Cooper or Cooper S?

I happen to think the S is somewhat of a bargain.

I paid £14,830 for my Cooper, yet by paying an extra £2,350 I get:

1. MFSW- £160
2. Xenon Lights- £350
3. DSC- £210
4. A 163bhp Supercharged Engine
5. Six speed gearbox
6. Twin throaty exhaust
7. Chrome-Plated filler cap
8. Body kit
9. and the pleasure of owning one of the best drivers cars on the road today
   [/list=1]
   
   ..on top of what I had.
   
   All I can say if you have yet to buy a Mini, get an S. You can't afford not to.
   
   LMB

Back and Forth

I was sure I needed the Cooper S. Then I test drove them both and started having doubts. I was thinking the price difference wasn't worth the little bit of power. I thought then that I'd go with a Cooper, and put down some money to get on a list (thankfully mixed list). After further thought I'm back to needing the S. Once you add some (what I consider) essential features to the Cooper, such as sport seats, chrome line, spoiler, etc., the difference in price is less than 10%.

It may just come down to style and vanity, but I expect that in the end the Cooper and the Cooper S will largely be selling at price points only about $1000 apart, as most Coopers will be sold with the CVT as time goes on. I don't want a car in a manual that most people would rather have in automatic for a number of reasons, including vanity, and residual value. Plus the styling of the S is just better (on the outside, I like the base Cooper interior more, oh well).

Decisions.....decisions.....AARRRGH!!
Cooper or Cooper S?!!!
I am on a waiting list for an S. After test driving a Cooper
I also got on the list for it. Dealer told me the S would be
10-12 months away!; Cooper only 120 days. So the wait is a factor.
The power & torgue of an S is attractive, especially since
I do most of my driving in San Francisco. More power on the hills really helps. But I was impressed with the Cooper on
my drive. It had more power than I expected & there were 4
people in the car!
Aesthetics?, I'm with you Sejanus.The Cooper is cleaner & the chrome accents are nice.
Will there be problems with S's blower etc.?
From my regular reading of MINI2 it seems that the S is
so new to all us (on both sides of the pond) it is just
early to tell.
Hope to test drive an S soon so I can see if it worth the
money & the wait.
If anyone out there has driven both; I would love to hear your thoughts.

Mug 51 & all,
I test drove an S & a Cooper on Sat. so I could make up my mind. It took alot of phone calls to all the Bay Area dealers to find one that had both cars available.
But, anyway my mind is made up & I going for the Cooper.
Yes; the S is faster & the Gertag 6 speed is REAL nice but
I don't think it worth the extra money or wait.
I know the S is faster. But it simply did not feel "significantly" quicker to me. Gertag gearbox is smooth and easier to shift. Was doing fine @ 75mph in 5th gear. Do you really need 6th?
Suspension was nice & firm but on our lousy Calif. roads it
would too much.
Perhaps my opinion would change if I drove it more.
After doing a build sheet on both cars my S was only $2,000 more. So you have a good point Sealevel. To me the wait (10-12 months) is just too much. Will the demand for the S drive it's price up over that period of time?? I fear it may.
For now the Cooper is fine. I can trade up later for the S (or M!) if I need more power.

I am kind of in the same quandary. As of right now, I'm in line to get the Cooper before summer, but may ultimately trade up for the Cooper S as early as September. This is the perfect month anyway as my preferred color of Indi blue will be available (will be either that or DS), the full Cold Weather Package will be available (theoretically ), any possible kinks will perhaps be ironed out by then, and it will be an '03 model. Actually, I probably should not be getting a new car at all as the finances may not be able to take it. I may end up living off 7-11 hot dogs for a while . But I don't think I can resist. The MINI has drawn me in like a moth to light, a bee to pollen, a fly to sh....well, you get my point. Seems weird to get a car only to sell it 4 or 5 months later, but as I've been waiting for over two years, I don't think I can wait much longer to get my MINI (either MINI), especially not 'till September. Who knows I may end up falling in love with the Cooper and decide to keep it.

Cooper:
1. Cosmetically superior....S nose is OK but the rear
is the pits.
2. Less expensive...even when you add stuff to equalize
handling.
3. Can get dark colors.
4. More chrome except gas filler.
5. Seems quicker in first two gears.
6. Get a spare tire...so replacement tires are more
affordable and ride more smoothly.
7. Silver interior plastic is better looking than alloy
pattern plastic.
8. More available at this time and for months ahead if you
don't have a low #. ( as if the US dealers use their
lists when selling Coopers )
9. Aftermarket power add ons may make a more noticable
difference.
S model:
1. Faster top end.
2. Eaton Superchargers work well...hold up well.
3. Better transmission.
4. Sounds better in stock form.
5. More fun to drive.
6. Can order Xenons at this time.

I am expecting a black Cooper in May. Need a MINI this summer in black or bright yellow. The MINI yellow is too pastel and you can't order a black S until 2003 model year. I just don't like the rear end on the S so a Cooper it is....aftermarket here I come.

Well..

'De gustibus non est disputandum'

I happen to greatly prefer the S backend (particularly the driver's side 3/4 rear shot) to the standard Cooper. That is what is so great about this car, I'm hoping we'll rarely see two quite the same on the road for a long time to come, especially with the potential for them to get really dispersed over this huge country of ours.

I agree about the chrome grill in the Cooper though, although I do like the hood scoop and S bumper styling.

On this point I have to disagree: The Cooper is not faster through the first two gears, and I disagree that it seems it. At the peak of their respective torque curves the S is 10% faster in first and nearly identical in second (while at lower revs). The two cars are nearly identical in 3 through 5 at similar revs. This is all with their respective stock tires.

The big issue with the S seems to be the amount of slipping the clutch off the line to get it to perform. In my test drive the clutch on the Cooper seemed to have much more slip by design when engaging or changing gears, I wonder if this adds to the sense of a "smooth fast" start.