Hey everyone, I finally decided to pull the trigger this weekend and can hardly wait to get the car. I've been avidly reading the posts here, but could use some advise/opinions.

- Looking at options, I'm definitely going for the sport package, sunroof, and multi-function steering wheel. Also thinking about climate control. Anyone have any other suggestions on what will help retain value in the car if I'm planning to sell it in/trade it in for a new one in approx 3 yrs? I'm mindful of budget.

- Felt a little underpowered when I drove it. Guess I'm just used to my other 260hp car. Appears that aren't too many mods that can make it faster and everyone says go for handling mods. But assuming I wanted to get performance mods, do things like ECU, exhaust, etc make a considerably noticeable difference? I think I'd have a budget of < $1k.

- How is the car in the winter? Assuming I'll be doing light driving, and not in any heavy snow, will it be at least decent with all-seasons? Or are winters necessary?

- Is it worth leasing the car, or better to buy? Seems like they hold their value really well, so may make sense to buy and not be constrained by lease terms.

Thanks everyone in advance... hopefully I'll be a regular on this board soon enough!

 

one option you need to add is the rear fog lights, i think it's only a $100 more, and it will fill in all the toggle switches in the lower set. i forgot this when i ordered mine and now i have a empty spot in my lower set of toggles.

the mods are coming, remember they redesigned the 2007+ MINIs and when with a different motor. so all the engine mods for the 2002-2006 won't work with the 2007+ MINIs. so there will be more mods coming.

i'll let others answer your other questions.

 

BUY! BUY! BUY! BUY!

 

I'll agree with the rear fog lights. I didn't order that option and wish I had. I did get the white lights instead of the egg yolk look as it's known that is stock. That was another $100 option. but worth it.

I upgraded the sterio also. I like my music so that wasn't a second thought what so ever. Although I have to admit that I've had much better stock systems in other cars that put this to shame even with the upgrade.

I'm sure you'll have much better suggestions to come.

 

You ordered this last weekend, or will order next weekend? If you've already ordered you may only have a few days to change your options. Once it is scheduled for production, it is too late to change any factory options.

Did you order an MC, or MCS. If you want more power, get the S. If that isn't enough, consider the Factory JCW MINI.

Reports are that the car is good in winter. I'm in California. The only seasons we have here are the Fire Season and the Mudslide Season.

The most commonly agreed on options that one should get are:
Rear Fog Lights - for looks alone, if you don't have fog. Also useful for alerting tailgaters.

Anthracite Headliner - includes pillars. Goes better with many interior choices.

Personally, I'm very fond of the NAV because it looks better than the large speedo, functions well, displays song titles on mp3 CDs, etc., pauses music when giving voice navigation instructions or for bluetooth phone calls, allows you to set options for the car (a few of which aren't available without the NAV), has a cool graphic for the Park Distance Control...

 

Thanks for the ideas guys. I'm in Canada, and unfortunately, don't have nearly as many options when ordering as in the States. So rear fog lights is not even an option. I'm going for the MC, not the S, which means that I don't even get the option of Anthracite Headliner.

I'm very jealous of the US Mini site. Gives you way more options for customizing, which is part of the fun of the car.

As for the stereo, is the upgrade for the entire thing, including head unit? If not, I'm thinking the ~$700 price for that may buy some better aftermarket upgrades. (Yes, prices in Canada are much higher).

 

I just got my MC, and it came with the sunroof, which I didn’t want, leather, which I didn’t want, and climate control, which I didn’t want (when you’re buying off the lot you need to make compromises). Now I love the sunroof, love the leather (I reallllly love the lumbar support and the fact that the color, Tuscan, matches my yellow lab). But I’m still up in the air about the climate control. I keep fiddling with it, because sometimes I don’t want it to kick on and it makes noise and all. But where I live (Oakland CA) I never get extreme weather, and in my commute it goes from 90 to 60 in 5 minutes and back, so the climate thing goes a little nuts trying to keep up. YMMV.

It’s not underpowered, in the sense that the motor gets it around just fine. Whether you need more muscle depends on your driving. If you’re stoplight racing the ponies WILL be missed. But on flowing twisties the thing is marvelous indeed. Yeah, my motorcycle beats it on both counts, but that’s not the point. It’s a light, efficient, compact daily driver that, as many have said, handles like a big go cart. If you’ve already got a more muscular car, maybe save the $$ and get the MC with a few comfort upgrades.

Good luck,
Rob

 

Thanks the tips guys. Unfortunately, being in Canada, the Mini site doesn't allow for nearly as many customizations as the US market. Kind of angers me, because that's half of the fun of buying the car - getting to customize the colors, accents, etc etc.

I'll be ordering my MC (non-S) over the next couple days. Just finalizing my decision on color and all the options.

As for the stereo, the Hifi option costs $750 here. That sounds crazy high. Does that change the head unit as well, or just everything around it? I'm thinking I can get some nice after-market upgrades for that price.

 

Chiming in a bit late here, but FYI the rear fog light is standard in Canada, so that's one customisation possibility you're not missing out on.

I have just over 1000 km on my PS/B MC. Sport, comfort, convenience and xenon lights.

What colour/options did you end up going with?

 

Yes, very true, the Canadian ones definitely come standard with different options. I unded up ordering powder white with black roof, black bonnet stripes, piano black interior, comfort, convenience and sport packages. Ended up finding one on a lot, so don't have to order it - that made my decision easier! I think the only option that I'd have really wanted to add was the auto climate control, but hopefully I won't miss it too much.

 

Congrats! I also took one off the lot but in the process of looking around, I found out there are some options that are very difficult to get on a dealer-ordered MC. Auto climate control being one; the heated windshield is another. Neither was on my "must" list, however. The sport package also seemed to be pretty rare on an MC, but that one I had to have - the 17" wheels really add to the look, I think.

The stripes look great on the pepper white. Enjoy your new ride!

 

Thanks, I'm sure I will! Yes, I found out pretty quickly that, very surprisingly, the sport package is rare on the MC. More common to see them with xenon's for whatever reason. I guess people aren't willing to spend the cash on the sport package, but considering you get the sport seat and 17's, it was also definitely a must-have for me.