Mayfair & Camden

MINI USA will be publicly announcing 2010 pricing in the coming weeks but we thought we’d give a sneak peak of what we’ll see. The combination of BMW AG charging an extra $100 for runflat tires, an increase of shipping costs (leading to a $50 jump in the destination and handling), and the $250 multi-function steering wheel, have made price increases pretty much a mandatory across the range. However the numbers vary from model to model. Here’s the breakdown (including $700 destination and handling):

– R56 Cooper: $19,500 (+ $300)
– R56 Cooper S: $23,000 (+ $400)
– R56 JCW: $29,500(+ $300)
– R55 Cooper: $21,150 (+ $300)
– R55 Cooper S: $24,750 (+ $400)
– R55 JCW: $31,700 (+ $300)
– R57 Cooper: $24,950 (+ $400)
– R57 Cooper S: $27,850 (+ $400)
– R57 JCW: $34,700 (+ $300)

There have also been a number of small changes to the options list for 2010. Most notably the limited slip differential that has been available since January 1, 2005 is being removed from the order sheets starting with March builds. The reason? There simply weren’t enough orders to justify its existence. It’s a sad realization for us at MF. We’ve always thought of it as a mandatory on the R53 (’05 and ’06 of course) and even the non-JCW R56 era models. Now with electronic aids doing similar with with less weight penalty (among other bonuses) it would seem the writing was on the wall. It’s a sad in that we were the first to break the story of LSD coming to the MINI, and now we’re telling you it’s gone (well we actually first reported this a couple of months ago). Time marches on and new technology arrives but sometimes it’s simply sad to see changes like this made. ELDC is fantastic but we’ll always miss the old school limited slip.

Other small changes:

– Seat back memory position has been eliminated. Instead it will default to a standard position.
– All models get fabric on the back of the sport seats to help with road noise and allow for a larger pocket
– Mellow Yellow is gone and has been replaced by Interchange Yellow
– Pure silver gone from R56 MCS
– Dark silver extended to MC
– Nightfire Red is now exclusive to MC Clubman
– White silver can only be had with the Camden package on the R56
– Hot Chocolate can only be had with the Mayfair on the R56
– When ordering the Camden package note that if you order the navigation, the new “mission control” feature will be eliminated.