Dont let the missus know, but...

[euan]

Well, having got the diesel letter I thought I'd pop into the dealer at the weekend and see what it was like. Kind of got side tracked into sitting in an S. Then pricing one. Then driving it again. And remembering why I wanted one so badly last summer.

So I had a quiet call to my broker, and the sums work for buying the car. I posted on the insurance question to see my reply, but ended up getting a quote for only 200 quid more.

I specced it up, what do we think of the following? Any S owners want to comment on what they think is missing or I should consider?

IB/W, with stripes, blue interior
Chilli Pack
CD changer (taking it out of mine), leave standard WAVE unit in
Auto air con
heated jets and washers
MFSW
TLC

Under consideration...
HK stereo
Visability pack

What do we all think? Should I do it, or keep the Cooper and consider "tweaking" it?

[Julz]

Euan, one of my now biggest regrets (so it's not very big considering how much I love my car) is not getting the full black leather interior! It looks really good with the IB and EB!! As for the viz pack, I've not seen the heated front windae but I don't like how you can see the wee lines in fords!!:eek:
But ib with stripes would look fandabbydozie!!:p

[Mr P]

Euan,
I am staying away from the dealers for the very same reason!:eek:
Threw my Mini D letter in the bin as i just know if i was anywhere near a dealer i would place an order for an S:p
Havent even driven one for the very same reason.
Must say though i am interested in the numbers of your deal as i know your current car and think it had pretty much the same spec as mine - other than the bonnet stripes.
Did you get a fair trade in and / or any discount:question:
Whats the current waiting time:question:

[euan]

Figures, I can give you ball parks next week once I have finalised it all at the weekend, but the costs are pretty minimal per month (extra 10-15 a month). Biggest jump is insurance, but I managed to get that down to 549 (instead of 380 on the Cooper). In terms of delivery, I get it in the last week in July, it was possibly ear marked for the showroom but he has given it to me instead. Which I thought was pretty decent of him!

[euan]

Well, the deal is done - my S is due for delivery on the 21st July. It's getting built on the 14th July! Went for Electric Blue at the end of the day - always liked it and it's my favourite S colour. Would have done an indi but thought that seeing as I already own an IB/W with stripes, the S should at least try and look a bit different! My current debate is around stripes...As the car will have a white roof will viper stripes work? I've seen some pics on Mini2 of an EB/W with fat viper stripes that I like, but not 100% convinced. If I find the link I'll post it, but what do we think?

[Gismo]

For what it's worth and it usually aint much, i don't think viper stripes would work with a different roof colour than the body, however, have you considered this??
Change the colours around, so on the body use (for example only, choose any other colour you want) white and then on the roof use the body colour. Now, that in my mind is worth seeing ;)

By the way, i would have went for an IB "S", that colour is awesome

Bonnie Scotland

[euan]

Funnily enough, the dealer suggested that. I'm not sure just how it would look, might try and see if anybody else has done it. My concern is the match of the colours, EB is quite a metallic paint if you know what I mean, IB would be easier to match. Also, the last time eastern fitted viper stripes it took them 2 days....I think I'd get killed if I got them to fit them.

And yes, I love IB, and I will miss my IB Cooper, but if I did not get IB I'd regret it.

[Woz]

Have you though of having an EB roof as well. Saw a pic of a full EB s the other day and it looked very nice. The viper stripes would not be an issue then.

[euan]

Can I just apologise for my horrific use of capitals in this post? I've re-read my last one and keep using IB and I am getting EB...

I thought of getting an EB roof, but to be honest I prefer my Mini to have the different roof colour. It makes it more Mini, if that makes any sense at all.

[Linda M]

Nice colour choice Euan :cool::D As for the stripes, that's up to you :)

[Mr P]

Hi Euan,
Was that you i saw coming out of Eastern on Friday afternoon:question:
Hows the order coming along:question:

Got my girlfriend drunk on Sat night and managed to convince her that taking an S out for a test drive (hopefully for a weekend) is a good idea.

RSVP

George

[euan]

Could very well have been me - I was in for a look at the Z4 and to drop off some paperwork for my S order. What were you in?

[Mr P]

You are right on the money ...... wasnt in my Mini but my horrible Ford Focus. Z4 is v nice indeed , was in having a look at it as i was having my tyres changed next door. Im off to test an S at 3pm this afternoon!!
Just need to see how the figures work out and i may place an order when i get back from me hols .
Off to Florida on Friday!!

George

[Big Col]

Holidays to Florida! Possibly buying a CooperS and a girlfriend that he can get drunk and manipulate. Some guys have all the luck!

[euan]

So, how did you get on with the S???

And, was it Bills EB/W with the R90s on it? It so, what did you reckon to the look as it pretty much exactly how mine will look when I get it (Viper stripe debate aside)

I am seriously toying with the R90s, but can somebody tell me - are they 16 or 17?

[KenL]

Euan - you lucky man.

Are R90 those fancy jobs - multi-spokes with spilt rims that cost ~£2k? Pretty sure they're 17" They look amazing but could be tough to keep clean.

Did Eastern offer you a decent trade in Euan? How long have you got to wait?

You said you're considering the HK, I "think" you need to spec the boost with it so ends up pretty pricey although I hear it's excellent.

On the colour EB is very nice, I really like it but I probably just prefer it with black roof. No offence meant to Linda and Julz of course. :p:D

[sh@z]

R90's would be a pain i guess with the amount of brake dust that comes of the mini's... :)...

