Yes on the Anthracite, but that picture will wait, they have not pulled the transport stops which raise the CM even more.

Thanks, we like the combination (at least in these early pictures).....

 

Thanks! Got to sit in it tonight. Even with all the cardboard and plastic it was awesome. So excited fir tomorrow!

 

Very nice!!! This is going to be the longest week!!!

 

Mine came in last week; picked it up on the 30th. I'm pretty happy with it so far, though for some reason the dealer cannot get the nav code to work so I have no nav functionality.

The new Mini audio interface with the nav system is frigging awful. The Mini Connected app actually works pretty well and controls the iPhone the way you'd expect, but try and control the iPhone without the Connected app and woe betide you.

Honestly, if I'd known how craptacular the interface is I would have saved a pile of money and skipped the nav system.

 

Sweet color :D

When u collect it, make a lot of pics!! Its exactly as mine (beside black roof and no ext chrome)

 

Old81 - your Countryman is absolutely fantastic! Without a doubt one of the nicest I've seen thus far. LOVE the color combination. Good luck with delivery and more pix please!

 

I got code yesterday and plugged it in and it worked - its a bit odd as it it does not tell you that it has been accepted yet if you go back two levels (left tug on the joystick) all is well

 

Mine tells me that the code is incorrect and to enter the correct code. I haven't actually tried the Nav, though. It's a bit weird since I am entering the code directly from the printout with my car's VIN on it.

It's a PITA to do, though, since the damn code is like 14 digits long. It would be nice if they could just activate the thing at the factory.

 

So I picked up my countryman on the 30th

Drives very solid , really nice steering feel and not "wallowy". Turn in , braking etc feel great. Maybe just need to recalibrate myself but I feel the rear end getting involved in cornering. Slightly raised seating position makes placing the car on the road quite nice

It does not look too tall and the wheel gap is not crazy - I will probably lower it a little bit with JCW suspension but that won't be my first mod

Wind/Road Nosie pretty good, though the injectors make a din at idle. Intake and exhaust quite muted and I think I will uncork with some mods... Suspension is quite taught even with non sport. It does not like road expansion joints but thats a fare trade off I think. Gearbox quite notchy at first - you have to be very positive with it but seems to loosing up nicely.

New car smell- I have never had a new car smell so much of burning rubber before , I was getting worried something was on fire , seems to have subsided but was a bit disconcerting

Some really nice design touches - the little winglets in the rear window, the way it cinches in and visually pushes the wheels out. Bonnet power bulge is quite pronounced. I cant imagine that the JCW body kit will significantly improve the sportiness/look of the car as it looks great as is

Power is I think is just ok, now I am still babying it (keeping under 4k) so will withhold final judgement until I have had chance to give it the full beans but I suspect I will want to give it some extra juice. It feels about as quick as my A3 which is not slow by any means. I am not a fan of coffee can exhaust tips but the MINI are a bit to pea - shooter and will need to go

I got it with White Turbo fans - these are just flat out beautiful, they have a pearlescant finish (has some sparklies in the paint). The Yellow is I think a nice yellow but does have a green tinge under certain lighting (florescent or when its getting dirty, at night) I like it but I am a yellow fan (had a Liquid Yellow MCS which its closer to in color than the later MINI Yellows)

I got the leather/cloth interior (light tobacco) and that is probably my biggest disappointment - there is only a swatch of leather on the side bolsters and the head rest pad. I was also thinking it would have a hard back to protect the rear feet kicking but is just cloth. The seats themselves though are really comfortable and quite narrow so hug you quite well, this suits my wife and I as we are both slim build. I would say save yourself the $1k and get pleather or spring for full leather

The dark tobacco trim (inside the football) is really subtle - almost black - I like it but was expecting a shade lighter

NAV /Connect: I must say I now have a gazillion ways to get audio content which is really cool. The favorites/presets are somewhat integrated with Radio and Sirius but not web radio . Its worth noting I have an iPhone 4 and if you try to fast app switch it seems to disconnect MINI Connect. The video playback is also pretty neat and will continue playing audio (but no video) when in motion. Its mostly intuitive as I have yet to resort to the manual to figure it out. The tone controls (balance/Front/back) are in a bit of an odd menu though. One irritating thing is I had to leave without NAV as it was missing an access code - The dealer has to get this from BMW separately. Worth asking your MA to do upfront (this I think is new for MINI 2011)

Programing UGDO was also straightforward once I remembered you have to program from remote AND motor in garage

No sign of mission control which I am sure has not a lot of love but the kids will find it amusing.

