well im sure some of you guys know ive been looking around for a new car.
well yesterday i went to the BMW dealership and Ordered a MINI Cooper S
I ordered it in Dark Silver with black top and chrome mirrors ...wasn't sure on the racing stripes so i left that out for now
i ordered the interior with a Piano black dash, chrome lined interior as well as the black anthracite headliner( really changes the feel of the inside) this combo looks awesome.
the leatherette is actually really awesome and the best ive ever seen on any car.
the sports button.... every car should have one !!!

BMW wasn't the only place i went and looked for cars i also test drove the following

07 Civic Si
07 GTI
05-06 RSX Type-S
08 Scion Tc


anyways after many hours of test driving these cars i bring to you my mini review

ACCELERATION & HANDLING
Mini felt the strongest in all RPM's. press the sport button and the personality of the car changes. the handling gets tighter and more precise and the accelerator feels much more agressive...
acceleration wise the GTI felt pretty close to the MINI the GTI felt like it had more relaxed handling it kinda felt lazy.. hard to explain. it also felt like it had a bit to much body role and just wasn't as fun to toss around like the MINI.
the Si and rsx-s felt good too and are very similar in performance but couldn't get use to the lack of low end Tq . yes its very nice if you stay in Vtec lol but its lame for daily driving.
the Si felt better in regards to handling than the GTI or Type-S but the Type-s felt better then the GTI.
the Tc was the dog of the bunch and the power band reminded me of my old Z24 before i super Supercharged it. the acceleration wasn't horrible but wasn't that great ether. this car handled like rubbish manly due to a horrible amount of body role and tires that didn't like the pavement. maybe the TRD stuff could solve this problem who knows

(1 = best, 5 = worst)

1. Cooper S (felt the fastest and handling is far above the others. remember when you where a kid and had a blast driving a Go-Kart all day, well thats the closest i can come to explaining how fun this car is to drive)
2. Civic Si (LSD is very nice you can feel it pull when cornering, Vtec is nice when its there)
3. Type-S ( felt slightly faster then the Si but does not handle quite as well as the Si. it does not come with a LSD or fully independent rear suspension like the Si)
4. GTI (good amount of tq threw out the powerband but felt lazy and not as fun as the others top runners)
5. Tc ( acceleration felt good down low but lost steam really quick, felt sluggish at times, not the best handling in the world, its not a car you would take to the track)

INTERIOR DESIGN
on the GTI what the hell were they thinking with the plaid seats? i think that was the biggest turn off for me and they wouldn't let me order leather with out ordering like 20 other things...stupid. other then that it was extremely nice and you have to love that steering wheel
the Civic Si seemed to kiddy for my likes idk it just seemed like a car that people in there late teen would like. i guess im getting old lol . the materials where nice though and didn't feel cheap.
the Rsx had a very nice interior but was far to simple for my likes but slick non the less.
the Tc had the worst interior but nice for its price range. however it still felt very plasticy. the sunroof was the best feature of the car lol.

1. GTI (hate the plaid but nice interior none the less)
2. Cooper S (its a love it or hate it sorta thing)
3. Type-S (extremely nice also extremely boring)
4. Civic Si (felt to racer boyish)
5. Tc (low grade plastics)


EXTERIOR DESIGN
i do not think the MINI is the hottest looking car.. its different and not forever one but i do like it. i believe the Type-S is the nicest looking of the bunch while the GTI is the worst
all these cars where extremely well put together so ill just quickly list them in the order i liked them the best

1.Type-S (very sporty A-Spec FTW)
2. Cooper S (different but nice and has personality)
3. Civic Si ( Looks very nice with the body kit)
4. Tc (lexusish)
5.GTI (looks like a mini mini van)

CONCLUSION
while the MINI stood up to some heavy competition its hard to explain why i chose it, while it may not be the best looking car or have the best interior, the MINI just has something special about it... I suppose if you look deep enough its really about how well the MINI combines everything and adds that dash of Go-Kart feeling. the car just has so much personality..which makes the other cars feel kinda soulless in compairison. that in the end is what won me over. not to mention the 3 years of free full maintenance and getting 36+mpg in a car thats quick enough to pull a 14.7-14.9 second 1/4 mile..that helps a lot too!

there ya have it my little review... maybe that will help anyone thats looking into these cars... also these are just my opinions and yes i know i don't have the best grammar so please forgive me

*Waits for the TC lovers to tell say you don't know what you're talking about..*.. lol. Very good writeup though, I also would love to have a Mini-Cooper S..

