Well, she's finally home...

I recently purchased a 2003 MCS in Electric Blue with Black roof & mirrors. The car is equipped with with Premium, Sport & Cold Weather Packages, Moonroof, Harman Kardon, etc., and has just a little over 15,000 miles on the clock.

The car replaces my '04 VW R32, and while the R32 is clearly the better performer of the two, the Mini has a fun factor that the sleeper R32 could never quite capture. The Electric Blue color is much more bold that it appears in pictures and swatches, but I'm VERY pleased with the way it looks with the black roof & mirrors.

It has taken me some getting used to driving a supercharged car - I'm used to the immediate low-end grunt of the R32 - but I have found that winding the Mini out a bit reveals quite a bit of power up top. The handling is superb, the fit & finish are comparable to the VW and my complaints are few.

Some observations/critiques:

1) The dead pedal is virtually useless to me. It's tucked so far into the foot well that I actually have to stretch my left leg to plant my foot completely flat.

2) The moonroof is fantastic. Better than any I have seen.

3) The stereo is as good as I need it to be. Much better than the VW Monsoon system.

4) Storage is nonexistant. Time to order the euro parcel shelf.

That's about all I have for now. Here are some pics for your enjoyment...

 

very nice!

 

EB/B is one of the BEST combos in my opinion, and surprisingly not that common in my experience. Looks outstanding! I think some black racing stripes with the white outline around them really complete the look for that car. I say give it a shot!

And congrats!

-mike

 

Congrats on your MINI. I like the setting of the where you put the MINI in the pictures... you could do some really cool shots there... Thanks for sharing.

 

Thanks for the kind words!

Here are a couple more pics I took. For any of you familiar with the Pittsburgh area, these were taken at The Waterfront in Homestead.

 

Welcome to the Black Roof MCS club. Nice car. Jimbo

 

I nearly bought an R32 before deciding to order an '05 MCS. The MCS like you said has a bigger grin factor. Buying a non-VW brand car after owning many VW's over 16 years was tough...but I'm looking forward to the rewards of driving my MCS soon. Check my sig.

 

Vedubauman,

I use to have 2 GTI 97 and 93. I did even put money down for R32, but I feel like I had enough VW in my life..and MINI got quite unique design over GOLF GTI (not to mention the new one the design is going down hill )

Cheers!

 

Hello..... and would you ellaborate more on the above....and the differences you have experienced?

Many thanks!

 

In general, the R32 feels like more of a true performance car.
Better acceleration, more low-end pull, and better handling in extreme situations. Here's my best explanation of the handling comment...

I have some wonderful twisty roads near my home that allow me to really put a car through its paces. I have repeatedly attacked these roads with my R32 and just took my Mini for its first run yesterday. Through some of the less severe turns, the Mini felt tighter and flatter. But in the really sharp turns, the R32 has a clear edge. It seems to dig into the turns as speed increases, whereas the Mini feels the same all the way through the turn and then suddenly loses traction (my observation, anyway).

In one turn in particular, I felt the Mini lose traction, the traction control light came on briefly, and had I maintained the current rate of speed, I would have likely lost control of the car. I have been able to push the R32 through that same turn at full throttle and the car simply won't let go. In fact, I can only think of one time in the 11 months of ownership that I ever took the R32 to its handling limit. I wasn't disappointed, but was surprised that I found that limit in the Mini in the first 48 hours of ownership.

Keep in mind that both cars are equipped with stock suspensions, tires, brakes, etc. I'm still thrilled with the Mini, and I have a feeling that I may be able to drive it more effectively once I re-learn how to drive a FWD car. The AWD in the R32 probably spoiled me.

 

Congrats and enjoy your many miles of motoring smiles...

Chow!

Donna

 

I'm not an expert, but its taken me a while to get used to using the MINI's particular combination of handling and acceleration to best advantage. I spent a day at a performance driving school where I had the opportunity to push the MINI with the DSC *turned off*. I learned a lot. Give it a try, and be careful.

 

jussnb, what a nice color combo. Very rare, one doesn't event think much about it, but it looks great!

Are you on run-flats with the MINI? I confess I know nothing of the R32. What type of tires were on it?

 

Turn the DSC off!



...and get rid of the runflats...

 

The R32 was running Z-Rated 225 40/18 Good Year Eagle F1s. I was happier with these tires than I had been with any Dunlops, Yokohamas or Pirellis I've ever used before.

My Mini is still running the performance run-flats. I'll definitely be moving on to something better when I wear them down a bit.

An aside...has anyone upgraded to low-dust brake pads? I have done this mod to many of my cars and have found Hawk, Mintex & EBC to be the most popular. Which pads are preferred by the Mini crowd?

 

--->jussnb - congrats on your MINI! EB/B is quite striking indeed!

Low dust pads: The EBC Green are usually the ticket here, however look into the Ferodo 2500's if you are looking for fade free stock replacement pads, though they only dust a bit less than stock.

Tires: yes ditch the run-flats ASAP! run some 215 or wider sticky max perf tires and the cornering grip will skyrocket.

re #4. Storage?! What're you doing storing things? Ok, the Euro Shelf rocks, you need that for sure.

Cheers,
Ryan

 

Very nice! The EB is an exclusive color only available on the S model, and yours looks fantastic.

Please share your story about how you procured your recent Mini purchase. Ebay? Local used car dealer? Private party?

 

It takes a little while to learn that this lack of storage is one of the real advantages to owning a MINI. You've just got to have the right attitude.

At the store: "Oh, my, I've bought so much stuff, looks like it's going to take me two trips to get this all home!"

At work: "Darn - left my briefcase at home. I gotta run home and get it - I'll be right back."

Vacations: "Sorry kids. You know how the MINI is - you've gotta choose between luggage and passengers. So Aunt Clara is coming to take care of you this weekend while Mom and I drive down to Big Sur. See you Sunday night!"