Going from an '06 cooper to a 2010 clubman (non S)...I LOVE IT

The ride is so much smoother and the shifting is as smooth as a hot knife going through butter! It feels more like driving a regular car, but the sport button rocks--tightens up my steering for the go-kart feel and the torgue is a lot more sensitive. I love the go kart feel of the coopers, but most of my passengers dont; now that problem is solved by using sport button when no one is with me! The load flat floor is awesome and great for the dogs now! I feel like I have more room between me and the dashboard. For the dogs, I like the rear tilting sunroof, but wish I could open that section independently. I also like how I can control things through the onboard computer. And I love the ease of use with the bluetooth adapter--except I wish it was located in a much more practical spot or the adapter cord was longer and there was a mount to rest my iphone on the side center stack to keep it out of the way. I can probably come up with something to solve this without using my cup holder. I love how the roof rails look, but really think the support rails should've come with it. The back seat area really can fit a big and tail adult realistically! Oh, and the heated seats are fantastic! Must have in cold weather. Just wish with the cold package you'd get remote start. And I love how much easier it is for me to get in and out of the car! I'm really happy with my decision to trade my cooper for the clubman.

Now for the three things I dont like:

The biggest would be I dont like how my left side fits against door. I'm by no means a small person. In the cooper I never felt the top of the door frame pushing into me; my elbow fit nicely on the padded section and my arm rested comfortably hanging out the window if I wanted. The design of the door ring in the clubman is too low and narrow for my seating position and the storage space in the door is a little too tight to get things in and out of easily. So because of the low door ring, I feel like I'm squashed against the door and I cannot rest my arm on top without my arm being at such a ridiculous angle. I adjusted the seat lower...not squashed anymore, but now I feel too low for my driving pref. I adjusted the seat higher...now my arm can rest on the top and I'm not nearly as squashed, but I cant use the padded arm rest and my head feels like its going to come out of the sunroof. Cant win on this one. Its going to have to be one of those things that I keep playing with and then adapt myself around...at some point I will get used to it. But for now, it is annoying.

Because of the seating??? I feel like I'm shifting behind me. Not literally behind me, but I feel like my arm is going way far back. I will play with the seating adjustments again today to see if I can fix this. Even my passenger commented on how my arm is now hitting them when I shift.

Now the H/K radio. Worth $500? I guess that is a matter of opinion. Yes, it sounds soooooo much better than the standard stock radio. It really should've come with a real time EQ. Our only option to tweak it is just like a standard radio: bass, treble, fader, balance. There are 10 speakers. 6 are up front (2 on the windshield pillar area, 2 in the regular space on the door toward the front and the other 2 are right below the other ones on the front of the door). The other 4 speakers are in the back (2 coaxial in the backseat, but sound like they are in boot area which are useless with the seats up...it sounds like having speakers in a trunk. Anyways, the "surround sound" they advertise is only acheived if you tweak the fader about 4-6 toward the rear and in the process you end up losing something in sound quality in my opinion. But 6 speakers blasting me from the front end up the car just doesnt sound right. Also, the bass levels suck (no other word for it). I have to adjust the bass down at least 2-3 levels depending on the song or the bass sounds distorted. And in general, the bass doesnt sound "whole and deep and clear" which is a little disappointing. The treble is set way up. Again, they shouldve put in an EQ to really adjust the tweeters and mid range and balance out the bass. I think for my next mini, I will skip the upcharge and spend my own $ to upgrade the system.

So overall, I love it. Its much more practical for my lifestyle now. I can live with the door ring. Like I said, its just feels different and I will adapt around it.

 

I think any new vehicle will have their ups and downs. I miss my center arm rest and the extra full doors from my previous vehicle, but I am learning how to live without them (yes, I am planning to order the arm rest and install it my self ).

In general, I am with you: I LOVE IT My clubman have enough space for the whole family (wife, 2 young kids and one dog!), so I staying with the clubman's for a long time!

Enjoy you clubman and the sport button!!!

 

Welcome to the Family and congrats!! Post some pics in the clubman thread!

 

Played with the seating this afternoon. Got it to a position that is comfy, but still not exactly where I'd like it. No big deal.

Went shopping tonight and OH BOY all the stuff I crammed in the back! Who knew that little size increase would make such a huge difference! Nice

Next...tint the windows in the back a little and after the winter, get some black wheels. Then I'm all set!

 

This is the first time I've heard of 2 speakers being in the boot area. Where exactly are the locations? For the audio upgrade option, MINI previously always used coaxial speakers at the rear seat location. A coaxial speaker is two speakers assembled into a single unit, and a pair of coaxial speakers is technically 4 separate speakers.

 

Glad you like your new clubman, good luck in resolving the seating problem.

 

I have to agree with the door panel /armrest , my mini s armrest is perfect right where it needs to be ...
In my wifes clubman the top of the door panel/armrest feels way too high ...
can't get the seat adjusted right

 

I agree with your comments about the stereo and the sunroofs, and also how amazingly this thing drives! Another thing about the sunroofs are the mesh black inside covers -- they basically do nothing in direct sun.

As far as the shifting, the problem to me is that to shift into 5th or 6th you have to push the shifter way too far to the right. They should have put reverse on the right side instead of the left, as the balance is off too much to the right the way it is now. I, too, sometimes hit the passenger with my arm -- it's not ergonomic for fast and efficient shifting (for me).

I am also disappointed in the quality control of this car. In only two weeks of ownership I've had a couple of loud rattles that the dealer fixed, the driver's side window doesn't seal completely so hard rain sneaks drops of water in, the seats are not stitched as well they should be for how expensive they are, I wonder why they designed things like the seatbelt buckles rattling against the sides of the car when they're not in use, and some of the ***** feel cheap and flimsy. These kinds of things are inexcusable in a car this expensive (mine was $31k). The "well, it's quirky!" rationalization/excuse is not something anyone should bother with -- this is a fairly expensive car and there should be NO excuses for not making it very high quality in all aspects.

Luckily it's so freaking fun to drive, but this is still not remotely an excuse for making a car shoddily.

 

So far, I'm happy with my 2010 Clubman.

I did err -- I think -- in not ordering the centre (between the seats) storage unit. I used to keep all my mp3 player/GPS unit/phone charger cables, etc. in there in my old car.

And there is a rattle *somewhere* in the back that sounds remarkably like a door not closed when going over bumps. It is NOT a door that isn't closed, or seatback not latched in place. I'll drop by the dealer at some point and get them to check it out.

Love the gas mileage! Still on my first tank, but it's about double the mileage of my old Maxima around town in the snow and slush. I'm still having a hard time working my head around the fact that it will get even better once the snow is gone, it's so good already.

Seats are very good. (There's a thread where someone doesn't like the seats.) I'm impressed with how fast they heat up, and how hot they get. Great for Canadian winters!

No issues with the transmission either. But I have been driving manual transmissions since God invented baseball, so minor details like having to push to the right for 6th are just inconsequential to me. I can see that it could bother someone with ... ah ... less experience with manuals.

Still looking for excuses to get out and drive. I do have a trip coming up soon that will involve about 900km (which will help get me through the break in period!). I'm going to go the long way around to make the trip even longer. Despite the winter driving conditions. <grin>

--
Darryl

 

Heh - well, I've been driving only manuals since I first learned to drive over 20 years ago, and this is the first of the many cars I've driven/owned that feels this way to me, so I assure you it's not an experience thing. It's not the pushing to the right itself (obviously, every single North American manual has you push to the right for 5th and 6th), it's how FAR you have to push to the right in the Mini. It's simply personal preference.

That rattle might be the unused passenger seat belt buckle (or one of the back buckles) hitting the side -- it sounds like the sound you're describing.

The center storage unit is very miniscule, so you aren't missing much, only the armrest part of it.

 

I've had mine for a week, and absolutely love it! I was worried about how stiff the seats would be, but the used '08 that I got has Tuscan Beige non-sport seats, and they are very comfortable (especially after they're warmed up with the seat warmers - Yay!!). Cargo space was superb on my first trip to Costco today. Gas mileage is amazing, and I love being able to monitor current mpg - it's like an ongoing evaluation of my driving.