BMW wheels appear to fit just fine (tried some ASA e90 I had from a former car) though MINI bolts are a bit short. No surprise the turbo fans and Run flat weigh a ton

I got the split rail - and it does fit sunglasses holder and iphone and armrest up front though it is super busy. Once MINI get the Iphone4 snap in adapter released life will be much better though. In rear it fits two cupholders and iphone holder just fine - I am hoping somebody will come up with a way to hold an iPad in the forward position for long trips

Jack works nice - has a little knurled nut to speed crank it if your strong enough - and also supply a wheel chock. The bag concept I guess gives you more flexibility to load stuff

The buzz? - I was asked to take three sets of people out for a ride and they all loved it. Then a guy at autozone asked if he could check out the rear oily bits in the car park - and on my 2nd day out I saw a black on black in my same neighborhood!!!

 

agreed about it being a PITA

Try just using nav as I suspect you have it plugged in ok (I was getting same incorrect code error)

 

Spaner - thanks for taking the time to write up your experiences so far. Good read.

 

Does Navi have real time traffic? Is it hard drive or disc based navi?

 

Yes it has real-time traffic and the system is hard drive based.

 

Thanks for the info. Real time traffic in my Acura is horrible in my area as it's through the XM set up. Only covers half my metro area here. I'm hoping the mini one uses a different real time traffic source and is better.

 

Right. I hope it's getting info from Google or something if connected to the iPhone.

 

My guess is that it is limited to Sirius traffic as Google would require the MINI Connected app and an iPhone at a minimum. I guess it is plausible for MINI to offer that as an alternative config for those with appropriate equipment.

Is Google Traffic used by ANY integrated car nav solution?

 

Spaner--my car does not smell like burning rubber.

 

Here's the info on BMW's RTTI, which I'm sure is the same as the MINI solution.

http://www.bmwusa.com/Standard/Conte...I/Default.aspx

"Traffic incidents are compiled and transmitted in metropolitan areas by a leading FM broadcaster. The data is received through a dedicated tuner, which operates independently of your entertainment source. "

According to this, the vendor is Clear Channel:

http://www.inrix.com/news_ClearChannel_31Jan2007.asp

 

This is much better than my crappy XM traffic on my Acura so I'm excited.

 

Well, today was the day! I picked up my MIINI Countryman S All4 from the dealer today. Got there about 12:15 and left with the car about 1:30. Just enough time to take a roundabout way to the office to pick up a couple things, home to get the luggage and drive to the airport to leave for CES.

While I only got about 50 miles on, I'm overall very happy with the new car. I was able to send a few tweets through MINI Connected (which BTW only says "MINI" and not "MINI Countryman" in the body of the tweets) and play with all the stuff.

As far as power and handling the Countryman is just great. I wasn't expecting it to feel like my 03 6-speed that's had some small upgrades to give it more power and handling and it doesn't.

I was trying to be a little easier on the engine to break it in slowly, but I found it really enjoyable to drive. I guess I'd say that it really has the spirit of mini but it is certainly has it's own feel. I think it will be really great for road trips and be much more comfortable driving around town. I'll also really enjoy going back to my 03 MCS when I want something just to have fun in.

I think if I hadn't gotten the sport suspension I would be feeling like it was missing some needed handling but I think it provides a good balance at least in Portland where we have pretty good roads.

I'll need to do some more driving to get a better feel for how it all works. Part of it will be getting used to the automatic transmission.

I've found the interior to be really great quality. I thought the interior of my 03 was great, but the 07+ always seemed a little cheap to me. In a lot of ways, this car reminds me of my 03'.

The in car tech is really great. The stereo sounds really good and while it will take some learning how to do everything, we were able to figure out everything we wanted.

Some random thoughts/comments....
FYI, I got all the options besides Nav.
The seat heaters get very hot, very quick.
One of the rail cup holders was broken so they swapped it out with one from another car.
I think I still want the flat load floor. It seems kinda funky that you can see the stuff you put back there.
I'm happy with the full rail. The split would just not be enough room for accessories.
I love the lounge leather seats.
It is annoying you have to hold the sunroof button to open and close it.
The ambient lighting deal is really cool. Feels Tron inspired.
With my Black/Black/Black setup, the windows really need tinting. I'll get that done soon.
Likewise for stripes, as soon as I figure out exactly how they should look I'll do those too.
We got a really strange look from another MINI driver when I waved to him. Guess he didn't realize it was a MINI.

So that's all the stuff off the top of my head. I'll get some more complete thoughts down when I get back into the car next week.

 

Oh, and forgot to mention. Mine was only the second Countryman S All4 they'd sold in Portland. I'd love to see the other guy on the road one day.

 

Congrats Tuna!!! now, we want pics!!!!

 

There's no more express open with the sunroof????

 

Congrats Tunaball! Thanks for the write up. Enjoy CES!

 

I can't decide if I'm more jealous because you have your countryman or because you get to go to CES!