OK, I made the big mistake (according to the light of my life) of going down today and test driving a Cooper S. Uh...oh....

The car just begged to be pushed. My MA granted some "latitude" and I got a feel on some twisty roads. We were on a freeway for just a little bit. The car didn't seem overly noisy at freeways speeds. My long legs loved the room. The tester had 16" wheels and no sport suspension. The ride was alright, just stay away from them pot holes.

I am leaning toward the S with 16" Wheels, DSC, Limited Slip.

A couple of questions for the long time owners. How is the Mini on a long drive? I would like to use it to make some road trips but am still a little concerned that noise and ride may be a bit too harsh for the long runs. The MA said that he thought getting the Sport Suspension with the 16" was the best combination when it came to cruising. That seems odd. The "tight" steering was lovely on the twisties. Does it become a burdon when you want to cover some miles for a few hours?

Yea, I have the bug. I have been lurking here for a bit and love the pure motorheadness of the Mini folks. Thanks.

 

Well, I drove 3K miles from VA to CA on the way home. (17" rims)
Did a 2.5K mile trip with the wife - CA-MT-WA-CA. (16" rims)
A few 9 hour drives to Vegas and back. (1 each 16", 17")

Haven't put it up for sale yet...

'04 MCS, sport suspension

 

I have put 4000 highway miles on my mini in the last 2 months. Trips ranging from 1500 to 300 miles. I am just as if not more comfortable in the mini then i was in my previous car (fullsize truck). And it certainly is a whole lot more fun and engaging. Its a drivers car, if you like driving you will love driving the mini.

 

The day I picked up my "used" '07 (it had 1300 miles on it) I drove it 600 miles home on freeways/interstates and any fears I had on how comfortable it would be for long drives vanished (and that is with sport suspension and 17" wheels). For a tight car it is very comfortable at speed for long distances holds the road well, only moderate noise, great power - and don't forget fun.

 

I've done quite a few 2 to 4 hour road trips in my '07 MCS and must say I am more comfortable sitting in these MCS seats than I was in my '03 F-150 Supercrew Lariat. I force myself to use the cruise control because 110 mph doesn't feel much different from 80 mph in this thing! (I am in Germany so no replies about irresponsible driving please...)

I also like it because it limits the amount of buying my wife can do on shopping trips too.

 

Duuuude Eric, if it's taking you 9 hours to get to Vegas, you gotta stomp on the gas pedal a little more!

In the past year I've done 2 RTs to Vegas (7.5 hours, 7 hours, 7 hours, and 6.5 hours) and one to Phoenix (9ish hours I think) and numerous 3-4 hour drives. I have an R50 but it has sport suspension and 16-inch wheels and the ride is fine. I would recommend replacing the runflats with non-RFs for a more comfortable ride, but for a road trip it's also nice to have the safety - your call.

I LOVE road tripping in the MINI and can't wait for the summer when I will drive to Wisconsin (3kish each way) and back to visit my family.

 

I had a R50 with Sport Suspension. I have driven a R56 without Sport Suspension and the ride was much better. That in mind I would say that the R56 would be a better choice for long distance drives.

 

I have the sport suspension.
It drives effortlessly for long trips.
Very smooth ride.

I have not yet taken a long long trip.

The feet are a little cramped with 4 ppl.

 

I drove mine 1000 miles in one day --- it's almost 8 months old and has almost 22,000 miles on it. And I didn't drive it much for 2 of those months...
I'm used to long distance motorcycle touring (Iron Butt Association) though.

 

Last month I drove down to Florida from NY. Many people had told me the car sucked during the long haul. Was not the case. Maybe the previous gen is worse is this aspect. Don't know. I had zero issues. I have LSD and Sport suspension.

FYI....on the way back I made it from Florida to NY in 13 hours and averaged 34mpg doing it. Who can complain about that?

 

Road trips are one of the main reason I ordered a Clubman - just a bit more cargo room and slight increase in wheelbase should kick up the "road-trip-ability" of the Coop. I still got sport suspension with 17's though so that will rough up the ride a bit.

