BMW MINI Product Numbers Explained

While the rest of the world knows these cars as the Cooper, Clubman, Countryman, Coupe, and Roadster, the industry itself and MINI fans refer to them with their designated model numbers. It can be a bit confusing to newcomers, so here is the complete list as of today:



Generation 1

R50 Hatchback 2002 - 2006
Cooper (normally aspirated non-supercharged W10B16 engine)

R51 Proposed long wheelbase MINI (never released)

R53 Hatchback 2002 - 2006
Cooper S (Supercharged W11B16 Engine)

R52 Convertible 2005 - 2008
Cooper (normally aspirated non-supercharged W10B16 engine)
Cooper S (Supercharged W11B16 Engine)


Generation 2

R56 Hatchback 2007 - 2012
Cooper (non-Turbo N12B16A engine) 2007 - 2010
Cooper S (Turbo N14B16A engine) 2007 - 2010
Cooper (non-Turbo N16B16MO engine) 2011 - 2012
Cooper S (Turbo N18B16MO engine) 2011 - 2012

R55 CLUBMAN 2008 - 2012
Cooper (non-Turbo N12B16A engine) 2008 - 2010
Cooper S (Turbo N14B16A engine) 2008 - 2010
Cooper (non-Turbo N16B16MO engine) 2011 - 2012
Cooper S (Turbo N18B16MO engine) 2011 - 2012

R57 Convertible 2009 - 2012
Cooper (non-Turbo N12B16A engine) 2009 - 2010
Cooper S (Turbo N14B16A engine) 2009 - 2010
Cooper (non-Turbo N16B16MO engine) 2011 - 2012
Cooper S (Turbo N18B16MO engine) 2011 - 2012

R60 COUNTRYMAN, including ALL4 for 2011-2012
Cooper (non-Turbo N16B16MO engine)
Cooper S (Turbo N18B16MO engine)

R58 COUPE (the new 2-seat hardtop) 2012 - current
Cooper (non-Turbo N16B16MO engine)
Cooper S (Turbo N18B16MO engine)

R59 Roadster 2012 - current
Cooper (non-Turbo N16B16MO engine)
Cooper S (Turbo N18B16MO engine)

Still to come
MINI City Car - 2013
MINI Hatchback next Generation - 2013
MINI Clubman next Generation - 2013

Note: Any model without a Supercharger or Turbo is generally referred to as a "Justa" (Just A Cooper).

Hope this helps!

~Ben

MINIs I've Parked Next To! #2

This one comes from my Mom, who has a new Pure Red 2012 Countryman S. She found this Justa R56 inside the Spectrum Complex's parking center:







I do like the look of the second generation Justas, despite the power loss. This one looks a bit like Brisby did with white stripes.

Thanks, Mom!

~Ben

Quad Lock and Gobadges!

I got my Quad Lock set earlier this week, and I couldn't be more impressed! The iPhone case has a great feel to it, is lightweight, and has a low profile. It actually makes the iPhone more comfortable to use, instead of getting in the way like most cases. The wall mounts have a crazy strong adhesive backing, and were simple to install in my MINI Cooper and apartment (they also have a recessed hole in the center for screwing to a wall for even greater stability). Also, even though I ordered the most basic package ($39.95), they sent me the deluxe kit ($69.95)! It could have been a mistake, though I like to think they were just being generous. Either way, it was a very nice surprise. Here is my iPhone and Quad Lock in action in my MINI Cooper S:


Please, check out Quad Lock for yourself and help support a brilliant small company! Again, any of the links to Quad Lock on my blog will net you a 10% off discount on whatever you decide to order.


I also got a few new badges and holders from GoBadges this week. Check them out as well (use code "epminis" for 10% off).



Oh, and I got the giant version of the blue Domo-kun.



He hides out in my glovebox, unlike the smaller blue Domo-kun that shouts at other drivers from the dashboard.



~Ben

MINIs I've Parked Next To! #1

MINI Coopers tend to park together. It's a strange and mysterious phenomenon. I've decided to start documenting my own parking lot buddies:

MINIs I've Parked Next To! #1

I found this fellow R53 in the Wallmart parking lot on Alpine Ave. Yes, I went to Wallmart. Yes, I am ashamed.



