The new barn doors probably have less of a center bar, but you have to live with something due to door frames needing to be there for strength and reliability over the life of the vehicle while keeping the 2 door design.
I got used to my 2012 very quickly with the more pronounced center blocking that it has compared to the new body style, so I'm sure I can live with the current Clubman if we get one later this year.

 

Yeah me too. That was probably the hardest thing for me to get used too.

 

When I sat in it, i did not see a really bad blind spot.

 

Has (or can) anyone measure the cargo area. Width/ height/distance to back seat and distance to driver's seat with back seats down?

 

Did not measure but it looks much bigger then the R55.

 

As a former R55 owner I am curious of new owner experiences with the new gen. Why is there no sub forum setup for it yet? Has anyone bought one?

 

Couple people have here on the forums, hopefully they will add an F54 section soon.

 

We test drove one on Saturday when our R53 was getting the airbag sensor recall handled.

Good:

• Proportions are great. The car looks like a longer, wider, slightly taller standard MINI. It doesn't have the oversized front overhang of the 3rd gen hatchbacks, the chopped off rear of the 4 door hatch, or the puffed out look of the Countryman. The one in the showroom was black w/ the black wheels. Very, very sharp.
• Interior materials are better than I've ever seen in a MINI. Everything feels very nice to the touch and a bit upscale. Driving a Countryman immediately afterward really drove this point home.
• The S engine feels strong. It doesn't feel GTI or Focus ST strong, but it feels a hair stronger than our R53.
• Best riding MINI to date. Chassis is very well damped and the long wheelbase really helps out with he seesaw motions that the hatches can get on expansion joint highways.
• Handling is very good. It doesn't have the go-kart feel of the smaller Coopers, but it is planted and responsive. The directions just don't change as quick as some MINI owners would be used to.
• Visibility is excellent. This was another point driven home by the Countryman that I drove afterward. We didn't buy a Countryman in 2012 because neither of us liked the visibility (particularly around the A and B pillar). I wasn't bothered by the barn doors.
• The 40/20/40 split rear seats are great for those of us stuck with a convertible car seat.

Bad

• The one that I drove at the dealership was the burgundy color with the base wheels. The vehicle is not nearly as striking with the small, silver wheels. I don't know if it is my general dislike of the color, but I didn't care for the look overall. How you spec it will drastically impact the presence of the car, IMO.
• Heft. You can feel it. I'm going to have to drive an AWD one when they come out because I'm concerned that the extra weight will be felt even more. I feel like the 3 cylinder would be completely inadequate in this car.
• Rear legroom isn't as much as I expected. I owned a 2007 VW GTI and I felt like it had more legroom than the Clubman. With the cargo floor removed/up, there was plenty of space behind the rear seats. I'd probably leave that panel removed all the time.
• 8AT wasn't terribly impressive. I've read a lot of good things about this transmission, but we'll be going 6MT if we buy. I don't believe the one that I drove had paddle shifters, but it would be something that I'd want if we went 8AT.
• Cost. Good gracious, this thing gets expensive in a hurry. I'm an engineer for Toyota and I can purchase a nicely optioned IS300 F sport for the same money. That is a hard pill to swallow. My wife is pretty set on the Clubman and it is her car, so we'll get what she wants.

 

" Cost. Good gracious, this thing gets expensive in a hurry. " Yes , the new future of MINI is to be more refined and at the cost of being more expensive. They don't want to be the low cost option. Not that they really were, but to some consumer eye they think small = less expensive.

That's what i saw , great interior , materials are even better. Prices are going up.

 

How sure is everyone that the Clubman will be available in AWD? The only source I can find is from the MotoringFile (and other places that reference the MotoringFile). All those rumors say that the All4 should be available in March - May, 2016. With that only being a couple of months away, I'd think that we would have heard something official by now. Has anyone had any confirmation from any conversations with dealers regarding the All4?

 

When I talked to a MINI insider , they said in the near future.

 

I'm fine paying a premium for a small product. A nicely optioned Clubman with AWD might crest $40k. That is a LOT of money when $36k buys a Golf R.

 

We had a new F56 S here and a New Golf R, the interior quality on the MINI was far better and that's what most VW guys said.

 

And the Golf has 100 more hp. I know they are targeted at different markets, but my wife even mentioned how much it felt like my 2007 GTI as far as footprint and road manners.

 

I wish my local dealer had an S on the lot. All they have are two Justa's and one is in the showroom and the other is a loaner. They had an S or two but those had the 8AT which I don't want and they sold them before I could get in for a drive. But still what I really want to know is how does this car handle a seriously twisty road? There are none locally so I'm guessing it may not be until May that I know that answer with any confidence.

 

AWD is overrated. Get snow tires on separate rims.

 

Thanks for the pics trying to figure out if I like the look of the 2016 vs the older model I have.

 

You have a point, but I strongly prefer AWD on a FWD platform (just preference). I don't like FWD handling.

2nd, where I am, I typically have to drive on snow covered roads less than half a dozen times/year, but snow could be on the ground during a 5-6 month period. I don't want to install snow tires and drive on them for 5 months and only use them a couple of times. Granted, if I'm driving on high-performance all seasons, rather than summer tires, I give up performance so it's a compromise no matter what.

And yes, I realize that the biggest compromise of all is the extra weight of the AWD system, but I think the handling gain with AWD outweighs that (pun intended). With AWD, I can drift the car and plant the gas, and it just pulls out of the slide in a very controlled manner

As I said, it's preference. Also, the Clubman will be my utility car. I have a sports car (with MPSS tires) and a sports coupe. The AWD Clubman should be the ideal compliment to my other two cars. My current utility car is a Subaru Outback which is a soft, floaty, pig. I need something that handles better and is much more fun to drive, yet will still have room for "stuff" and will get me to the office on nasty days.

With only one car, the AWD/FWD decision would be tougher (and I haven't driven either yet so who knows...)

 

Better photos coming sometime!

 

Nice collection #twoMINIgarage


More pics in the sun of the new color on that Clubman

 

As soon as we get some sun.

 

Nice! I really like the burgundy.

 

Great, just need sun now

 

I think I'm in love.

http://www.motoringfile.com/2016/01/...-clubman-all4/

 

Yep just announced. Looks like it will be in a 3 cylinder version also.