Mini Cooper in Route Across the Pond

  • Thread starter Thread starter Joey D
  • 272 comments
  • 9,692 views
Sounds like an excellent choice Joey and looks like you thought it out well. Though I somewhat agree about stick shifts being awesome I also agree that a modern 6 speed with paddles is a far cry from those old power sapping autos some people are used to. Plus I can't say too much since the cars I love so much are almost always found with an automatic trannys!
 
Here is how I'm hoping it will look:

minioq6.jpg
 
Oh yea! Well...I don't like YOU! j/k Seriously though, at least get the mirror caps painted the body color. It un-nerves me to see black mirror caps on any vehicle that doesn't have black body color.
 
JCE3000GT
Oh yea! Well...I don't like YOU! j/k Seriously though, at least get the mirror caps painted the body color. It un-nerves me to see black mirror caps on any vehicle that doesn't have black body color.
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picky picky picky
 
In order to get the body coloured mirror I need to get the body coloured roof...and I really want the black roof. Plus the mirrors are painted so it's not like black plastic.
 
Be a man - buy a manual

You might as well buy a pink convertable Mini One if you go down the auto route.
 
In my opinion the black sport stripes on the bonnet look way better than those stripes.
But that choice is up to you :)
 
TheCracker
Be a man - buy a manual

You might as well buy a pink convertable Mini One if you go down the auto route.
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Once again it's a 6 speed auto with flappy paddles and I spend almost an hour going to work and probably 1 1/2 hours on the way home in stop and go traffic. I don't want to deal with a manual during those conditions.

Anyways I want to get a custom plate for it but I'm not sure what it will say, also does anyone know where I find a British plate for the front of the car?
 
Joey D
Once again it's a 6 speed auto with flappy paddles and I spend almost an hour going to work and probably 1 1/2 hours on the way home in stop and go traffic. I don't want to deal with a manual during those conditions.
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So do i. Doesn't bother me.

Are you after any old UK reg plate or one that mirrors what your US reg number will be?
 
I've had a manual once before and it's just not for me, if this was going to be a weekend or just screwing around car then it would be a manual for sure. But I want an auto for my daily driver.

As for the UK plate, it doesn't really matter, something that would make sense on the car so I'm guessing a newer white GB plate. I'm not quite sure how the numbering system works but isn't it something like the city, the car year, and then some numbers? Ideally I would like the plate to be from Oxford...so I'm assuming it would be like OX 08 347 or something.
 
I test drove a mini once.... Anything over 90mph was down right scary. Everything in the car started to shake and make weird noises. It was a fun little car though.

Good luck on your decision.
 
Riiiiiiiiiight.

Well, in a Mini, that's a good thing.
 
Pako
I test drove a mini once.... Anything over 90mph was down right scary. Everything in the car started to shake and make weird noises. It was a fun little car though.

Good luck on your decision.
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Wait, are you talking about the new one, or the old one?
 
my old Neon was a manual and I hated it
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Well theres the problem then! Just because the neon manual is a crap along with the rest of the car you cannot tar all manuals for the rest of your life with the same brush.

Mini rates them at 8.5 seconds 0-62
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Mini US is lying then cause a 115hp auto aint doing it. The manual only does it in 9.1 secs.
 
I've driven a lot of manual cars and disliked them all, if I'm going to be paying $25,000 for a car and keeping it 7 or 8 years I want to enjoy it. Manuals aren't enjoyable for me, I don't understand what is so hard about understanding that.

Mini is lying? Why would they lie? 11 seconds is really slow, the Chevy Aveo hits 60 quicker then that.
 
Joey D
I've driven a lot of manual cars and disliked them all, if I'm going to be paying $25,000 for a car and keeping it 7 or 8 years I want to enjoy it. Manuals aren't enjoyable for me, I don't understand what is so hard about understanding that.

Mini is lying? Why would they lie? 11 seconds is really slow, the Chevy Aveo hits 60 quicker then that.
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The UK Mini site list the 0-62 times as follows:

Cooper (120 bhp) Auto - 10.4 secs / Manual 9.1 secs
Source - http://www.mini.co.uk/html/model_range/mini_cooper/techSpec.html

The Cooper S is closer to the times you are mentioning

Cooper S (175 bhp) Auto - 7.3 seconds / Manual - 7.1 seconds
Source - http://www.mini.co.uk/html/model_range/mini_cooper_s/techSpec.html

I've just had a check of the US site and they do indeed claim 8.5 for the Cooper and 6.7 for the Cooper S, both of which I would personally call rather optimistic (and certainly figures for a manual). Edited to add - just checked Autocar's 0-100-0 figures for this year, which had the latest Cooper S and they got that to 62 in 6.54 seconds, so who the hell knows which figures are right?


The entire manual vs. auto thing is most certainly a personal choice, but having driven Mini's back to back (and a good range of models) I can say that personally I would take the manual any day of the week.


Regards

Scaff

Edited again to add:

Joey you will find the following useful in putting together a 'UK' format number plate...

http://www.dvla.gov.uk/media/pdf/leaflets/inf104.pdf

...the government document for number plate layout (yellow ones shown in the doc are for the rear, front plates are, as you correctly said, white).
 
I've never driven an auto before (they're very rare over here) but I agree switching between 1st and 2nd gear during traffic jam is annoying. I don't think an auto is a bad idea for driving in-town.

Anyway, I wish you good luck with your new car. 👍
 
Its almost the exact opposite over here.... The only person I know who has a manual here is my uncle... and he drives a Mini. :D
 
Like I've said I'm not expecting or desiring a fast straight line car.

Anyways the insurance numbers came back, it's going to be about $950 per year for it which is $240 more then I pay on the Blazer. The Rabbit was about $1100 per year.
 
I have to agree with Joey on the manual/auto debate.
I love to drive a manual. But in the badly misnamed "rush-hour" (no one is able to rush, and it lasts longer than an hour) clutch dancing is a pain.
A good auto can be quite entertaining to drive. And it isn't a chore in nasty traffic.
Besides if you travel mostly highway, you accelerate up to cruising speed and never touch the shifter again till you have to slow/stop. So you get 30 seconds to get to your appropriate cruise speed, adjust to conditions and you basically roll in top gear.
What was all that "rowing" about?
 
Joey D
Anyways the insurance numbers came back, it's going to be about $950 per year for it which is $240 more then I pay on the Blazer. The Rabbit was about $1100 per year.
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Full coverage with what kind of deductible? Or what?

I was looking at Passat W8s and Chevrolet Camaros, those were $1100 per six-months...
 
That still seems too low, I think you need to re-check your figures.

Allstate's configurator with the basic stuff that I have states that it would be $1270 for six months, or $211 a month. My guess is that with my stuff at State Farm, that would probably be about $185-200 a month, which isn't horrible, but its certainly expensive.

Like I said, there isn't any way in hell it can be that cheap for a year. Full coverage on my VW is $1440 a year, or $120 a month. Unless your parents are insuring the Mini for you, it ain't going to be that cheap for a 20 year old...
 
I'm going to be the secondary driver on it, my mom will be primary, that's why it's so low. Our insurance company is always changing things to make it cheaper for us.
 

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