It had a cool blacked-out look going.



I liked the plate. Makes me wonder if the owner happens to be a pharmacist.







Here is the Picasa Album for the high res photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/106202409461442915597/MINIsIVeParkedNextTo

Until next time, Happy Motoring!
~Ben

The must-have iPhone accessory - Quad Lock!

I saw this on TWiT during CES earlier this year, then again during their Kickstarter campaign, and have finally gotten around to ordering a kit. The Quad Lock mounting system for the iPhone is easily the best mount on the market today. Just stick the mount wherever you like, and the super sleek Quad Lock case slips onto the mount firmly and in landscape or portrait mode. I had been looking for a decent mount for my MINI Cooper for nearly a year, and every stand, mount, and cradle out there is either too bulky, too cheaply made, or not stable enough to work. The Quad Lock is just perfect. Check them out here, and get 10% off your order just for visiting my blog: Quad Lock


There is even an iPad version of the Quad Lock system coming soon! I can't wait!












~Ben

MINI Cooper Upgrade Update Now!

So Brisby is looking pretty good, and I'm really happy with the tweaks and additions I've made recently. I do however have more plans in the works. After all, The Dragon is now less than a year away, and I need to beef up the performance a bit to tackle that run.

First off, is the standard HP upgrade for R53s, the cold air intake and pulley combo:



I'm going with the Craven Speed CAI, which will make my supercharger really scream. It runs right around $250, and I can install it myself.




The silicone intake inlet tubes, from Outmotoring, are not ribbed like the standard OEM tubes, so there's less turbulence and more air moving at a higher velocity into the supercharger. They are about $90.



The Alta V2 Supercharger 15% Pulley will instantly increase Brisby's boost by 15-20 horsepower, and it's a relatively cheap purchase at $130. Unfortunately, this isn't something I can install myself. Estimates are right around $300-400.




Exhaust systems are usually way out of my price range, but the Megan Racing Exhaust System looks like a good deal. It's not annoyingly loud like the higher end systems, but will give that very cool burble sound after letting off the throttle. Plus it's performance more than matches the more expensive brands at 6.1hp and 8Ft-Lbs. I can pick it up for $600ish, and probably a few hundred more for installation. Obviously, I won't be getting this anytime soon, but hopefully I can swing it by next summer. My only worry is the Michigan winter - Can these stand up to it, or will they end up rusting out the following Spring?




Aside from the transmission dropping out, my biggest fear is a tower strut deforming after crossing a railroad or hitting a pot hole, so I'll be getting a pair of CravenSpeed Strut Tower Defenders. $140 for a little peace of mind and they look pretty cool under the bonnet. Going to paint them red, lol.

That's about it for performance upgrades. I'll be cleaning up the interior a bit with some leather wraps from Redline for the downtubes, shifter, ebrake, and armrests. The large blackjack on the side of the car is still tempting, as well. Picking up these new rims would be a dream come true (17" Black Star Bullet), but at $1200, I'll have to keep dreaming for now. Unless someone out there wants to contribute them to the "Help A Poor MINI Cooper Get New Shoes" fund... Yeah, didn't think so.



~Ben

Jawbone Jambox

Given the price point of $200 and small size, I was always skeptical of Jawbone's Jambox bluetooth speaker. Of course that was before I got to mess around with one first hand. These little things are crazy awesome!

They have some serious power packed in there, and the sound is very good quality throughout the low, mid, and high ranges. The bluetooth connection is strong, though the range is really only around 25-30 feet before things start to slip. Pairing is very easy and fast, you can choose from several different colors, and the speaker has a great feel and weight to it.

This has to be the best portable bluetooth speaker I've ever seen and heard. I want one, but for now I'll have to settle for playing with my mom's when I visit. $200 is hard to shell out for a portable speaker... Worth it, but hard. If you have an iPod, iPad, or iPhone, you should check these out!

~Ben

MINI Takes the States!

The MINI Takes the States tour hit Chicago/Joliet this past Sunday! I drove down with my niece, Kendra, in Brisby:



My parents and younger niece, Paige, took my Dad's relatively new 2012 Countryman. This was what we saw of it for most of the trip:



We started by gathering at MINI of Grand Rapids along with close to 100 other MINIs and MOGR's staff all driving MINI's from the lot.



