Mini Countryman All4 Cooper S - Now collected with pics

:thumbsup: I drove one of these and I never understood why the Press are so lukewarm on them i was pretty impressed by it . In the end it was too close in size to our Qashqai to get one - but i liked them particularly the rather upright windscreen which feels very retro and gives the car a lot of character.
 
ZermattV said:
:thumbsup: I drove one of these and I never understood why the Press are so lukewarm on them i was pretty impressed by it . In the end it was too close in size to our Qashqai to get one - but i liked them particularly the rather upright windscreen which feels very retro and gives the car a lot of character.
Click to expand...

It's interesting you say that about the reviews Rob. I read a lot owner reviews and so many said the same thing about how they didn't recognise the car from the press reviews of it. There's a couple of areas where they are right - there's too much tyre roar on less than perfect surfaces and the run flats can make bigger potholes a bit "crashy" but other than that I reckon it's pretty good. I'm looking forward to seeing the 2017 Countryman - I think it's being unveiled at the Paris motor show in October. :thumbsup:
 
OG,

I bought a used 2011 Mini Countryman Cooper S with 34k miles in February. Mine's True Blue with a black roof and a Panoramic roof, which gives a lot of light inside the car. Before I bought it, I did a lot of research of a suitable general purpose vehicle. I did consider the ALL4 version, but decided that it wasn't worth the extra premium. I've been well pleased with the purchase. My wife already has a Mini Cooper and the extra 4" in height, length and width of the Countryman really does make a considerable difference to its internal capacity for both passengers and load carrying capacity. There's plenty of height and legroom for tall passengers in both the front and rear. I've fitted a detachable towbar to the car to tow my go-karts on a trailer and it does this job well. The car was already fitted with towing electrics and the fitting of the correct towbar was straightforward except it required removal of the rear bumper. As you know, the rear luggage space is very useful, because the rear seats will slide forwards as well as the backs being split and adjustable to vertical or flat: this means that you can adjust the space so that your luggage is held secure without rattling and sliding around or forwards when braking hard: I find this particularly useful when carrying all my karting tools and equipment in the back.

I found that the car had far too much bodyroll in its OEM condition and it didn't handle anything like as well as the Mini Cooper, so I fitted an uprated rear anti-roll bar and torque arm bushes (engine mount) as soon as I got the car, which are only available from the US, and cost around £300 including delivery and taxes. This has transformed the handling. It's pretty quick and is fun to drive.

In many motoring magazines the Countryman is compared with the Nissan Juke and the Skoda Yeti, but I don't see the comparison, nor is there anything with the same performance as the Cooper S in that range. To me, the car is in a category of its own, and if anything, more like a mini version of a Range Rover. The biggest fault is the fuel consumption, which is nowhere near the claimed figures. I get around 34mpg and a range of around 320miles. I've hooked the OBD up to the Torque app on my phone to try to find a way to improve the consumption by trying different driving styles but it seems to turn in virtually the same figures whatever I've tried.

I did consider the Manic remap, but decided against it because it would make me less inclined to drive my ///Ms. I'd give my car 8.5 out of 10.
 
exdos said:
OG,

I bought a used 2011 Mini Countryman Cooper S with 34k miles in February. Mine's True Blue with a black roof and a Panoramic roof, which gives a lot of light inside the car. Before I bought it, I did a lot of research of a suitable general purpose vehicle. I did consider the ALL4 version, but decided that it wasn't worth the extra premium. I've been well pleased with the purchase. My wife already has a Mini Cooper and the extra 4" in height, length and width of the Countryman really does make a considerable difference to its internal capacity for both passengers and load carrying capacity. There's plenty of height and legroom for tall passengers in both the front and rear. I've fitted a detachable towbar to the car to tow my go-karts on a trailer and it does this job well. The car was already fitted with towing electrics and the fitting of the correct towbar was straightforward except it required removal of the rear bumper. As you know, the rear luggage space is very useful, because the rear seats will slide forwards as well as the backs being split and adjustable to vertical or flat: this means that you can adjust the space so that your luggage is held secure without rattling and sliding around or forwards when braking hard: I find this particularly useful when carrying all my karting tools and equipment in the back.

I found that the car had far too much bodyroll in its OEM condition and it didn't handle anything like as well as the Mini Cooper, so I fitted an uprated rear anti-roll bar and torque arm bushes (engine mount) as soon as I got the car, which are only available from the US, and cost around £300 including delivery and taxes. This has transformed the handling. It's pretty quick and is fun to drive.

In many motoring magazines the Countryman is compared with the Nissan Juke and the Skoda Yeti, but I don't see the comparison, nor is there anything with the same performance as the Cooper S in that range. To me, the car is in a category of its own, and if anything, more like a mini version of a Range Rover. The biggest fault is the fuel consumption, which is nowhere near the claimed figures. I get around 34mpg and a range of around 320miles. I've hooked the OBD up to the Torque app on my phone to try to find a way to improve the consumption by trying different driving styles but it seems to turn in virtually the same figures whatever I've tried.

I did consider the Manic remap, but decided against it because it would make me less inclined to drive my ///Ms. I'd give my car 8.5 out of 10.
Click to expand...


Thanks John :thumbsup:

I'd agree with everything you've said. I'd be interested to know some more details about the ARB and engine mounts. It does roll a bit but it's still quite a playful thing even in OEM guise.

The ALL4 sadly wasn't really ever needed in its first winter with me and it carries quite a weight penalty too, but the write ups of it in bad weather are really very good so I'm looking forward to testing it in snow and ice at some point.

I think they are superb value for money for what they do. :thumbsup:
 
original guvnor said:
Thanks John :thumbsup:

I'd be interested to know some more details about the ARB and engine mounts.
Click to expand...
Steve, I'll dig out the details for you tomorrow. It's an easy enough job to DIY fit both parts and it took me about 3 hours total working off the floor. These parts really tighten up the car and it handles great on the twisties in the wet and should come with these parts as OEM.

I'd like to try an ALL4 in poor conditions, I've seen the YouTube video of one being driven across a muddy field and it did well.
 
Here are the parts you want from Out Motoring:
http://www.outmotoring.com/wmw-22mm-adjustable-rear-sway-bar-r60-r61.html
http://www.outmotoring.com/mini-cooper/nm_engineering_torque_arm_insert.html

This is what I paid:
WMW-r60-RSB WMW 22mm Adjustable Rear Sway Bar: R60/R61 $229.95
NM.228861 NM Engineering Torque Arm Insert $59.95
Shipping cost: $97.50
Total: $387.40

N.B. The Torque Arm Insert for the ALL4 has the Product Code: SKU NM.228860

If you buy the parts give me a shout and I'll give you a few tips about fitting them. :thumbsup:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom