I think my R56 is great because...

[KenL]

As promised this is the thread for "bigging up" your R56.

Feel free just to comment on the car's merits on its own or in comparison with other cars you have owned.

Please try and resist posting if you are not staying on-topic ;)

[The Dogfather]

As promised this is the thread for "bigging up" your R56.

Feel free just to comment on the car's merits on its own or in comparison with other cars you have owned.

I like both the S and the Clubman, one of which will replace the Vectra in good time. Love the lounge leather seats, very comfy...

[ajamesj]

I just love mine for the great fuel economy , cheap road tax and the built quality over my other mini is a vast improvement , loving the mood lighting just now when driving home from work at night its great. Will be back on again soon with more comments the list will be long totally lovin the experience so far.
Cant wait till spring so I can get her clean and a new set of alloys bought aswell as a few other styling mods watch this space saving hard at the minute

Andy

[N12 JLK]

Love our sports button and the power you get from the S. Car to us feels more grown up and comfortable. Looking forward to the launch of the JCW factory build model next year;).
Lesley just likes the speed of the car, looks like I may get that JCW afterall.

[KenL]

I have had my R56 since late July 07.

It has been a joy to own since day 1.

I really feel the R56 is the perfect car for me. I don't need room, but at the same time want a car which offers comfort as well as being sporty. This is where the R56 really scores. Even though I am on runflat tyres, the ride and compliance of the suspension is excellent. My last car was a mkV Golf, with sports suspension. This was a very able car and also very comfortable - the MINI offers pretty much the same ride comfort as this car. Compared to my 02 ONE, on 15" standard tyres, the ride quality is night and day. Hitting any bump in it was an uncomfortable experience with a lot of banging from the rear suspension. The ride was also very "jiggly" with road imperfections making things uncomfortable for passengers.

In terms of handling, I think the R56 is great. The greater compliance in the suspension makes it soak up mid-bend bumps better than the R50. It seems a bit "floatier" though, which can be a bit dis-concerting. I'm not one who really pushes a car, so I cannot really comment on the ultimate handling in comparison with the R50/53.

The seats in my CHILLI packed Cooper are excellent, very comfortable and supportive. Overall I really like the interior, the speedo is a bit of a joke due to the size of it, but since it houses the stereo controls, it is not that huge! I think that overall, the speedo etc. looks well integrated into the dash. The switchgear - another bone of contention for some - works fine for me.

I also like the indicators and wipers, they take some getting used to but work well. Not convinced they are any better than "traditional" ones though.

The R56 Cooper engine is great. Pretty powerful if you need a bit of go, also smooth and economical. Economy seems to have dipped a bit in the cold weather - anyone know if that is normal?

The hifi upgrade is really good. I know it is not the best for really heavy bass music, but if you keep the bass control position around neutral, it sounds great, and plenty loud enough, for my tastes.

Is there anything I don't like? I can't think of anything to be honest. Will update if anything comes to mind.

Problems:
One of the door sill strips was a bit buckled on delivery. This was due to a rubber bung on the bottom of the door not being pushed fully home.

Two "recalls" have been attended to. The fan fuse uprating and the alternator torque bolt.

I have two rattles that appear now and again in the dash. I have thought about getting them fixed, but to be honest, I am not sure it worth the risk of getting them fixed. The car could well come back worse from a dealer :eek:

On looks, I know the R56 has been controversial for some but I really like it. The facelift R50 looks a lot better than the early one I had, but I think, the R56 with its chunkier proportions really suit the car.
I've not got enough pics of it, here is one I took a few days after delivery: http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b196/klaidlaw1/IMG_3183.jpg

Mods:
I've not done much as I an not a big fan of mods, especially non-OEM. I have though, changed the side repeaters to chrome, factory aero-kit
ones. These look way better than the really cheap ones that come with the car. The R50 ones were also pretty cheap and I changed those when I had my ONE.

I have a chequered interior mirror cover, a subtle mod which I really like.