Quote:

Watching you parade around my bedroom in a thong was a little like watching sea lions mate.

My only question is how can you even put a tC in the same comparison as those cars? Its several thousand cheaper than all of them.

i was figuring maybe the tc wouldn't be all that bad so why not give it a shot... this is just a list and review of the cars i test drove.. the only car that i didn't get to test but wanted to was the mazda speed 3.. but that was ok as it didn't meet my requirement for gas mileage anyways

btw the scion tc isnt a bad car at all but your right it shouldn't be directly compared to the other cars.

The tC is basically Toyotas Z24. If you like your old Z24/LS Sport...you'll dig the tC. The plaid on the seats in the GTi are a throwback to the original GTi. Which had plaid seats...knowing that i think it's actually a cool nod to the original. I think you got the best car out of that list. Nothing to be ashamed of at all, BMW did their homework with the Minis.



"Formerly known as Jammit - JBO member since 1998" JBOM | CSS.net

Very nice!!! I want a mini so bad Congratz!

You should have taken a test drive of the new Volvo C30.....fun car to drive also!

Is the new Mini S turbo or are they still using the S/C. I remember reading last year that the new one was supposed to be turbo but no confirmation of it.

lone_wolf wrote:*Waits for the TC lovers to tell say you don't know what you're talking about..*.. lol. Very good writeup though, I also would love to have a Mini-Cooper S..

nope. out of the car's tested, I would completely agree.

but that's already been discussed.

07s are turbo and pushing significantly more power than the supercharged version, which i have

you will love it bro, come check out northamericanmotoring.com

oh and good luck getting 36+ MPG, that is if you drive like a grandmother

i average about 26-30 but i do have some fun with it

damn i knew there was another car i missed too lol the C30 is nice, i seen one 2 months ago when i went with my cousin while he was shopping for cars. the interior on them is really nice, we didn't get to take one for a spin though as he was there to test a G35.

yes the 07 Cooper-S is turbocharged and is nearly as fast as the R53 210hp JCW MINI.
while MINI claims the Cooper-S has 172hp it actually puts down around 180whp so its very underrated. this is about 40whp more then the older model and would explain why its performance is near that of the R53 JCW MINI
indibluemini3 your figures are about right for your engine but the new engine is completely different, averaging 36+ mpg isn't unheard of with the 07's as the new engine is 20% more efficient, it has direct injection and a form of VVT to help it out.

also indibluemini3 didn't you have a post about your car on here a month or so back? didn't it have the aero body kit and stuff? i cant find that post anymore if that was your car it was very sweet and its what got me thinking about MINI's again

also if anyone has any questions feel free to ask

yep that was me

http://www.j-body.org/forums/read.php?f=6&i=164417&t=163326&p=1

here is the thread

and yeah you are right about the new R56s, and i actually drove one and they are fun, but i am not really a fan of the turbo lag, although it is very minimal, i just enjoy a smoother powerband

oh and keep an eye out for a photo shoot here soon, ive been itchin to take some shot of her

now you just have to endure the wait for your baby to get to the states

oh and dark silver with black roof is hot hot hot

I fell in love with the Mini's ever since I first saw them. They are awesome cars, and fun to drive. You will be pleasnatly surprised with the choice.

howe0822 wrote:I fell in love with the Mini's ever since I first saw them. They are awesome cars, and fun to drive. You will be pleasnatly surprised with the choice.

