[TeamF1Jr]

Well, I've had my Cooper S for about a month and have 800 miles on it. The whole motto for Mini is "Lets Motor", implying having fun with the car. Don't get me wrong, I am having fun with the car but only 15% of the time. The other 85% is worrying about getting more rattles. Have you Mini owners changed your driving style compared to your other cars in fear of creating more rattles?

Where I live (Cleveland, OH, USA), most of the roads are horrible. Its nearly impossible to find a perfect road. To me if I hit any bump the car feels like it can't handle it. I remember reading in the magazines about how rigid this car is and I don't have the sunroof, but it really doesn't feel that way. The car feels delicate. Keep in mind I'm coming from a 2000 Audi S4 that was a hell of lot more rigid. But when I'm in the Cooper S, I brake to extremely slow speeds to go over railroad tracks, I swirve to avoid uneven pavement. I feel the more bumps I'll hit the more squeeks and rattles my car will have, which I absolutely hate. I feel I have a baby BMW M3 or 911 in my hands that I can't use to its potential. I've driven a friends Ford Focus and it feels more refined. I don't have a problem driving over railroad tracks in fear of the Ford Focus falling apart.

I guess I need to move to a warmer climate where the road aren't as bad, but instead of jumping in my car to have fun, its like an obstacle course to avoid making the car feel looser than it already is.

The bottom line is the car is not as solid as the claim it is and I'm not having the fun I think I should be in this car.

[R53W11]

I live in Ohio as well - same quality roads here in Columbus, and while the car does ride rough at times I always feel like it can handle the roads fine. It is plenty solid. Have you checked the tire pressure?

[stellablade]

Agree with you on the rattles, annoying as hell. I'm sure the rattles are a product of the MINIs best features; stiff suspension and the rigid chassis. That's the conclusion I've come to anyway. The car doesn't feel delicate to me, it feels very rigid, but rattley!

[stellablade]

I own the Cooper by the way. I'd love to see how the SS+ feels on the S. But somehow I don't think I'd like it.

[noahe]

Make no mistake, your A4 was not more ridgid than your MINI. Your Audi may well have had a way better dash, with less creaky, rattly hard plastic, but the Audi was certainly more flexible. The suspension stiffness makes a huge difference too.

The MINI's rock-hard suspension is partially to blame, but it's also what gives it it's flat cornering attitude.

I honestly think that the rattles you have are a result of the car's build, and you're not going to significantly create more rattles by driving over rough surfaces fast. If you can get over this perception, that the rattling is present, and only the rattles are amplified by rough surfaces, you can get back to having fun.

In most cases, it's not the car that is delicate, but the driver.

Seriously, don't worry. MINI seems to have spent money in this order: Image, performance, reliability, tactile feedback, ergonomics.

You can either freak out, that it feels plasticky, and the toggles are hard to find without taking your eyes off the road, and the speedo is hard to read, OR:

You can say, WOW! That looks great. WoW! That thing turns. Wow! It's built solid. Erm, it rattles, and I don't know how fast I'm going... Okay! Let's take that turn again!

[clallo]

Absolutely brilliant post. You expressed my sentiments exactly. Well done.

Christian

Quote:

Originally posted by noahe
Make no mistake, your A4 was not more ridgid than your MINI. Your Audi may well have had a way better dash, with less creaky, rattly hard plastic, but the Audi was certainly more flexible. The suspension stiffness makes a huge difference too.

The MINI's rock-hard suspension is partially to blame, but it's also what gives it it's flat cornering attitude.

I honestly think that the rattles you have are a result of the car's build, and you're not going to significantly create more rattles by driving over rough surfaces fast. If you can get over this perception, that the rattling is present, and only the rattles are amplified by rough surfaces, you can get back to having fun.

In most cases, it's not the car that is delicate, but the driver.

Seriously, don't worry. MINI seems to have spent money in this order: Image, performance, reliability, tactile feedback, ergonomics.

You can either freak out, that it feels plasticky, and the toggles are hard to find without taking your eyes off the road, and the speedo is hard to read, OR:

You can say, WOW! That looks great. WoW! That thing turns. Wow! It's built solid. Erm, it rattles, and I don't know how fast I'm going... Okay! Let's take that turn again!