Nothing to do at work today, (knock on wood) and I keep on configuring my future MCS on miniusa.com. These are my options, pretty much barebones :

PW/B
LSD
MFSW
Fog lights
Xenon
Anthracite Dash
-------------------
Total: 22,900 , not bad!

I'll probably get the Anthracite headliner too. my question is: if you could only get either Xenon or H/K, which would you get? Mind you if I get the base system I probably won't upgrade it, I'd rather spend the money on performance mods. how do Xenons compare to HID bulbs? thanks.

 

Xenon is a must have in my book. I skipped the H/K stereo.

Haven't done a side by side of MINI Xenon vs the MINI non-Xenon. BUT, I can certainly tell the difference when I drive one of our other cars.

 

I regret not ordering the Xenons. I drive lots of unlit country roads and maybe at 63 I'm getting night-blind. I'm seriously thinking of after-marketing them.

On the other hand, I'm TOTALLY grateful that I opted out of the HK. To my ears, it sounded ok, but not $600 worth. If I tire of the standard system, I'd rather put that $$$ to an upgrade of MY choosing. There's just so much out there way under $1000 that beats the HK.

Finally, depending on my final color choice, I'd also go for the anthacite headliner. I saw a Chili Red/Black Roof,black stripe/ red dash/black and red seats/anthracite headliner that really rocked!!!

Exactly one year ago I was specing out my MCS. ENJOY!!!

 

I'd ask myself two questions:
1) How often will I drive where the xenons would be worth the extra $
2) How much to I rely on the car stereo (lots of traffic or really into the tunes)?

I love the xenons on my car as I run with them on quite a bit and I know that they increase the visibility of my car a great deal. I once had a woman turn into the side of my old Range Rover (huge!) because she "didn't see me"!

I also am a music fan and the H/K is a very nice upgrade, especially with the cheap factory aux in/iPod/ground loop isolater combo, in fact I haven't listened to regular radio since I got my new iPod...

So the perfect solution for me was to get both! I think that the H/K is the more sensible way to go if you have to pick just one. You can always add a second set of lights if you find yourself overdriving the standard headlamps. It seems harder to get such a well rounded system for the comparatively modest price of the H/K...

<flame suit on>

 

I was toying with getting both...but for now, because they're the same price, I'm trying to decide one or the other: safety vs. sound.

 

Easy to upgrade the stereo, but it is hard to upgrade the lights.

 

I have both and I am happy I did. If I had to choose I would go for the H/K, the commute from my house to work is 20 miles, but takes an hour or more. The iPod interface was a great addition also. You can always upgrade to Sylvania silver stars, if you opt for the H/K, they work alright. I would still try to save up for both before you purchase, or if you order it you could use the down payment to help get them both, that is how I got the LSD.

 

I'd say skip the HK and if you have a problem with the stock Head unit, get an aftermarket system. I've heard a lot of stuff on these forums that has not impressed me about the HK.

 

They're both luxuries. Pretty much everyone who has shelled out the cash for either is going to tell you that they're "must haves". Personally, I've never felt like I needed brighter headlights, but I'm a huge music fan, always listening to CDs in the car, so I ponied up for the H/K. It's a must have!

 

i agree with fishey72,
somewhere down the road, once you get all your performance mods on, you're going to want to upgrade your sound system. when that time comes, upgrading won't be as hard or as expensive as if you were to opt for the H/K system now and upgrade to Xenon lamps. Plus, if you do upgrade your sound system, trashing the non-H/K system won't make you feel as bad.

 

For me, Xenons every time. I wouldn't buy a car without them.

Great safety feature (use 'em instead of DRLs to make you more visible to other traffic at all times; not just night-time)

 

I got the Xenons so they see me coming, and skipped the HK because the stock system was not that bad. Plus once you're driving you'll be listening to the car, not the music! And, I am a huge music fan, too, but I listen to music for myself, not the people around me so I don't need to have it totally blaring all the time so I go deaf by the time I'm 30. (in a few years)

Anyway, why not get both? what's $600 financed over a few years? about $10 a month...

-Steve

 

I feel that the price of both options is reasonable especially given my enjoyment of each of them. For $1200 total, I'd go for both.

