I went over to the NAIAS in Detroit Saturday, and here are a few pics from the MINI area.





















And this chick was spinning vinyl - very cool.





I also have a few shots of the sidewalk cabrio in this thread:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=88867

 

Is it just me, or does that speedo look a little bit like an old school parking meter?

 

It kind of does, Mr. N! I thought there was something familiar-looking about it!

 

It made me think of the standard issue public school wall clock, that seemed to never reach 3pm.

 

Wow, that gap between the hood and fender flare is HUGE.

 

is that a gap or is that a decal outline? yikes!
(between fender arch and bonnet).

 

Ugh, those new S accents are so stupid and ugly.

 

It looks like a gap. I thought for a minute that the hood was a forward opening design, and that the hood was un-latched - it appears though that the hood was closed. I wonder if the trim wasn't properly installed, as that is quite a hole. The same gap appears on the yellow R56 as well. Here are a few closer shots -

 

omg...that is probably the uglist parting line ive seen on a car yet.
(not that im putting down the R56...just in general).

i guess we will need to put a gloss black decorative arch outline behind
the bonnet along the arch to make it look more 'balanced.'

 

btw, thanks for the pict and close up, V70R.

 

Did I miss something or did they hide the shorten tire life (DSC) button from me.

 

Anytime!

 

I asked the same question in an earlier thread. Apparently they moved it to a button near the stick.

 

I looked for it too - I didn't see a DSC button. The reps didn't seem to know much - they were also quite busy answering questions from an insane number of people. I'll try to avoid that next year by going on a weekday.

The Chicago show is coming up next month - I'm sure they'll have a cool display there as well.

 

That would seem to make sense - it's also a place I didn't look.

 

i guess if you get a black one, that gap will appear to be hidden...
hummm...

now you guys see my fixation on that gap.

 

How is one supposed to upgrade the stereo system in an r56 now without the standard single din stereo hole. The interior looks cheaper and toylike. The r53's interior looked more thought out and compact.

 

I don't get it, why would they leave such a gap? Didn't any of the designers actually LOOK at the car? Reminds me of the kind of poor fit and finish you saw all the time in the 70s. On the other hand, I think it only looks THAT bad because of the contrast with the NON-gap around the rest of the wheel arch trim. Still, you'd think they would build one and then LOOK at it before locking in the design, rather than wait for the first one to come off the full production line and then say "oops, didn't expect that.....oh well, too late to change it now."

 

Speaking of gaps, notice the hood (sorry, bonnet) stripes on the silver one? I see they're continuing the tradition of leaving a gap between the stripes and the grill.....

By the way, V70R, nice pics, thanks!

 

Nice pics.. The gap is kinda blah I admit.. But it doestn seem so bad from a distance..

Also depends on the cars colors.. Something with Yellow being so bright and even with black top and mirrors seems to make it stand out more.. Doubtful on Black/Red/Blue though..

The interior looks fine to me.. but that is my opinion.. I found the 02-06 models having way too plain in terms of interior controls. These look a bit unique.

I really wish the speedo had MPH and KMH because the gaps seem to large and the speedo looks somewhat empty for being so large.

Are AUX inputs standard wtih 07's now? (Just noticed the AUX on the radio display)

Can't wait for mine :O

 

I noticed that to and don't care for it at all. I bet it's one of the things Mini will address in the update to the R56 (08+)

 

I actually like everything! EXCEPT:
- The new Aero bumpers - BLEH!!!!
- The new climate control and toggle panel - looks REAL plastic and cheap, cheap, cheap.
- The "gap"
- The HUGE S accent

But the rest I actually like! I will still wait until 2008 or 2009 to get another if I decide to trade Dobby though. Although, I really can't see parting with my Indi blue baby!

 

V70R...Thanks for the pictures - they're great!

Chuck

 

Someone on the Sunshine MINI forum posted this image from MINI2 about the location of the DSC button -



I didn't see the buttons, but I wasn't looking there. I'd much rather have the DSC button on the toggle bar than have to reach around the front of the shifter to get to it - especially when I want to use the DSC button, I'm usually in a hurry to do so

The climate controls looked a bit on the cheap side - they reminded me a bit of the Chevy Aveo for some reason, and the huge area of plastic to the left and right of the volume control doesn't help counter that impression - so maybe the DSC switch could easily be located to the left of the volume ****. The gear sticker seemed to be removable. The climate switches didn't feel cheap though - they had a nice weighty feel, so maybe they would grow on me a bit.

The speedo was insanely large. It didn't seem any more readable than the one in my R52 though, as the numbers are pretty small. I was expecting a much larger feeling interior for some reason as well - especially in comparison to my R52 with the top up. It didn't feel that much bigger - the extra width was noticeable, but overall it didn't seem larger on the inside. I guess I was expecting a Tartus or something

 

Is it just me, or does that "sport" button (the one which temporarily boosts your power) seem like it would be kind of hard to hit if you were looking for a quick boost in speed on a windy road?

Also, the radio isn't swapable to an aftermarket head unit because half of it is on the console, while the rest of it (the screen) is inside the spedo. Terrible design with little thought to the aftermarket scene, if you ask me....