Joey D
Premium
- 47,516
- Lakes of the North, MI
- GTP_Joey
- GTP Joey
A buddy of mine I have known for years is in the market for a new car so I suggested trying out a MINI for size just to see what he thought of it. He is 6'2" so he didn't know how he would fit in the vehicle, but said he would give it a go never the less. I told him I would tag along because I've been meaning to try my hand at a Clubman for quite some time now.
The test car was a fully loaded with a 6 speed auto. The first thing I noticed when it was my turn to drive it was that the sports seats were pretty uncomfortable and I am really glad I did not get them on my car. The split rear doors also causes a slight visibility problem but I think it's something you would get used to pretty quick. I could see if a motorcycle was behind you there might be an issue with seeing them. But there was so much glass on the inside there wasn't any other blind spots other then that, I could easily and safely change lanes without the risk of clipping someone with the car.
The turbo charged engine was nice, especially coming from my little 118hp N/A version of it. I could tell the transmission though wasn't really cut out for the increased horsepower though and wasn't as smooth as I would have liked. The acceleration was nice though and on the freeway I was able to go from 40-70 pretty quick. The extra weight of the Clubman is slightly noticeable though, it could have done with 200hp apposed to the 178hp.
There wasn't much in the way of torque steer and the handling great, especially during an emergency avoidance of a pot hole in the road. The brakes were great as well, I assume they are the same ones that come on a Cooper S.
I found the back seat to be far roomier then the Cooper's and I could sit back there no problem for an extended period of time, even my buddy who is taller then I said he wasn't bothered by it. Accessing the back was a bit annoying though and the third door could have been a couple inches bigger.
The test vehicle also had a panoramic sunshine roof which was pretty neat and really gave the car a nice open feel. However you couldn't block the glass off completely so on really sunny days I could see that getting annoying and making the car quite hot.
The price was also something the floored me, it was just north of $32,000! That's quite high if you ask me, I mean I could go next door to the BMW dealer and get a 3 series for that, or at least a 1 series (which is ugly as sin after seeing it in person).
Overall I didn't mind the car, I just don't think I would really want to own one. Yes it's bigger but it looks goofy, gets worse mileage, and isn't quite as fun as the Cooper is. I still think it would be perfect for my mom who likes have something a little bit bigger then a micro car.
I suppose I would give the car a 75% approval rating, it's decent but nothing really to write home about.
**I forgot my camera so no pictures of it, if you really want to know what it looked like I can build one in the MINI editor.
The test car was a fully loaded with a 6 speed auto. The first thing I noticed when it was my turn to drive it was that the sports seats were pretty uncomfortable and I am really glad I did not get them on my car. The split rear doors also causes a slight visibility problem but I think it's something you would get used to pretty quick. I could see if a motorcycle was behind you there might be an issue with seeing them. But there was so much glass on the inside there wasn't any other blind spots other then that, I could easily and safely change lanes without the risk of clipping someone with the car.
The turbo charged engine was nice, especially coming from my little 118hp N/A version of it. I could tell the transmission though wasn't really cut out for the increased horsepower though and wasn't as smooth as I would have liked. The acceleration was nice though and on the freeway I was able to go from 40-70 pretty quick. The extra weight of the Clubman is slightly noticeable though, it could have done with 200hp apposed to the 178hp.
There wasn't much in the way of torque steer and the handling great, especially during an emergency avoidance of a pot hole in the road. The brakes were great as well, I assume they are the same ones that come on a Cooper S.
I found the back seat to be far roomier then the Cooper's and I could sit back there no problem for an extended period of time, even my buddy who is taller then I said he wasn't bothered by it. Accessing the back was a bit annoying though and the third door could have been a couple inches bigger.
The test vehicle also had a panoramic sunshine roof which was pretty neat and really gave the car a nice open feel. However you couldn't block the glass off completely so on really sunny days I could see that getting annoying and making the car quite hot.
The price was also something the floored me, it was just north of $32,000! That's quite high if you ask me, I mean I could go next door to the BMW dealer and get a 3 series for that, or at least a 1 series (which is ugly as sin after seeing it in person).
Overall I didn't mind the car, I just don't think I would really want to own one. Yes it's bigger but it looks goofy, gets worse mileage, and isn't quite as fun as the Cooper is. I still think it would be perfect for my mom who likes have something a little bit bigger then a micro car.
I suppose I would give the car a 75% approval rating, it's decent but nothing really to write home about.
**I forgot my camera so no pictures of it, if you really want to know what it looked like I can build one in the MINI editor.