 

Just to make sure all possible opinions are represented here (and in order to introduce as much confusion as possible), I'll add that I have neither and have been very, very satisfied w/ that decision. These are both upgrades. MINIs come w/ standard headlights...they work fine. MINIs have a pretty nice base audio system (some even like it better than the H/K)...it works fine. You can get neither and be happy. You can get both and be happy. If it came down to choices, I guess I'd go w/ safety and get the Xenons.

Thing is, it's really easy to nudge the price of a MINI up, and up, and up a bit more. Do it if you want, but most of this is stuff you don't really "need"....they're extras. They may be things you want or would use, fine...but the base car is good and so is the standard equipment.

 

I would say go for the Xenons if you had to choose between the xenons or stereo.

I still remember when halogen headlights first came out in North America. They made such a big improvement in car lighting. Do you see many cars with non-halogen headlights anymore? As the price of xenons come down, halogens will probably go away. It's not as easy to retrofit xenons onto cars that came with halogens.

However, stereo headunits and power amps haven't changed a whole lot in the last 20 years. Today, they are much better quality, have a lot more channels, but the mounting of them into your dash and how speakers are installed isn't that big a deal. You could probably find an aftermarket system that sounds better for less money than the H/K system in the future when you do have the money for it.

Hence, I recommend you go for the xenons.

 

For me personally, I'm glad I didn't order the Xenons. Yea they're bright.. but the stock lights are better than any car I've had so far and they're free Honestly, I've driven many cars w/ xenons and have been less than impressed with the illumination for the money (an replacement cost) But that's me.

Plus, I just don't like the look of the Xenons.

As for the HK.. I got it, love it, well worth the money in my opinion... the only luxury option I picked (yes it is a luxury option) didnt' want to hassle w/ aftermarket. Would I do it again? don't know, rather have LSD, but that wasn't an option when I ordered.

 

if you have the pick one only, Xenons. If you can swing both do it.

 

I would skip HK and go for Xenon. Since if I am a person that is serious about car audio system, I would go for aftermarket anytime. And the base head unit and speakers did a really good job, I wasn't disappointed.

 

You won't get much in the way of aftermarket stereo for $600, even if you install it yourself, and the H-K is actually pretty good if you like music instead of boom-boom, and won't make your car a target for stereo-thieves as an aftermarket system would.

I like the H-K - it's certainly good enough for a fairly noisy car like the MINI. I suggest that you save your major music money for your living room, where you can hear the difference.

HID's are considerably better than the factory halogens, even with 2100-lumen bulbs (which you can also install separately in the hi-beams). I too drive quite a bit in the country at night, and the HID's are excellent. If you drive mainly under streetlights at night, the HID's are still pretty good bling.

Bottom line: I vote for both.

 

Xenon for sure!

Once you drove a car with xenon lights, every other "standard" headlights will look like there's 2 candles in the front.

 

Definitely get the anthracite headliner, I found that it really aids in contrast looking out the windshield. It wasn't on my 'must have' list, but I bought off the lot, so I ended up with it. Same with the HK. It's ok, but not as nice a upgrade surprise as the headliner. And since you're already getting fogs, why not get driving lights, too, instead of the xenons? Cheaper and stylish, too.

 

I do plan on getting driving lights! I don't like the OEM ones though, proportionally, they look a little undersized.

 

I love my H/K system and I don't think that I really need the Xenons. Factory do just fine for me. Everyone has a different opinion though..Good luck.

 

Up t oa few months ago, I probably would have chosen the xenons, but now, the H-K would get the nod. We never thought much of the H-K until we got a loaner with the std system and went: "wow..." If you have no desire to replace the stereo, the H-K is pretty good.

One drawback to the xenons is how expensive they are to replace if damaged. Let's just say there was no problem reaching the insurance deductable after the light had an encoutner with a retread.

Definitely get xPel plastic lens covers. It didn't save the light from getting cracked, but it did keep the lens whole enough to stay functional until light could be replaced.

 

I can understand the delema. I have both and both are pretty important to me now. The Xenons are quite a bit different for driving, once you go to them you won't want to drive anything else, big difference in seeing anything reflective and better to be seen regardless of driving conditions for safety. The HK is also pretty important, I was not going to initially get it but ended up with it and it does make a big difference in the quality of sound.

Pinch pennys if you need and get both, you won't regret it.

Good luck.