[Lumspeed]

Go and test one !,

My cooper in for it's first service today .

Got new DIESEL as a loan car.

Having said that DIESEL engines belong in a TRUCK in a previous thread , I a have to say that I withdraw that statement !!.

Having driven various DIESEL engined vehicles over the year's , and not found any of them worth praising , I was AMAZED with my loan car from my dealers today !.

My Cooper was in for it's first oil change , Torn handbrake Gaitor change , Steering Column fix , Re-Call Handbrake adjustment , Annoying drivers seat 'Squeek' noise .

The loan car they gave me was a brand new DIESEL with 65 miles on the clock.

This car was 'BRILL'.

Much more responsive than my cooper . OK it was not as quick from standstill , but much more responsive .

Press the pedal and it went , where as press the pedal in mine and it think's about it for a bit !.

Power comes in about 2500 rev's in any gear except 6th. but even then , the gradual increase propels you quicker than you would expect for a DIESEL .

Doing 95 in sixth and had to back off for traffic !!.

If you don't mind using the box to keep the rev's up , then this is the babe for you !!.

My Cooper !!, they fixed the steering ( For now ? ), fitted a new handbrake gaitor , adjusted the handbrake to the specifications required for the RE-CALL ( Which I was not notified about ),Removed the seat and fitted a new base ??.

I asked if they would do a staight swap for the DIESEL ??
no joy , well I was talking to a GIRLIE ! receptionist ! NO Sexist comment's intended , but why is the Service manager alway's missing when you pick up your car ??.

GO AND TRY ONE ( By yourself !! )The DIESEL that is , not the receptionist !!

[Paul]

Quote:

Originally posted by Lumspeed
Much more responsive than my cooper . OK it was not as quick from standstill , but much more responsive.

Press the pedal and it went , where as press the pedal in mine and it think's about it for a bit !.

Power comes in about 2500 rev's in any gear except 6th. but even then , the gradual increase propels you quicker than you would expect for a DIESEL .

Doing 95 in sixth and had to back off for traffic !!.

If you don't mind using the box to keep the rev's up , then this is the babe for you !!

On the first point, I think you might have a problematic Cooper. There is no way on earth the Diesels we drove on the press launch could touch a Cooper. They felt slow even compared to Abi's MINI One, and less responsive!

Quiet, refined, pleasent, well engineered... Yes.

But "quick". No.

Glad you had fun with it though.

[mainlinemenace]

Our diesel has done 600 miles and has loosened up significantly, much quicker than a "ONE" ,in real terms, and will give a cooper a run between 50 -90 mph. Also returning 50mpg

We will also be "chipping" the car next week and should see 97-100 bhp, but more importantly bags more torque

[JVP]

Please tell us the results of the chipping.
I ordered a One D for next month and I'm also intrested in "chipping" it for a little more power.
I have also been told it needs a few thousand km's to loosen up. Looks like it realy makes a difference.
JVP

[Paul]

The Diesels we drove on the launch already had several hundred miles on the clock, and we also took part in an autotest on an open airfield (which was brilliant fun, poor MINIs....). While the performance figures speak for themselves, the real world feel of the Diesel was that it was slower than the other MINIs, and the useable power band was too small. We didn't get very good MPG either, but the way we drove them, that's not too shocking! If a chip can boost the power AND give you a wider power band to play with, that would be very cool.

[Lumspeed]

Paul .

Have said from day one that I'm not happy with the response from my cooper , yes the power is better than a ONE or a Diesel once further up the rev band , but from rest its poor ( Well Cr*p really ).

Reported this to the dealer who dumped the software and started again with current settings for a COOPER , slight improvement but still not impressed !!.

The DIESEL I tried accelerated as soon as pedal was pressed , as did the ONE , and of course the S .

If you increase the rev's 'Quite Considerably 'then my COOPER will launch from rest quick enough for the DSC to kick in .

But try and FLOOR it from rest , and it say's ' ER DID YOU WANT ME TO DO SOMETHING THERE ?? , HANG ON A BIT UNTILL I REACH ABOUT 3000 REVS ' !!.

Horses for courses all models are , but for me the COOPER should be quicker than the ONE , not as quick as the S , and certainly more responsive than the DIESEL albeit with a TURBO.

