I picked up my new 2013 Countryman S All4 on December 21. Since I spent a LOT of time on these forums during the months of decision and then waiting, I thought I'd give my impressions about some issues that I'd read about concerning the Countryman, in case it is helpful to anyone else who is agonizing over the decision to purchase one.

My previous car was a 2005 MCS 6-speed that I traded in for the Countryman. The MCS was a great car for me; I enjoyed driving it for the whole 8 years I had it. It was reliable and never left me stranded. I decided to "upgrade" because I now have two kids (18 months and 4 years old), and while everyone fits in the MCS, it was really kind of a pain. My main requirements for a replacement were: 4 doors, on the small side, and fun to drive.

I considered several cars including Mazda 3, Kia Soul, Nissan Juke, and VW Golf and GTI, but I ultimately chose the Countryman because, for me at least, it was by far the most fun to drive and the least boring, and met my other requirements (although considerably more expensive than the other cars with similar options where available). I ordered my Countryman on October 16, and it was delivered on December 21. It is Light White w/Carbon Black Leatherette seats, and Polar Beige color line. Other options are Automatic Transmission, Cold Weather Package, Premium Package 1, MINI Connected with Navigation, Comfort Access, H/K audio, Xenon headlights w/adaptive control, panoramic sunroof, bench rear seat, and universal garage door opener.

First let me say that it is a blast to drive. It is more fun than my MCS was. Maybe it's because the car is new to me, or has more/better technology, or has more room for my stuff, but whatever the case, I just love driving it. I never really pushed my MCS near its limits or ran at the track or anything like that. I guess if I had I might consider the extra weight and body roll of the Countryman a detriment. But for the type of driving I do, it's great; it's smoother and quieter than my MCS was.

Now on to some specific features that have been topics of concern in various posts I've read here.

Transmission

I got the automatic not so much because that's what I really wanted, but because I was spooked from threads like "Smelly Clutch" and didn't really like the feel of the clutch in my test drives anyhow. During my last test drive I drove a manual All4 first, immediately followed by an automatic. I tried the manual on a steep hill, and the first couple times I got going OK, but the next couple times I stalled it horribly. It was an uncomfortable feeling. Now I don't claim to have great technique with manual shift cars, but my MCS 6-speed had 100K miles on the original clutch; starting off on hills (or anywhere else) was absolutely not a problem in that car. When I drove the automatic I discovered that it really didn't take too much of the fun out of driving, especially when the Sport button was engaged. So based on all this, and that my wife preferred an automatic (although she could perfectly well drive a manual), I ordered the automatic. I am happy with this choice, and don't miss manual shifting too much.

Navigation System

I've seen various negative reports about the navigation system in 2010+ MINIs. My 2005 MCS had the navigation system, and I generally liked it. The weakest feature in my opinion was the POI search function, which relied on figuring out which pre-defined category the target of your search was in. Just trying to find something like Office Depot was difficult because there was no category that seemed applicable (and I don't believe I ever found one).

The Countryman navigation search function looks alarmingly similar, but it's not. It actually has an A-Z search that searches based on what you enter, without requiring a category. The search results come up in order of distance from the current location (you can also specify searching from a different location if you want).

Other than that, the newer navigation system has really nice graphics, seems to route no worse than other GPS systems, and has some nice features like multiple stops.

Hands-Free Microphone

There were reports that the person on the other end of the call could not hear you clearly. Some people reported that moving the microphone from the right side of the headliner controls to the left side, so that it would be in a better position for left-handed cars, improved this. In my 2013 Countryman the microphone is located in the headliner, immediately above the driver. Everyone I've talked to has reported that my voice came through nice and clear, even when I was going 70mph on the freeway. So it looks like MINI took action to solve this issue by moving the microphone to a more ideal location.

Voice Command

Voice command works fine for me. I have never had the system NOT recognize the command I gave (unless I gave an incorrect command). I find voice command handy for switching the screens on the control display, among other things.

Cup Holders

The front cup holders got freed up a bit when the window controls were moved to the door. I have no trouble using the cup holder for tall or grande sized beverages.

Comfort Access

Some people reported delays when using comfort access to unlock the car. I have not seen this. Any time I unlock the car using the button on the driver or passenger side door handle, it unlocks within about one second. Likewise with the hatch, although there have been a couple times where it would not open at all from the hatch, and I had to use the driver door button or remote key fob. All in all I find this feature very handy; the key fob almost never leaves my pocket.

Alarm Lock Sound

When you lock the car it gives a reasonably mild chirp (as opposed to other cars that honk the horn). I think the "clunk" of the locks engaging and the lights flashing is probably enough, but the chirp is so benign that I have not turned it off.

Seats

My Countryman has the leatherette seats, and they have adjustable lumber support; I believe this is new for 2013 on non-upgrade seats. I find the seats to be very comfortable, but I haven't taken a trip any longer than about 1.5 hours yet.

Door Lock Buttons

For 2013 they added a door lock/unlock button near the inside door handle on both the driver and passenger sides. I read some comments somewhere else that this was a WTF and major design fail. I don't see the problem, myself; I don't think they look out of place at all, especially given the already-quirky MINI interior. Plus, they are positioned close enough to the door handle so that you can open the door and unlock the rest of the doors almost at once. I like it.

Garage Door Opener

There were some reports that the garage door opener was difficult to engage at times. I don't find this; it works great for me. Just press and hold the button for longer than 2 seconds or so, and voila! the door opens. The ignition does have to be switched on, though; that makes sense from a security standpoint.

