2010 Mini Cooper S: a Personal Review

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I, like many other MINI Cooper enthusiasts, became enamored by the vehicle with its simple, yet intriguing design lines and uniquely compact size (I attempted to avoid the word, “cute”, but that’s what I was really getting at).  It’s sort of like adding a peppy motor and four wheels to Kristen Bell.  I’m certain fans who saw the Mini Cooper grace the big screen in the The Italian Job (circa 1959 or 2003) echoed the same “cute” sentiment.  Time passed, and I would encounter more MINIs on the streets and highways here in Southern California—their respective owners were immediately met with my personal envy of wishing I was that owner.  Sort of like seeing that guy who’s currently dating your ex after she said she needed time away from a relationship to concentrate on other things (like not being with you apparently).  After subsequent visits to newly propped-up MINI dealerships, the car continued to peak my interest, but my hesitance to purchase the vehicle was substantiated by the fact that my wife and I had a child on the way.  I thought the MINI Cooper didn’t offer the most practical option for transporting a family.  Alas, the Cooper would have to wait.

Not too long later, my father would become an eventual owner of a bright red Cooper S with all the trimmings.  Being the only son in the family offers privileges, and one of those was an opportunity to at least test-drive his Cooper.  Imagine if I were the only son of a wealthy oil tycoon—“I’ll take a red one, a white one, and a blue one, dad.”  I was immediately drawn to the interior adorned with large circular gauges and toggle switches.  It was like BMW engineering meets Salvador Dali’s “Melting Clocks.”  Of course, driving the vehicle was a blast.  My father’s particular MINI was geared by an automatic CVT and I basked in the brisk acceleration as the supercharger sang high notes in unison to the beat of my foot on the accelerator pedal.  This was it, I had to get one.  I was ready to purchase a laser blue Cooper sans the S option.  The higher sticker price of the S combined with the compensation in mileage over performance did not make it my first option as a commuter car.  However, I couldn’t help, but remember the fun hearing that supercharger whistle when driving my father’s car.  I once again resisted and opted to purchase a condo instead.  I thought, “Housing first over stylish mode of transport.”  Good enough reason to pass it up; at least that’s what I told myself to ease the pain.

Four years later, I’m driving my little Japanese compact vehicle (a 09’ Nissan Versa), which wasn’t a bad car—a practical fuel sipper that did its job of scooting me along from A to B.  Sure, it was fuel-efficient and economical, but I longed for a more inspirational motoring experience.  I was afraid I was becoming a bit boring for my own taste in petrol chariots.  The last fun vehicle I remember owning was a 1996 Honda del Sol VTEC.  You could rev that silky engine up to its 7000rpm redline with relative ease.  Plus, the Japanese import racing scene was in full gear at the time, so a number of aftermarket companies offered a litany of Honda tuning parts for performance or aesthetic customization.  Around that time, I also had a turbocharged Honda Civic coupe, and recalled the lashing it gave my back against the car seat as the turbo spooled.  Forced induction is a beautiful thing.  Then I read that MINI Coopers are turbocharged now—marvelous!

I revisited the idea of driving a MINI and began diligently researching the option.  Actually, there was no due diligence whatsoever—drove by a billboard for a newly-opened MINI dealer one day and pulled right into customer parking—missed opportunities to own this car was research enough.  Besides, I felt I had read enough about MINIs the past few years to the point where I felt familiar enough with these machines.  Though a kick of the tires was pretty much all I needed, I felt the refinement of the current model (R56) over its predecessor (R53) during the test drive—most noticeably, it was a quieter ride compared to my father’s R53, but I cite the absence of the supercharger’s wailing as the primary reason for that.  I signed the check for the down payment, traded in my fuel sipper, and was merrily off with my automotive dream no longer deferred—a brand new MINI Cooper S in the hardtop flavor. 

I really like how MINI adopted the “evolution over revolution” objective when designing their cars.  It won’t make my MINI feel outdated when forthcoming model revisions get released (at least that’s what I’ll hope for when they do get released).  Plus, it retains its retro flair that MINI enthusiasts of all ages have come to appreciate.  On the Cooper S, distinguishing features include the hood scoop and the centrally-located dual tail pipes in the rear.  As opposed to the previously supercharged model, the hood scoop serves no functional purpose for the turbo, but it’s great at catching insects that would have otherwise shattered its exoskeleton all over the window. 

The new MINI is apparently a couple of inches longer than the previous model, but I reckon that the majority of MINI buyers don’t seek to purchase the vehicle with the sole purpose of lugging things around.  Trunk space is practically nil—all I have in there is my gym bag and nothing more.  As far as rear seating room for extra passengers go, I like what the 2006 MINI John Cooper Works GP edition did—remove them.  The best use I found for them was to provide a safe haven for my rented tuxedo for my buddy’s wedding.  The rear seats do fold down 50/50 split style, which was helpful when I decided to pay a visit to the driving range one Sunday afternoon.  However, I did take one glance at my golf bag and another at the trunk space and thought, “One 7 iron will do for today.”  I figured the Cooper’s lack of trunk space will force me to spend more time on one particular club a week, which could be good for my golf game.

