"As for the comments about Crappy Quality, if you don't like your MINI, sell it and go buy something else that you will be happier with. Don't bring your constant degradation of a brand here. The number of happy customers of MINI outweighs the few bad apples that seem to just bash the brand".

Hey, I appreciate the nay sayers! This forum not a fascistic PUBLIC RELATIONS ploy for the mini brand (at least I hope it's not). I want to hear the bad stories and the good. If I wanted to hear only the MINI cheer leading section I would go to MOTORING FILE. This forum is full of car dealers as it is and the nay sayers bring balance and honesty to the conversation as well as legitimate consumer advice. I welcome your opinion and your knowledge but leave "the take it or leave it" attitude at home.

 

Some of us naysayers just have more experience with the Mini brand than others. Besides, how do you expect a brand to improve if actual owners don't point out its deficiencies?

Unfortunately, nothing seems to have improved vis a vis Mini's leather supplier or manufacturing techniques. Since I prefer leather interiors, I was intent on ordering leather for my first Mini in 2004. But the leather quality in the dealer demos was so "Crappy" that I reluctantly decided against it.

On the positive side, Minis have some of the best vinyl upholstery on the planet.

 

Agreed, if someone has a legit complaint, we're more than willing to hear it. When it's just "MINI sucks, buy a VW!" that's another story. But if all we had here was sunshine and roses, no one would know how to fix the issues that befall these cars.

I LOVE the look of the punch leather. However, from experience with a perforated leather handbag (no, I'm not kidding ) I knew it would not hold up well on a car seat. The leatherette held up awesome in my 06 and after 103k looked brand new the day I traded it in, and no one could tell it wasn't real leather if they didn't know.

Sorry the punch leather is not holding up...it's so beautiful.

 

It's one thing to come out to NAM and shed light on the problems you are facing with your MINI and search for a resolution, I am all for this and think this may be one of the best sites for both good and bad issues with ones personal car. But, it is another thing to just BASH the brand in general. That's just not fair.

I am in NO way affiliated with a MINI dealer, parts house, MINI USA or such, I am just a car enthusiest that happens to own a MINI and likes the brand.

We have two Clubmans in the family that have logged over 20,000+ miles and both have yet to be in the shop for a single issue.

I happen to think highly of the brand and highly of the NAM community as quality all around.

 

slimjimtell-

If people are confusing being incredibly frustrated with the badly made quality of my car (and others that I personally know) with ruthless bashing, then sorry. I have made plenty of positive comments about the driving experience itself with my MINI. I have also found so many people (both here and in "real life") with problems like mine, so I know I'm not alone. I understand how some of my posts may seem like I'm just blindly bashing MINI, but I've done a lot of research into these problems and know that they're hardly isolated cases (except for the bizarre A/C grinding that they can't seem to fix). Your car may be fine -- if so, excellent!

The fact is that a lot of the materials are not high/consistent quality in a MINI. Does this mean I hate the entire car? No. Does this mean that some people will have cars without any problems? Yes.

I know that you would feel differently if you had a lot of problems with your MINI...I'm happy that you don't, because it ain't fun!

 

Thank god for this post! I was about to throw myself off a cliff having *just* bought MCCS that came w/ punched black leather! I didn't actually choose the leather, truth is I wanted a Mini so badly that I went to the lot and bought whatever they had--got lucky that it was loaded.

Started reading this thread to get some care tips for the seats...

 

My 2007 mini purchased in feb 2007 has Redwood lounge leather. NO signs of wear. About every 6 months or so, I clean it with leather protectant. I love these seats. Soft comfortable and no back aches.

 

I recently purchased the 2012 mini clubman s with the Satellite Gray Leather Lounge seats and I love them! They are stunning and actually exactly what I was looking for. To me, they look very well made...but I'm not an expert and they seem to be holding up even with two small children.

 

I've never liked leather seats...it seems no matter how well they are cared for they get cracks, wrinkles, and worn spots on the bolsters and near the seat belts. We had a Mercedes years ago with leatherette that still looked great after 15 years. I ordered my 2012 Clubman with the carbon / polar beige leather/cloth...just loved the look, hope I don't regret the decision.

 

Another owner of the Tuscan beige leather seats. My seats still look like new after 11,000 miles of mostly short trips. It seems that the "Gravity Leather" if I remember correctly what they called the Tuscan Beige might be a little less problematic. I think it has been replaced by Polar Beige now.
But no matter what, you need to clean and treat leather if you expect it to last. It is a soft leather, so it probably does need a little more care than some.

 

I have the Gravity Leather: Polar Beige....seems good to me, anyone have experience with it?