Somebody told me that the R56 is the factory sanctioned counterfeit MINI. In others words...a BMW with a MINI body!

 

Sorry I'm rather new to the Mini familiy since I just ordered an r56 and I'm 21 but I can't find an threads on just the body differences between the two. Hopefully someone will actualy read this since this thread is 5 days old.

 

Oops hit enter, so what are the body differences between the two?

 

The R56 has a higher beltline, smaller greenhouse, wider fender spats, higher, less sculpted hood due to new European pedestrian saftey standards, the headlights are larger and curve out to sides more, they also are no longer mounted in the bonnet. The turn signals are in the headlights, instead of being separate. The tail lights are also larger, and the ride height has increased, and the car is a couple inches longer. Also the hood scoop on the turbo models is not functional like the hood scoop on the older supercharged models.

 

True...definitely not the same as the supercharged model, but I have heard the newer R56 scoops do, in fact, function to provide some much need engine cooling.

 

Thanks, hopefully that cleared it up for others too, it's probably just me but when I google the two cars i really don't see any large difference except for the overall lower front end. Are there any pictures like the profile pictures in the last post to compare them?

 

I will make this as simple as it can get. The R53 is made for men where as the R56 is geared toward more the women and picky men drivers. Being it has a better ride comfort with cuter interior and sorts.

 

The R56 scoop was initially sealed completely. But then Mini Marketing got wind of the fact that people were making fun of it not being functional. So now the scoop has a few token holes. It's hardly what BMW engineers would have done if the engine really needed additional cooling.

 

I love Mach V Dan's car! It handles great, though a little too stiff for my taste. He did the alignment on my MINI and it made a significant improvement on the handling.

 

It looks like this thread is now worthless. :p

 

Will 235 wides fit on the R56 without fender or wheel mods? If so, this would be a great enhancement over the R53. Right now, my 0-60s are limited by tire traction, not power. I can light 'em up at any time in 1st or second gear and in some of the third gear range. Dyno numbers are great, but if you can't get that power to the pavement, it does no good. The widest tire you can safely put on the R53 is a 215 (some might say 225, but that's only true on smooth surface).