I’ve read in other reviews that visibility can be an issue, but I’ve had no problems thus far peering around the pillars or rear window for making safe lane changes and backing up.  The same can be said for the side and rear view mirrors.  Sitting in the driver’s seat, I feel at home for a 5’7” Filipino male, so I’m not so sure about everybody else.  The seats feel fine and all ergonomic adjustments must be performed manually, which caught the ire of my father when he had a Cooper, but I didn’t see that as an issue.  Your eyes will immediately catch the large speedometer mounted in the middle of the dashboard, which would look at home right around Flava Flav’s neck.  All the toggle switches can make one feel that the car is loaded with high-tech gadgetry, but they control basic functions, such as windows, door locks, and interior lights.  You just have to remember that certain controls you may be accustomed to seeing near or on the driver side door are now at the lower portion of the center console, like the windows and door locks.  With some fidgeting, you’ll be able to set up the radio dials to tune in to your favorite stations, listen to a CD, and adjust the sound characteristics accordingly.  You do have to get used to the volume control knob being its own separate control, but like Beyoncé to Destiny’s Child, you’ll eventually think it was better off going solo anyways.

All other interior accoutrements work just fine.  Like most cars of today, all maintenance reminders, malfunctions, or other messages are reported to you electronically.  You can tailor the center gauge/tachometer to report information, such as the current outdoor temperature, time, speed, mileage, etc.  I particularly like how the car tells you how many miles you have until empty, and you’re no longer having to play the guessing game when the gas light appears.  On the topic of mileage, gas consumption is fine—MINI factory estimates show it gets about 26 mpg City and 35mpg Highway, which feels about right.  With the Cooper S, you do have to use premium octane, so feed the horse with the right oats.  I’ve come across other reviews expressing displeasure with the Start/Stop button to turn on the ignition, but you eventually get used to that as well.  Convenience package equipment works just fine.  Callers sound nice and crisp via the Bluetooth hands-free connection for mobile phones.  I’m still working on getting the universal transmitter located on the rearview mirror to work with my garage door opener, but it could be that my opener is just incompatible with the MINI transmitter.

On the Cooper S, a 1.6L twin-scroll turbocharged engine is used for more power and efficiency over the previous model’s supercharger.  The engine is mated to a 6-speed Getrag transmission, which makes shifting from gear to gear effortless.  Depress the gas pedal, and you’re immediately met by a rush of acceleration that is further accentuated with a simple touch of a sport mode button.  You can hear and feel the turbocharger spool up the rpm range to 6500 with no apparent lag.  The sound is coupled by a nice rumble from the exhaust, which almost sounds like an aftermarket system.  Steering is precise, and plowing into tight corners is no longer met with fear compared to some vehicles I’ve owned in the past.  The suspension offers the typical MINI go-cart feel, which taunts you to push it to the upper regions of its handling limits, especially with the inclusion of Dynamic Stability Control (DSC)—that is also controllable via a button press.  The stiffness of the suspension offers a little more bounce to the ounce than I’ve been accustomed to, but it’s tolerable.  My best example of its handling capability is taking a sharp left-hand turn at 50mph with a full cup of Starbucks in my stationary right hand, which didn’t leak a single drop (sorry I couldn’t give a more adrenaline-inducing example).  Unfortunately, I’ve experienced some torque steer issues under full throttle at times, but the car is front wheel drive so it’s not immune to that susceptibility.  In addition to DSC, a “hill assist” feature is helpful on steep inclines, since it applies the brakes for two seconds, allowing the car to remain stationary before the driver accelerates—very helpful for manual transmissions.  ABS is standard on the Cooper S, which easily brings the car to a halt.  For servicing this pocket rocket, you get a 3-year or 36,000-mile maintenance-free program compliments of BMW.

As far as accessories go, being the minimalist, I opted to take the car as is and only added some John Cooper Works alloys later on.  That’s the MINI me, but to make it the MINI you, there are a number of accessories you can get for the car.  Whether you go with the dealer or a third party retailer, you won’t be hard pressed to know that the Cooper can be customized to suit your taste with a number of performance, interior, exterior, audio accessories, or what have you.

After about 1,500 miles of ownership, you do start to experience some quirks and annoyances.  However, unlike my first 30 days of marriage, you eventually get over those minor things.  While I didn’t lose a drop of Starbucks during my adventures with the MINI’s handling, I certainly did with the cup holders.  Rubber stoppers outline the cup holders, which are useful in keeping drinks firmly positioned, but they work almost too well.  More often than not, I’ll try pulling a drink out of the cup holder while driving, only to find it firmly planted in the cup holder.  It’s as if the car is saying, “Get your hand off the latte and keep both hands on the wheel!”  Or I’ll try uprooting the drink from the holder, which results in the cup cover coming off and the drink splattering in all directions.  Turn signal controls could be a bit more user friendly as well, but it takes some getting used to.  I can’t count the times when I’ve finished changing lanes and ended up signaling in the opposite direction, forgetting to flip the turn signal handle in the same direction I was going or lightly in the opposite direction to turn it off.  I’m not sure if it’s my particular vehicle, but trying to open the cover of the armrest is like using a triceps machine at Bally Total Fitness.  Once you’ve struggled getting it open, it’s only big enough for a few pens and a pocket-sized “How to Work MINI Turn Signals For Dummies” book.  Like I said, these are all very minor issues.

So far, I can certainly say the 2010 MINI Cooper S is the best car I’ve owned.  I heard a commercial saying that the average driver will own at least 12 cars in his or her lifetime.  I’m well on my way to exceeding that at age 35, having had a couple Mercedes, a Ford Mustang, a couple of Hondas, a Ford Explorer, a Jeep Grand Cherokee, Acura TSX, Scion TC, a couple of Nissans, and now, the MINI.  I may still be in the honeymoon phase, so we’ll see if my tune changes once I delve deeper into ownership or if history repeats itself, I eventually trade it in for something else.  For now, make mine a MINI and I strongly suggest you make yours one too.