Comments from anyone please !!.

Regards.

[Paul]

Quote:

Originally posted by Lumspeed

Horses for courses all models are , but for me the COOPER should be quicker than the ONE , not as quick as the S , and certainly more responsive than the DIESEL albeit with a TURBO.

Comments from anyone please !!.

Regards.

From my experience, my former Cooper, head to head with Abi's One (or back to back with the same driver, me) was quicker off the mark, and 0-60 etc. than the one, but you felt the difference MOST when over about 3,900 rpm, when the Cooper's extra power really kicks in, and the One's curve just creaps and drops off. The Cooper is not a HUGE difference from the One, but you should be able to feel it all the way across the revs.

Perhaps (just perhaps)it's perception, because the large amount of extra kick is over 4,000ish RPM in the Cooper, it felt more sluggish than the One below that magic mark, but in actual fact, it wasn't/isn't. Perhaps it's just not right. The gearing alone should make the Cooper quicker off the line, before you talk about the extra BHP and Torque.

I'll have a Diesel again for a week starting tomorrow. So that will be a better test. I expect to cover many hundreds of miles!

Paul

[JVP]

Quote:

Originally posted by Paul Mullett


I'll have a Diesel again for a week starting tomorrow. So that will be a better test. I expect to cover many hundreds of miles!

Paul

I'm curious to hear from your new experience with the OneD.
Please keep us informed.
JVP

[Lumspeed]

Paul.

Agree with all your comments.

No problem with the power once under way.

It's just the initial response from rest that disapoints me.

Having driven all variants now , I still feel that my cooper does not respond to initial pedal acceleration .

It moves then dies then pick's up again , havn't found this in the other models.

Anyway enough said on my part on this topic I think !.

Look forward to comments from new Diesel owners , maybe the Diesel I drove was better than the norm , but I found it very responsive , very smooth , ok not rapid but more adaptable to local traffic conditions than the ONE !.

When my HSR is back on the road after it's lengthy rebuild then I might seriously consider a swap from my COOPER for a DIESEL .

Whatever the guise , the MINI2 is still the car for me.

Renault MEGANNE car of the year , Your joking though !!.

[Paul]

Got a few miles on it today. It's quite a nice spec. Seems a little louder than the One's on the launch even in the cabin, but not sure.

Makes a strange sound that I think I've heard of before on the forums, could be a little dodgy.

MPG is about 40 right now.

[Prowse]

Quote:

Originally posted by Paul Mullett
...Seems a little louder than the One's on the launch even in the cabin, but not sure...

...MPG is about 40 right now.

Here lie the problems with the diesel:

The noise (I hate the sound of diesel's in the morning)! The low vibration of diesel vehicles and now the low (ish) MPG. Considering the additional expense of buying the diesel in the first place, then having to pay an additional £500 to get it chipped, then watching your diesel engine economy get further reduced (you won't get +18 BHP out of a Superchip for nothing), it just doesn't add up IMHO.

A work colleage had a similar experience, he's just bought a diesel Renault Megane (apparently one of the best diesel engines on the market). He's getting less than 40mpg, not good, and nothing like the manufacturer's figures. For a little more than he's paying for a tank of diesel, I could fill with a tank of over-priced Shell Optimax (sore point)! And he's had to pay the customary £1,000 excess for the pleasure of a diesel engine (that's a lot of fuel).

Was it on Top Gear last Sunday that someone had worked out that in the new diesel Jaguar (LOL), it would take you an average of three years of motoring before you got back the additional cost of the diesel engine (upgrade).

[johntheminid]

Quote:

Originally posted by Prowse
Here lie the problems with the diesel:


Was it on Top Gear last Sunday that someone had worked out that in the new diesel Jaguar (LOL), it would take you an average of three years of motoring before you got back the additional cost of the diesel engine (upgrade).

The figure I saw quoted on the Channel 4 car site was 35,000 mile to recoup the difference. My current mileage would mean that my Mini One would probably have reached that figure by Christmas, its 2nd birthday.

As I was planning on trading in and up later in the year anyway, I've just traded it in for a One D which I'll pick up next week (a model which was destined for the showroom). Having driven the One since December 2001, I have to say that, in terms of performance, there's not a huge difference. Yes, as expected, it's slower off the mark and might not allow the usual risks to be taken at busy roundabouts, but once you get moving there's very little to choose between them.

