2009 Mini Hardtop Pros and Cons at TrueDelta: Owner Pros and Cons by timothyshawn

Handling

Great handling. I got the stock suspension so I could mod it later with parts of my choosing, but even stock the Cooper is very good for a modern production car. A 19mm rear anti-sway bar made it handle better than I could have imagined.

Fuel economy

With the 09 Cooper (not the S model), it was easy to get over 40mpg on 55mph roads. On 70mph highways, it was more like 35mpg. Was wonderful to fill up and see over 500 miles of range.

Driving position & visibility

Terrific visibility all around.

Interior styling

Punch leather sport seats were great, but the use of cheap piano black plastics even with the English Oak dash was disappointing. Very restrictive, authoritarian ordering options for interior colors mix and matching were disappointing.