Ordered on Thurs. Im told it'll be about 6 weeks till its here. What do you think of my build? I knew I had to have the S but that meant I couldnt go crazy with the options so I had to pick carefully. What are your thoughts about my sparsely optioned Clubman S?
Am I going to completely miss out on something?!??
For better or for worse...she's on her way!!

Thanks ahead of time for your comments!

>>>John

PS - How do I get the cool signature with a pic of my car and the owners club emblem etc?

Dark Silver Black Roof/Black Rear C-Pillars, Manual Trans.Cold Weather Package,
Custom "Poor-Boy" Package: Limited Slip Differential, Comfort Access System, Leather Sport Wheel w/Multifunction, 10-Speaker Hi-Fi Sound System Center Armrest, Roof Rack Base System

 

JohnHardy....a warm welcome to you my friend!

You have found a wealth of information and tons of folks willing and able to help you out here! WE JUST PICKED HER UP THIS MORNING!

Ours that is...they had one on the lot that was pretty dang close to my wife's specs and so I got it! We have already done one Sam's Club run...cheese, broccoli, bacon....and then back to the house. We have 30 miles on her and while I was following my wife home there were alot of people looking at the clubbie.....they are not so common around here.

I'll post a bit later for ya but WELCOME

Regards,

Mike

 

John,

As far as the siggy block goes there is a GREAT person (thanks Craig...I owe you big time) that makes them...here is a link to his thread....

COOPERNation's "What if..." thread

If you look in his gallery you can see the TONS of great work he has done! AMAZING TALENT!

As far as your build...when you go to the MiniUSA site you can do the configurator and one of the options is the Text Only version. You can then copy and paste it into your thread and it will show everyone what you have on the car....a bit easier on the eyes.

As far as your build....each Mini is unique just like everyone's personality is! That's what makes them so fun! (well one of the things ).

Not sure where you are at but the Cold weather package is a MUST for us in New Mexico...we have HOT summer's and COLD winters so the heated seats are great!

We opted for the cloth seats because we really love the feel of them and the leatherette and the leather really made my back sweat like crazy. Cloth is VERY comfy for us!

We are very happy with the stock standard sound system but if you really are an audiophile then the HiFi may be your best bet. We tried em both and for us it made no difference.

Things to consider...if you are going to haul things you "MAY" want to consider adding the roof RAILS to your Clubbie. They cannot be installed at the dealership (we asked).

The ONLY thing missing on ours that we wanted but would have had to wait about two months, hence our purchase off the lot, was the rear fog lamp. Wife would not use it but I am a bit OCD and the missing "bullet" switch is my only gripe. For $100 it was an easy option had we ordered.

It is a fun car...getting used to the 6 speed versus a 5 speed is something for me to learn more about. It shifts like a dream. The "Hill Assist" is a VERY nice feature in my mind and we tested it out today quite a few times. Nice touch IMO.

You did not get the pano sunroof so I wont get into that. For those that do, I strongly advise tinting the thing. With all that glass the car can get HOT. Our dealer threw in full tinting for us at no cost so on Monday she gets her "shades on" .

When you go to sign the papers....if you haven't been offered this yet, they will ask you about extended maintenance/warranty/tire warranty etc. Personal decisions for everyone but most will probably say that they are overpriced. I have never had run-flats so I am doing a bit of research myself on that....no spare so that is something to think about (getting one, seeing if it will work with your build...etc).

I assume you have already placed your order?

Again, warmest welcomes, and enjoy the site and its great members!

Regards,

Mike

 

Great build! You're gonna love it. Welcome!

 

Hello! I also ordered mine last Thursday and they said I should expect it on or before July 15, 2009. The information on this site helped me a lot in finalizing my order. I ordered a Dark Silver/Silver Roof/C pillars with a hot chocolate lounge leather, Sport/Convenience/Cold Weather/Premium Package, arm rest, rear spoiler, Chrome Driving Lights, Silver Sports Stripes and Chrome Bonnet Scoop, Aero Kit, Park Distance Control, Alarm, Automatic transmission--

I am so excited!

 

Wow thanks everybody! Thanks. I cleaned up my build above so that its easier to understand.

The only actual package I will have is the cold weather package: it gets cold here too.

I spent a very short while thinking about adding the LSD. I quickly came to the conclusion that if I didnt get it I'd end up wondering what I was missing. Ive read many posts for/vs but I live in the mtns and I know I will drive aggressively when I can.

I was on the fence re: the hi-fi sound. Its definitely a step above the STD but in no way did it genuinely impress me. I figure I dont want to try an aftermarket install and ultimately I feel it will mess with its looks so I ended up adding it.

The roof rack system is a must for me but Im amazed at the price of the luggage tray attachment. The sales rep agreed with me that its ridiculous. (Anyone know of an aftermarket tray??)

I do plan on tinting immediately upon receipt but in keeping with my means I probably wont have the greatest tint installed. (The rep said I could get it tinted for as little as $125...is that true?)

The dealer had a modifiable S slated to begin production the middle of next week which puts the delivery date at the 1st or 2nd of June. Even with a 6 week delivery date I know its going to be very hard to wait til then!

 

John,

If you go with the Roof Rails then you can add Thule and other types of rack systems to your Clubbie as you see fit. What I did not like about the Rack system is the little holes that get plugged when you remove it. Not a big thing but enough that I didn't want it. The rails FOR ME were the way to go 100%. If you search for "rails" in the clubby forum you will find a bunch of threads on it.

HERE is a thread that will get you started!

You get what you pay for on tinting. The local BMW/MINI dealership here uses one place only. I called them for a quote and they were $150 cheaper than through the dealer....mine tossed it in free anyhow so it didn't matter to me. My quote for the whole car and sunroof was $250 with lifetime warranty and using the 3M tint that looks very nice to my wife and I and looks amazing on friends of ours who had their other vehicles tinted.

Best of luck with your Clubbie! We love ours and already have 80 miles on it today "running" around....man this car is INSANELY FUN!

Regards,

 

Hi John. I'm not a real "car guy", but I've learned a ton on these forums as I was an avid reader here for years before I finally bought my Clubman last month. So I have couple of things for you:

1 How do you know what you want in your Clubman? Did you do this by just thinking "this is what I want" or did you do some research? From what I understand you still have time to change your build if need be (though I'm not sure). That's not to say you have to or should, but I would soak up as much information as you can so that you can decide.

2 You say "Poor Boy" package. You trying to save some $$$? I don't know if you could cancel your order, but you should really check your dealer's inventory to see what they have. Afraid to ask them? Just say "Look, I don't know if I can wait that long. What do you guys have here in that color?" You might be able to save some money (I save 6%) just by taking a Clubman off the lot. What did I sacrifice? Color (I wanted Hot Chocolate, but ended with the exact colors you're getting) for one. Not a huge deal since I had a few color combos I liked. Worth the money I saved to me personally. I also sacrificed the Xenon headlights. I wanted them and could have got them, but then I would have had to slide down my color list one more spot and this time the color won out. I did gain white turn signals. Anyway, point is that I saved 6% by taking a brand new car off the lot (and that's 6% off the sticker of the car on the lot, slightly more actually off the price of what my build would have been as my build had Xenons). Essentially when I get my sales tax back next year I will have got an S with all the options (minus the Xenons) that I wanted in it for the price of a non-S with the same options. Literally the exact same. For you I'm thinking that with the color you've chosen and the little that you're looking to put into the car you could find a car on the lot in that color with some/all of those options and more and save some $$$.

3 Do you need the Limited Slip Differential? Again, I'm not a total "car guy" in some ways. Also, I have an automatic and I still haven't broken her in. Still I drive pretty fast on the freeway and when I read up on the Limited Slip Differential it sounds like something you'd really only need if you're Speed Racer or you're planning on racing it, literally. Just a thought as the car already handles quite well and the money could be saved or go elsewhere.

4 Do you really need the Comfort Access System??? This seems like an odd addition for someone trying to save some money. The only point I can see in getting it is that you lock your keys in your car a lot. You get a second key though so I don't see the point. Afraid of scratching your car? The key is round and you just push a button to open it.

5 You should really do in this forum some reading on the Hi-Fi sound system. Most of what I've read hasn't been positive (in that they say it's not that great). You already seem to know how good/bad it is. I understand your point about the after market install, but again, read this forum (do a search or flat out start a new thread) and see what others have to say.

So let's say you lose the Limited Slip Differential, the Comfort Access System and the Hi-Fi sound system. Total savings: $1500. NOW, take that $1500 and turn it into $1750. How? Lose the leather multifunction steering wheel. Now hold on John, I know what you're thinking. Just give me a minute. So total savings: $1750.