I have fitted S pedals, a really worthwhile mod, even though you can only see them when you open the door!

I think that's it, sorry if you fell asleep reading to the end of this post :D

[Craig]

Both of mine had great MPG

Also liked the Mood Lighting

:cool:

[The Dogfather]

Also liked the Mood Lighting

:cool:

That would be a great option, if the light in the car was red when you got picked up after a night you'd know to keep your gobshut.....:D

[ny152]

1) Cheap as chips to run - 60mpg and £35 a year tax (Coooper D)
2) More rounded and solid looking exterior than my r53 One D
3) Mood lighting - thought it was a gimmick at first but like it now. It's one of those 'mini' things. Mind you, it's got to be blue!
4) Fit and finish - feels really solid and no squeaks
5) Sporty feel - for a diesel it can certainly shift when needed
6) The exhaust pipe - doesn't point down the way like most diesels, so looks just like a normal cooper.
7) The integrated computer and radio display, really easy to use.
8) 3 click indicators - were a pain until I get used to them, now brilliant when changing lanes.
9) Good standard seats - the non sport seats on earlier MINI's were :(

Only downside I can think of is the slightly floaty handling and that it's lost some of the charm of my r53. But then again, you always love your first MINI :D.

A bit like Ken, the car suits me really well. It's just the right size and it's sporty (but also soooo economical). The most important thing is that whenever I get into it the whole experience seems special and brings a smile to my face.

[RyanK]

Anyone have a picture of this mood lighting?

I was behind a R56 the other day and it had blue neons in which seemed to be fitted above the seatbelt holder...is this the mood lighting?

Cheers

[AndyP & Lenore]

Ryan the mood lighting is the courtesy lights which drop down from the head mounted console, the wee lights above the seat belt holder and behind the door armrests. Using a toggle switch on the head mounted console you can change the colour or "mood" of light from blue to..... hmm. Not sure what the colours are. After 10 mins of playing with it you get fed up and we just leave it at blue now. But it is very nice in the dark.

A.:D

[jamesbeaumont]

R56 Cooper plus points:

Great build quality (for me anyway)
Fantastic ride, handling and grip
Looks great especially with the side repeaters ken mentioned
Brakes are strong and effective
Engine revs happily and pulls well
Economy is good for a petrol
Cruise control, stereo and DAB all worthwhile upgrades


Negative points:

Can understeer a bit
Runflats are pants
Brake dust!

I really love my MINI, cant wait to get it a little more power (panel filter due in the morning;) ) and more to come next year:D

[ianking]

I love the mood lighting, normally on blue but sometimes purple or if im feeling a bit camp it goes to pink, oh er.
I love the fact that it pulls so well in all the gears. I have driven supercharged Ss since geting my R56 and they didnt feel any where near as quick. Would have liked the supercharger noise though.
I like the 3 flash indicator, handy when changing lane. I like the way the engine bay doesnt need jet washed every other week like it did with my previous minis as they have re-designed the grill and headlights which stops all the dirt getting in.
Generally I like the feel and the finish of the car. I still really like the look of the previous mini though, particularly in red but I do like the R56.

[ajamesj]

In this weather My R56 doesnt seem to get as dirty at its rear like my old R53 . I still miss my supercharger whine though but you have to give and take something

[ianking]

Forgot to say, I love the fuel economy. I get the same from my R56 S as I did with my facelift Cooper. :D

[FergusM]

Well, things I love...

- In general the looks, especially with the JCW Aero Kit.
- Frameless doors.
- One touch indicators.
- Ability to customise it to have the features I want.
- Absolutely love the heated front windscreen, no need to scrape the windows :)
- Being able to control iPOD from the steering wheel.
- Stereo is fantastic (ok only after Mikey upgraded it)
- Fuel economy.

Don't like...

- Cost to customise it the way I want.
- Rattles from dash.
- Exhaust not tooo quiet for my liking.
- time it takes to clean the alloys !

