to before to long here, maybe by the end of the week! :smile: And then the wait begins. I can concur about the loss of power though, I am going to be going from a big powerful firebird to the little mini-cooper. The only think is, the Horsepower to weight ratio is really good in the cooper S, so the power loss shouldn't be that big a deal.

 

BlueJay
'appears to me you're not only givin' up gobs of horsepower and torque but also acres of hood and steal! Are you gonna be able to handle such a drastic change?
Minican

 

Fiver,
Have you lost any of your options? What type of MINI are you waiting for? What attracted you to this car?
Minican

 

Hello sfiveten,
An advantage I see for the both of us is that with the MINI we no longer have to ring out our cars to over 5600 rpm to get to our power. I do think the Honda motors and transmissions are great and the cars are trouble free but I definitely see the pleasure of just dipping into a fat reservoir to torque that is lacking in my Civic Si and I think your Prelude. What do you think?
Minican

 

I agree......
The Vtec kick does come a little late but.... I can't knock it. When it hits... It will put you back in your seat. I will miss the H22A..... Kinda nice knowing it's used in the fastest FF car in the world.
For me.... it's not so much about the power though. I really like the classic look and the Go-Kart like handling of the MINI. My Lude is fun but not like the MINI C S!!!
Can't wait.
SW

 

why wait? get one now!! you will never regret it. EVER!!

 

>>Have you lost any of your options? What type of MINI are you waiting for? What attracted you to this car?

I didn't get the revised Cold Weather Package. This was no fault of MINI, though. My dealer just made a boo-boo. Everything else for my Cooper is there, which includes the Premium Package, Indi Blue paint, white top, 16" wheels, DSC, sport seats, fogs, and (believe it or not) xenons, which seems to be a major pain in the rear to get at the moment. I like the way the white roof looks without the sunroof better, but I'm planning on covering it with vinyl. I didn't get the Sport Package as I don't much care for the spoiler. I didn't get the Park Distance Control because I don't like the way it makes the rear bumper look (plus it's not really necessary on a car this short).

I plan on trading up for an S around October when IB is available. It will have the same spec but with full-on Cold Weather Package (and a 2003 model year stamp to boot .

As far as what attracted me, I've always liked the original Minis, and when I found out a few years ago that there would be an updated version, I knew I had to get one. This car will NOT be like the New Beetle. I think that car was more of a shell. The MINI is much more substantive, with handling and performance to back up its good looks. In addition, the market will not be saturated. It will take four years for US MINI allocation to equal the Beetle's first year allocation of 80,000. I also like the whole wheels-at-the-corners thing. There's no other car out there that is like this, and I think it redefines how we should think about our vehicles. It seems that the general trend in America is that 'bigger is better.' I think last year, trucks and SUVs outsold autos for the first time ever. It's nice to be going in the opposite direction, with a car that is funner to drive than an SUV by a country mile, has soul, and can wreak major havoc on the twisties. "A bulldog spoiling for a fight" is my favorite MINI description.

Sorry for the rant. Wait! I just realized today's the 20th. My MINI's arrived at the VPC in Port Hueneme! Yessss!

 

>>BlueJay
>>'appears to me you're not only givin' up gobs of horsepower and torque but also acres of hood and steel! Are you gonna be able to handle such a drastic change?
>>Minican

Well, it may be true that I am loosing a "little" bit of horsepower, I am loosing a whole lot of weight as well. The HP/Weigh ratio os actually pretty darn close (At least the Cooper S). I don't know if I'll be able to handle the change as I have not yet driven a cooper yet. I have a test drive schedualed this week, and I'll let everyone know how it goes. I have always liked the old mini's and was estatic to hear they decided to do a redesign and sell them in the states. I am what you might call a "car guy" and I will have plenty of old american steel lying around the garage, but it's always nice to have a reliable, fun to drive, gets good gas milage car as well.

 

I test drove the Cooper S a couple weeks ago and the horse power is quite awesome! I'm going from a Chevy Tahoe into one of these cars so I too am losing quite a bit of metal. The best thing about the car is that you can use the horsepower even when you are cornering!!

Shad