Forget the EVO , forget the STI , heck all of you already have a sweet Suby in the garage anyway!
I took my very good friend's long awaited MINI Cooper S for a spin around Liton Springs road and Westside in Healdsburg and I do believe I want one too!Pound for pound , it was the funnest drive I had had aside from the WRX. The little pit bull looking thing just screams around corners , has a fantastic 6 speed box and is very solidly built.The power is definitely there though I enjoy the thrust of boost setting on instead of the linear supercharger and the interior(cockpit) was truly designed for driving, not obeying the posted limit.
And it looks damn good parked next to the WRX!
24k he paid with a 9 month wait , worth every penny in the "bang for the buck" dept. I think.
Any one else consider one for kicks?There's actualy alot of room in the back too, I thought it would be impractical , but it may take the Xterra's spot!

 

Mini coopers are Great cars....they handle great for a front wheel drive car and have decent power as well, I wouldnt mind having one at all, I even considered one before I bought the WRX, but it is way to small for me

 

This might sound odd but anyone who was at Infineon raceway for the May 25 NASA event witnessed a new mini cooper S kickin a$$ and takin names!!!!! I was runnin my RS conversion with well over 300HP and after passing everything from new and old M3's....to Z06 after Z06...vipers...cobras...porsches...you name and Group 3 had it....That damn red Mini Cooper was out drivin me in every corner...no body roll and corner speeds that even my four wheel drifts couldn't keep up with!!! I definitely had more HP but on a road course that thing looked like a slot car...it just hooked up and hung on!!!!!!! I watched my in car camera at home and was amazed by the GRIP of that MINI!!!! I did speeak witht the owner in the pits and he finally admitted that he had it pumped up to about 310HP and had tweaked the suspension too....Either way it was an impressive sight!! Basically i have total respect for the MINI COOPER S...

 

A mini cooper S will replace our Astro Van at some point.

 

i'd considered buying a Mini right before i bought my '03 WRX, but i decided that i needed a little more room than the mini could offer for things like surfboards and such. if i hadn't, i would have bought the mini in an instant, they're really sweet.

 

don't worry we'll team up and school him scooby-style at infineon at the end of the month. drift all over his face.

 

The Mini Cooper-S handles like a go-kart. Lots of fun

 

The GO-Cart analogy hits it on the head!
It felt like a very plush Go-Cart.
As for how it spanked em at Infineon , aside from the higher HP of that particular vehicle , the ability to maintain a higher speed around corners has far more advantages to straight line power.Ducati has proved this time and again , quite beautifuly too, aginst a plethera of superbikes just as Mini ( in all of it's various heritages) has done for years in european rally and worldwide track competitions.
This new version is a highly refined top-of -the line GO-Cart, emphasis on GO!

 

Ur gettin' me scared, a 300hp Go-Cart turnin' faster and quicker than a WRX

 

Yeah definitely handles well I wanted one after I test drove it(almost gave the poor saleman a heart attack around corners). But in the end wanting a wrx for 6-7 years won out(actually an sti). The salesman told me and my friends were the first ones to think it needed more power . Have you seen the cutaways that show the suspension it is a glorified gocart and well worth the price of entry

Ben Sanchez

 

I would be hard pressed to get rid of the WRX , I love her way too much.
The trick will be to get a Mini parked next to her in the garage!I can justify this since the STI costs more than the Mini , but wouldn't an STI look good there too?
Dilema!

 

steppin razor: i think if i had some back up we could throw him off his line then smoke down the straight....also i've recently gained even more juice so as long as i can keep on his through turn 10...i'll just bomb on him down the main straight.....once i'm leading i'll dish out some agressive block maneuvers to wear him out!!!! maybe a smoke screen or even an oil slick....that should work..
P.S. steppin razor: are you signed up for group 3 june 29...if so make sure to come introduce yourself...I'll have a blue canopy up and my buddy kevin(white wrx wagon w/ dark P1) and Adam(black RS conversion w/ gold subzeros)....

 

Dude. WRX AND a Mini! Four bugeyes, two scoops!

 

I was in the car with Andrew and let me tell you Andrew can drive. That cooper was ridiculously fast, and it stayed in front of Andrew for most of the run!

Andrew, can I get a copy of your footage? Cheers to one of the best rides out there!!