[Duncan Stewart]

I'm not a R56 owner (yet ;) ) but recently had a Cooper out on a decent test drive and all we could say was WOW!
It drives great - smoother overall but the suspension was the biggest surprise. Our test drive car had 17inch wheels with run flats and the ride was better than my current Cooper (on 15s) but still felt as fun to drive.

I also found the new center section of the dash a big improvement. The current downtube things press into the side of my leg giving me a sore leg, in the R56 they slope away giving a much more comfortable driving position, I found.

The chunky R56 looks have also really grown on me, especially in Cooper form with a chrome grill and bonnet stripes

It also benefits from better fuel consumption (which all R56 owners seem to confirm) and lower road tax (with government threats of ever higher CO2 based taxes) than the previous Cooper.

They also had a lovely lightning blue, black leather, Clubman S in the showroom - very nice :D :cool:

I don't thank the R56 is a better or worse car overall than the previous new minis but for my needs and preferences I think it will be an improvement.

[KenL]

Come and join the club Duncan :)

Nice review BTW ;)

How did you find the performance of the R56 in comparison with your's?

[AndyP & Lenore]

We love our R56 because...

Going to try hard not to draw comparisons between the two vehicles, because that is the root of many of the "R56 is worserer then the R53" discussions.

The R56 is a nippy wee car. The engine feels fairly "loose" to me and gets up the rev range and speed range very quickly. You can feel the the car pulling and pulling, seemingly never running out of torque.

The seats are very comfortable. The interior design is pleasing to the eye, the sat nav set inside the speedo is a particularly nice touch.

It's a looker. We really love the look of the car. The aero kit in particular transforms the look of the car. And we love the wheels we put on. They are a b**** to clean, but still love them.

Love the hi-fi upgrade too. Sounds great to us. Probably the best sound system we've heard in a MINI TBH.

A & L.;)

[weefossy]

Can R55 owners join in on this thread???:p

[KenL]

Can R55 owners join in on this thread???:p

Why of course ;)

I never realised the Clubman had a different code.

It is just an R56 with longer legs really :D

[Duncan Stewart]

How did you find the performance of the R56 in comparison with your's?

I found the performance pretty similar, except a bit slower to pick up when first starting to accelerate which I think was probably due to the big heavy wheels, but a sport button might help too.

[Sheilz]

Ryan the mood lighting is the courtesy lights which drop down from the head mounted console, the wee lights above the seat belt holder and behind the door armrests. Using a toggle switch on the head mounted console you can change the colour or "mood" of light from blue to..... hmm. Not sure what the colours are. After 10 mins of playing with it you get fed up and we just leave it at blue now. But it is very nice in the dark.

A.:D

Are the moodlights standard on all cars or do you have to spec it? I've got mood lights in specy (off just now) and at night it freaks out other motorists a bit as they think its the police following them. Kind of handy too though because it makes overtaking them so much easier:D:D:D

[AndyP & Lenore]

Are the moodlights standard on all cars or do you have to spec it? I've got mood lights in specy (off just now) and at night it freaks out other motorists a bit as they think its the police following them. Kind of handy too though because it makes overtaking them so much easier:D:D:D

I think it's part of the Chilli pack in the R56 Sheilz. But as yours is an R50, you won't have mood lighting. That was a new thing for the R56.

A.

[zimbo]

Well the R56 has grown on me I must confess, so much so that I went to go and see about ordering one yesterday, but unfortunately between the amount the dealer offered me for my car and difference after the outstanding finance is paid off and how much the new monthly payments would be I just wont be able to afford it... So it looks like I'll be sticking with my ONE for a while yet then :(:rolleyes::D (will just have to do more mods to it instead then...):D

[Sheilz]

I think it's part of the Chilli pack in the R56 Sheilz. But as yours is an R50, you won't have mood lighting. That was a new thing for the R56.

A.

I do honest! I put it in myself. Nice little blue lights from Halfords. Cost the grand sum of £29! The previous ones I had were just as expensive:rolleyes::D:D:D