I am thinking of going in for a Mini Cooper S Convertible. The one place I went to (Prestige Mini in Mahwah, NJ) said that if I ordered now I could expect to get it in July or August. is this the standard waiting time these days?

Also, what are the expected prices? Are dealerships cranking up prices over MSRP or are they generally going with MSRP? or... is there a chance of paying below list?

 

Wow! That sounds pretty good! Back in MY day, we had to wait 5-7 MONTHS for our cars! Uphill BOTH WAYS! Good luck, and congrats in advance! Remember, Princeton isn't too far, and neither is Main Line MINI in Philly, and Pittsburg MINI is advertising free shipping nationwide, at MSRP.

Have fun! It'll be worth the wait!

 

Here's one place that has always sold at MSRP:



Not 100% sure about wait times, but I imagine it is around 10-12 weeks.

 

verruckt beat me to it!

 

lol... wow! i didn't expect an answer so quickly.

thanks for the quick replies.... stinks that i'll have to wait that long, though i guess it'll give me time to sell my WRX wagon.


EDIT: oh, quick note. i've been to both Prestige and the Mini dealership in Morristown, NJ. i didn't really ask their lead times.

anyway, i have no issues with driving to get my car. i live in northern NJ and drove to flemington to get my '03 Subie because the guy was easy to deal with and only charged $500 over invoice.

 

I ordered mine here in Southern California 2 weekends ago and my MA said 10-12 weeks, which puts me at a late May / Early June delivery to the left coast.

 

I was down at Classic in Mentor, Ohio today and they have several convertables in stock.

Paul B

 

actually, i think Prestige actually had some in stock, but i don't think they had what i'm looking for. i may check again.

 

I forgot to ask, but is it just accepted that you'll pay MSRP on these cars right now or is a deal out there to be found if you look hard enough?

 

MSRP and wait times depend on the dealership. And yes - most of us all paid MSRP. Those who paid above MSRP chose not to wait and generally bought off the lot at a dealership where they have a mark up. It will cost you nothing my friend, to spend some time calling around to dealerships to ask these very questions. Let us know what happens....:smile:

Donna
02' CR/W MCS (gone to MINI heaven)
05' Cool Blue MCSC

 

Let me know if you find below MSRP. I'm curious I called a few dealers and all but one was charging a markup. If you're lucky you'll find one in stock at a dealer near you or find a dealer that will ship to you for a decent price. If you can't find one I think you're looking at a few months before delivery. We were lucky enough to find something that we liked in stock, even though it wasn't exactly what we were looking for (didn't really need navi and I wanted LSD) we also paid MSRP which the dealer wouldn't budge on price and even let us call around just to find out all the other dealers had a markup!

 

I ordered my MCS on Tuesday, and it's supposed to arrive sometime late April/early May. I ordered from Baron Mini in Kansas City. I'm paying MSRP...nothing more.

 

Dreyer-Reinbold in Indianapolis has a lot teaming with convertibles! You could have yours this weekend! Check them out, they're a NAM sponsor! (Ask for Carissa! )

 

I ordered my MCSC from Prestige in mid-November and they told me to expect delivery in April. My car arrived in early February (so a 12 week total wait). I think Prestige gives you the "worst (longest) case scenerio", so you may get your convertible much earlier than they say.

 

I was told that this was due to the Cleveland Auto Show. They received 11 units to put representation at the show. It generated an order from me for one so I'm glad they were there. I almost bought the Hot Orange demo car, but the options just weren't quite right.

 

Here in VA there are a couple of converts on lot sometimes. Not sure if I've seen a S just 'sitting on the lot'.

I ordered mine on January 8th. Got it last Friday, March 18th. A day under 10 weeks I think.

They sell at MSRP. I think I've heard they tend to require a couple dealer add ons like floor mats and wheel locks. But I added a full Aero kit so they were happy with the dealer installed options list on mine.

Oh, had it a few days now and... WOW!

 

Desert MINI here in Vegas has a bunch of convertibles on the lot, about 1/3 are S's. Email Donovan at donresh AT gmail dot com if you want to know more. He just started working there last week.
This could be a perfect excuse for a trip to Las Vegas, and get your break-in over and done with.

 

There should not be any wait for the convertibles. The demand for them is not as high as the hardtops.

 

CooperBeagle's right! We do have a few Convertible IN STOCK! You can see them on our website (www.dreyerreinboldmini.com).

Thanks CooperBeagle !

 

So have they stopped charging above MSRP?

 

Apparently, the DEALERSHIP has stopped, but some of the salesmen haven't. Donovan told me that if a salesman can get anything over MSRP, he keeps 25% of it. He also told me he is not subscibing to this practice, and is only selling MINIs at MSRP.

 

However, you should consider the timing of their release. As spring/summer comes to the northern states, I think demand will begin to increase (and from what I understand, it already has).

 

MINI of St Louis has several MCS Convertibles on the lot. Also MC convertibles. It looks like you could get one pretty quick if you find one you like.

Lois

 

i spoke to a couple of dealerships and they said they were selling at MSRP. one even said that any dealerships caught selling over MSRP will lose their franchise with Mini. don't know how true that is though.

EDIT: oh, and i also asked him about the windshield issue that seems to get brought up a lot here. he said they had a lot of replacements for a while, but since Mini has gotten stricter with their "ballpoint pen" test they are replacing a lot less under warrantee. (not necessarily having less with the problem, just less replaced under warrantee.)
he said that Mini changed the angle of the windshield slightly on the '05 to help prevent rocks from hitting it straight on, but i have a feeling he was starting his sales BS.

 

Lose their franchise? Not a chance! CA dealers have been gouging since Day 1 and continue to gouge to this day. Although BMW can't legally force independent dealers to sell at a specific price (we all know what the "S" in MSRP stands for, right?) they could certainly apply other pressure to accomplish the same thing. Like reducing allocation. That they have chosen not to should tell you something about what BMW thinks about their customers. At BMW, the dealer is king.