 

MINIs are AWESOME on road trips!!!! You'll have the time of your life.



Donna

 

3 Mini's later (2xR53 1xR56) I can say the R56 is a very nice car for road trips whereas the R53 was far less so. New seats, suspension, platform and drivetrain makes for a very liveable long-distant car. As nice as several of the BMW's I have driven in the last 2 decades. Mileage is great too.
Good luck.

 

the War Party and i (read wife and I) have over 15000 on our 2007 (purchased in may) and have done a ton of driving up and down the eastern seaboard and i can say its a great cruiser and ours does not have cruise.... very easy to drive at speed and comfortable.... here in italy it cruises at about 100 mph easily so... yea it travels well!

 

As long as you have cruise control... ...should mention that.

 

I'm not sure how you qualify "long" drive but I drove my MCS (17" wheels and sports suspension) nonstop from the dealership to my home, 270 miles. It was quite a comfortable ride...albeit all interstate. I didn't notice any excessive noise and the ride was smooth, other than the obvious rough parts of the road.

 

I have only driven on two hour or shorter trips but is acceptably comfortable and keeps the driver involved. But IMHO, our 3 series BMW is quieter and more comfortable on a longer trip and gets basically equivalent fuel economy. The main distraction on long trips is the poor stereo and the wind noise over the sunroof.

 

If you choose an R56 don't get the sport suspension for the highway. However for road trips the R55 is really good with the sport suspension. Overall the Clubman is a much smother ride. If the roads you drive are on the newer smoother side the Coupe will feel more stable at speed. The "wheel hop" is much less pronounced in the Clubman. If you're the kind of person who can't live without a sunroof you probably will love the compromises of the Clubman design. The Coupe's tighter 'round the bends for sure.

 

...as a matter of fact, I can't wait for the first weekend (overnight) road trip this spring. I'm planning one right now.

 

What a great gang on this site. Thanks for the responses.

 

Honestly, the MINI is the best road trip car I've ever had. Ruska has been from KC to San Francisco and back with no problems. Great gas mileage, including some beyond the posted limits put the miles behind you trips through Nevada (rocks...rocks..and more rocks). The longest we've been on the road in it is 10 days and we loved every minute of it.

I have the sport suspension + 17'' run flats. It can be a touch rough, but I've heard that the switch to non RF's makes all the difference. I wouldn't trade a spirited trip through the rockies for a smoother ride any day though!

 

I went on my 1st road trip last week - from Michigan to Georgia - and it was great. On the 2nd day, I spent 11 1/2 hours behind the wheel, and didn't even offer to let my wife drive! (She complained on the way back, so I let her drive for few hours... sucks being in the passenger seat!)

In 30 years of driving, I have NEVER wanted to drive a vehicle for that long. It was effortless, and the drive through the mountains in Virginia was awesome!

 

We put over 1000 miles on ours the three days after we left the dealership. My wife and I have made a trip to Austin, TX, about 8 hours each way. With the seats down the car holds more than enough stuff for two people for a week. I think it is more comfortable than my Subaru Outback Wagon which is what we used to use for long trips.

One more thing, trips tend to be longer in the MINI than in other vehicles. I no longer look for the shortest route. I look for the route with the funnest roads. We managed to drive to Austin without driving on the freeway until we got to Waco.

 

My wife was concerned about the roadtrip ability of the MINI until we made a couple. Now her Maxima stays home and the "coop" gets to go on vacation!
I look forward to long roadtrips now where I used to dread them.

17" wheels\runflats with sport package... potholes jar the teeth a bit but I wouldn't trade it.

 

I love your spousal term of endearment. Mine is "adult supervision" or "the authorities."

We did three hundred interstate miles after taking delivery with lots of speed variations, shifting, and short stops.

I'm lobbying hard to make our Texas to Colorado trip a MINI road trip. We would definitely need to learn to pack light,and I'm not certain our eight-year old daughter is ready for the confinement of the back seat. We'll see.

Other factors may come in to play by summer. C'mon $5.00 per gallon gas!!!