MINI USA Sales Up 51% for February 2015
If you’ve read the automotive press, you must have noticed that most manufacturers reported lower than anticipated U.S. sales for February. This is mostly due to the unprecedented winter storms repeatedly hitting the Northeast and Midwest regions. However, MINI USA managed to plow through February with a staggering **51.3%** sales increase over the same month last year. Similarly to [January 2015](https://www.motoringfile.com/2015/02/03/mini-usa-sales-up-27-for-january-2015/), this number has to be taken with caution given how low MINI USA sales started from, but with that in mind let’s look at how each model did this month.
The Hardtop is the main driver of MINI USA’s performance in February. Now comprised of the 2 and 4 -door, its volume has increased by **443.8%** compare to February of 2014. Surprisingly, the Convertible has progressed by **45.0%**, while the Clubman, the Coupe, and the Roadster are at an all-time low, but we already know why. Despite its all-wheel drive system and the strong winter weather, the Countryman is down **-31.5%**. The most disappointing number comes from the Paceman with only **63** units sold, its worst month since the introduction of the model in March 2013. Retirement can’t come soon enough for the unwanted MINI.
Additionally used MINIs (including MINI NEXT certified pre-owned) reported sales of **1,827** units, a decrease of **-2.6%** from the **1,875** sold in February, 2014.
<p>wouldn’t it be 3-door and 5-door?</p>
<p>It’s actually 2-door and 4-door for the US. Euro typo corrected :)</p>
<p>Still a ways off from February 2013’s 4,302 and February 2012’s 4,980, if my numbers are correct.</p>
<p>The Countryman’s numbers are really interesting. 5-Door eating in, or just a lull?</p>
<p>You are correct. Granted that 2012 and 2013 where MINI USA best year, it’s going to take a bit of time (i.e. fully renewed line-up) to get back to these levels, but I’m confident it will happen. Aside from possible cannibalization by the 4-door , that fact that the Countryman is an aging model probably contributes to declining sales.</p>
<p>Hi Alex. It’s weird to think that the Countryman’s aging. Very curious to see how the larger Countryman will go over (same for the >Clubman).</p>
<p>Looking at the game tape, the Convertible has a great story, too. I believe the Convertible has always out sold both the Coupe and the Roadster. I think it speaks to the fact that (a minimum level) of utility must be a characteristic if a MINI model is to survive.</p>
<p>What is the benefit of producing the Paceman instead of putting more resources in building more Countrymen?</p>
<p>Never understood the purpose of the Paceman. People wanted a bigger MINI with better rear seat access (i.e. 4 doors), Paceman doesn’t provide that.
Might as well get the Hardtop 2 door or the clubman.</p>
<p>Wonder if MINI was trying to emulate Rover on the Evoque?</p>
<p>Maybe some other people are like me, 4 doors are 2 too many. As for the Paceman, it went into a 4-door market for competition. The Countryman was such a success, and that was what it was fighting. As for emulating the Evoque, possible, but I think that the biggest issue was the Paceman’s price point, and being underpowered, even in the JCW form. A vehicle with that weight, all drive needs at least 250 hp and that wasn’t/isn’t going to happen.</p>
<p>Now MINI has only two cars with less than 4 doors: Convertible and 2-door hatch. The new 4-door hatch looks nice, but will never get me as a customer.</p>
<p>I sat in the back seat of the 4 dr hatch last year Nov at the SF Int’l car show. Tight and the foot well is made for someone (man) with a size 6 shoe. Heck I only have a size 9 and had a difficult time getting my feet out. Didn’t find the 4 dr hatch rear seat and area that good. If I needed a 4 dr and rear seat access, I would get a Countryman even though it still has the PSA troublesome engine.</p>
<p>Ordered a F56 on Feb 23rd. Had planned to wait one more year but my 2004 R50 is getting up in age and miles.</p>
<p>One thing I was happy to experience, no more MSRP or Dealer markup for Custom Build. I received a good price/deal.</p>
<p>Now the waiting begins . Been 11 years since I last went through the “check the owner forum for status of build” daily craziness. lol.</p>
<p>Hoping 2nd year F56 has all the bugs and recalls and issues resolved. Checking other MINI forums, seems some people are experiencing issues with Visual Boost and/or NAV. Also with manual trans, jumping out of 1st gear and car stalls. Reports are these are Dec 2014 and Jan 2015 models (2015 Cooper and Cooper S).</p>
