Is anyone else annoyed by the blue car you purchased thinking it was black? Astro black is definitely not black....except maybe at night...under no lights... In any kind of light it is navy blue. I don't like navy blue cars, and didn't order one. Yet MINI has the nerve to sell the car as black when it's not. I have been tempted to take it back to the dealer and complain, but know it's not worth the effort. Wish astro black was like the old black instead of blue.

/rant

Have a nice day!!!

 

They used to have a flat black '04 to early '06, that was more black. Almost all black paint jobs add blue or red to make it a richer, deepr look. Red is better, apparently MINI uses blue. The metallic sparkles probably don't help reflecting the sky color.

They do have an out since they called it Astro Black,
at night when you look up at a star filled sky, it's not black.

 

Aye, my first choice was a black MCSC. But they no longer offered Jet Black, only Astro Black. And while there is no such thing as an ugly colored MINI in my mind, Astro Black isn't black. Thus, I selected CR.

 

I once had a tannish/bronzish Benz they called desert silver. But, I actually looked at the color beofre I ordered it.

 

I don't dislike Astro Black although it is more of a "Crayola Midnight Blue" than Black...

I mourn the loss of Jet Black as well...

 

If that's the only complaint you have, you're doing great!

 

I don't think it's a minor point, but, obviously, if it matters that much to you, you should find out what you are actually buying before you buy it.

 

I read somewhere that Jet Black is coming back for 2008. It's probably gonne be calles something else but it's gonna be black nonetheless.

Astro black is one color that you should check out in the flesh before ordering it.

 

MINI calls that Sparking Silver

 

Tried. They didn't have any astro blacks in stock at all. Plus, it said black, so I figured it would at least resemble black. Everyone that has seen it who is otherwise unaware thinks it's blue.

My wrx is Java black pearl and while it has a ton of gold fleck, among other colors, it still looks predominently black...no so with the mini.

Other than that, I really like the car. It is a project/company car so it doesn't get driven all that often, but we definitely have fun with it.

 

I was all against getting a dark colored MINI till we actually saw the Astro Black on a MINI in the show room. When she's clean I think she's beautiful. I love the blue hue in the paint but I wouldn't call the the AB a navy blue car.

 

Sparkling silver is tan, too, which I would consider more in the brown family, but who wants to say they ordered a brown Mini?

I think the Astro Black is really nice, especially in person.

 

Mine's astro black and I love it. In some lights it looks black, in some it is midnight blue. It looks bluer in the shadows than in full daylight. People look at it cross-eyed, "Is your car black or blue?" I just tell them, "yes".

 

I have to agree with LynnEl on this one. This "issue" has often been discussed on this forum. As for me, I was interested in another color until I saw one on the lot and the way it looked in the sun. Never thought I'd own a black car in Texas. But hey, it's got a white roof!

 

Well, I have a Sparkling Silver MCSa and I definitely do not say it is brown, nor is it tan. If anything I describe it as more of a champagne color. It does appear to be a slightly different color depending on the lighting (which is one of the reasons I really like the color). The Astro Black behaves in a similiar manner.

Any Mini is a great Mini no matter what color it is or what color you perceive it to be.

LynnEl is right, you should find a way to see the options that you are thinking of ordering before actually ordering them. They may not be exactly what you think they are; for such a large purchase you should make sure it is right for you prior to placing the order. If you don't like an option that you've ordered....the only one you can blame is yourself.

 

I saw the astro black on the lot in the sun and it looked black to me. They had one inside that did not have the metallic and I thought it looked less black than the one with metallic...

 

If the dealership uses frourescent lighting, colors will look off. Since your car will most likely be outside when you are using it, it's always better to look at the color outside before deciding. I had a Mazda once that looked blue under certain light and green under other light. It saved me a parking ticket once!

 

Champagne is a much better description of the color, I just didn't think of the word But it's definitely not "silver" in the traditional sense, hehe.

Agreed, though, MINI does not offer a bad color! As long as they don't roll out the fuscia....

 

I do hope a non-metallic black comes back.

There was an MCS in the marketplace with pictures that really captured well what Astro Black looks like in person (at least IMO, on my monitors).

 

I finally got my car in and I love the color! I saw several AB's in person while I was at the dealership, but there's nothing like having it all the time to check it out from every angle and in different light settings. I love jet black too, but have no complaints about this color!