My friend went to the LA Auto show yesterday (I had wanted to go along but couldn't) and saw the Cooper and S, brought me a brochure. He sat in both of them, said the seat back had a lump that felt uncomfortable and the pedals were very close together, felt cramped inside. (He is used to a full sized Chevy truck.) MSRP (includes $550 destination charge) is $16,850 for the Cooper and $19,850 for the S. He was told the dealers will be getting some demo cars soon, so you might see them being driven around. He said there was a big crowd around the MINI booth. Most were talking about it being a "weekend car" and the women all thought it was "cute." Demand will be high (I got another MINI ad in my free Juno e-mail account), so if I decide to get one, it will probably mean waiting another year at least. That might not be a bad thing, since the "new" suspension is not due until March, which means the first crop may have the dreaded left pull anyway.