Folks, I just bought a 2007 Sparkling Silver and white Cooper S. I traded in my 2002 yellow Cooper for it. What a neat car! The new MINI has so many new features it makes my head spin (in a good way) I put over 80 miles on it today just cruising home and around Arlington and Alexandria. I think it might be the first new style MINI in Old Town, since I haven't seen any so far.

The twin turbo engine is a blast, though I've only revved it to 4000 rpm so far since it is breaking in. The new brakes are like Porsche brakes and stop the car on a dime. Everything about this new MINI seems just a little better than the older design, which makes me very pleased. It's also quite a smart little car, you just walk up to it, push a button in the door handle (with the key in your pocket), the car unlocks, hop in, depress the clutch and hit the start button. The MINI takes over from there.

The new sport mode is neat, in sport, the steering seems tighter, and the throttle is more responsive. Take it out of sport and you get a little more fuel economy and a more chilled out experience. Pretty neat feature.

On the comfort side, the new seats are great (I got black cloth) and the stereo (upgraded version) is very nice. Probably not quite as good as doing an aftermarket, but definitely decent. An aux port is standard, so my NUVI works!

So questions... can I use an aftermarket roof rack or do I have to go with the MINI one? What about the wheels? The ones that came with the car are actually neat, but some day I might want different ones. My dealer thinks the older MINI wheels won't fit on the car. If they don't, I have a nice set of silver Panasport wheels with Yokohama AVS tires for sale, cheap... along with a glove box liner, some wiper blades, and the MINI Fini bike rack attachment. Any takers?
Mike

 

Ooooo.....SS/W!! Need some pics of that one!!

 

Nice Mike - lets see some pictures!!!

 

I don't think I ever seen a SS/W before. PICS please!

 

I seriously considered this color combo! Pix please Congrats on the new MINI!

 

That is an awesome color! I saw that color with the Red Leather interior not long ago and had several oooooooohhh and ahhhh's going on. Congrats!

 

Congrats mike! that color combo is nice they had one here @ the dealer that i saw

 

Hey Mike congrats on the new R56 - you echo a lot of what I've thought of the car - I do have to correct - it is a twin scroll turbo (not a twin turbo - that would be a biturbo if it were - and then I'd be scratching my head about this new MINI Cooper S model... )

 

Congrats on your new MINI!

SS is an elegant color and I'm told it makes for a striking combo with white or black roof (especially when seen in the flesh).

Now, show off some, and post some pics!

Give us a look-see so that we can "oooh & ahhhh" too!

Enjoy your MINI and Motor On!

 

Congrats and Happy Motoring!!

 

Congrats Mike on your new motoring machine...

Donna

 

Congrats on the new MINI, Mike! Post up pix! We all want to see that color combo!

 

Did you trade in your 2002? If so what kind of deal?

 

Have you played any music in your Nuvi from aux port?

 

Almost all R53 wheels will fit. Just make sure the lug bolt (14mm vs 12mm) will fit in the lug holes on the Panasports.

 

Congrats on your new baby. I also have not seen an SS/W combo so I do hope you get a chance to post some pics. Enjoy!

 

Congrats--here's to many happy and safe miles!

 

I heard my dealer talk about it being a Twin Scroll Turbo. What exactly is that?

 

Twin scroll Turbo is NOT Twin Turbo (as in 2 turbos)

Twin scroll Turbo is actually 1 turbo with 2 exhaust inlets, configured to speed up spooling or reduce turbo lag. Mazda RX-7 and Evo 8 have twin-scroll turbos.

 

This original thread was from 2007; but anyway...my RX-7 was twin turbo from the factory. It was a third generation, FD if that makes a difference. I don't know much about the older RX-7's.

 

Congrats on the new ride Mike. I'm curious to hear more about your comparative analysis of the new mini vs the old. The color combo sounds awesome, looking forward to your pictures. You are smiling, right?

 

Ahh! Lynch em!