Ask MINI: The Ultimate Q&A Session with MINI Execs & Designers
Updated – thanks everyone for the questions. The cut off was Thursday night so anything before that time we got.
Over the course of the press days at the Detroit Auto Show (next Monday and Tuesday) Todd and I will have an opportunity to interview a handful of key designers and executives at MINI:
– Dr. Wolfgang Armbrecht – Senior VP of MINI
– Jim McDowell – Head of MINI USA
– Gert Hildebrand – Head of MINI Design
– Markus Syring – MINI Exterior Design
Obviously our heads are spinning with questions and topics for each. But we don’t have a monopoly on thoughtful and meaningful questions when it comes to MINI. So we’d like to hear some of yours.
Here’s how it works. In the comment section below, give us one or two questions that you’d like us to ask one of the four gentlemen above. At the end of the Thursday (the 7th), we will pick the very best and then feature them in each interview.
<p>Is the new NAV going to be on the 2011 MINIs? And is the MINI Convertible getting the refresh for 2011?</p>
<p>Why make a small SUV and not a slightly larger AWD car with four doors?
When will we see a clean diesel in a MINI in North America?
With MINI being a premium and niche car in the US, have you ever thought about making a cheaper more affordable MINI for the masses? For instance, bring the MINI ONE or the First that would have better MPG with a smaller price tag. Something that would compete with other small cars like the Yaris.</p>
<p>Is their going to be a circus top print? Like the Moke.</p>
<p>+1 on the Diesel in the US question.</p>
<p>Why not just go cold turkey and make all Coopers for the USA diesels? Volumes should be large enough to defray the costs of development. Performance will still be excellent and we will still have petrol motors in the Cooper S and JCW. The fuel economy difference should make it a relatively easy sell to consumers.</p>
<p>Will the new generation Cooper and Cooper S (2013?) have an all wheel drive option?</p>
<p>Is the MINI 2 seater coupe a targa top or a tradional coupe?</p>
<p>Thanks!
Jeff Wannall</p>
<p>I would love to know how they seem the minimal “faux” offroad R60 balances against the information we have seen about the Spacebox concept for the potential sales market. Both products look to be aimed at the exact same potential buyer.</p>
<p>A second question is regarding the rapidly increasing number of stiff competition both in Europe and the US for the small car and SUV market. It would be interesting to how they plan on keeping the same relevance to the market that they have enjoyed in years past for the Mini brand.</p>
<p>Will the Production MINI Coupe and Roadster adopt the Mid Cycle Refresh design or have its own styling cues to set it apart somewhat from the Hardtop, Convertible, and Clubman? Also will the Hardtop, Convertible, and Clubman, be receiving the LCI updates in the same time frame or will they be staggered?</p>
<p>What is the time frame for the Countryman and its variants?</p>
<p>Another question, with the sales success of the JCW sub-brand (notably the factory car) I would love to know a overview of how the see the future developing for the Mini performance enthusiast. Any chance of the JCW sub-brand ever holding the relevance of the ///M division at BMW. The differences between the two groups are staggering currently.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Do you intend to keep the hatch, R56, the size it is now or do you foresee it’s getting larger?</p></li>
<li><p>Will the size of the speedometer be changed during the next major re-design?</p></li>
<li><p>Will a mechanical LSD be available as an option, in the future?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Why, if MINI is a premium brand, is there still evidence of cheap materials and design? For example, to my mind, a premium vehicle should not have any exposed screw heads in the cabin, but look into the cup holders and there they are.</p>
<p>Another example, is the harsh console under the handbrake/ebrake. It serves no function like it did in the R50/2/3 (There was a small storage area), and it’s quite uncomfortable to touch.</p>
<p>My more important observation, is that if MINI is trendsetting, it needs to become more focused on it’s driver entertainment technology <em>as standard</em>. We shouldn’t be paying to have optional bluetooth, or optional satnav. These things should be fitted by default. SatNav systems costing 2/3000 Euro depending on the market you’re in are far far too expensive, and if you reduced the price of these systems accordingly you’d have sold more equating to more profit per vehicle. As it stands, being 2010, and heading to 2011, if MINI wants to continue to trendset in a demographic which is becoming increasingly aware of technology and computing, it needs to make these items standard :</p>
<p>A proper iPod integration solution.
Bluetooth.
SatNav.