NOW, time to pump that $1750 back into the car. Get the Premium Package. You get your steering wheel back, you get the panoramic sunroof and you get automatic AC. Cost: $1250. That leaves you with $500 left. Get the Xenons. If you're in the mountains they'll light up the road so you don't hit any mountain goats. Seriously though, while I won't lose sleep over them (I drive freeways largely and live in the city), I do wish I had them and if I lived out in the country more I'd likely have gone for the car that had them.

Anyway, just some thoughts as I've crunched the numbers a number of times in my head. Everyone's ideal Mini is their own though and you have to get what you want, so please just take this as a suggestion and not a critique of your build. I got some great advice on this forum though and some of that advice helped me decide what I truly wanted.

 

BLAUGRANA,

Thanks for all your insight and good advice.

Honestly not having the LSD would leave me always wondering plus @ $500 it's a no-brainer performance upgrade....I live in western NC, very close to the Dragon and many more great highways....and I'll be drivin em quite a bit.
I cant imagine having an AT in a car like this. It seems it would take away from the fun driving performance although my wife and I test drove both and she liked the AT.

Ive never liked the way Xenon lights look comin from behind me so I dont want to be that person. (Just my pref)

For a car with push start ignition I think comfort access is a must. I hate always fumbling with my keys...i'll have my hands full and I gotta somehow get my keys outta my pocket and press the damm lil button (very helpful in the rain?)....if I didnt have comfort access wouldnt I have to keep my keys in the slot in the dash?...even if I didnt, its worth it to me to have one less thing to deal with (it has always really annoyed me) AND theres the "cool" factor that I like and Im banking so will a prospective buyer in a few years.

Have always had an aversion to sunroofs. Even if you can shut them and keep the light out they always seem to leak in cold in the winter and heat in the summer so that canceled out the premium package for me. Although I do like the auto AC I think Id rather have the Hi-fi sound or LSD. The multi function wheel is a no-brainer as you have to have it to have cruise control.
I can understand what you mean about the Premium Pkg though the way you have it set up I'm losing things I want and gaining things I dont.

I guess what you said says it all ....."Everyone's ideal Mini is their own though and you have to get what you want". The only thing I may have remorse about at this point is the Hi-fi sound. It really isnt that great and maybe I should have gone aftermarket...though its too late now. All in all Im sure I'll be happy for the most part and I cant wait till it gets here!

 

Mike1968NM,

Thanks for the heads up on the tinting. Though my rep said I could get it done for $125, from what Ive been reading here it seems its gonna cost 2-250 for decent quality materials & installation. Im certainly going to get it done...its a no-brainer.

Yeah, thanks for all info on the roof rails but I guess what it comes down to is that I'm just not a fan of how they look. I am getting the base rack system however and an inexpensive cargo rack and net attachment from Cabela's of all places (basically so I can carry a roof bag) and eventually Im going to get a hitch w/bike attachment but that'll have to wait a while.

Ive already looked at the xtended service contract and I think youre right...looks overpriced. Ya know, the hardest part in all of this is: THE WAIT!

 

John,

That's what is nice about the choices and ordering. With other cars, sometimes you do not have that option! The roof rails we like alot. I guess it is because it looks sort of like a "mini Liberty" like my wife's. We will use them far more than the rack and I like the ease of it.

My wife had a while regular mini yesterday and was so happy with the S version and with the stick. We were on the fence with the auto but holy crud the hill assist really does work as advertised. For me it took a bit getting used to as I typically only drive manual transmissions and have no issues on steep hills whatsoever. But let me tell you, I have no earthly idea how the thing works but it does! Nice feature....

Yup the wait stinks...I went through this with my 2005.5 Jetta TDI when they were first produced. I saw the car at an auto show and knew I had to have it. Let me tell you I hated the wait. Had a friend who I met via the forums who helped me track it day by day and it got nervewracking. Glad I got that one though.

I have had a few folks comment on the MINI at work. They all want to get a ride in it although I have not brought it there yet as it's the wifes . I will try to get it rebadged on Thursday and will take it to work then...hehehe.....

Just keep singing the "Heinz" them song...."Anticipation....its making me wait....LOL"....

 

Well ...we've all had to wait for things eh? A favorite movie of mine is "A Family Thing". In it, Robert Duvall talks about a simpleton he knew from his small southern hometown. While he may not have been the brightest person ever, he had once told him... "Happiness is just having something to look forward to."

I've always thought there was a lot of truth to that, though if I had my way I'd sometimes willingly shorten the length of all that happiness.

 

John,

I will have to watch that movie....great quote and there is a lot of truth in that! My wife is loving her mini! Hopefully she will let me drive it on Friday.....LOL......