Spice Orange with Green Lounge Leather. Yes Green. We’ll hopefully be behind the wheel soon. Until then here are some quick thoughts:
– The Spice orange is a bit of a disappointment in our eyes. Where the previous orange was too light and creamy, this is too dark and bronze-like.
– The green lounge leather is fantastic (although admittedly not with Orange).
– The new exterior design looks great in person.
– Rear foglights are not standard.
– Reverse lights are located within the lights on the bumper now.
– The refined interior looks great in person. The blacks are black and the overall look is much more up-market
We’ll be driving the 2011 MINI Cooper S (new engine and all) so let us know what you want to know!
<p>I’m really liking the interior refresh; much classier. The green leather rocks as well.</p>
<p>I like the front and rear without the chrome. The brake ducts, rear fogs/reverse lights actually look like they belong, now: very nice. Please send me a 2011 MCS — UPS or FEDEX ASAP :)</p>
<p>And notice the new fuel gauge, it shows 1/2 tank status better with the improved markers and more speed markers on the speedo.</p>
<p>I kinda like the chrome, but also like the black. and I agree Fredric, I want one now! :)</p>
<p>Thanks Gabe.</p>
<p>And thats the normal xenon, looks like it has a ring of lights around the “eye” also.</p>
<p>Is the Green Lounge Leather going to be available on the Clubman?</p>
<p>Just as I thought, the Orange Spice is not orange at all. I can’t see why they would have been calling a dreamsicle?</p>
<p>I can’t say that I like the lines that are created with the new brake ducts on the Cooper S bumper. I guess there will always be the JCW option so that is good.</p>
<p>I like everything I see, except the color of the green leather. It’s too mint green for my liking. I was picturing deeper, richer, more forest green. I’ll stick with Black or Charcoal Gray, please.</p>
<p>The Green Lounge Leather looks fantastic! What exterior color would it go well with?</p>
<p>I’m liking the dash, a lot, but am not as thrilled with the green. Isn’t that the same shade they got rid of a while back due to low sales? Maybe I’m just more keen on keeping my green on the outside ;)</p>
<p>The most noticeable change for me is that front bumper (just for the love of all that’s holy, keep the chrome off of it!). It certainly has more character than my ’07! Good job guys.</p>
<p>I like the Orange and the Green – it’s an interesting combo :-)</p>
<p>Not feeling the green leather, but I’ll hold off on judgment until I see it in person.</p>
<p>I have a pic w/ my HO vs. OS.</p>
<p>It’s really like burnt orange!</p>
<p>Btw it was 00008 in production.</p>
<blockquote>Rear foglights are not standard.</blockquote>
<blockquote>Reverse lights are located within the lights on the bumper now.</blockquote>
<p>I’m a little confused. Aren’t the lights on the bumper rear fogs? Since the units are integrated, and since you have to have reverse lights, doesn’t that mean, by necessity, that all the cars have rear fogs? I guess you could just have a lens, or another running light, but that doesn’t make much sense.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Aren’t the lights on the bumper rear fogs? Â </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Yes if they are wired and ready to go.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Since the units are integrated, and since you have to have reverse lights, doesn’t that mean, by necessity, that all the cars have rear fogs?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>No The enclosure is there but either the bulbs or wiring is missing if the car doesn’t come with the fogs.</p>
<p>Gotcha. Thanks. But that is totally weak!</p>
<p>Yeah a little bit.</p>
<p>Looking quite good to me sans the chrome fog surrounds as in the spice orange example shown. With this refresh, the Aero Kit front bumper is no longer vital to make the R56 S look attractive (side skirts and rear bumper still improve things though).</p>
<p>I love the green leather too! Very cool. Now that sets the cars apart from just about everything else currently available in Canada / US! I’d rank it as cool as VW’s tartan cloth seats!</p>
<p>My hand and orange watch made it into the pic, sorry about that. But i guess the watch face matches the new orange.</p>
<p>Gabe- Could this be some type of Special Edition, due to the interesting color combination/ graphics on the right side of the hood and the left panels of the car?</p>
<p>Also, out of curiosity- this car, your car, any MINI Manufacture car is numbered (i.e. 061). How many MINI’s did MINI give out? And besides Motoringfile, who else did MINI supply vehices to?</p>