A HUD.</p>
<p>This is only my opinion of course, but it’s one as a MINI driver since 2003, and someone who’s spent 45k Euro on an R53 and had an R56 S for a while too. Oh and for the love of God please make the heated steering wheel an option in future.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>It is readily apparent most that is must not be cost effective to have continued offering the gauge package as in the first generation. If MINI will not ever offer this again, how about an option to have pre-located sensor taps to allow after market installion of gauages? (and no, that small JCW offering is not sufficient)</p></li>
<li><p>Why not offer, as an option, painted fenders/wheel arches on any and all models, to include both aero kits?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Gawd, I can’t type Ignore the bad grammar, and edit it for some sort of clarity LOL PLEASE !!</p>
<p>I want to picture myself in the R59 Coopster.</p>
<p>Will I fit?</p>
<p>The R56’s door opening fits me fine. How will the R59’s ingress/egress and seat-to-ceiling size compare?</p>
<p>Will pricing of the R59 be similar to that of the R56?</p>
<p>Comment not a question: for more minimalist enthusiast drivers (the original idea of the Mini, no?) please keep a decontented high performance driver focused version of the MINI avaialble. In the interest of lighter weight and fewer distractions, for me this means no sat nav, no premium stereo, no leather seats, no DCT, no heated steering wheel, bolstered sport seats, and a mechanical LSD as Bilbo Baggins mentions.</p>
<p>Also echo JonPD’s question regarding JCW’s future direction, and the suggestion that it be positioned similar to the ///M division.</p>
<p>Thanks MINI!</p>
<p>Any plans for a stronger auto trans to handle higher HP (JCW) and torque (diesel)? MINI seems to have a death grip on two minor icons of the original car, the dash design and unpainted wheel arches. Your thoughts Mr Hildebrand? Never understood why every BMW dealership couldn’t become a service point for MINI. IMO that change alone has tremendous sales potential. Enjoy the show MF, make’em squirm (with a smile of course).</p>
<p>Will there still be room in the MINI lineup for the Clubman when the Spacebox comes to market?</p>
<p>Where will the Spacebox fall in terms of price?</p>
<p>Where are they at with respect to the design of the Spacebox, and when can we expect to get a preview? Can we expect it to look much like an extended wheelbase MINI?</p>
<p>Why don’t you include front and rear foglights as standard safety equipment on US market cars? Most every dealer spec’d MINI does not have them (at least the rear ones). The omission may be a bit more forgivable on the S, but just looks tacky to me on the Base Cooper.</p>
<p>“Some have said the extreme kink in the Coupe Concept roofline looks like a backwards baseball cap or a toupé. Since the average European buyer is much younger than the average American, are you simply covering your bases with this design element?” ;)</p>
<p>I’m about 4 months into the ownership of a 2009 JCW Clubman. I REALLY like the car and the performance level that it has. However…</p>
<p>The 3rd door is really a neat feature, but why wasn’t it moved to the left side for left hand drive cars or make the body shell symmetrical with a 3rd and a 4th door? Someone in the UK, for example, would use the car differently from how we would in the US.</p>
<p>Thanks for keeping the tradition of the Mini alive! And you know, it would be very easy to make a panel delivery by blanking out the rear side windows and deleting the rear seat. What do you think?</p>
<p>Will the future MINI variant discussed on White Roof Radio, (labeled by Gabe, the “VW GTI-fighter”) be coming to the United States?</p>
<p>If so, when?</p>
<p>How much would it cost?</p>
<p>In addition to a 2-door model, will it also be offered in a 4-door model, like VW’s GTI currently is?</p>
<p>Lastly, a comment to previous posters about loading up the MINI with all sorts of tech, (nav/bluetooth, etc.) to be standard features: I don’t want NAV or bluetooth, and don’t want to be forced to pay for something that I wouldn’t use. Besides, NAV does awful things to the layout of the dashboard, and should remain an option. Just my two cents.</p>
<p>Will MINI take place in WRC?</p>
<p>Can we hope to see a future MINI variant which, in the spirit of the classic mini, leads the industry with innovative people/stuff/powertrain packaging (contemporary design reference: Toyota iQ) coupled with elemental sporting driving characteristics (contemporary design reference: R50/R53)? Another way of putting this, will we see a model SMALLER than the R50/R53 and current hatches?</p>
<p>Given expansion of the MINI “brand umbrella” to encompass an increasing variety of models, and given BMW’s design resources, would BMW ever consider developing a supremely enthusiast-focused RWD MINI?</p>
<p>As BMW introduces new MINI models it is moving further from the original Mini and even the new MINI concept. How important to BMW is the Mini heritage and preserving that heritage in future products carrying the MINI name?</p>
<p>Based on the recently published NHTSA safety studies on rear amber turn signals, will MINI be re-implementing rear amber signals on US vehicles? If so, when? If not, why not? For that matter, what rationale can be given for having done away with amber signals in the first place?</p>
<p>Is MINI ever going to fully embrace a bolder color palette for the exterior?</p>
<p>oops. nevermind. I must have fallen into a coma on that amber turn signal issue.</p>
<p>Is there any hope for a Mini sized MINI? Just a niche vehicle that has little-to-no insulation, basic stereo and a blast to drive (a poor man’s FWD or AWD Elise?)</p>
<p>What about making an affordable MINI again? I had an ’03, w/ options that cost $18,325. The same MINI today is far more expensive and less fun to drive and/or look at.</p>
<p>…and, of course, please stop making excuses and give us a diesel option! Thank you.</p>
<p>I like John Welsh’s question about the color palette. Will we ever see that non-metallic BRG on other models? I’d like to see a non-metallic black return. I bet if you offered pink you could move those convertibles…</p>
<ol>
<li><p>With the introduction of models with 4 full doors, what is the future of the Clubman?</p></li>
<li><p>Is MINI creating unhealthy competition within the brand with the launch of models that seem to target similar customer bases? For example, the Crossman vs. the Clubman and the Speedster vs the Coupe?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>I guess if we’re being serious.. Diesel, BRG, and Smaller, in that order.</p>
<p>Would we see more factory rim options in the near future? Would we see the exterior color line of the MINI get larger? Any chance of a hard top version, by killing the 2 back seats?
