Newbie - quick question

[woza]

hey guys, im in the market for a cooper s, preferably the older model. just wondered what all the different model types were and what performance is like? have driven one before but only at very low speeds!! whats petrol etc like? and 0-60 etc etc

Thanks in advance

Woza.

[fergy]

Go to ww.mini2.com and do a search and you'll find loads of info...

[jolly]

woza said:

hey guys, im in the market for a cooper s, preferably the older model. just wondered what all the different model types were and what performance is like? have driven one before but only at very low speeds!! whats petrol etc like? and 0-60 etc etc

Thanks in advance

Woza.

Hello mate.

This might get quite long, but bear with me, it might mean you wont have to spend ages searchin on mini2.com. Which by the way is a great resource for the new MINI (both the R50/53 and the 'new' new MINI, the R56)

The Cooper S does not have different models as such, the model is in effect a Cooper S. This is the same with the ONE D, ONE and Cooper. They are not like other cars where you have L, LX, SX etc.

HOWEVER this is not the end of the matter, as MINI offered various packs which up the spec of the car. In your case as you are in the market for a Cooper S you will only need to concern yourself with the Chilli pack (although I have included details on the Pepper Pack, because I'm not sure if it was an option on the earlier S models, it isn't now though). To be honest though you only should be bothering with a car that has the Chilli pack, or future re-sale may be more difficult...

In a nutshell the Pepper Pack consisted of the following.

Chrome line exterior
Front fogs
Interior light package
Cooper S steering wheel (same as the normal one, but with thumb grips)
Passenger seat height adjustment
Radio boost (although mine has the H/K sound system so kind of irrelevant)
Storage compartment package
Trip computer (mpg, average mpg, range, average speed etc etc)
Velor floor mats

The Chilli Pack consists of all of the above, but with the following additions:

Cloth / Leather combination for the upholstery
Sports seats
Upgrade to Xenon headlights with washers
3 spoke sports steering wheel instead of the standard Cooper S wheel
Manual air conditioning

But the packs do not completely limit the specs, pretty much every MINI is different! There are so many different spec combinations its very rare that two MINI's leave the factory with an identical spec.

Its also worth pointing out that depending on the age of the car the Chilli pack does not include air conditioning, so if thats something you want, make sure that the car has it. The earlier models with the Chilli pack did not come with air con as part of the deal, it was up to the original owners to fork out the extra ££'s. It was added into the pack at a later date though, so just check.

Performance Wise

As you mentioned you were after a R53 supercharged model, I wont mention the R56, which is turbocharged.

MINI2.COM said:

MINI Cooper S Technical Specifications

Engine: 1.6 litre, 4 cylinder/16 V

Max. output/hp/revs: 125 kW (170 hp) at 6000 rpm

Max. torque/revs: 220 Nm at 4000 rpm

Acceleration 0-100 km/h: 7.2 s [7.7]³

Top speed: 222 km/h [220]³

Acceleration 80-120 km/h (4th / 5th gear): 6.1 s / 7.7 s [n/a]³

Fuel consumption (urban)¹: 11.8 l/100 km [12.8]³

Fuel consumption (extra-urban)¹: 6.8 l/100 km [6.8]³

Fuel consumption (combined)¹: 8.6 l/100 km [9.0]³

I know that when the car was face-lifted the engine was given a touch more power, and those figures will be for the face-lift version. So for the 'old' figures you may need to do a search. But if you can I would go with a facelifted car because they made several esthetic changes and IMO it look a more polished car. ( were talking changes such as revised front and tail lamps and interior bits and bobs)

Hope this helps a little more.

Regards,

James.

[scotal]

Leading on form that a mate of mine has decided she needs a Mini Cooper, and I have to help her find it. Is there anything I should particularly look out for, and anyhting I should be wary of, or avoid when looking at MINIs? Are there any recognised faults?

[gonzales]

jolly said:

I know that when the car was face-lifted the engine was given a touch more power, and those figures will be for the face-lift version. So for the 'old' figures you may need to do a search. But if you can I would go with a facelifted car because they made several esthetic changes and IMO it look a more polished car. ( were talking changes such as revised front and tail lamps and interior bits and bobs)

Hope this helps a little more.

Regards,

James.

Wow J that is a lot of information there.

I have the R53 pre face lift model and the bhp is listed as 163 for this model, the power upgrade same about at the same time as the cabriolet to handle the folding roof. However as mine was previously a demonstrator it has all the bells and whistles it could ever need and is a fab car.

Woza: as far as you are concerned - list the features that you want and the price you want to pay and go searching. As J has said no two minis are ever the same, I have had mine for 18 months now and haven't seen another mini like it in that time. Go for a drive in a few, test out the supercharger, feel the leather and check for full service history and TLC- they really are fantastic.

Enjoy

[benny 2]

hi mate i used to have a mini cooper s when they first launched, and i loved it, i've currently got a 54 plate cooper s works, both of these cars are awesome and you will never get bored of the whine from the supercharger! or the way they handle corners, what i will say is if you can afford it go for the works model

[Shropshiremike]

I don't think you will be too disappointed if you get a s/c 'S' as compared to the new turbo one. Have got the old shape ( Sept 05 ) one and also had a test drive of the new one when it was launched.
My opinion was ( it's basically my wife's car ) that the new car rode better on 17s than ours does ( although we have 16s, found the s/c one very crashy on 17s ), has better brake "feel" and seats felt comfier to me.
Performance-wise there didn't seem to be much in it - the turbo installation is very good, the only time I noticed any lag was from about 50 in top gear - where our s/c one would surge forward immediately there was a slight pause with the new shape. I would definitely get one with a LSD if you can as that was the only difference I really noted with the new car ( was too early to have a LSD on ) - turn in felt much better on our old model which has it. Having said that I think a new one with a LSD would give the same feel.
Overall the new car felt just a bit more refined but as stated in the mags the old one has a bit more of a rawness about it that appeals to me in a hot hatch.
Only other thing is the fuel consumption - the new one is supposed to be a LOT better - talking to the sales guy at the launch of the turbo one, he reckoned he was seeing about 4/5 mpg more on the new one over the same route compared to a s/c one.
The s/c cars are very thirsty - my wife gets roughly the same mpg on her commute as she did in our 330i