______________________________________________________
x2......may pretty much be my next project


ClassGlass / RkSport / Eibach / Motegi / Ractive / Borla / K&N

the plaid seats in the GTI are a nostalgic throwback to the original gti's, kinda like the dimpled shifter ball in some models past... not for everybody, but the hardcore loyalist vw guys eat stuff like that up. Congrats on the Mini though, if it weren't for the fact that I never want to finance another car again I'd probably be in one myself.




Arrival Blue 04 LS Sport
Eco
Turbo
Megasquirt
'Nuff said

well i just got back from chilling with some friends tonight. one of which who has a 06 GTI. to make a long story short i kept going on about my test drives and how i found the mini was better over all. the friend with the GTI wanted to prove me wrong so he let me take his stock 06 GTI out for a spirited spin... well when i drove his car it felt quite a bit different then the one i tested and now has me questioning my purchase. im not quite sure what it is but this one felt a bit faster the the GTI i drove and felt better in the twisties too. is there any difference between the 06 and 07 and do you think the car i drove might have not been fully broken in correctly or something ?

im still in que for the mini so i could still back out and get back my deposit. do you guys think i should go back and test drive another GTI?

no

im not really familiar with the GTI or VW but im pretty sure they dont have the same 50000 mile/5 year warranty as the mini, and that includes all services that BMW gives you

believe me after you have the mini in your possesion and you get it all broken in, you wont ever regret your decision

ftw mini. !

VW = problems.



My Cav
I give up...
i'm buying a VW those people love trees, so they should love eachother too... "Andy"

actually its VW with the 5 year 50k warranty BMW only offers a 4 year warranty.

just found out they makes a ecu flash for the GTI that adds over 50hp for $600 sounds good to me lol.
im gonna go to another dealership today and see if i can test drive another GTI.
i just want to make sure im doing the right thing, its kind of a ease my mind sorta thing, other wise ill go crazy over it

i went to a different dealer this afternoon and they refused to let me test drive the GTI saying how i needed to schedule an appointment to do so. what kinda bs is that... wow...they must not be to interested in selling cars then. basically i left very upset and im going to stick with my order of my mini

Been a Cooper S owner for almost two years now and this is one car we'll never sell!!

Love it to death....06 loaded other than the chrome exterior package. It's also a cabrio!

Astro black with two-tone black and blue leather interior!

Stick with the Mini S...you'll love it and the extra attention you get driving it!




Eh...old man with a Corvette now...it was bound to happen sooner rather than later right?

BlueDeuce (dnt02cavls) wrote:Been a Cooper S owner for almost two years now and this is one car we'll never sell!!

Love it to death....06 loaded other than the chrome exterior package. It's also a cabrio!

Astro black with two-tone black and blue leather interior!

Stick with the Mini S...you'll love it and the extra attention you get driving it!

you have a mini too?!? do you check out northamericanmotoring.com? I guess if you are over in germany still there are probably better sites than that one but its great for us in the states. Oh and i want to see some pics

Yeah I've been on NAM some....read a little and look at pics.

I'm never going to modify another car again after the Cavy though...I just enjoy driving this as it is!!!

Here are a few pics....







Eh...old man with a Corvette now...it was bound to happen sooner rather than later right?

I think the mini are a cute idea, so congrats on getting what you want.

For me though, I would just have a lot of trouble driving something that I basically have a 0% chance of surviving a serious crash with a large vehicle like a full size pick-up or SUV.

Either way, cool car, and I hope you are happy with it.





**there is only one true love in my life... and my girlfriend has learned to live with it**

Gutty96 wrote:I think the mini are a cute idea, so congrats on getting what you want.

For me though, I would just have a lot of trouble driving something that I basically have a 0% chance of surviving a serious crash with a large vehicle like a full size pick-up or SUV.

Either way, cool car, and I hope you are happy with it.

actually minis did very well in crash tests

and if you dont believe me check out this article

http://www.bridger.us/2002/12/16/CrashTestingMINICooperVsFordF150