Hey Everyone... I'm new to the board.

I've been debating back & forth between purchasing a Mini Cooper and a Mini Cooper Clubman, base model - can't afford the S.

I've always wanted a Mini and now my lease on my Chev Optra will be up in November. I fell in love with the look of the Mini, but am weary about the space, so I started looking at the Clubman, but I don't really like the look of it because it just seems so much bigger... i find it takes away from what I originally even liked about the Mini in the first place....

We test drove a Mini Cooper over the weekend and it was awesome, so fun to drive... but unfortunately the dealership didn't have a Clubman, so I didn't get to test drive it. I'm concerned about blind spots in the Clubman because of the doors at the back. Also, the reason I wanted a Mini is because it's small and fun to handle, do you lose that "fun" in the Clubman?

Would you say the extra room is worth it?? Or is the Mini Cooper all that bad for space??? I"d be using it to get to & from work and to school, little road trips and really thats about it. I live in the moutains so we usually take our bikes and use my boyfriends truck, so don't really have to worry about heavy packing or anything like that...

I'd like opinions from Clubman owners and Mini Cooper owners.. Pros & Cons would be great!!! Thanks!!!

The Clubman for me offers all the MINI hatch does but with a bit more room. Some people don't like the looks of it, but aside from looks, I can't see a reason NOT to get the Clubman if you think the extra bit of space may come in handy.

if you don't like the look of the clubman...............don't buy it !!

the cooper is really a 2+2 as if you have four up you have no room for luggage.

but if you can live with this, it's a great car and a lot of economical fun.

I'd agree the Clubbie hasn't the best view out the back but I go forwards ;)

I think they are great, not much bigger than the hatch but a more usable boot :)

So I run a Clubbie and my wife runs a Hatch, I guess the best of both worlds

:nice::biggrin:

I've got an first gen f53 JCW hatch and a cooper clubman. Love both. IMO, I think looks is the reason why you should get a clubman over an R56 hatch. The high beltline isn't as noticeable in the clubman and the barn doors in the rear look much better than the r56 rear end. For everyday driving around, I don't think you lose any of the fun compared to the hatch.

I also wouldn't worry too much about the blind spot because of the rear doors. I've gotten used to leaning my head to the left and to the right every now and then to see if anybody is hiding back there.

I also wouldn't worry too much about the blind spot because of the rear doors. I've gotten used to leaning my head to the left and to the right every now and then to see if anybody is hiding back there.

It's good neck exercise ;):D
:nice:

It's no different driving the clubman to the hatch at all - I'd say that the ride is slightly more comfortable even going from a Cooper to the S (running on the same 17" runflats), it doesn't rattle around as much. I was whooping and laughing hysterically as I drove mine out of the dealer so there is noooo compromise there!

It's a super car, the extra space makes it a much more practical car for us than the hatch was and it's great to be different - there are a lot of MINIs out there!

As for blind spots, you just take more time to look. You would never move out until you are happy anyway so if it takes half a second longer, so what?

I would go for the Clubman every time, especially if it is to be your only car. The rear space is amazingly big, much as I like the regular MINI I would not have bought one because of the lack of space.

If you also have a big car, for the myriad of times when you need to carry lots of baggage/goods, OK, but you would find the Cooper too small. Not so with the Clubman which fills all needs.

The barn doors are no problem at all, concerning rear vision, you get used to them in a few minutes. And the side "club door" is extremely useful.

I also agree with the comments about the ride, in my experience the longer wheelbase actually improves matters.