Help Design MotoringFile’s MINI Roadster

(This poll is now closed. Look for more info soon).

You may have noticed in our recent review of the MINI Roadster that we were completely smitten. For the first time ever MINI has created an open top car that combines open-top motoring with and similar performance to the hard top MINI. It’s a thoroughly intoxicating mix of back to basics motoring combined with modern design and performance that left us wanting more. Or more specifically wanting a roadster in our garage. So we figured what better car for our next long-term MINI than a new 2012 Roadster?

All we had to do was convince MINI USA. To do that we simply told them how much fun our readers would have in helping us design and build it. They said sure – as long as we could give them a full spec by end of day… today (February 15th).

As you’ll see below we clearly went all out with each of these specs. Two reasons. For one we want to live with options and report back. For instance: Are the Recaro seats worth the money? How’s the JCW Dash going to hold up to daily life?

The other is that this is a Roadster. If there’s any R5X MINI to load up it would seem the Roadster would be the car. It’s still back to basics due to the nature of its design but we want to give it the proper style and substance befitting MINI’s new halo car.

So let’s get started. Remember, you have until the end of today (the 15th) to help us choose. Click through to see the options, vote in the poll and to make sure your voice is heard.

Option 1: JCW Angry Midnight Black

How do you make the Roadster, a rather pretty car, look as mean as possible? Make it all black and add healthy doses of red. In addition to that how about every option? Including the highly anticipated Recaro seats, JCW dash and of course such things as sport suspension and all the packages. Oh and then let’s make it go as fast as any MINI ever has. JCW it is. We call it Angry Astro Black. $47,250

Option 2: JCW Orange Crush

A roadster should be fun and fast right? So let’s make it orange with black stripes and wheels. Inside it’s all business with black mixed with plenty of Dinamica on the dash and on the Recaro seats. For the fast part lets turn up the wick and make it a JCW and add sports suspension and all the packages known to man. And then top it off with a name like Orange Crush – done and done. $47,250

Option 3: JCW Kite Blue Cool

Sensing a trend here? Yes we love the JCW here at MF and it’s hard to say no if we’re speccing a MINI. However with this one we wanted to go a little more old-school with blue, silver stripes and silver wheels. Sure we’ve got all the options checked (Recaros, Satellite Grey leather dash, Nav and all the packages) but we just to add a bit of color to it all. And Kite blue is shaping up to be one of the best blues MINI has ever offered. MSRP: $47,250

Option 4: Cooper S Subtle BRG Sleeper

Finally we created this in an effort to keep costs down and try (maybe in vain?) to get us to appreciate less is more when it comes to options. Less is more? Ok not really. After all we’re trying to test the car and the options so we couldn’t keep it too slim. But that aside we wanted to be more modest and go with the MCS without Sport package and some of the other random bits and pieces we see on options 1-3. So manual top, leather/cloth seats, no sport package etc. We call it Cooper S Subtle BRG Sleeper. MSRP: $37,000

So lets make this official by adding a real. Choose below but choose wisely. We have to drive around in this thing.

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