<p>I ordered mine with Auto. We’ll see.</p>
<p>Some late 2014 models are still experience the oil filter housing
leak/crack. People posting say MINI told them their car was not in the
group with the problem but then it did happen to them. For one person, a
new Engine had to be installed.</p>
<p>Keep us updated!</p>
<p>I’d like to know what dealer (or region) that worked with you on price. Around here, they want MSRP on a custom-build, no haggling. If they weren’t such a lackluster dealership, perhaps I wouldn’t mind so much. But I guess that’s what happens when you sell both BMW and Rolls Royce on-site.</p>
<p>Northern California/Bay Area. There are 5 Mini dealers within appox. 60-70 miles of each other. In fact one dealer kept calling me asking what they could do to get me into a Mini today. I did get quotes from 4 of the 5 dealers and then took the lowest quote to the other dealers and asked if they could beat or match. 2 Matched and I went with the one who’s customer service was more to my liking.</p>
<p>A couple of the dealers I believe still have “markups” for the cars they have on the lot (dealer spec’d) but they also have “dealer specials” they advertise which are below MSRP. Two others don’t have markups (one advertises on their webpage, “No Dealer Markup). Don’t remember if the 5th dealer has markup for cars on lot.</p>
<p>Thanks. I actually considered taking delivery on the west coast and driving back home to the DC area. But any savings on the price would be eaten by lodging and fuel expenses. Would make for a nice road trip tho, and as close as I’d get to taking overseas delivery on one.</p>
<p>I still feel like this is a bit misleading. In February 2014 you couldn’t build an R56 and the F56 was still months out from being released, right?</p>
<p>Since all the other models are separated out with regard to individual sales figures, why are the 2 door & 4 door combined into one model re the sales?? After all, they are officially listed as 2 different body types. I think it would be more informative if the F56 series & F55 series were completely separate here.
I’m a bit biased re the info, since I’ve had my new ordered F55S since late Dec. Would be nice to see how the sales of these 2 series compare to each other as the F55 establishes itself over the upcoming months.</p>
<p>BMW Group global sales for February 2015, were published earlier today, and total MINI sales are up 69.8% on a year ago. Of more interest to you, however, is that F55/ F56 sales were 5088 and 7877 respectively, the 5-door accounting for 39% of Hardtop sales. Taking a broader view, the total number of Hardtop sales for the past four months, November – February, amounted to 64,996, of which 19,951 were F55 sales, almost 31%.</p>
<p>Industry analysts are predicting that MINI will reverse the established trend of 5-dr Hatchbacks outselling 3-dr Hatchbacks by a ratio of 2:1, and the above sales figures seem to support that. IMO, it’s still far too early to say.</p>
<p>I think that most of the hardcore MINI enthusiasts will always lean toward the 2/3 door over the 4/5 door for the many reasons we see here on MF. But some of the hardcore as well as many others will see the new 4/5 door as a needed model with more versatility & usability than the 2/3 door while still retaining that MINI driveability. Many of those leaning toward the 4/5 door may be young families with small children who see the added 2 doors as a real plus for them. Even married seniors like me with my new ThunderGray F55S can appreciate the added versatility.</p>
<p>Looks good, in an understated sophisticated sort of way. The message that your car gives out is that it is owned by someone who knows exactly what he wants, but doesn’t need to try too hard. Well done! Love the sprinkling of discreet Union Jack flags!</p>
<p>Even if the auto analysts are right, and the F55 only sells half as well as the F56, that’s still a hell of a lot more cars, and more than the R55 ever managed – in its best year some 36K globally. The F55 has averaged 5K a month in its first four months!</p>
<p>When you have a moment, I would be very interested to hear how your first few weeks of ownership have gone. How has your motoring life changed, if at all, since transferring from a Coupé S, and is there anything you miss?</p>
<p>You’re right re an understated sort of way, as Bob Lavoie, alias Grayghost, I ordered my F55S in ThunderGray (my 1st gray car ever) with black roof which has much less bling than my previous Spicy Orange/black roof ’12 JCW Coupe.
