Hello there! Jay Rephan from Nashville here. I'm getting ready to purchase my new dream car... My dream car used to be a 67 Porsche 356, but as I got closer to my purchase and looked at maintenance & insurance costs, as well as the performance comparisons... It looks to be that my long term dream car has switched... I'm almost ready to order.

Please indulge me with a few questions that I have yet to gleen the answers to - by lurking.

#1) I'm probably going to order a fully loaded JCW Cabrio and have the burning question of... has anybody ordered a factory upgrade or add-on, that they now consider to be a waste of money?

#2) Has anyone heard from any definitive source of the value of the Digital Power-Amp/Speaker upgrade? This is a $1900 upgrade, and I *love* a great stereo but I can't find anyone who's ordered one.

#3) Is the Short-Throw Shifter Modification worthwhile... Seems like it would be fun, for not much money.

Thanks everyone! Love to hear your stories... I look forward to joining the ranks soon!

JB

 

I've got the H/K in the cabrio and I can hear plenty well with the top down at 80 mph (I'm not officially going to admit to anything else!) with or without the wind screen. You gotta figure, you might get some nuances with the digital upgrade, but what are you going to lose with wind noise?

Good luck!

 

She is from out East somewhere (DC area I think). I met her at the dragon when she demonstrated the digital to Gabe from Motoringfile. She may have some insight for you.

Jim

 

I would not order the NAV system and the backup parking alert.

Keep in mind that 4 yrs ago, the NAV was CD based. Then came DVD then came....Garmin. I would do that now.

As for backup, it was just not needed, then or now. My mistake.

Save the $$, put the money into a pulley, intake, nice wheels (buy cheap MINI ones, sell em) and so on.....

JPS

 

Of course if you get a cabrio you get the backup parking alert automatically because rear visibility is not the best.

 

So, You're saying any Garmin Aftermarket Nav is waaay better than the stock in-dash MINI Nav System?

Do you NAV System owners agree?

 

We've got the HK in our MCS and love it. I'm not sure how much road noise you'd have with the cabrio, but I'd think you wouldn't fully get the benefit of the upgraded sound system. Possibly a nice chunk of wasted cash. You might be better off taking that money and going with an aftermarket stereo. As with anything Mini, it's MUCH cheaper to get it up front than have it added later. If you're not already dealing with John Monk, you ought to give shout at Mini of Nashville. I don't think he got the digital sound system on his, but might have some insight on the setup.

15,000+ and almost 1 year later and still get a smile every time I drive it!

And definately watch out for the MOD bug. Once you get it there is no cure.

Also you should get hooked up with the MiniCC club in Nashville. Monk is one of the ring leaders. There is a cookout at Mini of Nashville @ 6:00 this Saturday. You should drop by. You can meet the crew and get some great MOD ideas. Especially after you see Monk's Beast!

 

I use the portable Garmin GPSmap 60CS that we bought years ago in my baby Fayt. My husband's Minion has the Nav system, and it's better than mine in that it's easier to navigate and input data into. HOWEVER. The Garmin Nuvi... Well, let's just say I might have another early birthday present. I like how my friends with this little baby can mount her on thier chrono package and they get full visibility with everything. If I had ordered Fayt, that's the way I would have gone.

 

1. Factory Nav, IMHO, is a total waste of money. While others like the integrated work, something like a Nuvi 360 will give you many more feature including integrated Bluetooth and traffic jams. Far more functional.
2. If you dont live near snow, why get the cold package?
3. Remember, all those packages will get you nothing on resale. Take a look at KBB. Only leather seats, sport package, expensive wheels (and nav) will get you something back. Fully loaded cars never get back anywhere near their original value
4. There are a few ppl here who have that expensive stereo, do a search. $2K is a stiff price
5. Regret any option? IMHO cruise is a waste unless you spend a long time on Interstates. Expensive stereo a total waste. Much of the bling stuff a waste (e.g., door sills). In fact, STOCK comes pretty loaded as is. The better question is what do you really need or cannot live without? My opinion?
   • Xenons

 

jbrephan,

Your profile doesn't say where you are, but even in the warm central valley of California, the cold package is nice in a cabrio. It just extends the top down season, like having a heated swimming pool.

 

Even if you don't get the cabrio, the heated seats are nice. Some times I use mine when it's 50 out, it just does so much to warm you up quickly and make you feel comfortable. Also as stated above it allows you to enjoy top down (or sunroof open) situations more than you might otherwise. It's a vey inexpensive add on.

 

When we were ordering our Mini, we asked and asked for other peoples experience with the Digital Sound Module. I only had one person tell me that they heard one and it sounded really good. But I did hear from a bunch of people that said the H/K system was pretty darn good. I guess we'll find out in about a month. (we can't wait!)

 

The cold package is worth every penny just for the heated seats. Maybe the heated mirrors and jets are something special, but I can't tell. What I can tell is when it's the least bit chilly, and I get in a cold car, I can have a warm *** in about 60 seconds without waiting for the entire car to heat up. If I can help it, I'll never own another vehicle without heated (and hopefully cooled) seats.

Also I have a hardtop and the backup sensors have come in handy several times. Not due to a blind spot, but if I'm backing up in a tight area, I can use the beeps to tell how much farther back I can go. Another feature I would hope to have on any vehicle I buy from now on.

 

Exactly, but it would definately make your car easier to sell than one that doesent and maybe easier getting a "premium" price on resale.