But they do look the part :)

EB is also v nice :)

[euan]

Yeah, thats my main issue with the R90s. They look great but will be a NIGHTMARE to keep clean. Mind you, a light coating of wax should make it a bit more bearable.

Ken, I got a good trade in deal (well, as good as you get from a Mini/BMW dealer) but enough to make it worth changing. And I did not order the HK - I drove my Cooper to Yorkshire at the weekend and decided that I did not need anything better.

And the white roof thing - I've said it before, but to my mind, if you have a MINI Cooper, you kind of have to have a white roof.

[Mr P]

Well............took the E/B S with the R90s for a two hour thrash down to West Linton and then over the back roads to Peebles:evil:
Thought the car was superb and quicker in all the places the Cooper is lacking.Only one niggle , the car seems to 'snake' slightly form side to side under heavy braking:( Any other S owners felt this:question: I was pushing the car pretty hard but i dont get this in my Cooper when its pushed just as hard. Thats the only gripe though!
Bill said i could substitute the 8 Spoke wheels that come with the car for the R90s and i would pay the difference:)
Yea , they would be a nightmare to clean but this would be more than compensated for by the looks. They look soooooooooo good and would definitely get then on a new car.
Need to take my car in after i come back from me hols and see how much of a pittance they are prepared to offer me:(
If its crap i may wait a while or look at a good second hand model. Colour would need to be dark metallic silver with a black roof and bonnet stipes:D
Anyone got such an example that they may consider selling:question:

[Gismo]

You will get the snaking effect, it's good fun though

Bonnie Scotland

[Mr P]

Am i right in thinking that as the car is stopping quickly the supercharger cant slow down at a similar rate and thats whats causing this?

[euan]

I'd be interested in the deal you get for your 8 spokes, as I'll be doing the same thing if I go for the R90s...

[Gismo]

quote:Originally posted by Mr P

Am i right in thinking that as the car is stopping quickly the supercharger cant slow down at a similar rate and thats whats causing this? The supercharger will be spinning at the same relative rate as the engine cause they are both driven off the same belt.
I would reckon it's due to a very light rear end trying to get past the front, but i'm only guessing.

Bonnie Scotland

[sh@z]

seems like a pretty good guess to me....

[Mr P]

[quote]Originally posted by euan

I'd be interested in the deal you get for your 8 spokes, as I'll be doing the same thing if I go for the R90s...

Euan , perhaps we should find out what the list price is for the 8 spokes.I would expect to pay the difference between this and the list for the R90s. If they wont play ball with this im sure i could find a dealer that would.
Noticed in Auto Express this week the nice 18" alloys featured on the 3.0L Z4 they tested are only £1,400 !!
Wonder if they would fit??????

[KenL]

I think from memory the 17" s-spokes are £135 each inc VAT.

On the snaking thing I thought that the EBD would help prevent this by providing more braking force to the rear wheels so the car stands on it's nose less under heavy braking.

[Monsta Mo Mini]

Hi Ken. Where have you been hiding? ;)

[Mr P]

So ...... any anyone know the difference between the kerb weights of the Cooper and the S:question:
Had a look at the technical spec on the official site but alas no weights listed.
As both cars have the same brakes i would suspect the S must quite a bit heavier to cause this snaking effect.
Its not that bad but it didnt give me the same confidence under braking that the Cooper gives ,still going to buy one though!

[KenL]

quote:Originally posted by Monsta Mo Mini

Hi Ken. Where have you been hiding? ;)


I've been on my hols in the Algarve. It was great apart from only seeing one MINI in two weeks.

I hope you all had fun on the Perthshire run - pics looked great and a big turn out too.

[euan]

Ken, where were you on holiday in the Algarve? I was there in April for a week.

[KenL]

I was in a cracking small resort called Alvor. It's between P. da Rocha and Lagos.

Where were you and were you playing golf? I wasn't but planning a week there with my mates next year.

[euan]

We were based in Albuferia, but in a quiet part! We hired a Clio and went exploring all over the Algarve and spent not a lot of time in Albuferia. Went up into the hills - some spectacular roads up there and was wishing for Mini...

I wasn't playing golf this time, but have done in the past. I've only played at Vale Do Lobo, which was a great place to play golf in the summer, the 16th hole is fantastic! Par 3 over the cliffs - takes a brave tee shot!

[KenL]

I've been to Albufeira too and really liked it.

Ah, you're a golfer then. Where do you play? I'm a member at Haddington, got an 11 hcp which is creaping up at the mo.

I've played one round at the Alto Golf Club which is close to Alvor. Pretty nice course apart from it claiming to have the longest par 5 in Europe at ~670yds !!!

[euan]

I've not been playing in Edinburgh much at all. A friend of mine is a member at Luffness where I've played a few times, but mostly I play at Newmacher (outside Aberdeen) where I used to be a member with my Dad and brother. As for handicaps - I'm blooming awful but enjoy the game. I'm just not very consistent.

[KenL]

I've played at Luffness a couple of times as a colleague is a member. Fantastic course but the clubs a bit stuffy for me.

Anyway this thread should be about your S !!!

[euan]

Speaking of the S - got the insurance sorted today...Esure had previously said that they would not cover me on an S as I was under 30 (I'm 27), however a very helpful girl today checked with the management and they will as I am an existing customer! Superb! And it's cheap, only an extra 160 over my Cooper. So very happy indeed. Now I just need the car....3 weeks and counting...