The one thing that's killing me is the harsh ride. I obviously missed this on my test drive, and didn't realize that the fancy JCW wheels on this car, combined with run-flats, would make for a jolt on every tiny bump in the road. Even driving over a manhole cover gives me a jolt! So I guess in the future I'm gonna have to find some cushier wheels/tires, and will be looking for advice on that. I know I'm in the right place!

 

Corrected the post about the speakers in "the boot". My thoughts got ahead of me and I mistyped my explanation. Corrected now.

You aren't missing much by way of storage in the OEM arm rest. I normally store a can of altoid mints in there--thats about the width with very little to room to spare. Probably get about two cans in long way with a little extra room.

I also test drove one that didnt have run flats, and my old mini never had them on it. I was specific on the fact that I didnt want run flats! Turns out the dealer wont sell the car without them on there during the winter. My car CAME with non run flats and they changed them out! OY! But my wheels are 15's so its not nearly as bad as the bigger ones, but there is definitely a difference in ride. I'm only going to keep them thru the winter and then I'm getting new wheels and tires. I might just stay with 15's even though I dont really care for the look of that size.

So far I like my non sport leatherette seats. They heat up nice and fast. And arent stiff in mine at all.

Tomorrow I'm going on a road trip from NJ to NC and then to Florida. Taking the clubman. So maybe my thoughts on the seats will change.

 

I installed non runflats and love the more supple ride. There are many posts here where people that have switched to non runflats report a much more supple ride. I went with Michelin's Pilot Sport A/S Sport PLUS. They have great grip wet or dry and crisp turn in with a very quiet ride. Not cheap at $180 each but the run flats cost almost $300 and these Michelins have a 45k mile treadlife warranty. Happy Motoring and congrats on you new MINI.

 

I agree. Not a problem when solo, but you have to shove your passenger a bit to get to 5-6. I'd prefer if 1-2were a bit more leftward, it's easy for the driver to adjust a little.

 

I love my clubman... that said I noticed my car doesn't like the cold that much and if you put something on the passenger's seat the seat belt light and sound activates. But I've also found it drives better in the snow than my Honda Accord.

 

gawannamini - thanks for the input on the tires. I noticed you have 17" wheels on your car, which gives me hope that maybe I won't have to replace my wheels AND tires to get a smoother ride. Mine are 18", I think. Do you think those need to be ditched, or would just new tires help?

 

If yours are 18" then you must have very thin profile tires, which will absolutely contribute to a harsher ride. In my opinion new tires alone will not help nearly as much as also going down a size in rims, so that the slightly higher profile will cushion the ride a bit more.

 

I'd talk to someone at Tire Rack. They may be able to give you some guidance on how much improvement non run flats will provide and how much better a smaller rim would make it. Both low profile tires and runflats increase side wall stiffness which produce a more jarring ride.

 

Thanks for that! Maybe this tire/wheel things explains why the previous owners traded in my MINI for a Toyota after 9000 miles. Hopefully the solution won't be horribly expensive...

I imagine you other new owners are experiencing the same kind of parking lot anxiety I am, now that the holidays are over and the Clubbie is mingling with my co-workers' cars Do the rest of you catch yourself examining the doors every time you return to the car?

 

.

 

10 months in to my R55 MCC.
A few items of concern...
1. Rear defrost didn't work from factory (dealer fixed)
2. Passengers door sill trim installed incorectly from factory (dealer fixed)
3. AC leaking at 8,000 miles (fixed after 3 visits)
4. Passenger window control needed to be reset at 10,000 miles (would not stay up)
5. Thermostat replaced at 18,000 miles (dealer fixed)

I hope my list ends other than scheduled service...we'll see.

Even after all that, overall I'm impressed with the car...mpg, power from the non-turbo, handeling even for the non-sport suspension (would opt for it next time though), room for car-pooling (450lb pasenger), room for 3 on vacation. I like the all-season tires during the winter, plenty of grip.

 

I second that idea. I used to have the remote start in my car. Now I don't have it with my Cluby... Sometime it's not the best feeling to sit in the car waiting for the car to get warm in the Winter time~