One of the show pieces of the Chicago event was this R56 ArtPrize submission, which started with us at MOGR:



We all got goodie bags, coffee, bagels, and boxed lunches from Panera, then set out for Southern Michigan:



We met MOGR's Southern Alliance in Stevensville, MI. This was the scene behind the McDonalds that we invaded:



All in all, the trip was much slower than I had expected. The caravan of MINIs stayed right around 70mph, which is slow for me and from what others tell me, was a stark contrast to the 90mph+ pace of the 2010 run. Also, I94 was a nightmare in both directions. Very often the freeway would come to a sudden halt, only to just as suddenly start moving again. I really need to get my break pads replaced, heh.



After a strange drive through the middle of nowhere and over some of the worst roads I've dared take Brisby down, we finally arrived at the Joliet Auto Club. MOGR and friends were the first to arrive, but many more were on the way:






The event itself was underwhelming, although I have to admit that we did not take part in the MINIcross, which was clearly the focus of the day. It was still fun though. Checking out the hundreds of different MINIs was great.










Here is the album link for the rest of the photos from our trip.

~Ben

The Dread Pirate Benender

One of the most virulent topics on internet culture is, of course, the so called problem with internet piracy. Now while the mass media will have you believe that piracy (a derogatory term they came up with) is a dangerous threat to the music and entertainment industry, all analytics show piracy as a small symptom of the industry's inability to change, rather than the cause of their steadily declining profits. Not to say that the industry is hurting in anyway. Justin Bieber is worth hundreds, if not thousands, of millions of dollars, even though his discography is one of the most traded items on the net.

To clarify, internet piracy is users sharing files with one another - Most files obtained perfectly legally, I might add. Furthermore, the majority of people that download this material do so because they cannot afford them, in which case the industry wouldn't be getting their money anyway, and/or it's just plain easier to obtain and use the material by these means.

As a few examples, I used to jailbreak all of my iOS devices to gain access to tweaks and apps that Apple didn't offer or condoned, but after a few years, Apple finally started adding these features to the firmware and I stopped taking the jailbreaking route. The great tide of mp3 piracy of the nineties subsided when Apple, Amazon, and many others offered selling individual tracks for 99¢. Commercial free streaming and downloading of tv shows and movies by Netflix, AppleTV, etc.. has also been a large factor in dropping the rates in which these files are shared over the internet. These efforts to change the marketplace to accommodate new and easier means of consumption and use, are the key to ending piracy, not over-reaching copyright laws that do more harm than good.

Internet piracy will never be gone for good, but there are things that can be done to sway people away from it. Unfortunately the industry is still implementing things that do nothing but encourage piracy. Things like BluRay discs having unskippable commercials, cable and satellite tv only offering ever more expensive bundles, annoying digital rights management in nearly every piece of software, and it goes on and on. This is the kind of 'solution' to the problem that only punishes legitimate users while increasing the number of people that prefer to get their content through piracy.

All this being said, I do still share and download content myself. My piracy habits have decreased quite a bit as parts of the industry have changed for the better, but there's still content I prefer to get free of all the strings.

For those interested, here are a few links to the safest and easiest bit torrent tools and sites:




uTorrent is, by far, the best torrent client around. Simple, easy to use, and completely free.





The Pirate Bay is still the foremost torrent sharing site on the net. Sure the ads along the sides are annoying, but you won't find a more comprehensive public library anywhere else.





EZTV is my favorite place for all the latest tv shows from the US and the UK.






Demonoid is a private torrent sharing site, offering slightly more than you could find on the Pirate Bay. I'm a registered user, so if you'd like an invitation, just send me an email, and I'll see what I can do.

UPDATE: Demonoid is very dead, at the moment. Due to pressure from US based groups, the Ukranian government hit the servers with a DDoS attack and soon after they were shut down completely. Since then, it was rumored that the servers were being sold, and there are also rumors among Demonoid members that the site may be on it's way back. That might happen, but not anytime soon. Demonoid has suffered attacks like this in the past and has returned many months later, but who knows...