Kid Stuff

Not only do the car seats fit just great in the back (bench) seat, but I found something unexpected; our BOB Revolution stroller fits in the boot. I just assumed it would not, but there it is. I do have to remove the cargo cover, but that's no big deal. (I could not fit ANY of our strollers in the boot of my MCS, even a tiny umbrella stroller.)

Reliability

Obviously I can't say much about this after having the car for only two weeks. But I did have a little excitement at delivery time. After I drove the car away from the dealer, I parked not far away to play around with the technology. I never even got out of the car. When I drove away from there, I kept getting a warning that a door was open. This would not clear up after opening and shutting all the doors, and stopping and restarting the car. It was a major issue because the car was always bitching about it, and if I stopped the car and locked it the alarm would immediately go off.

So I drove back to the dealer (Northwest MINI), and my MA saw the same thing and drove the car straight into the service area. After a couple hours of poking around they found that some part in the door had gotten moisture in it, and this part was new for the 2013 Countryman. Mine was their first 2013 Countryman delivery, and they didn't have the part in stock. They were ready to pirate one off another 2013 Countryman that was dealer stock, but it turned out that that car was not on the lot yet. So they were going to give me a loaner car (another Countryman) until they could get the part and fix it.

I wasn't too keen on leaving my brand-spanking-new Countryman then and there, so I suggested they just bypass that signal for the time being, since it wasn't really much of a safety issue. They did that, and I was able to drive home after that and haven't had any issues or quirks since then.

So there it is. Again, these are just my observations as the new owner of a 2013 Countryman. Naturally your mileage may vary. If you would like anything clarified feel free to ask.

 

Very good write up. We just put a deposit down on a '13 CMS. It's on island and we should take delivery later this week. My wife is trading in her '12 MC. Do to medical reasons and the addition of our puppy-St Bernard--we needed a bigger vehicle since she will be her service dog. Looking forward to getting the car and enjoying it.

Thanks for the write up.

 

MiniDan,

Great writeup! Thanks for all the detail. I am tempted to order a 2013 CMS All4 but I fear about the reliability. So many reports of thermostat and other issues. I'm on the fence, thinking of waiting it out and getting the Audi Q3.
It seems Mini decided to finally change the placement of the microphone as you say it is now in the headliner above the driver. That's good. I had my mic moved from the right to the left on my 09 MC Justa.
I bought the Justa because the "reliability" seemed to be less an issue compared to the S.
Do you know, is the Lumbar support the same with the leatherette as one gets when upgrading to leather? If I bought I was considering going with leather primarily for the lumbar support. But if the leatherette now has it, the leatherette is good enough, easy to maintain, and I probably would go without leather, just as I did with my MC.
Good luck with your new Countryman!
Finner

 

I remember seeing all kinds of scary reports about reliability when I was researching the purchase of my MCS back in 2004. But I bit the bullet, figuring it would be the 4th model year and they should have most of the kinks ironed out. I never regretted it. So I went through the same process on the Countryman purchase, and that's the main reason I waited until the 2013 model could be ordered.

It's funny, my wife was keen for me to go for the A3 as well. I never really looked at it seriously, though; it would have been a few thousand $ more, similarly equipped, and frankly I think they are rather boring looking, at least on the exterior, as compared to the Countryman. Perhaps I did myself a disservice by not at least test driving one (actually my wife tried to line that up once and could not find a dealer who had one), but there it is.

All I can say about the lumbar support is that now there is an adjustment wheel for that, like I had on my MCS (which had leather seats). I haven't fiddled with it much because the seat felt pretty good as delivered.

I'll be interested to see what you decide on!

 

Thanks, I'm glad if it was helpful!

 

MiniDan,

I was thinking about waiting for the Q3, not A3, if I do anything at all. I think the Q3 will be available later this year as a 2014 car. I don't really like the look of the BMW X1. Wife drives a BMW X3. So we have a larger vehicle when needed. If I were to get the CMSA4, it would be an automatic. Just got to decide if I want to pull the trigger and take the risk of breaking down on the road for thermostat issues etc, that too many others seem to have.

I don't have a compelling reason to sell or trade my 09 Justa and get a Countryman. My Justa has never had a problem. Kids are young adults and on their own. I don't think I ever had anyone in the back seat of the Justa as always can take the X3 when needing more room. So I'm likely to think about it for a while. I may just wait and compare the Q3 against the CMSA4 and decide later this year. My Justa has the sport seats (leatherette). I was thinking of getting leather for the lumbar and because leather looks and feels nicer. But may go with leatherette again if I end up deciding to get the CMS. I'll mull things over for a while and decide whether to wait and compare the Q3 with the CMSA4, or go with the CMS.
Finner

 

Any pics??

 

Oops, yes, I noticed you said Q3 after I posted my response. That does look interesting, but it's a little large for me (about a foot longer than the Countryman, I believe), and while it has a nice elegant look, I prefer the quirky styling of the Countryman. And I'm guessing that a similarly-equipped Q3 would be quite a bit more expensive than a Countryman. I agree on the X1; the long, long hood on that just looks odd to me.

Good luck on your choice!

 

Well, it's just a garden variety light white Countryman, with nothing custom or special about it. And it is rainy here in Seattle and the car is filthy. But if there is something you want to see, such as something particular to the 2013 model year, I can try snapping some pics of that.