With the 2007 model year meaning whole lot more than just a few new options, MINI USA is preparing the launch of an entirely new MINI configurator this December. Beyond all the new colors and options available on the R56, we can look forward to improved navigation and a whole new set of easter eggs to enjoy.
But the configurator isn’t the only thing changing at MINIUSA.com. We’ve learned that an entirely new site will be launching at the same time. This will include detailed technical data on the new cars as well as a slew of fun new features.
Less pop-ups hopefully!
A welcome update if they do it right. Gabe, maybe they need you put you & Matt on retainer as consultants?
Good. Maybe some AJAX and less Flash? Do I dare say, the box look is starting to look a little dated.
Those configurators are funny – by the time you have ticked all the boxes you have doubled the price of the standard car!
What about the launch of the new UK/Europe configurator and webpage? Do you have any news?.
Thanks a lot for all the information to the “Mini community”
>Do I dare say, the box look is starting to look a little dated.
The “box look” is a now a major part of the MINI design language so I doubt it will leave us completely.
>What about the launch of the new UK/Europe configurator and webpage? Do you have any news?.
No news yet.
I hope they borrow a few ideas from the VW GTI configurator. It was a nice touch to actually be able to “drive” it after you build it. I also like the stats on the side that change as you add/subtract stuff.
Some new games that will allow us all to remain very unproductive throughout the work day?
Gabe,
Although it’s nearing the end of its life, I have discovered a bug in the old configurator, that I hope can be fixed. I figure that if anyone, you have the contacts to inform about them.
Basically, it has to do with the download/save wallpaper option – after you configure your MINI the way you want it.
If you choose any of the wheels in step 5 (i.e. dealer-provided, not factory), then the <strong>downloaded image</strong> does not display them properly in the rear view (even though the rear view in the configurator looks OK). It reverts to the standard factory wheels for your options. The front view DOES show the correct wheels.
Anyway, it’s a minor bug, and many people may not care, but before the old configurator disappears, it’d be nice to have a corrected wallpaper saved. In my case, I’m trying to do this with the R95 JCW wheels.
Do you have a contact at MINIUSA who could look into this bug? I’m confident it’s such a simple fix that it would take the appropriate programmer only 5 minutes – especially since the front view correctly shows the wheels.
AJAX is overrated; it’s great to add usability and features to a site, but developers are going overboard with it, trying to replace an old mechanism that isn’t just not-broken, it works damn well across all platforms.
I’m no fan of flash, but I believe it to be a fairly consistent environment across platforms that gives you far more capability and flexibility than what’s possible with HTML and JavaScript.
It’d be great if MINIUSA would nuke the OL/ON and start over…
Does this mean that will be the first time we can order the R56, or might the dealerships be able to do something sooner?
Also, any chance the JP wheels will be available as an option?
Edge,
<blockquote>it’d be nice to have a corrected wallpaper saved. In my case, I’m trying to do this with the R95 JCW wheels.</blockquote>
I hate the wallpaper that comes out of that site. Aside from the bug you found it is always blurry. I think they deliberately blur it to get rid of the hard-pixel edges on the cars as they render. The effect is less than satisfying.
I you want, I can build you a wallpaper in no time that looks 10 times better. Just email me at my public email address “mrchips_rsm @ yahoo com” so I can get the config-specifics from you.
(ps: I don’t care who knows that email adress – it already gets about 10,000 spams a month. It exists for just this type of reason. Just remove the spaces and add the period, blah blah blah…)
Take care!
Mrchips.
More easter eggs? I must be out of the loop, what are the current easter eggs?
Looking forward to seeing what they design, I have little doubt that it will be fun. I can already see one of hundreds of times I will be building a R56, playing with every option.
You have 4 car choices (now), 12 body color choices, 3 roof color choices, 2 ground effects choices, and give or take 10 wheel choices (depending on model chosen). Quick … some math major please do the calculating to determine how many decent exterior jpegs would be needed to give people using the new configurator a quality image. You know … where Royal Grey does not look like Taupe and Space Blue doenn’t look like faded BRG, and Pure Silver doesn’t look like Dove Grey and on and on … And go ahead and mulitply that number by two … for a both a front and rear view. Oh wow … I am coming up with a REALLY big number … OK, never mind … bad idea. 🙂
SB,
Using the combinations you indicated, I fed all the data into a database with a configuration generator engine. I then executed a randomized sampling of the web pages current configuration page and got yur answer. It came out to a gazillion and three
A MINI ad in 2005 said over 24 million configuration combinations.
<blockquote>A MINI ad in 2005 said over 24 million configuration combinations.</blockquote>
True, but that includes interior options as well. Those options don’t need to be reflected in a wallpaper that features the interior of the car…
Don’t you just multiply the choices together 4123210 = 2880 choices?
I think you are right, iNomis … except you left out a mulitplier of 2 for two different views. So I guess it’s 5760 photos to take. I don’t think MINI is up for that. I bet we’ll still be stuck with the cartoon rendering.
>It’d be great if MINIUSA would nuke the OL/ON and start over…
Amen to that!
You missed the top up and top down options for the convertibles. For both the cooper and the S.
Oh I forgot to also add the 3 roof color combos for the convertibles as well.
don’t forget with or without fog lights, front and rear, and Xenon lights, plus the rear wing for the cooper or not, plus mirror caps.
oh my head! it hurts!
is there a list of current easter eggs available?
brian, what is OL\ON?
MINIUSA’s Owners’ Lounge/Owners’ Network. It’s a horribly designed and implemented website for US MINI owners, with things like current events, a forum, and photo gallery. I think they’ve got some kind of wormhole opened up to 1999; that’s the only explanation I can come up with for it working as poorly as it does!