We’re Live From the Frankfurt IAA

Sections: R58 (Coupe) | R59 (Roadster) Sep 15th, 2009 41 Comments

It’s a huge day for MINI at the Frankfurt IAA motor show and we’re there to cover it all. We’ll have new photos going up all day in our feed above. So check back throughout the day for updates from the floor.

Written By: Gabe

Ellis

Thank you for posting! Excited to see it in actual…
MINIme

I am lovin’ me some Speedster! That interior is fantastic!! Wow. I will have another MINI as soon as these come out. MINI, if you are listening, build this exact car. I was thinking the R60 might be the next vehicle to fill my needs, but who needs a crossover when you fall head-over-heals with a drop top?
JonPD

Great pics so far, looking forward to seeing all the info coming out of the show.
indimini

Hooray for the return of the 2 spoke steering wheel in the roadster concept! Hope that makes it into production.

This may just be the car that replaces my ’05 R52
John Lester

Hi guys, Any info on the revised Openometer and the slightly different speedometer in the Speedster? Is this close to next year’s interior refresh for all R56/R55/R57? Cheers!
AN

Pics are really good. Can you get us some scoop on colors – and are those stripes part of the actual spec?
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Bob Hayhurst

The Pictures are great; but what kind of presence does either car have?? The speedster looks more impressive but maybe it’s just the color combination I like. How about a few first thoughts from the folks who are able to see these units in the flesh…
CraigE

Will the R60 be at this show?
JonPD

No Craig, think it was said that they are holding until a bit later.
glenn

As a MINI traditionalist, I was not particularly interested in the early buzz on the Speedster. But this is a sweet looking car.
goat

Relieved to see “piano black” resin replacing the “toy-like silver” resin in the molds for the HVAC and radio controls (i.e., in Speedster interior). Small difference, cost to MINI also small, but HUGE improvement in the R56′s justly-criticized interior materials. That running change will have only taken BMW 4 years to implement (I expect it will show up in the 2011 models). ;)

The Coopster looks less impressive here than in press shots but I suspect this is largely due to: (i) the not-my-favourite-by-a-long-shot shade of blue; and, (ii) the roofline being not quite “balanced” in its current iteration.

Looking forward to seeing some long shots of the Coopster and Speedster on the floor, though I realize this is difficult in the auto show environment due to the crush of journalists.

Good work overall and nice to again see enthusiasm on MINI’s part for sporting models!
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1031608383 Chris Brake

Can you guys give some feedback on interior space? That would truly be great if you could!
Brendan

Can we see some interior pics of the Coopster? Especially up at the roof from inside?
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1258686555 Kevin Konrad

Meh…
SFRedMCc

I really like the Speedster; even with the softtop, it would have been the perfect replacement for my aging Honda delsol.

I think the Coopster might be a little claustrophobic like the Audi-TT. I really do prefer the taller profile of a regular MINI with its larger side windows and more upright seating position.
Gary

Look at the interior shots on page 7. Is this just concept mock ups? or perhaps some of the refresh changes? Notice the steering wheel has 2 spokes instead of 3 and the multifunciton buttons are either gone or changed to those glossy inserts. I can’t make out enough of the center stack to see what looks different on there. Any chance at better close up shots of these?
http://www.motoringfile.com/ Gabe

Look at the interior shots on page 7. Is this just concept mock ups? or perhaps some of the refresh changes?

It’s a possibiliy that we’re seeing some semblance of the interior refresh in this car.

Notice the steering wheel has 2 spokes instead of 3 and the multifunciton buttons are either gone or changed to those glossy inserts.

This is just the current two-spoke (not sold in the US) that is standard on the One and Cooper in most parts of the world. All they’ve done is add gloss black inserts.
Art Payne

Guys Thanks so much for posting. I think I feel a coupe in my future!!!
Drill

2 things that the MINI folks were fairly adamant about were; the top on the Speedster stays open until tomorrow and the Coopster’s doors HAD to stay shut (they were REALLY strict on this one!) There will be more access to both tomorrow once they are moved out onto the floor and I’ll post pics when I get them!
Drill

I didn’t know that the Coopster Interior was going to be such a big deal but I got 2 quick pics and have added them to the set. Sorry for the poor quality. I’ll replace them with better ones when/if I get them tomorrow.
Gary

I’m with goat — the Speedster design shows some positive and most welcome steps to rectify the problems with the appearance of the center stack, not only with the resin change but with the details and contrasting colors too. I like it a lot. Too bad the Coopster didn’t adopt the same philosophy.

Yet we still see valuable development dollars and brain cells wasted on the “Nature-meter” or whatever the heck it is. Sigh.
eto

What is the little butterfly in the bottom right of the speedometer in picture 20?
Bor

wow, what a difference, I think I’m just gonna take a can of black paint and spray it all over the cheesy center console that’s causing me to curse every time I sit in the car for the last 2 years :-)
JonPD

Thanks Drill!
Drill

No worries John, that’s what I’m here for :-)

@eto, I haven’t seen it in action yet, but in place of the optional “Openometer” the Speedster/Roadster has an additional gauge which operates as a sort of Multi-function display. I’ll try to get some “in-action” shots tomorrow but for now (@ almost 11pm) it’s time for me to crash.

G’night!
danny

What’s that purplish screen deal thing on screen 7 picture 2?

Is it the multifunction display that drill mentioned above?
rhawth99

OMG, the tach and speedo on the speedster look even worse than before. How about less gimmickry and more real gauges that are easy to read at a glance.

I do like the looks of the coupe – any chance of getting a shot of the boot while it’s open?
Nick

Sparkling white paint on the Speedster looks fantastic. Now that’s a great BMWish color that’s been missing from the MINI paint options from the very beginning. Unless that is just bright lights on Pepper White. Hope not.
Nick

The black on black center stack is a real improvement. Audio system needs to be moved out of the speedo package and the displayed information made larger so you can read it without taking your sun glasses off. A giant speedometer with a dinky radio display. Am I the only one with this problem?

But wait…on second look maybe the radio display is actually larger. Hard to tell in the picture.
http://www.lilcoopr.com lilcoopr

Nick: it looks like White Silver perhaps instead of Pepper White.
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hardingsan

“This is just the current two-spoke (not sold in the US) that is standard on the One and Cooper in most parts of the world. All theyâ€™ve done is add gloss black inserts.”

gabe, do you know if this accepts multi-function buttons? and how hard it would be to get one in the us…?

ps ~ so how do you quote previous comments?
Poerboy

Diggin’ that houndstooth cloth. Not that I’d be dumb enough to get a car with a white interior…I drink waaay too much coffee.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1145665586 DUDE!

Thanks for all the pics. I wonder if the guy who designed the interior spent sometime at the Liberace Museum in Vegas? Gak! It’s a little too fu fu for me, meaning all the white and herringbone stuff.
Mighty Mouse

Did Chris Bangle move to MINI? Both cars seem to have the signature Bangle butt.
Drill

The Roadster/Speedster is Pearl White. It’s currently a one off color which is a white base (Pepper perhaps?) with a pearlescent sheen on top. I usually don’t like white cars but this looks really nice.
Drill

In reference to the Coopster’s interior… NOT gonna happen, lol. Apparently the only person at Frankfurt who can even authorize opening the door is Gert Hildebrand and he’s been busy doing interviews for the past 2 days. We were lucky to get the few shots we did. Same thing goes for the Roadster’s roof and boot. We tried to get them to close/open up but the answer was always No.
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http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=548320534 Christian L.

I really like the mirror caps on the Camden version.

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