Even going with black stripes instead of white stripes for more minimalism!! But then I included the Blackjack décor on the mirrors & side scuttles for ‘some’ bling to make a statement that I wasn’t dead yet! Ha!! Far from it!</p>
<p><pre><code> My driving experience with the 4 door during these 1st 2+ months has been somewhat different than my previous '12 JCWCoupe. I've driven it mostly in the green mode just to see what kind of mileage I could get. Managed 37.0 & 38.2 MPG each way on a 800 mile highway round trip keeping within 5 MPH of speed limit...much higher than the EPA figures in the default normal mode. I have the auto/paddle shifter setup.
I am really appreciating the much better all around visibility in the 4 door (especially rear) compared to the Coupe which was poor to fair at best...especially the rear quarters. Also the added room for my recent 800 mile round trip to carry luggage for 2, golf clubs, & other misc compared to the Coupe was no contest.
The ride in the 4 door is so smooth & quiet (in the green mode) I had to double check to make sure I had runflats! Yet when I moved to the normal & especially the sport mode, it showed its strength in those areas.
I do miss the Coupe for its strengths...the power, handling, & eye turning design. Some may not like it (per MF comments when it was being revealed), but most people that approached me in parking lots, gas stations, along the road, etc. were all favorable & impressed with its looks.
</code></pre></p>
<p>I am driving the 4 door more sedately than the Coupe. But that’ll definitely change when I get to the MOTD in late Apr. Sport mode will be the primary mode!! Will even be using a GoPro for the 1st time at the event…another new toy!</p>
<p>Thanks for your feedback Bob. The smooth and quite ride sounds particularly good! The Coupé was always going to struggle, because the car on which it is based, R56, was fundamentally such a good car, and the few extra strengths in the F58 were simply not enough to offset its many weaknesses.</p>
<p>I am interested in your real-life experience with the F55, because it’s on my short-list for my next daily driver, which will be a long term purchase – at least five years. Having previously owned two Clubmans and subsequently a Countryman, I am naturally drawn to the F54 Clubman which starts production this summer, but I’m questioning whether I really need the extra bulk and weight to carry around. I shall almost certainly wait until the F54 is launched so that I can make a back to back comparison, but I suspect that for 95% of the time, the F55 would be more than good enough!</p>
<p>Having had an ’08 MCS hatch & the ’12 JCWCoupe before my F55S, I can make a decent comparison among them. But having never been in or driven or rode in a Clubman or Countryman, I can’t make any comparisons to those 2 models.
I was really surprised how smooth its ride is combined with the interior quietness…at least in the Green mode. I had expected a similar rougher noisier ride that my other 2 had. Those new seats with the great lateral support also added to the comfort level. All that said, it still has that MINI handling & fun factor.
Although I seldom had passengers in the back seat of my R56S, I wanted that option in this roomier back seat. When I 1st saw the F55S in the flesh, the 1st thing I did was access the back seats. I’m only 5’8″ & was able to enter easily despite the relatively small rear doors. It has sufficient leg room as long as the front seats aren’t positioned all the way back. Even then, it’s still much roomier than the 2 door’s back seat. Rear hatch storage is also larger than the F56.
I understand the F55 is about 10″ longer than the F56, so is about the same length as your Clubmans. It also weighs around 200 lbs more than the F56 (and my former R58JCW), but doesn’t feel heavier in normal driving. Might be more noticeable in exuberant drives. In my one long distant 800 mile drive back in Feb on mostly Interstates, it was great!
I understand the new F54 Clubman will be larger than the Countryman…at least in the interior per reports. For me, I don’t need than much car, but for a family of 4-5, it could sell well. It will likely weigh a good bit more than the F55 along with less MPG.
