We had the wife's 09 MCS in for maintenance yesterday and Cincy MINI had just taken delivery of their first Roadster the night before. Knowing I was interested in buying one, they hurried up the "getting ready" part and we were the 1st people to test drive it!

Initial Impressions: Feels/Drives just like the Coupe, visibility is pretty much the same too as the side windows on the Coupe are worthless. But with the top down, of course, that's all gone. Now, for two of the Roadster specific items:

Headroom: MUCH better than the Coupe....the almost claustrophobic feeling I got in the Coupe was gone.

Manual Top: Granted this was the 1st time it was ever put down, but wasn't the easiest thing to do. I could raise/lower it with some effor, the wife couldn't get it down or up (She's 5'2'' and 115lbs). Her arms either didn't reach or she didn't have the strength...depending on which part of the lower/raise process you're doing. :-) Plus, if you have the wind screen in, you'd have to be out of the car to lower/raise it for it will get in the way.

If anyone has any other questions, let me know :-) My order for a JCW Roadster is going in today....being built the 11th week of this year :-)

 

Awesome - thanks for the report!

Although we didn't drive one before ordering ours, we did sit in it and the less-claustrophobic feeling was noticeable. As a matter of fact, that's what allowed us to buy one - we had driven a Coupe and my wife was not happy with the closed-in feeling it gave her.

Don

 

HAHA, my wife was the first to mention it too....and once she mentioned it, that's all I could think about when driving that darn Coupe LOL

 

Thanks for the "heads up". I still haven't driven either car. I wouldn't ever buy a convertable. I'm considering a Coupe, either S or JCW (I'm almost afraid to test drive one, so many people have and the next thing they know they've ordered one and traded their car in.

 

They told you 11th week production if you order today? I have had my JCW Roadster on order for well over a month and I have not received a clear build date from anyone.

 

I cannot get a JCW dealer slot as of yet...and they tell me they don't know when

 

I've seen some journalistic complaints about visibility around the A pillar. Any comments?

 

I don't know, I think they look better than the Coupe for sure, but if it were my money, I'd go after the Miata......

My 2 cents....

 

Their allotment was evidently updated this week. They had a JCW slot that was already out there that they could change with my specs. Supposedly the first JCW Roadsters will be producted on week 11 it said (she showed me the computer screen). After putting down my $1000, they changed the specs to reflect my list.

They told me that too up until Tuesday, when I was on site and they had received their first Roadster....

It's there, but no worse than any other vert I've driven, and way better than the Coupe'. I only had a few minutes with the car but it wasn't a concern for me at all.

LASTLY, does anyone know what the hell the black box on the boot is? It's not the antenna as it's on the rear side, nor did this car have navigation...so what is it? (You can see it below better than in my pic)

 

Well I'll be at Cincinnati MINI this Saturday to check it out. Hopefully the weather will cooperate and not be too nasty. I am about a year away from ordering one. My R56 was totalled in a rollover last June [see pic in my signature] and with my wife being out of work and back in school, I couldn't swing a new car at the time so I bought a Chrysler Crossfire. Mine will be configured like Gabe's on Motoringfiel except wihout the recaros and Nav/MINI connected.

 

My assumption is satellite radio antenna.

Don

 

It is Satellite.

 

Most Car companies that use the trunk "wart" are now painting them body color. Not sure why MINI's not doing this.

 

I wish they would! Guess I'll have to get mine painted :-)

 

That's ok - I plan to replace mine with a giant "Jaws"-style shark fin. Hoping I can get it to go up and down with the rear wing.

Don

 

LMFAO!!! You need to hook up a device to play the Jaws theme song when it goes up too,