Just put together an order for a DS/w MCS. This car is loaded and wife insisted on the Sat. radio... a $1,000 lifetime option...

The car totals 32k !!!!

Has anyone else gotten this option? I may still have time to kill it... need thoughts?

 

We just installed the Sirius dealer kit, then took it in for programming. In hindsight I wish I'd have gotten the lifetime Sirius to begin with, as we live in rural America with not much choice in radio. Sirius lets me know what's going on in the world, new music, news, etc. The sound is a little flat and is no where near CD quality, but it's good enough for me. (I got the HiFi, and am not hugely impressed with the sound quality anyway, though I do think it's better than the stock stereo.) While I have an Ipod, I don't find that I want to spend a lot of time downloading/changing songs, podcasts, etc, so I'm less likely to use that as a source of music in my car and mostly just use it for working out.

 

i love it but I got it when it was part of a package including Sirius, HD Radio and Hi-Fi for $1500.00. I think it's worth it though especially when you consider that it's integrated into the car and you don't have to have a bunch of wires running all over the place....ghetto.

 

Sirius is great on trips; lots of choices, endless signal.
You can sell it with your car; it follows the VIN --- value.
I wish I could get rid of my HID radio though; local programming is not to my tastes at all. Total waste.

 

So dont get the HID radio... just add the sirius.?

 

That's what I would do. Sat radio has lots of options; the XM merger will add even more.
HD radio will always be commercial driven... ...and my tastes don't follow the HD target demographic (hip-hop, rap, or whatever the heck it is).
Terestrial radio is trying to regain its legs but is having a hard time of it...
MP3 audio is slick but how many times do you really want to listen to the tunes you own? It will eventually get old. Same goes for CD's or other recorded format.
Sat is what we have for now that gives us latitude to stretch our ears.

 

I do a lot of long trips in the car and Sirius is perfect for that. No more trying to find decent stations out in the country (or having no stations at all unless you count the ones with the mad preachers).

 

You could consider an after market solution of a portable xm or sirius unit plugged into the aux port. The lifetime subscription of the unit follows the car. If something happens to it, you've lost it. I prefer xm so I went after market. If I were going sirius, I'd consider lifetime of an after market portable device that follows the unit and not the car. Yea there a a couple of wires to deal with, but they can be hidden fairly well.

 

Just so I am clear on the HD radio... it is in addition to the standard am/fm., so with sirius, I would have sat. radio, hd radio and am/fm terestrial. Correct?

 

I have an after market SIRIUS radio in my MCS that I've had for 2 years now. I couldn't see spending the $1,000, even for a "lifetime" membership. What happens when you sell the car, does the radio and the membership goes with it? My after market one works great and cost a fraction of what the other one did. Now, if MINI had offered one at a reasonable price, I'd have jumped at it. Didn't even need the lifetime membership, I would have been willing to pay the yearly subscription fee...but my $1,000 was spent on other options I wanted, LSD/Viper Stripes/Window Tinting.

 

I have factory installed Sirius in my other car and love it. I wish that car had come with a lifetime subscription as I purchased the car used, I wouldn't have to pay for it now. However, I am planning on buying a portable unit for our van so we can also take into the house or studio as well as on the road. I think I would go with the portable unit rather than the cost for the factory installed unit. A $1000 is quite alot of subscription time - like almost 6 years if used 12 months a year. I've had my MINI garaged for the past 4 months. With the Sirius subscription you can go month to month so not to pay while parked, or ou can transfer it to another vehicle. These are also reasons I would choose a portable NAV rather than factory installed. The portable units are quite reasonable cost wise. Somethings to think about.

 

Probably worth it if you keep the car for a fairly long time.

Definitely worth it if you wife says to get it.

 

If you're getting NAV, definitely get the OEM Sirius... the integration is worth the extra $$, IMO.

I just wish there were are few more preset "slots" for Sirius stations... but it's not that big a deal... navigating the full channel list is pretty easy.

 

No Nav. This thing is costing too much as it is: MSRP, around 32k!!! Now they are all looking even smaller to me this kind of moola.

 

I have an XM Roady2 mounted using a Belkin TuneDoc in the front driver cupholder. It's no match for a factory installed Sirius unit, but it's a solid mount, easy to use, doesn't block any controls (other than the cupholder it's in), and saved me $1,000.00! I can also bring it inside and connect it to my home stereo, another plus for a portable unit.
On sound quality, I agree it's not nearly as good as a CD, but it's much better then any of the dreck on FM, and, with 10 presets, there's always a good song on somewhere!

 

I will probably never buy any so-called "premium" audio system from BMW/MINI or Satellite radio on my future cars. I do not like the sound quality of the so-called premium audio in our cars, plus I am not happy about the content in the Sirius channels. They play the same songs over and over again. I have pretty much memorized all the songs they play on the stations I listen to. I wish I had saved the $1400 I spent on the audio package for something else.

 

When I got the car, there was an "Audio Pack" available that had the HiFi, Sirius, & HD combined for $1500 --- I was replacing the car that BMW was buying back (another story) and grabbed this one since it was available immediately.
The stock radio isn't very good but you can't swap the head unit. The HiFi suits my ears okay (much better audio in the home theater) so I don't feel like upgrading that. It comes with a cd player --- fine; that's all of my recorded music that I want to listen to at one time.
The HD radio is a different am/fm; it exists along side regular am/fm. Some stations have several HD "sidebands" going with a variety of programming. About all I listen to is NPR and a station called DAVEFM-Roots. I blame the Atlanta demographic.
Right now most HD stations are commercial free; that's to get people to buy HD radios. It will certainly change; it has to.
And Sirius is from outer space; it has the greatest variety, functionality, and coverage.
The price tag is heavy but the unit is fully integrated; that obviously doesn't matter to some folks. I can agree with that line of reasoning for financial reasons. If I were younger and strapped for cash I'd have the same point of view.

If you want it all and you want it cheap. Get the regular radio, change the speakers, put in a couple of inline amps to drive them. Add a sub.
Put a GPS on the dash.
Put a Sirius receiver up there too.
And bluetooth.
And radar detector.
Then plex the entire mess through a unit and plug it into the aux jack in the stock radio --- you can program the plexxer to prioritize the input signals in any order you want.

After living with this radio for almost 22,000 miles I have to say that I like it. It's easy to use, once you get used to the buttons. I don't have alot of clutter and nothing to hide when I park the car (except my Nuvi).

It all comes down to what you really want and what you're willing to pay for it.

 

Arnbut - what, no cappuccino maker on the dash?

 

That would go in the boot, lad.


12 Volt Espresso Maker

Have an urban cafe experience right outside your tent on rally, race, or camping outings with this elegant little Bertone-designed maker. All you need is your favorite grind and water, your Mini supplies the power. Plug it in and the coffee dispenses at the correct 180 degree temp. Great for a civilized touch at the ol’ campsite. If you run your battery flat after that third cup, don’t yell at us. Draws 10 amps. Black. 2.5"×3.25"×8"
http://www.aerostich.com/catalog/US/...r-p-16231.html

 

 

Get it... and I beat your sticker by a bit and have no regets.

 

Sirius. I had it dealer installed. My MCS was built before the long promised audio package was available. Borrowed my wife's car and couldn't belive all the commercials on FM. Sirius. Love it!

 

Arnbut,
I'm interested in that prioritizing "plexer", but I didn't know they existed.
Can you give me a link?
Thanks.

 

I only know of units that I've seen on motorcycles --- that's a good way to start looking.
I have a friend that owns an electrical shop; he builds farkles for bikes, racecars/trucks, show cars, etc.
Call and ask for Lewis, the Boy Genius at the Electrical Connection: He put a unit on my friend's bike that plexxes through his GPS, a Zumo 550. Other farkles running at the same time are cel phone, cb radio, & sat radio. I'm pretty sure there's an input for radar or a pd scanner too.
The website with the coffee maker also has lots of neat electronic devices that can translate easily to the Mini as well as other clever items...
Like THIS

 

Thanks.

Here is a possibility: http://www.aerostich.com/catalog/US/...p-1-c-431.html