Have you had a chance to try out an F55 yet? I only drove the S, but not the base 3 cyl. I special ordered mine with quite a few options…adding about 11K to the base price. I plan to keep it much longer than the 3 yrs for the R58JCW & 4 yrs for the R56S hatch.</p>
<p>Thanks for that Bob. I haven’t had a test drive in an F55 yet, because within days of its UK launch we left for SE Asia, and have only just returned to the UK.</p>
<p>We have always preferred the shorter, and lighter, framed doors on the Countryman compared to the longer, and surprisingly heavy, front doors on our previous Clubman, especially when parking in narrow parking bays, and I expect the same will be the case between the F55 and F56.</p>
<p>I was disappointed that the F56 was only awarded 4 out 5 stars in the recent Euro NCAP safety tests, because of weaknesses in side impact protection, and I’m hoping that the stronger B post and framed doors on the F55 will provide better side impact protection, as is the case with the Countryman.</p>
<p>We’re in no hurry to change, and are content to wait until the F54 Cooper is available, so that we can test drive it back to back with the F55 Cooper. In the meantime, now that spring is almost here, we are looking forward to bringing out of hibernation our sympathetically upgraded 1969 Morris Minor (Woody) Traveller :)</p>
<p>Nick…..You were talking about the lighter shorter doors on the Countryman doors compared to your earlier Clubman. The front doors on the F55 are shorter than on the F56 to allow for the relatively short back seat doors. So it would be more like the Countryman in that respect (sort of like comparing the Countryman doors to the Paceman.
So having a B post might make a difference re added side protection. Having had both an R56 & R58 which had large (wide) swinging heavy front doors, the F55 doors have a much shorter swing out & seem less heavy due to their smaller size. In my case they allow easier access when parking in my 2 car garage with my wife’s car also in there.
My guess re the new F54 Clubman is being a larger longer vehicle the doors will likely also be longer & heavier than the F55.
Being here in the U.S. (Florida), we seldom see any original Mini’s except at special car shows. I can imagine how great your ’69 Morris Minor (Woody) Traveller looks. I’ve always had/preferred smaller cars…even owned a 1972 Honda Z600 Sport Coupe which was about the size of the original MINI…1310 lbs & even had the small 10″ wheels. Had a whopping 36HP out of its 2 cyl 600cc air cooled motorcycle engine. 0-60 took a slow 18+ secs!!! :)</p>
<p>Bob – interested to hear about your Honda Z600 with 0-60MPH taking 18+ secs. Over the years I have owned no less that three Citroen 2CV’s (Deux Chevaux) which ultimately was fitted with a 2 cyl 602cc air cooled engine, but only produced 29HP, with 0-60MPH taking 32 secs – now that’s slow! In fact the original 1948 version had a 9HP 375cc 2 cyl engine and a top speed of only 42 MPH, and 0-40MPH in 42.4 secs. No wonder it became affectionately known as, “The Tin Snail”. However, with front-wheel-drive, all independent roly poly suspension and a high ground clearance, it could be driven across a ploughed field without any worries. A remarkable car and a true classic.</p>
<p>Our ‘Woody’ Traveller, is of course a Morris Minor, not a Morris Mini-Minor, and like the 2CV was also launched in 1948, but with a Morris 918cc 4 cyl side-valve engine. The 1954 Series II received the Austin 803cc A-series OHV engine, which was increased to 948cc in the 1956 Minor 1000. In 1962, the Minor received its final A-series engine capacity increase to 1098cc.</p>
<p>Our fully restored ‘Woody’ has been upgraded with a 1275cc A-series engine, 5-speed gearbox, telescopic dampers, front disc brakes with servo, front anti-sway bar, alternator, electronic ignition, lead-free cylinder head, hydraulic clutch and very comfortable front seats trimmed to match the original interior. It starts, accelerates, corners and stops remarkably well, and garners so much good will and affection from complete strangers, it’s almost embarrassing, but it’s good for the soul :)</p>
<p>Nick….that ’72 Honda Z600 Sport Coupe that I had from 1972 to 1979 was the last year for that model as well as its less expensive model…a 2 door sedan. They were being replaced by the 1st of the Civics for 1973. The Z600 had a top speed of 75MPH & that was in its top 4th gear at the redline!! Being air cooled it wasn’t as efficient heating the interior as a water cooler engine during the cold winters of the Wash, D.C. area where I lived at that time.
Although small & light with only 36HP, it’s mileage figures weren’t as good as one would think….generally in the low/mid 30’s MPG US for mixed driving. Highway driving could be as high as 43 MPG if the wind was behind me! Like your Citroens, Woody, & MINIs, it was front wheel drive. The 0-60 in 18 secs is only a guess…it could have been slower than that! And being air cooled, it was pretty noisy at higher speeds…tough to listen to the car’s AM radio. At about 75K miles after 7 years of mostly commuting to work, the engine died so I went on to my next commuter car…a new ’79 Honda Civic CVCC which I drove for 10 years & 110K miles with minimal problems.
