[MINIgirl]

I will be buying my first MINI. Don't know much about cars in general and haven't bought a car in twelve years. Do know that the MINI can be made to personal specs.

So far I know that I want the GPS, but other than that I'm not sure what I need. I don't do too much long distance driving. I live in Northern California and lucky enough to have beautiful weather most of the time.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[JCinSyd]

For me, I liked the LED lights with the DRLs, the Chili pack, the Bluetooth enhanced - so you can make and take calls, as well as listening to music for your phone. And if you're in California, go for the sunroof

 

[kenl]

It might be difficult (or confusing) if people outside the US help as your option packs are different from the UK.

Main things to decide on are whether you want sports seats and the size of the wheels.

There are lots of options which can be great but really add to the price of the car.

Please keep us posted on what you decide.

 

[Berty]

I will be buying my first MINI. Don't know much about cars in general and haven't bought a car in twelve years. Do know that the MINI can be made to personal specs.

So far I know that I want the GPS, but other than that I'm not sure what I need. I don't do too much long distance driving. I live in Northern California and lucky enough to have beautiful weather most of the time.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Hi there

I would suggest the sports seats which are excellent, also visual boost display and if you like you music I would go for the harmon kardon speaker upgrade it sounds great. The other things I couldn't do without would be a leather steering wheel and bonnet stripes

 

[F56-S FNQAus]

I'd suggest you take the time to visit a dealer at least to select which model - Cooper, Cooper D or S etc. A dealer can help customise your car. Some good tips flowing from this thread too

 

[gr8ly]

this is a difficult question to answer, and only you can really answer this one.

Customising a car (or anything) is a very personal thing. Look at your budget and what options you deem to be more important.

Asking someone here will only result in someone eventually listing every option which will confuse you even more.

good luck

 

[andyross37]

I would go for 17 inch wheels.

The 16 inch look too small, and the ride is quite hard on the 18 inch.

 

[texy]

I'm quite happy with my standard 15" wheels ;-)


T.

 

[MintMark]

I have three things to say

1. Try things out at the dealer. I was in and out of different cars sitting in the seats (back too!), looking at the wheels and interior trim. They couldn't show me everything, but most things I was considering I saw for myself.
2. Watch out for dependencies between the options. Choosing one thing often brings in others... sometimes unexpectedly increasing the price.
3. I knew I wanted the LED lights, but one thing I didn't expect to be essential is the head up display. I use it all the time! Especially good with satnav...

OK, really I just wanted to make a numbered list
(which maybe doesn't work properly)

 

[baldyspoon]

Totally agree with mintmark try as many cars as you can, and go through the catalogue and see what you think is important to you. And as mintmark says be careful some options add other things and can add £100's on top so beware.

 

[Skippy]

All of them. Haha. It's so hard isn't it?

I found it easier to go into the dealer and spec up my "dream" car. Once I got the price, I picked myself up off the floor, went home and started to run through the list. I then worked out which items I could live without in an attempt to get my car in budget. While you are doing this you can also figure out where you would like to try negotiate to or perhaps an extra on there you could live without however might try get thrown in to sweeten the deal.

It's harder to cross them off than to add them on. I'm thinking in California heated seats wouldn't be of any use so that's one you can probably cross off the list. Just saved you some $$ there. Your welcome.

 

[MINIgirl]

features

Thanks, what is the visual boost display?

 

[Solar red]

I spent £5000 on extras, and I still have blanks, where there should be switches!

 

[Chathamgirl]

That made me giggle. I have spent nothing on extras (pepper pack was included) I will probably have whole panels of blanks! lol

 

[pjsjr13]

I spent £5000 on extras, and I still have blanks, where there should be switches!

Myself also

 

[Thunder]

I've spent the equivalent 2 ������ and I really hate the blanks ������

 

[pjsjr13]

I will be buying my first MINI. Don't know much about cars in general and haven't bought a car in twelve years. Do know that the MINI can be made to personal specs.

So far I know that I want the GPS, but other than that I'm not sure what I need. I don't do too much long distance driving. I live in Northern California and lucky enough to have beautiful weather most of the time.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Ok so you live in Northern California , with that said you will need to spend some time at the Mini site configuring what suits you. This way you can A- look at your running tab . B- see the 10 million combinations first hand. I know I spent many hours going back and forth configuring a Pepper White MCS. What did I order you ask, Midnight Black. You will change your mind maybe even add on your order after you leave the dealer. As have many of us Mini Maniacs . Get the Navigation as you said, if you like music the HK stereo is a must. LED lights are a must. Panoramic roof yes of course.. Come on get to the Mini site hurry

 

[Ash92]

Which options give you the complete set of switches?

 

[smoley58]

this is a difficult question to answer, and only you can really answer this one.

Customising a car (or anything) is a very personal thing. Look at your budget and what options you deem to be more important.

Asking someone here will only result in someone eventually listing every option which will confuse you even more.

good luck

I agree . . Budget is always a consideration.

I would suggest to consider how long you plan on keeping the vehicle. The longer I plan on keeping the auto (5 years +) . . . I tend to add more of the "wants" vs the "needs"!

 

[homeinthedark]

Like Skippy, I spec'd my dream car, matched it to my budget, then tried to identify the few things I couldn't live without. If you're not getting an S (they come standard on the S), I would personally second whoever said to get sport seats.