atyclb, now that you've had the MCS for a few weeks

[alee]

atyclb... now that you've had the MCS for a few weeks, any comments and maybe some comparisons to your M3? Obviously 2 very different cars, but considering the reviews I read on the MCS, it's not too far fetched to draw a few direct comparisons.

Granted, it is your wife's car, but I'm sure you've had a few chances to, uh.... break it in. :eeps:

[Mr. The Edge]

well, it really is a great car for around town types of things. My wife is thoroughly enjoying it, and we do tend to take it when we go places together (out to eat, church, etc.).

It really is fun to drive and you can't argue with getting over 30 mpg (vs about 16 in the M3 :D ) no matter how hard you drive it. It is a blast around town because it is so light and can take corners so well. It does still have a bit of a rough ride--we got the sport package w/ 17 inch wheels, which also comes with performance run-flats, which I've heard is basically the harshest set-up possible. When these tires are shot I may end up gettting some really good tires and some lightweight 16 inch wheels.

There was a point where I really was enjoying the MCS as much as the M3 whenever I drove it--but that only lasted a couple of weeks. Something about giving up twice the horsepower or something like that :bigpimp: .

It would be really interesting to hear someone compare a 325 or even a 330 to the MCS though. I could easily see someone truly preferring the MCS to the 3er, especially for errands around town and such---the handling is really that good.

[Mr. The Edge]

also, the John Cooper Works kit is supposedly coming soon--but not sure about when or if it will come to the States. This is the 200+ HP package that will come fully warrantied a la Dinan with BMW's. There is a similar package out now in Europe from Hartge. The reviews have been impressive:

(This is from EVO)

Words: Jethro Bovingdon

Living with the Cooper S has been a pain-free experience so far. No oil consumed, no mechanical or electrical failures and some great drives that have confirmed our feelings that this is the hot hatch of the moment. Somehow, though, our car isn't quite as polished as the BMW press cars we've driven in the past. I've already mentioned the 17in wheel issue and more miles only convince me, and the rest of the evo office, that you're better off with the smaller standard rims. The fact that BMW hasn't got a press car with the big wheels should have served as a warning, I suppose.

More worrying is the notchy gearbox action. When it was delivered the 'change was positively horrible - a sticky, stiff and obstructive nightmare - but as the miles pile on the 'box is improving. It's still not what we've come to expect from the Cooper S, though. Everyone who tries my Mini comes back with similar complaints about the shift quality. I've taken it to our local BMW dealer, Wollaston in Northampton, but the Mini salesman assured me that it was the same as any other Cooper S gearbox he'd tried. I beg to differ and I'll probably book it in for a more thorough mechanical assessment soon.

Still, enough of the doom and gloom because our Mini is now a fully paid up member of the 200bhp club. Thanks to Birds, the official Hartge agents in the UK, the biggest complaint about the Cooper S - its straight line speed - has now been addressed. Harry came back from driving their demonstrator with nothing but praise and we just had to book our car in for the revised ECU programming and modified supercharger straight away. We were waiting for the official Cooper 'Works' kit but another delay in its launch persuaded us that the Hartge kit was the sensible option. And at £1761 it looks likely to undercut the Works kit by around £2000!

So, does it feel like Hartge have really found 50-odd bhp (Birds claim most conversions result in 210-212bhp)? Oh yes, and then some. The Mini now pulls hard from 2500rpm and goes truly bonkers over 5500rpm - a standard S feels like it's got two bananas up its tailpipes by comparison. For those who've been reluctant to buy into the Mini phenomenon due to a lack of class-leading pace, this is the ultimate retort. In every real-world situation I can think of, the Hartge S would blow the doors off any rival. Stick with a basic Cooper S at £14,500, give it the Hartge treatment and you're looking at a real performance bargain. I'm chuffed to bits with it. But we'll be investigating different tyre options in the coming months to see if we can make those 17s work a bit harder.

MPG is a shocking 26.5mpg


I could imagine that a 200HP MINI would be a heck of a lot of fun and may give even the M3 a run for its money

:yikes:

[alee]

Cool. Thanks for the update! :thumbup: