I'm new to Mini's. I don't take posession of mine until probably early April, and only drove at the dealers for a little while. But I've read here extensively, and elsewhere, so, I know there are some things I'll never experience, some of which I'll miss:

1. Burble

2. Supercharger whine

3. My headlights pointing to the stars at night while I look into the engine compartment.

Those are my top 3. Yours?

 

EENY do you work for Apple, by chance?

 

As a '03 Cooper owner (no SC) I won't even miss #1 and #2. #3 isn't that big of a deal really. You may not experience dash rattles either...we'll see.

 

I'm only going to miss the burble. When I test drove an R53, before ordering an R56, I had the drivers window down and I really, really liked the noise coming from the exhaust. I think its important that a sports car sound like one. My first car, a '66 MGB, emitted a lovely note so distinctive that I can still spot it to this day when one is near.

That's my sole complaint about the R56 ...I wish it made some noise. So, I imagine I'll be looking into some sort of after-market exhaust at some point. Unless the burble is programmable and they let owners change it back.

The fact that the burble is gone is a testament to how broad the appeal of the MINI is. I read that it was rampant complaints about the burble from the US that did away with it ...and you know it wasn't anyone around here that wanted it to go away! It was all those folks that bought it because it was so darned cute.

dean.

 

Ill miss

#1 Burble

#2 Whine in engine

#3 More full looking dash (Seems kinda empty in R56)

 

As Dave said in another thread.. there are 200,000 MINI owners inthe US. Only 32,000 of them are on NAM. I've be willing to bet most of the so called "hardcore enthusiasts" are here. Most of the other people wanted a fun possibly cute car. The burble wasn't appreciated by the masses. Europe still has the burble so it's a software thing. Evidently MINI had too many complaints by the masses in the US and decided to program it out of the R56 for us.

 

Jmelrose - No, I live in Cupertino but have no connection with Apple.

All - Just so I'm clear, I totally prefer the R65 over prior years, while I also totally admire those other models. But I do think that photo on the miniusa ol site of the red Mini with the headlights pointed skyward is sweet.

Love 'em all, and they're all cute

 

They have an R65 now ?!?!

Holy crap! I am so behind the times !!!!



dean.

 

As it's acheived by running the engine a little rich, I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't also related to MPG and emissions requirements in the US.

 

No, it had to do with whiners and complainers here in the US.

I saw today in youtube a video clip of the burbly exhaust of a new Euro spec R56 MCS. That sounded great. I suspect this feature will be back in '08

 

It will be - but not on the Clubman *poke*

 

Maybe maybe not. Still the R55 will look better than the R56. At least all that fat in the new design will serve a purpose in the Clubman, ha!

 

You have my deepest sympathies....But you'll get to discover new things!

 

As a teenager I maintained the burble on my '41 Mercury V8 by adjusting the carburator to run somewhat rich. I suspect MINI stole the idea from me.

 

LOL, yes, and looking forward to it!

 

Hey! Popping our MINIs' bonnets, and shining their headlights into the night skies in the Smokies, is a very beloved tradition for the annual Midnight on the Dragon Run!

 

I don't know about the supercharger whine, the first time I heard it (in a youtube video) I didn't care much for it. I can understand the appeal though. I will miss the burble, I liked that a lot from the audio and video samples I've heard. BMW may not bring it back, but hopefully they may let it be a selectable option. I don't think I'ld miss the headlamp thing but having a group of MINIs point them to the sky sounds awsome. I'll also miss the vents by the wipers and the lovely curves of the bonnet. That said, I prefer the front grill of the R56 and I do like the new bonnet's more aggressive look (just my opinion for what it's worth).

 

I'll seriously miss the burble. The first time I heard this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLAJDxegxFg, I was giddy thinking about my MINI sounding like that. I am hopeful that US spec MINIs can be flashed to get the burble back on request.

Compare the exhaust note in that video with what is in the last 30 seconds of this video review from Roadfly to hear what is missing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYv32FB6MXA

 

The burble probably doesn't effect mpg much, but it most certainly does effect emissions. A quick trip to the epa fuel economy site will show that the 06 and MC and MCS have an air pollution score of 2 out of 10, one of the worst. (NOx, CO, unburned HCs etc.) Having after burning (a bunch of micro explosions in your exhaust stream from a rich mixture) won't help emissions. The 07 supposedley has a much improved air pollution score, although not currently posted on the EPA site. Engine press release makes reference to a ULEV-II rating, which if true is remarkable.

 

The 'average American' (not us on NAM, we're cool ) won't be happy till you can't tell a MINI from a PT Cruiser / Kia / Honda / Toyota. I hope the missing burble is the only concession they make to dumbing down the design for the mass market.