I believe I saw versions of your Woody at an annual British car show held in a nearby town (Safety Harbor) along Tampa Bay last fall. They closed off their Main St for the dozens of British classics….really great! Even saw a couple early ’50’s Jag XK120’s like I had during the early 1960’s.</p>
<p>Bob – Despite being a regular commentator on MF, I am first and foremost a Jaguar enthusiast, which is the fault of my Dad because he was a director and shareholder in a Jaguar Dealership throughout the 60’s and 70’s when I was growing up, so I had a lot of exposure to them in my formative years. As you would expect, he had access to any model in the range.</p>
<p>Sometimes he would bring home an E Type, which in the early 60’s were as rare as hens’ teeth on account of most going for export, and at my request would drop me off at school in the mornings in the most conspicuous place. As you can imagine, my personal credibility rating with my fellow pupils increased enormously! You are probably already aware that a mint steel-bodied XK120 today will easily make £100K, about US$150k, especially a DHC or Roadster, and an early rare alloy-bodied Roadster can triple that on a good day.</p>
<p>I have attached for your interest a couple of photos of our ‘Woody’ which, despite its many upgrades, is indistinguishable from a standard model, except for the slightly larger and more modern front seats. It even has its original wheels and hubcaps! The ash frame is structural of course. By the way, these photos were taken while on a visit to Old Town, Hastings, which is not far from the site of the historic ‘Battle of Hastings’ in 1066, the very last time in fact that Britain was successfully invaded by a foreign country, almost a thousand years ago!</p>
<p>Nick……that’s a great looking Woody that you have. I’m pretty sure I saw one (or more) of those at the British car show in nearby Safety Harbor last fall.</p>
<p>It must have been quite an experience to be in/around many types of Jags when you were growing up per your dad’s connection with he Jag dealership. I remember when the E-type came out in the early 60’s. It was so different that the earlier XK150 which it replaced & especially compared to the XK140 & 120.</p>
<p>Yesterday, I took closeup photos of some of my old 1960’s-70’s car photos to get them on my computer then transferred them to my IPAd & IPhone for easy access. May see if I can include a few of my old XK120 Jags here in an attachment. At least that’s my plan.</p>
<p>Although I enjoyed the experience of having those 2 old Jags during 1963-64, they required lots of work to Keira them running…especially the roadster. I had the Coupe for only 3-5 months without much trouble when I swapped even with another guy who had the Roaster which gave me LOTS of trouble. Both cars had a strong tendency to overhead in even minimal stop & go traffic here in hot Florida.</p>
<p>Nick….Will try to attach some photos here. Seems I was able to attach several of my 2 Jags, Porsche, Honda Z600, Sprite, & my 3 MIINiS. The 08 S hatch photo taken in 2010 has my future wife standing by the car. We just got married back in Jan.</p>
<p>Bob – First of all, belated Congratulations on your marriage back in January! May I say how lovely your wife looks, and I wish you both lots of happiness. Thank you also for the trouble you have taken in reproducing the photos of some of your cars, past and present. The ‘sepia’ shots of your two XK120’s capture the atmosphere of that era. You are right that the later ‘steel bodied’ XK120 had aluminium doors, bonnet and boot lid, and inadequate engine cooling was always an XK120 weakness. The XK140 was much improved in that respect, together with rack and pinion steering and a 3″ longer cabin.</p>
<p>I have owned 27 cars to date. 4 were used and were my first cars (2 Morris Minors and 2 Minis) 17 were brand new (1 MG Midget, 5 MGB GT’s, 3 Citroens – bought as second cars, 3 BMWs, 2 Toyotas and 3 MINIs) and 6 were ‘classic’ cars bought in later years (BMW 2002, Citroen Dyane, MGB Roadster, and 3 Morris Minors). The MG Midget, a 1275cc MK111 in red with wire wheels, was not only my first brand new car, but also my first sports car – a fabulous little car to own at a young age, and possibly the most memorable of the 27 that I have owned so far!</p>
<p>By the way, I was most impressed to learn of your ancestral provenance! :)</p>