<p>SAND, 2011 models have been produced since middle of july, mostly for Press. Some car magazines got cars from MINI also.</p>
<p>Those graphics on the clubman and the S model are called MINI Yours Tattoos. they are an option like bonnet stripes, You can make a MINI there with either of the tattoos in the UK/german builder online.</p>
<p>Can’t get too excited about the Tatoos, don’t even like them on women. Really like the operational brake ducts, and especially the photo’s that I have seen of them WITHOUT the chrome. I haven’t seen any rear fogs without the chrome, but I’m for that too. Green interior would look great on Pepper White, I believe, might be too much green on the BRG ll though. That center dash looks so much better than before, too.</p>
<p>“IT’S” = “IT IS”</p>
<p>“ITS” = possessive</p>
<p>So, basically, the title of this article is “…Cooper S Shows It is Face.”</p>
<p>@ Bill in Iowa,</p>
<p>Pepper white with green seats will make it look like a pistachio nut, just like the one millionth MINI did.</p>
<p>I like the color. It’s more of a Tangerine which was a popular color for custom cars in the 70’s. It’s the only thing I still like from the 70’s.</p>
<p>Not sure changing the interior pieces to “all” black is giving the impression the quality has been improved. I think I’ll miss the black/sliver contrasting interior of my 07 R56S. The black looks really boring, unless you order the color line option or chrome pack. I hope I’m wrong, and the interior quality really has improved. I’m torn on getting an ’11 and the improvements need to be there or I’m holding on to my current MINI.</p>
<p>Who but MINI would have the chutzpah to produce an orange car with green seats (besides perhaps the VW of yore..)? Sign me up! Pepper white with green, por favor!</p>
<p>@Eman — You are correct. My proofreading pen whimpers on every occurrence :)</p>
<p>@ Scott Purvis,</p>
<p>MINI made the change to the black interior plastics because of all the MINI fans didn’t like it. I don’t think it made the interior look cheap, it may not have been the best choice of color but it did not look cheap. These were the same people who were stating that a bad location for a radio volume knob was a, “Quality,” issue. No, that was a bad design but no means a quality issue.</p>
<p>It looks much nicer without the chrome package. I’m not sure on the other design elemnt of the front bumper though, the area above the 2 aifr vents where there’s a very slight gap between it and the bumper section above. It’s a little hard to explain but, to me, it looks a little odd.</p>
<p>Cheers.</p>
<p>How about a real orange-orange? Pumpkin orange or whatever. This is to sedate. Same goes for the leather. And . . . What the hell is going on with the chrome? Starting to look like mid-60’s Detroit inside! The more I see, the more I love my R53!</p>
<p>I’m not loving the front body kit either. The first gen R56 was a nicer shape, but brake ducts are welcome. I like the rear bumper however. New center stack, indifferent, new engine features sound like a win. Love to hear about how the engine feels.</p>
<p>Love the green leather. Agree with Chilly about the front bumper, except to add that to me it doesn’t look “a little” odd, it looks “extremely” odd…</p>
<p>Yes, I definately do like the brake ducts and the rear fog lights without the chrome. Nice job Mini. Also, the center stack with the new dark plastics trips my trigger much more, too. I never did like the cheap looking painted silver plastic. The plastic quality looks alot better too. Bronze, (oops that’s Orange) to me the green leather doesn’t make it. I like the idea that Mini is using more than black for interior color, but green doesn’t make it with the new Orange.</p>
<p>I don’t know what the big beef is with the brake ducts, at least they are functional, and how else would you put brake ducts in the grill? If you don’t like them, wait three years for the 3rd Generation withthe 3 cylinder engine. Boy that’s going to sound nice. I like what Mini has done with this refresh. And remember nay sayers, this is a refresh, it was never meant to be a complete overhaul.</p>
<p>Oh, sorry, I think you misunderstood. I know the 2011 was introduced awhile back, but this one was very different from the spice orange in press photos (body graphics, green interior, etc.)</p>
<p>One question about the headlights on the Spice Orange R56S. Are those the “swivel” HID’s? These don’t look like the headlights in the official pics of the ’11’s posted by Motoring file a couple of weeks ago. Also, are those extra little lights surrounding the main lighting unit in addition to the actual light ring? LEDs by chance? Just curious. Thanks!</p>