And I see above someone (with some obvious time on their hands) took inventory figures off of dealer websites to try to prove a point. It’s common knowledge in the industry that MINI dealers don’t list actual cars on the lot but cars on the lot and in any state of the order process. So that basically means you’re looking at 3-4 times more cars than are physically at the dealer. This is a common practice at MINI dealerships since they (speaking in reality here) often don’t have more than 5-15 of all models of new MINIs to look at.

And I can actually verify (as of three days ago) that the Chicago numbers at two of the three dealerships (I only visited two) are laughably high compared to what is actually on the ground.

We’re shutting down this thread per the warning that was given a week ago.

Here is what I think is the real story teller: How many days supply MINI currently has in inventory for the R56?

What was the typical number of days supply during the R53 days?

That will be the key to settle this debate once and for all.

-Nigel

They’ve sold around 9,400 R56s since it’s introduction here – right? That’s as good or better than any combined R53/R50 comparable period (don’t count the convertibles).

The problem is that maybe they’ve imported another 1,500 to 2,000 cars that haven’t sold.

Maybe the R53/R50 would have had the same issue had they produced it in similar numbers. Maybe there would have been no demand for that car either. At this point, we’ll never know.

It’s too easy to figure out what they have in inventory Lava, I can find out today. The fact is that they aren’t selling their allotment of these cars. The fact is that if this continues it will affect resale prices.

Enjoy your car, Lava. Just because I don’t like the way it looks, or Slag, or Ottoman, or Jnky doesn’t mean that you don’t have to enjoy yours.

MINI of St. Louis

R56 S = 14 R56 MC = 14

Motorwerks MINI (Minnneapolis)

R56 S = 8 R56 MC = 15

Global Imports (Atlanta)

R56 S = 30 R56 MC = 33

Flow MINI (Winstom Salem, NC)

R56 S = 20 R56 MC = 24

MINI of Charleston

R56 S = 15 R56 MC = 7

Knauz MINI (Chicago)

R56 S = 19 R56 MC = 29

Patrick MINI (Chicago)

R56 S = 11 R56 MC = 18

Cincinnati MINI

R56 S = 20 R56 MC = 13

Rasmussen MINI (Portland, OR)

They do not report online inventory but a message states: “We have quite a few R56, no wait, immediate delivery, great prices)

MINI of San Francisco

R56 S = 23 R56 MC = 21

MINI of Mountain View (Bay Area)

R56 S = 10 R56 MC = 20

Long Beach MINI (Los Angeles area)

R56 S = 22 R56 MC = 16

MINI of Dallas

R56 S = 17 R56 MC = 22

Lauderdale MINI (Ft. Lauderdale, FL)

R56 S = 13 R56 MC = 20

This is just a brief snapshot.

Oh yeah, and there is no glut….

Repeat after me: … there is no glut …. … there is no glut …. … there is no glut ….

Jinky – are they sitting on the lots down there too?

………except in the last four months it suddenly became harder to score a Civic Si in my area and easier to get an MCS.

It also shows that in what was traditionally one of the hottest Mini markets in the country, cars are sitting on the lots. It isn’t relegated to North Carolina or Cleveland or Futtbuck Egypt.

Counting the R56 MCs, one dealership has almost 50 cars in inventory. Crap, the local VW shop doesn’t have that many Rabbits and GTIs sitting collecting dust.

Or are we still talking about miscalculated distribition? Where are these cars in short supply?

This does not count any leftover 2006 MCs or 2007 R52s.

This is in California, which has traditonally seen jacked up prices and long wait times.

The simple fact is that there is unsold inventory. I don’t think this is a good thing for anybody but the R56 buyer.

So comparing the MCS against it’s rivals, the Civic Si and the GTI show the following:

GTI Inventory: Walnut Creek – 3 Broadway – 3 Bob Lewis -4 Concord – 9 Royal – 7

Average = 5.

Civic Si Inventory: Concord – 5 Livermore -2 Dublin – 4 Fremont – 2 Marin – 3

Average = 3

So the average Bay Area Mini dealership has over twice the inventory of MCSs on the lot compared to the local VW dealerships (GTI) and 4 times the number compared to the Civic Si.

Anybody have the production numbers for the other two cars? Are they comparable?

During the 2002-06 R53 era, you literally had a difficult time finding 1 unit in stock to see what they looked like! However… there is no glut … its just miscalculated distribution.

I think it is a little early in the production cycle to be saying whether or not the R56 will be a success over the life of the model.

As pointed out elsewhere… that’s a regional phenomenon. There are about three or four regions with a glut of dealerships and MINIs on those lots. You live in one of those ares: Texas. That’s you’re perspective and I appreciate that. Other areas are still looking at 3-6 month waiting lists for the car. How build slots are passed out is beyond me, but it’s obvious they are flooding some areas and holding back in others.