<p>Nick…..yesterday I added stripes on the boot of my F55S matching those on the bonnet. Will attached photos. Had to search around the WEB to find a vendor who had those same black stripes with white pinstripe border.</p>
<p>You sure had a wide range of cars over the years…lots more than me! My entire list included….’58 Plymouth, 56 Chevy, the 2 XK120 Jags, 60 Renault Daulphine, 65 Sprite, 58 Porsche, 70 & 76 Toyota Corona, 72 Honda z600, 79 Honda Civic, 86 Camry, 89 Toyota GTS Corolla, 98 Honda Accord, 2000 Honda Odyssey, 2005 Toyota Corolla, 08 Cooper S hatch, 12 JCW Coupe & lastly my new 4 door F55S.</p>
<p>So only my 1st 2 cars were American made. I just preferred smaller better handling, sometime quirky foreign makes. Only went for the larger models for family use. My wife of 2+ months had a 70’s vintage MGB many years ago. She currently has an 06 Lexus 330ES.</p>
<p>Have attached 4 photos….2 with the new boot stripes, & the other. 2 of the boot earlier without stripes for comparison & the bonnet stripes that the car came with.</p>
<p>Bob – So you’ve had 19 cars and 9 different makes – Plymouth, Chevrolet, Jaguar, Renault, Austin-Healey, Porsche, Toyota, Honda and MINI. That compares with my 27 cars and 6 different makes – Morris, MG, Citroen, BMW, Toyota, MINI.</p>
<p>Thanks for the photos. The stripes are a good match and, although I’m not a huge fan of stripes, with the understated look of Thunder Gray, your F55 wears them well. I notice that you have removed all the rear stickers; good decision!</p>
<p>I’m intrigued to know how you dealt with the ‘Cooper S’ badge, when applying the stripes. Did you have to remove it? I know it’s all down to personal taste, but I would have left it off completely, so as to create a symmetrical look. What do you think?</p>
<p>Nick….I selected the black bonnet stripes for my Thunder Gray F55S specifically because they would be understated on the gray body (instead of going with white stripes). But they do have the white pinstripe edge to show up from a distance.
I do have lots of metallic badges I use sometimes on the boot in addition to the 2 badge plates I use on the grill. Most of the time I’ll add the boot badges for MINI events…like our upcoming Apr 29-May 2) 13th annual ‘MINIS on the Dragon’ event in the western North Carolina mountains area where the US-129 winding road is located. Are you familiar with it over in the UK?….(318 curves in 11 miles)!!
Regarding the Cooper S badge on the back, I left it there when I applied the stripes. Figured it was too much trouble to have to remove each of those individual Cooper letters as well as S letter & re-apply on top of the stripe. If the Cooper work was all connected together I might have removed it.
I cut off the stripe just above the Cooper S then resumed the stripe below it. Unless you look close it’s almost undetectable that the stripe isn’t connected. But it’s interesting how using Photoshop removed the Cooper S badge.
On my 2 previous MINIs, I initially didn’t have stripes on my ’08 MCS hatch but added the black stripes on the Pepper white body. On the ’12 JCW Coupe, I decided not to have stripes at all!</p>
<p>Bob – Three years ago, there was an interesting discussion on MF at the time of the launch of the Paceman, when many people were horrified that the name PACEMAN was emblazoned across its tailgate, and wanted to know how to remove the letters. It was agreed by consensus that the best method was to use fishing line, followed up with an appropriate solvent to remove any residue of glue, and finished off with a good quality polish. They need not have worried as it was soon announced that the lettering was to be a no-cost delete option.</p>
<p>Bob – I have taken the liberty of using Photoshop to remove the CooperS badge from the boot of your F55, so as to graphically demonstrate how it would look, and have attached a copy. In the UK, we have always had the no-cost option to delete badges on BMWs/MINIs, and many buyers over here choose that option.</p>
<p>I think its great news that the MINI brand is continuing to remain strong. My concern though is that it bolsters the them of growing the cars physically. This will likely support the idea that MINIs should get bigger and bigger.</p>
<p>Interesting to see how all the models are down except the core Hardtop and Convertable</p>