US Interior Option Changes for the R56

Mark (Ohio) Sep 20th, 2006 Link

Ugh no dash matches exterior color option? That’s such a great feature?!

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msh441 Sep 20th, 2006 Link

This is good news. I hate cloth, but dodn’t want to shell out the big bucks or deal with the upkeep of real leather. If the “Carbon Black” has a similar print on the seating surfaces as the “carbon black” shown on the UK site, I’ll be REALLY happy! That looks sharp.

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Teresa Sep 21st, 2006 Link

Are they going to put the turn signals in the headlights in the US too? Ugh I hate that & IMHO it makes the turn signal less obvious to other drivers.

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lTZMTOR Sep 21st, 2006 Link

The one on the right kinda looks like one of the creatures from Star Wars.

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Jeff Sep 21st, 2006 Link

I’m going to be a new Mini owner just as soon as I can order an ‘07. I have faith that the new engine and other changes and upgrades will work out for the best.

However, one area I’m very worn on is seat material:

I live in central Florida, and car interiors get HOT. I have a Honda with cloth seats now, and sitting down on them after all day in the parking lot at work is never an issue. The car air temperature may be hot, the steering wheel near-untouchably warm, but the seat is OK. My guess is that with leather or leatherette, that will also be the case. Does anyone have any insight into the matter?

Thanks, Jeff

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David Sep 21st, 2006 Link

I don’t like DSC and Sport as buttons. What happen to the toggles?

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Enzo Sep 21st, 2006 Link

I didn’t know that they were going back to the two spoke wheel. Is the three spoke wheel for the cooper s only?

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Andrew Sep 21st, 2006 Link

Jeff, I too live in Central Florida. I have had black leatherette in a car with a sunroof for 3 years now and cannot once recall having problems with the material being unbearably hot. I think it is a great choice and would choose it again if i were to buy another car. Hope this Helps.

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Ben Sep 21st, 2006 Link

I live in central Florida, and car interiors get HOT. I have a Honda with cloth seats now, and sitting down on them after all day in the parking lot at work is never an issue. The car air temperature may be hot, the steering wheel near-untouchably warm, but the seat is OK. My guess is that with leather or leatherette, that will also be the case. Does anyone have any insight into the matter?

Leather/Leatherette gets much, much hotter than cloth/velour, but only when exposed to direct sunlight. If you can keep seating areas out of the sun, it shouldn’t be much hotter than your cloth seats.

So don’t order the panoramic sunroof. :)

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iNomis Sep 21st, 2006 Link

Hummm… if Carbon Cosmos cloth is not offered then what is the standard MINI Cooper seat material? It must be leatherette or is there a new coth name? Also if the “Standard MCS” dash is Alloy Patina do we not get the Chequered cloth the UK gets also since there it matches the Chequered dask? In other words, no standard cloth seats at all? Just leatherette? I sure hope not.

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Nathaniel Salzman Sep 21st, 2006 Link

My only real rub with the new car is the out-turned headlights and the center stack/speedo, but overall it’s really cool to keep seeing these details as they unfold. Top Gear magazine this month has a whole article on the R56, which is pretty interesting. Their conclusion was essentially, (and I paraphrase)…

Where other car companies window-dress existing models in an attempt to make them look like completely different cars, MINI has taken entirely new underworkings and dressed them down to match the preceeding car as much as possible.

I think overall that’s a good representation of what happened. It’s been said here and there, but I had forgotten that the R56 is such a completely new car from rubber to roof. Though I don’t like every choice they’ve made, I salute their restraint in keeping the car fundamentally similar. I love the MINI’s looks in how the lines and face of the car are so utterly unique without crossing the line into strange. In today’s car market, that’s truly amazing.

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SrBlanco Sep 21st, 2006 Link

Jeff,

I live in Houston where it is also 315 degrees in the shade 11 months out of the year. With this in mind I purchased a 2005 all black Cooper S with the darkest interior options possible, including the black leatherette. I never found the seats to be unbearable but I also made sure to have the windows and sunroof tinted as dark as the law would allow.
The seats were usually warm but I could sit on them without burning my legs. The steering wheel and Whalen Shift Machine were another story.

Speaking of Whalen Shift Machine… does anyone know if my current knob will fit the R56?

-Michael

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j Sep 21st, 2006 Link

anything on a light grey leather similar to BMW’s?

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petsounds Sep 21st, 2006 Link

Thank you MF for looking into this. I was very concerned about the leatherette option.

Jeff — if the leatherette they are sourcing is the same as the current-gen MINI, it is not a particularly high-quality leatherette, so it doesn’t breathe very well. However, unless you’ve got your seats in the sun all day, I wouldn’t worry too much about it.

The exterior and interior changes are still not quite resonating with me, but at least I know that leatherette won’t be a purchase barrier now. A hearty thanks to MINI for continuing to offer this choice for those of us who aren’t down with animal slaughter (or just cloth-haters).

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Ben Sep 21st, 2006 Link

Why didnt they have a green interior or color line. That wood look sweet with BRG. Whats up with them.

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M. Dillon Sep 22nd, 2006 Link

To Jeff: I live in Atlanta,GA;and my ‘03 PW/MC has the material that you are refering to. I have owned my MINI since Dec. 20,2002,and I’m happy to report to you that the leatherette works great for me,in regards to the heat;however,on the flip side…after all that time of,”happy motoring”,the crap out of my MINI…the leatherette,on the driver’s seat is starting to look a little…well…,”skanky”. This…from an Owner who has faithfully had,”Sade”,washed and cleaned(inside and out,of course)almost weekly at one of those,”no-touch” carwash stores(Catus Car Wash)here,in the city…

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Humourl3ss Sep 22nd, 2006 Link

Ugh, English Oak? Why nothing with a tighter grain like cherry or sycamore?

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Craig Sep 22nd, 2006 Link

According to the 2007 preview brochure I saw at my dealer there will be 8 different seat materials available in the USA: Redwood Red Lounge leather, Carbon Black Lounge leather, Punch Carbon Black leather, Tuscan Beige Gravity leather, Ray/Rooster Red cloth/leather, Ray/Pacific Blue cloth/leather, Checkered Carbon Black cloth and Carbon Black leatherette. Between the seat materials, color line and dashboard trim options this will open up a huge variety of interior combinations. If people thought it was difficult to order their MINI before, this will push them over the edge.

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