# BH's Wife's White Silver/Black F55 MINI Cooper S 5 Door



## Bristle Hound (May 31, 2009)

As my wife will be needing more space for number 4 grandchild due in January, we thought it a good time to change her current Ford Ka 

As we had never done a PCH (Lease) on a new car I thought this was as good as time as any to give one a go

After a little research on 'tinterweb I found a cracking 2 year PCH deal on a new 5 door MINI Cooper S

The vehicle was subsequently ordered the 1st week in August, with an expected delivery date of early October in the following spec.

*F55 MINI Cooper S 5 Door
1998cc turbo petrol engine
192hp, 280 nm torque
White silver metallic
Roof & mirror caps in black

Cloth double stripe upholstery
Colour line - Carbon black
Interior trims - Gloss black check

16" Victory spoke alloy wheels in black*

The Lease came with metallic paint included. The only factory option we spec'ed was the black alloys
There is enough standard spec on the Cooper S IMHO

The MINI arrived on the morning of Wednesday 21st September. I was told the car would be a driven delivery and was pleasantly surprised to find it was a trailored delivery to our home address with 7 miles on the clock & 1/2 a tank of fuel

The car had been Dealer prepped & TBH I have only found the odd light mark on the black roof which will easily polish out when the car gets detailed by me

SWMBO is very happy indeedy!

To the pic's -









We went out for an 'A' & 'B' road blast today & this thing feels rapid !
The engine is nice and loose but the gearbox is still a bit tight at the mo

The wife and I have both commented that this MINI feels world's apart from our old R56 MINI John Cooper Works

More updates as & when


----------



## Bristle Hound (May 31, 2009)

First couple of mod's

A set (four) of genuine MINI interior velour mats - & no it didn't come with them as standard! :wall: 
Treated them with Gtechniq I1 before fitment



Changed the OEM yellow DRL's to white LED one's



Yellow OEM on the left (as you look at the picture)
White LED on the right -



Both with white LED's -


----------



## camerashy (Feb 9, 2014)

Nice looking motor, bet the wife is more than happy.
LED lights make such a difference


----------



## Tricky Red (Mar 3, 2007)

Not a fan of minis per se. That looks a nice one thouh, like many cars those wheels look really small. Is it the same in real life?


----------



## CoOkIeMoNsTeR (Mar 6, 2011)

Another one :O I swear your wife is worse than me for changing cars!!! Looks the business though, I like these new MINI's, bets on it staying the whole duration of the lease anyone??


----------



## fozzy (Oct 22, 2009)

Looks very nice matey, Shouldn't you be buying the JCW floor mats? they only work out around £160 for the set :doublesho :doublesho :doublesho


----------



## Bristle Hound (May 31, 2009)

camerashy said:


> Nice looking motor, bet the wife is more than happy.
> LED lights make such a difference


Cheers CS & agreed :thumb:


Tricky Red said:


> Not a fan of minis per se. That looks a nice one thouh, like many cars those wheels look really small. Is it the same in real life?


Thanks TR :thumb:
& yes the wheels are a bit on the small side, but I think being all black it hides it quite well IMHO
The cheapest 17" wheel option would have added another £19/month to the Lease
& the cheapest 18" wheel option (which comes as standard with the dreaded run-flat ditch finder tyres) would have added just over £40/month :doublesho


CoOkIeMoNsTeR said:


> Another one :O I swear your wife is worse than me for changing cars!!!


She drives me nuts with the car changing thing. There's always some excuse :lol:


CoOkIeMoNsTeR said:


> Looks the business though, I like these new MINI's, bets on it staying the whole duration of the lease anyone??


Thanks CM & yes she WILL be keeping this one for 2 years. She has no choice lol


fozzy said:


> Looks very nice matey, Shouldn't you be buying the JCW floor mats? they only work out around £160 for the set :doublesho :doublesho :doublesho


Cheers Foz :thumb:
£160 ? :doublesho Thats madness! :wall:
Now I know why I didn't buy the JCW :lol:


----------



## Tricky Red (Mar 3, 2007)

We have a lease too. No options on ours either.


----------



## Zetec-al (Feb 28, 2011)

I had one exactly the same as this on Friday whilst my 1 series was in for a seevice!

What a great car i thought, was such fun to drive and very nippy engine! They sound great too when you give it some and in sport mode!


----------



## Rowan83 (Aug 21, 2007)

Fantastic looking Mini! :thumb:

Where did you get the bulbs from?


----------



## Bristle Hound (May 31, 2009)

Rowan83 said:


> Fantastic looking Mini! :thumb:
> 
> Where did you get the bulbs from?