Got more extras on this one. Hope I feel they're worth it once I get it. A lot of extra money for a bit of chrome and a cd player. Time will tell. Also hope that any glitches are brought to my attention sooner rather than later with this one. Losing the gears on the outside lane of a dual carriageway was not an experience I wish to repeat in a hurry...

Will post again once I've had it for a week or two.

[Paul]

OK, 90 odd miles now of 'normal' driving, that gives me about 28-29 mpg on the 'S', and gave me about 32 mpg on the Cooper. The One D is returning about 37 mpg....

Paul

[Prowse]

Quote:

Originally posted by Paul Mullett
OK, 90 odd miles now of 'normal' driving, that gives me about 28-29 mpg on the 'S', and gave me about 32 mpg on the Cooper. The One D is returning about 37 mpg....

Paul

ROFL!!!


32mpg (Cooper) = 7.04mpl,
Unleaded (my garage) = £71.50/l = £28.60 (40l fill),
40l in Cooper @ 32 mpg = 281.6 miles

37mpg (One D) = 8.14mpl,
Diesel (my garage) = £74.9/l = £29.96 (40l fill),
40l in One D @ 37mpg = 325.6 miles.

Difference = £1.36 and 44 miles, or £4.46 worth of fuel in the Cooper.

So, to break even, just to cover the excess of say £950 extra you'll have to pay for the pleasure of the diesel engine, you'll have to fill your tank 213 times (that's four years at one fill-up a week)! Against the efficiency of a Cooper (petrol MINI One is more economical).

Mind you, it does have those Cooper S side skirts...

NB: Am very drunk at the time of writing, so the above maths is probably a load of rubbish!

[ny152]

Hello jasper2
Glad to hear about your fuel findings.
I tend to keep the revs round about 2000 or so when driving my current diesel car.
Thought it was great cruising along in the demonstrator D at 25mph in 5th gear!

[Prowse]

Quote:

Originally posted by ny152
Thought it was great... ...25mph in 5th gear!

How exciting, 25mph, yup, it's a diesel alright!

[Paul]

Quote:

Originally posted by jasper2
Prowse.have u driven the one d yet ?.its not fast but it is very nice to drive in and out of town.just as nice as my fully loaded cooper, not as fast but does twice the mpg.it pulls beter from 60mph to 80mph in top gear than my cooper as well.no need to make fun of it!!

Crikey! That's impressive.

I've had a MINI One D for a few days now (1,000 on the clock), it's averaging 37mpg on roads my old Cooper returned 32mpg on, and it's getting around a lot slower.

I think the extra efficiency would probably show up better doing longer runs, rather than 0-60-20-70-20-60 Milton Keynes type driving.

[JVP]

Quote:

Originally posted by Paul Mullett
Crikey! That's impressive.

I've had a MINI One D for a few days now (1,000 on the clock), it's averaging 37mpg on roads my old Cooper returned 32mpg on, and it's getting around a lot slower.

I think the extra efficiency would probably show up better doing longer runs, rather than 0-60-20-70-20-60 Milton Keynes type driving.

Sorry asking, but have you been driving the Diesel the way you drive the Cooper? Driving a new directly injected diesel is done completely different than driving a petrol powered car. Use the Nm instead of the HP. You'll see the efficiency go up.

[Paul]

Quote:

Originally posted by JVP
Sorry asking, but have you been driving the Diesel the way you drive the Cooper? Driving a new directly injected diesel is done completely different than driving a petrol powered car. Use the Nm instead of the HP. You'll see the efficiency go up.

No, very differently, especially due to the relatively small power band, there's absolutely no point in reving this diesel engine the way you would (or might I should say) a Cooper. Whole different kettle of fish.

I am sure I could get better efficiency, if I slowed my driving right down. I'll be playing around more later in the week to see what I can get.

[Paul]

Quote:

Originally posted by jasper2
Thats what i found,but i am used to driving diesel cars.The dealership was amaized that i had returned it with 58mpg aveage.all they were geting was 35 mpg.they did say that they were reving it and not using 6th during town driving.

See my post above, I'm not revving it like mad, and I use 6th gear often.