Would we see in the future a car concept made entirely by the “new MINI” division instead of bringing the classic models up to the year 2000? I know MINI is all about tradition, but I would really like BMW to put their touch on a totally new MINI.</p>
<p>Thanks for this opportunity…MAJOR FAN of your webpage!</p>
<p>It would also be really intersting to ask them if they have any plans to make a smaller version of the MINI like the use to make them…</p>
<p>Are we going to see some bold, interesting, exciting colors?</p>
<p>That would be better than more gray-beige, silver, gray-silver, silver-silver colors that look like every other car on the road.</p>
<blockquote>@John Welsh: *Based on the recently published NHTSA safety studies on rear amber turn signals, will MINI be re-implementing rear amber signals on US vehicles? If so, when? If not, why not? For that matter, what rationale can be given for having done away with amber signals in the first place?
</blockquote>
<p>ALL R55/R56/R57 models have amber turn signals front/rear and have always had them. The only MINIs that did not, were the R50/R53 for ’05-’06 and the R52 ’05-’08.</p>
<blockquote>Why not just go cold turkey and make all Coopers for the USA diesels? Volumes should be large enough to defray the costs of development. Performance will still be excellent and we will still have petrol motors in the Cooper S and JCW. The fuel economy difference should make it a relatively easy sell to consumers.</blockquote>
<p>I want to second this! If I want effeciency, I want a cooper and I want a diesel. If I want performance, I want an S with a turbo, as much hp as i can afford (S vs. JCW) and I could care less about mpg. If I want utility and versatility. I want an R60 with the same option between hp and mpg….I simply dont see the need to even offer a low power “efficient” petrol engine.</p>
<p>@CraigE: thanks, you’ll notice I caught my mistake in the immediate follow-up post. Frankly, I quit paying attention to R55,6,7 which is why I never even noticed. …and, oddly, that reality seems to make a statement of its own which might translate into some type of a question for MINI.</p>
<p>As an owner of 2 MINIs since 2002, I have found myself progressively losing interest in the brand since the R56. It could be a lot of things, but I tried hard to give them a real chance during our most recent automotive purchase. We wanted another small, fuel-efficient premium vehicle – both my wife and I came away disappointed in the MINI on many counts. We ended up with a Jetta TDI. (I tried to tell them I would buy a Cooper D, but they didn’t wanna listen.)</p>
<p>I’m keeping my ’05 R53, but there really is nothing in the current line or foreseeable pipeline that gets me excited. I wonder how many are in the same boat as me and if it even matters to MINI? Maybe people like me are just too far out of the mainstream in our desires for any company to build a sustainable/profitable business model around? Too bad, something made me think that MINI was going to try.</p>
<p>Any “extreme performance” model coming out? something beyond just your normal JCW?</p>
<p>since there is a demand for devices to make an auto-on sport mode, will MINI ever make the “comfort” mode an option instead for people who do not care for a softer throttle and steering and want the car just to be sporty ALL THE TIME?</p>
<p>Similar to Jason’s comment. The base MC is a real value, but seems to be creeping up in price. To your credit, you’ve held costs down adding certain options as essential standard features like DSC, MFSW, etc. Will mini strive and maintain a value car for the masses, or is the current seeming wave of higher price, more premium variants the future of Mini?</p>