Test drove cooper S

[seanthedub]

I took a spin in the Cooper S yesterday and to be honest its also a great car to drive. The driving position is excellent, but the supercharged engine seems very smooth compared to the 172. Its nippy but not as raw.

I reckon it would be a great car to drive, probaly as much fun as the 172 but its damn expensive. Its 27K (Euro)here (Dublin) and thats basic. If you want the standard stuff that comes with the 172 add another 6K.

Its also damn small in the back. But it has a 2 year warranty and is BMW reliable.

 

[Simon172]

Do you get free servicing too?

 

[seanthedub]

Good point...sure it will cost BMW prices for that too.

 

[Pugboy]

...servicings very cheap, i looked into one before i ordered the clio. i didnt buy one cause it was out of my price range and theyre also supposed to be thirsty (tell im getting old).
with all new minis is a tlc pack which for 100 quid you get five years free servicing, parts and labour. not bullsh*t that, its true and a very good deal.

they make their money on the options, there was one at my local dealer (base price 14750) up for 21000 quid with very option!

 

[seanthedub]

That option definitely is not on over here. This country is a complete rip off for motorists. To give you an idea , I went to get the 172 insured in my own name (before it was under a company policy) all quotes were averaging 6K Euro!!!!! I ended up getting it for 2200 Euro through work.

 

[Pugboy]

sean..hmmmm, sounds like a raw deal.
surely you could buy one over here and take it back to your country...im pretty sure theyd have to let you have the TLC pack cause i expect it would be against european law for them not to allow you to buy it with the same options as every other punter..i could be wrong, im an engineer, not a lawyer...worth looking into though if youre serious.

one problem is that the delivery time was about 8 months for a cooper s when i was enquiring.

 

[Eddd]

Sean,

Yeah Ireland is the pits for insurance. VRT is no deal either. And the VAT is 21% again. And the roads are sh*te as well. Fun if you like rally stages but they do pound the sh*te out of the cars. At least the ppetrol is almost as cheap as it is here in Luxembourg.

And what is the cost of a pint now?

Ed

 

[RM172]

It might be a nice car, but BMW did an urgent recall on 75,000 of them yesterday.

RM

 

[minx]

What was the urgent recall for ??????

 

[RM172]

The fault is in the gearbox, and it is only on the Mini One and the Cooper not the new S.
After checking it seems that ch4 news hyped it up a bit, as it is 38,000 being recalled and not urgent.
Typical news scaremongering.

Rick

 

[petes]

Im sure it was a gear selection problem.

 

[Cooper-S boy]

It was something to do with a cable on the gear stick.
The problem of it possibly sticking whilst in gear or something?
Only the Cooper and One were recalled, not the S as this uses the Getrag six speed.
Yeah optioning a Cooper S up can be expensive. Mine set me back 19 grand.
That is with Xenons, Full leather, Climate Control, 17"s, Dynamic Stability Control and I think thats about it? Basically only options I left off were Sunroof (weight) and Sat Nav.
You are spot on correct by mentioning the smooth power delivery.......Super charger gives a very linear torque from low revs where are a turbo/Vtec etc kicks you back in your seat as you hit the power band.

 

[GR7]

You could have got all of that on a 172 and had money left over for a Williams and a holiday!

 

[seanthedub]

Hey Cooper S boy, I see you went for 17 wheels. Im not sure if I would go for them...My guess it the 16s would be better for driving

Also have a dilemma about the sunroof. Is it much heavier.

I have to say i do like it!

 

[seanthedub]

Hey Cooper S boy, I see you went for 17 wheels. Im not sure if I would go for them...My guess it the 16s would be better for driving

Also have a dilemma about the sunroof. Is it much heavier.

I have to say i do like it!

 

[Cooper-S boy]

I test drove on the 17"s and they were probably a little harsher but style wise they look great IMO.
Sun Roof is nice as it is a double panoramic one but it is pretty heavy I here and will slow things down a bit. I opted for the climate control instead.
I got some G-tech figures comparing a Cooper S on the stock 16"s and the 17"s and there was a difference in performance.
16"s were getting 0-60 runs of 6.5 seconds at best and the 17"s were averaging about 6.8 seconds. Best was 6.74 seconds. This was a fully run in car and the start was launched from about 4000 revs with a slight wheel spin. 1/4 mile was 15.2 @ 91 mph. Didnt get a 0-100 but guess it would be around 19 seconds.

 

[seanthedub]

Yep, they do look good. The demo car had 17s and the double sunroof.

Ill see if the 172 behaves itself but if it starts playacting around as the warranty is about to finish in oct...I may have to get rid. pity, because it is a great car to drive.

 

[Cooper-S boy]

I have only ever had a 15 minute blast in a 172 and that was an import from direct cars in Sheffield. Liked it a lot.
That was last summer and was close to buying one but insurance at 20 was a killer. Very close to getting a saxo vts or Pug 106 GTI but got a mini cooper instead as I liked the look of them and they were a low insurance group. Still cost me over a grand for the year though!! A year later and a few "job perks" it was time to make a change hence the Cooper S.
The John Cooper works package is currently been tested by BMW and running at 208 bhp apparently but the conversion will cost around 3500 quid!!
Lot of money but is BMW approved for 3 years. Will have to wait a while before I get this done though insurance would kill me!! My bird is after a new car and I am desperatley trying to get her to go for a 172 or a 206 gti. At 23 and 5 years no claims I dont think shes got anything to worry about but she thinks paying 700 quid is a big deal!!
I would settle for a premium double that!!

 

[GR7]

A friend of mine has just got a new Cooper today (not the S) and I had a drive in it. It goes well round corners but is very underpowered. Glad I didnt get one. It is bright red with horrid white 17" wheels and has some special Pirellis, which, if punctured, the car can still be driven for a few miles.

 

[Cooper-S boy]

The tyres you are on about would be run flats which come as standard and are good for 100 miles when punctured as long as speed is kept below 50.
Not suprised you found it to be very underpowered as torque only just pushes over 100 lb/ft and bhp is a measly 115.
Get it out on a set of twisties though and keep your revs at the 4K mark and youd be suprised. Well perhaps not you Girl Racer as I am sure you have been there and were dissapointed. Horrid 17"s...LOL!
Bit of a cheap skate opting for the red though...non metalic hence 250 quid cheaper.