Cooper SD.. Clubman or Countryman?

[gregd]

I'm in the market for a more economical second car.. Needs to have a backseat, be fun to drive and, sadly, as economical as possible.

The current Mini 50 / 50 offer looks appealing and I'm interested in the Clubman and Countryman (2WD as the 4WD isn't in the offer) in Cooper SD versions.

Any opinions from owners etc on either car would be most welcome. Also suggestions for any other contenders (one series diesels, Fabia VRS/Polo GTi etc) would be great. Are there any appealing 0% type finance deals out there on anything interesting?

Thanks muchly!

[nickfrog]

Not sure what's appealing on the 50/50 deal, you get 2-years "free" finance on half the capital outlay but you don't get any discounts nor this is available on the discounted pre-reg cars.

[jonnydrama]

You can get discount, 50-50 is just a finance option.

I've personally got discount on my MINI that's on 50-50, I was also offered discount on an M3 financed the same way.

[gregd]

Sorry, yes I should have clarified. You can get discount as well as the 50/50.. circa 8-10% by the looks of it.

[nickfrog]

Guys, apologies, I had no idea. So if 50/50 comes on top of any discounts then it's brilliant. I suppose they hammer people on part-ex after two years as most buyers might fancy something new rather than pay the 50% balance.

[Miglia 888]

Former classic Mini owner and Mini Miglia racer, with two new MINI's - a One D Clubman for the wife, and a Cooper SD Convertible for me.

With the longer wheelbase improving the ride and adding lots of useful extra rear legroom and space, the Clubman was the only sensible choice for us to fit the rest of the family inside at the same time comfortably.

We love the Clubman splitdoors and their remote open facility, and we love the clubdoor being on the drivers side - it's so convenient for dropping your stuff in behind your seat when getting into the car, and my 6ft teenage son can also get out from behind me, without me having to leave or even move my seat!

We've done long weeknds away with all four of us and our luggage comfortably, thanks to selecting the no-cost two seat rear seat option, for maximum rear seat comfort.

Resist sports suspension and big alloys imho, they handle more than well enough as standard. We exchanged the 17" alloys that came with the Chili pack on the SD, for smoother riding 16" alloys & tyres plus £400 of accessories from the dealer to make up the difference, and got a good discount on top of that, and all on the 0% 50/50 deal.

Whatever you do, don't select run-flat tyres which ruin the ride, are heavy, noisy, tramline, skitter over bumps, and are altogether awful...

The Cooper SD is plenty fast enough at around 8 secs to 60, for something that also averages well over 60mpg if you want/need it to, and still does 40mpg even if you drive it like its stolen.

The Countryman is heavier, slower, less economical, and er... a bit ugly, imho.

Make sure you test drive both before deciding, and then order the Cooper SD Clubman to really enjoy your driving!

[gregd]

Many thanks for that Miglia, really helpful post. Having seen the Clubman and Countryman today I actually quite like them both. The former will undoubtedly be more fun to drive, the latter marginally more spacious. The rear door does look workable, although I did wonder if rear passengers would trip over the seat belt!

The dealer seems to think the 50-50 offer may extend to the special edition Hampton model Clubman and the 4WD countryman models even though the website suggests otherwise so we are no nearer making a decision.. Will get a testdrive of both sorted and take it from there..

I liked the look of the John Cooper Works Clubman S they had (I had the BMW Mk1 Mini version Works) but I can't get the reduced MPG past the Mrs!

[mike9009]

I also own a clubman s. So far finding it really good. I have not tripped over the seat belt!

I did test drive the countryman too. It does provide that extra bit of space, but i found the performance was more muted. It handled 'well' but i found the ride was horribly compromised as a result. ( might have been our local roads, which made my decision easier)

We have managed a weeks holiday to devon, with our two year old and associated gubbins in the clubman. I might also look into a roofbox just to give a little more versatility.

Mike

[Sam.F]

I had a go in a mate's SD Clubman recently, nice car, plenty fast enough (a little too easy to go silly speeds without noticing on the motorway!) and plenty of room.

The Countryman is rather horrible IMO. Doesn't look all that great, stupidly-designed handbrake and they've given it exactly the same engines as the hatch so the performance is a bit, erm, "blunted" compared to the standard car. I had a Cooper D Countryman as a courtesy car last year and found it worryingly slow in fact! Plus the bluff shape significantly impacts upon fuel economy.

[Bungleaio]

I'm liking the sound of the SD. I currently have an R53 and even though I've got it to 30mpg average I'm putting a lot of fuel in it, I did 800 miles last week.

The countryman is awful though, it has to be the clubman.

[Loui]

Sd clubman if you want it to a drivers car IMO. Countryman is good but far to sensible and grown up to be a real drivers car. And any dealer offering 8-10% off needs a kicking

[gregd]

Thanks guys. I'm told the 50/50 also applies to the All4 version of the Cooper SD so that's another option. As is the Hampton special edition Clubman.. More choices to think about. If it were me I'd have the petrol John Cooper Works S Clubman in a heartbeat, but I think the realistic MPG for this will not be great

[Park'O]

gregd said:

Having seen the Clubman and Countryman today I actually quite like them both.

The Countryman has gone down a storm in the US. It's the new fashion thingy to have! Saying that, the Yanks have zero taste!

I must say, it looks ok in black on black! Hides the hideousness, plus if your to sacrifice performance for MPG then you at least want it to look cool!!!

I think the WRC version has inspired many to purchase the Countryman S but, if it's economical your after then the 1.6 Cooper D is impressive, producing 118 CO2 and 70mpg. Push it hard all day and you'll probably see back 40mpg.

Alternatively for the best of both worlds, may I suggest a VW Scirocco 2.0 TDI Bluemotion.

Edited by Park'O on Friday 24th February 11:18

[gregd]

The Countryman is definitely an acquired taste. The WRC factor may well help win people over as you say. Most I see seem to be white with a black roof/black alloys but all black looks good too and hides the bulk.

Scirocco diesel is on my list to look at as is the Golf GTD and BMW 1 Series (although I only really like the look of this in coupe guise). The 50/50 finance on the Mini does make it a better bet than the other contenders at the moment.. I may have to go down the second hand route to jump to the Golf/Scirocco.

Any other suspects I should be checking out?

[Park'O]

gregd said:

Any other suspects I should be checking out?

Audi A1 ?? Never been in or driven one but, apparently there as big as an A3 inside?!