2 things we wished we had gotten were the cold weather package and Xenons.

 

The only option that it would really bother me not to have is cruise control. It helps me not get a ticket, get better gas mileage, rest my leg and move it around on long trips....and last but not least, I can't believe it's not standard equipment.

 

Xenon lights...

I've had them on three cars now. They are undeniably useful on dark stretches of highways, back roads, etc. Ironically, most of my driving occurs in urban areas where Xenons make little difference because of the plentiful ambient light.

Regrets? No.

How about the optional rear fog light?

Pretty wasteful use of $100 option where I live, since I see fog only a couple times a year. But, again, there are reasons we can justify upcharges for options that get little or no use. In my case, it was a minor annoyance to look down in my '03 MCS to see a missing toggle switch... granted, that's pretty neurotic. When ordering my '06, I decided to burn through another hundred bucks and enjoy having a full family of 6 toggles. goofy, but hey!

 

I decided against the NAV after 2 MINI MAs (sales folks) told me it was a waste of money. It doesn't get particularly good ratings, and $1700 is a steep price to pay for the benefit of having it integrated into the dash. For 1/4 to 1/3 the price, you could get a great TomTom or Garmin model after having thoroughly researched and picked the one that has exactly what you want.

 

GET the cruise. It is well worth it for the little amoutn of extra $$.

I too will vote for the H/K. It sounds MUCH better than the stock... but I have not heard the new stereo system.

The NAV is a mess..... from what I have heard and seen. Go Garmin! (and its a TON less... and you get the speedo! YAY!)

AND

The xenons. Make sure to get them... they are the difference between night and day.

Happy waiting!

 

For the record, I have a great PPC-Phone-combo with Bluetooth & I-Guidance Nav software which works wonderfully. However I also drive a Scion XB with built-in NAV and the thing I love about it is that the voice-guided NAV turn-by-turn instructions mute the stereo and give the instruction and then unmute.

I have found that I really love this in a GPS NAV system. And as far as I know, none of the after-market units that move from car-to-car have this feature, do they?

 

Thanks... and BTW, I'm definately getting a set of those "Eye's"

 

From Nashville, TN - the winters do get very cold here... 18-32 Farenheit regularly. Thinking of moving next year to Olympia, Washington, Cold there too.

 

A hundred bucks to functionally fill a gap in the toggle switches!!!! You gotta be kidd'n!

I LOVE that reason!... I have a friend who has his friends (and any other victim he can coerce to crawl under his car) under the guise of checking his clutch bracketry when he steps on the pedal... just so he can suddenly honk his really loud horn and scare the crap out of them and maybe get them to bump their head on the undercarriage somewhere... !

Whatever gives you pleasure (within reason) right?

JB Rephan

 

I have the stock stereo... but I think it sounds great. I'm sure the HK is better.... but I'm pretty happy with the stock! Plus I have the CD changer, so in lieu of the iPod connector, it's pretty nice.

I wish I had xenons! My headlights are both exquisitely aimed 10 feet in front of the car. Worthless. I feel like I am in a bit of danger, actually, because they are so ineffective. I think I am going to try to adjust them before I hit something.

I love the cold weather package! On brisk days, the heated seats are really nice! My last car had heated mirrors and wiper fluid nozzles. The mirrors were nice to have, the nozzles, well, they didn't seem to work too well, although the car was ancient. And the premium package! I love a car that offers me more luxury than I have in my home! Ha! It's all really great. And the sunroof. It's always fun to look in the rearview mirror and see my face bathed in the light coming through the roof, and feeling like, wow, I have this huge sunroof! Its enormous! Driving at night, with all the windows open, feels amazing! Although, you will have a cabrio, so it will be 10x as great for you! That's something I really envy! Although I enjoy the lines of the hardtop a lot more than the cabrio with its roof up. I think the sunroof is a fair compromise.

Honestly, I think every option is worth the money. I think you will enjoy the feeling of having a more complete car more than you will enjoy the feeling of having saved a couple hundred dollars, you know? In the end, that's what really counts, especially with a car this special. I can tell you right now you will feel better just by having a full set of toggles!

 

Now _that's_ useful! Though I don't tend to use the radio if I need Nav, I still think this is VERY cool. Never heard of that before--the MINI OEM Nav doesn't adjust the radio volume, does it?

 

IMHO...

I have the HK and it sounds plenty good (even the stock one sounded ok in my first MC!...), especially in light of the road noise! I like my music too but this is a sports car and is not the quietest environment!

As far as Nav goes...I would not go with the internal...especially at those prices (all of them). A friend has a 1999 porsche. he was trying to get new maps for it and was told they had changed the system! No more new maps...The street he lives on is not even on it!

Picked up a Garmin Nuvi 350 for $630 delivered on Fleabay (new and the newest ver maps etc). It not only will say turn right in 100 yards...but also tells you the street name verbally (text to speech)! Also has an MP3 player and SD expansion slot built in. Best of all it goes from my Mini to second car and is soooo easy to use. Sensitivity....while I was setting it up in my computer room (about 5 min)...all the sat aquisition bars lit up! (3 ft from the nearest window! It also has the newest SIRFIII chip in it (accurate to about 3 meters)...retail is $800! Now the 360 is out...has bluetooth so you can use your cell with it too!

BTW...all US and Canadian maps are built in to its internal memory!

Check at the Garmin site.

By the way...I had an 81 911 SC.....The Mini is more fun!