The best cosmetic mod I've made recently has to be the oem MINI chrome mirrors. They work very well with the chrome grille (and chrome line trim on the Cooper) and they really give the car a classic British feel to it. For someone like myself who can't have enough OEM chrome they're a must.
They are a direct replacement for the white or black plastic mirror covers that come standard. Installation is fairly straightforward once you pop up one side of the mirror. After it's completely off the chrome caps simply pop on in place. Interestingly I've heard a couple people out there comment that their MINI dealers aren't able to carry them from MINIUSA anymore. That being said I've still found them to be generally available my local dealers as well as from online stores like Outmotoring.
<p>Are these plasticized chrome (like the stock door handles and front Cooper grille) or (more eco-hostile?) true-metal chrome?</p>
<p>The former, I believe. I just put <a href="http://motoringfile.com/2004/03/14/let_there_be_chrome">mine</a> on today.</p>
<p>I have the chrome mirrors on my PW/B roof and although they may be the plasticized chrome, they look so much better than the black mirrors the car would have come with. Sydney (that's my MINI '04 CVT's name) is one of a kind. I've not seen another like him within a couple of hundred miles. The Chrome mirros look the best in my opinion.</p>
<p>KLC</p>
<p>I was leaning towards them myself, altho I usually like chrome to be subdued, if possible, and now I'm sure. I had Talbots on my 998 Cooper, traded 'em so many years ago, and miss 'em now. They brought just enough brightness to the belt-line for me, and when Brooksie's back from the body shop, it's one of my planned changes. They look good, Gabe, and actually seem smaller by illusion. </p>
<pre><code> BCNU,
Rob in Dago
</code></pre>
<p>Looks good, gabe!</p>
<p>I've got oem chrome covers and windshield washer and antenna base chrome covers off eBay on my dks/dks MCS. Overall a good result for less than $130 but I think I'll stop at this point before I enter the bling phase. :-)</p>
<p>vin</p>
<p>The chrome mirror caps look great on a MC, because of the extra chrome. Good job!</p>
<p>Upon delivery of my '04 MCS, I had my dealer install the OEM chrome front grille and the OEM MINI chrome mirror caps. The car looks absolutely stunning as the MINI's front end (Including the S model) was meant to have chrome…that's the beauty of this car.</p>
<p>Last week I had the dealer install the OEM Union Jack roof flag for the ultimate “British” look. My MCS is CR/White.</p>
<p>I paid $123 for the pair of chrome mirror caps and these are of VERY HIGH QUALITY. You can't really tell they are made of plastic and they fit the factory exterior mirror assembly perfectly fine thanks to the exact clip design.</p>
<p>Buyer Beware: I have seen in E-Bay and other places NON MINI chrome mirror caps that use double sided tape and install on top of the existing factory black or white caps….these look HORRIBLE (Tacked on), are not a OEM part and are more expensive (Around $150 the pair). When ordering, make sure you are getting the “Real” thing from MINI.</p>
<p>For MCS owners that like more chrome on thier cars, I highly recommend adding the front chrome grille kit. It comes with 2 parts: Bonnet chrome grille piece and lower chrome bumper slat piece. It totally changes the look of the car for the better. I paid $97.00 for the parts plus labor to have it installed in my car prior to delivery.</p>
<p>Gabe, your MINI looks gorgeous! Welcome to the chrome club!</p>
<p>When my dealer replaced the factory white mirror caps and Chili Red front chrome grille, I got to keep the original parts which I later sold to other MINI owners over at NAM and MINI2. By having done this, I justified the extra expense of the chrome bits as the sale of the original factory pieces paid for most of the new chrome replacement ones.</p>
<p>Ya, I have had these chrome covers since day one on my Indi Blue and everyone always seems to complement on them. I love them and think that they look great on both models of MINI's. Have a great day!!</p>
<p>I'd need to see more CR/W MCSes before I could decide if I liked the chrome grille. It was one of the things that I didn't like about the MCS (body colored grille) that I grew to love…</p>
<p>I have a silver mini with silver roof with full chrome exterior apart from wind mirrors. Does anyone have any pics of their silver mini with these covers?</p>