Thanks :thumb:

& the LED replacement DRL's came from AliExpress
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Cree...auto-12V-parking-Turn-Signal/32263373152.html

Same 1's are avaliable from Amazon Uk for lots ore pennies


----------



## Bristle Hound (May 31, 2009)

I've replaced the candle like bulbs that come as standard with the halogen headlights on the Cooper S with these -



No before & after pic's but they make a MASSIVE difference
Some would say the difference is between night & day :lol:

As I had a 'spare' Audi warning triangle going, I bought some genuine MINI warning triangle brackets, part no. 51497375203, to fit into the recess in the boot lid

Before -



After -



The warning triangle is a nice tight fit & doesn't rattle around in the brackets

New Car Protection Detail also completed on the MINI :thumb:


----------



## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

That is one lovely Mini Bristle hound and those LEDs really sorry for the pun (shine through) no wonder your other half is chuffed. I really like the colour combo and those black wheels are :argie:


----------



## Bristle Hound (May 31, 2009)

Some better (well I think so lol )pic's at my preferred photo location :thumb:


----------



## Bristle Hound (May 31, 2009)

My / our thoughts after two months & 900 miles of ownership

Likes
The engine! What a peach! The torque is fab. Considering our last MINI was a new R56 JCW, this one does feel quicker thro' the gears & it ain't fully run in yet. Feels more than 192hp to me
3rd gear. Will pull away from standstill & go all the way up to 90mph in it
Economy is better than I expected it was going to be from a 2 litre petrol turbo. Averaging around 35mpg using Shell V-power & I don't drive with economy in mind
Handling gets better with more speed (see 'ride' below)
I/we don't notice the extra length of the F55 when driving
Boot is bigger than I expected
No frameless windows. Hated them on the R56. Always squeaking & don't mention when they freeze up ... 
Love the 5 door looks. The F55 is more in proportion than the 3 door with the longer bonnet IMO
Colour combo. Never liked the white silver on the R56's but looks so much better on the F56/F55 etc IMHO
Build quality. Like a different manufacturer compared with the R56

Unsure
No key slot. Still can't get used to that
No CD player. Unusual omission but I've never used the CD player in my S4 TBH
It feels more like a BMW than a MINI now. Is that a bad thing? I'll let you decide
The ride. I was expecting it to be a bit more compliant with the 16" wheels on, but its still on the stiff side. How you folks get on with the bigger wheels is beyond me. But that could be as I'm getting on a bit'ish lol
Exterior piano (gloss) black plastics. The F55's must be killing the world supply of this stuff as its covered in it. Front brake ducts, front number plate / grill section, A pillars, lower front window 1/4, thin section on B pillars, rear window 1/4, C pillars, rear spoiler supports, boot handle, rear foglight grill surround.This stuff looks great when its new but is a real PITA to keep that way as it marks VERY easily

Dislikes
Standard spec. is appalling for a £22k car IMHO
Xenon headlights should be standard spec. £800+ for the upgrade LED headlights is a joke
No interior mats as standard! Even the wife's old £7.5k Ford Ka had interior mats as standard
What on earth is going on with the boot shape? Ridiculous, unless you spend another £120
Rear door child locks are to easy to knock off (we carry our young Grandkids in the back of the MINI)
Another ridiculous petrol gauge & no coolant gauge AGAIN!

I see plenty of F55 MCS, but they all seem to be the diesel variety. I'm yet to see another petrol version, so far


----------



## WHIZZER (Oct 25, 2005)

looks a lovely car


----------



## Stu Mac (Aug 18, 2014)

Magic looking mini mate and really liking the colour combo. Enjoy


----------



## Bristle Hound (May 31, 2009)

The MINI went back on the 20th September at the end of the 2 year PCH

The agent who inspected / collected the MINI said in 8 1/2 years of doing his job he has never inspected a car in such clean condition on collection.
'Its like a new car coming out of the showroom' - bit chuffed at his comments

I don't normally get attached to our cars but I was genuinely sad to see this one go

The spec as it was a base Cooper S 5 door was a bit miserly TBH but for £170/month with no initial I can't really complain

Best mpg I had was 53.2mpg on a 150 mile 90% motorway run doing a steady 70mph

The return journey which was a 'little faster' averaged 48.3mpg over the 300 miles

I've had plenty of fun chasing down much more expensive / powerful cars in the MINI. Great fun

I've said it before and I'll say it again, the engine on the car was the true star of the show

The 'next installment', which is another 24 month PCH, has been ordered and on the way ...

Agent driving the MINI away -


----------



## SteveTDCi (Feb 8, 2006)

I do find the new Minis very good, its completely different to the previous R generation. I keep thinking of changing my R55 to the newer clubman but they are so expensive used and i think the F series cars have moved away from being a Mini to a BMW.

The LED's are very good though, the wifes F57 makes mine look like candles.


----------



## wish wash (Aug 25, 2011)

Engines are better as they are a BMW engine. Nice car, be hard pushed too spend 22k on one but what you were paying was a good price. Minis have always felt like go carts down the back roads.


----------



## Radish293 (Mar 16, 2012)

Swapped my 116ED for a MINI cooper convertible a few months back got to say I love it. The engine is amazing for a 3 cylinder. The 7 speed DCT nice and smooth. It sounds good too. It's our first petrol in 20 years. Have to get used to the increased consumption. The car was very well prepped by the dealer. Loving every minute of it so far









Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


----------



## andy665 (Nov 1, 2005)

Not really a fan of the 5 door shape but obviously its a lot more practical - do have a real liking for the Clubman though


----------

