Interior Fun Without Foolishness - 2014 Mini Cooper Hardtop Long-Term Road Test

Edmunds.comEdmunds.com Member, Administrator, Moderator Posts: 10,316
edited September 2014 in MINI
imageInterior Fun Without Foolishness - 2014 Mini Cooper Hardtop Long-Term Road Test

Inside, the 2014 Mini Cooper sheds its love-me-I'm-quirky pretensions but retains its charm.

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  • ebeaudoinebeaudoin Member Posts: 509
    Agreed. The dinner plate speedometer was pretty obnoxious.
  • s197gts197gt Member Posts: 486
    a big reason why i would never consider the car before. i've liked the looks but no way am i gonna drive a car where my wife can constantly glance over and say, "you are going too fast."
  • davechapindavechapin Member Posts: 10
    Relax, it's a Mini. You can't go fast
  • legacygtlegacygt Member Posts: 599
    Can't tell if the Mini's interior is actually more normal or if you just think it seems normal against the backdrop of a Murakami novel.
  • grijongrijon Member Posts: 147
    I've always felt the same way about Minis; I could never have one because the interior tried too hard to be different for the sake of being different. Glad to hear that they're changing that - maybe there's a Mini in my wife's future!
  • tatermctatumstatermctatums Member Posts: 107
    The two things that already bug me about this interior, based solely off these pictures, are the radio volume knob and the fuel gauge. Personally I think that fuel gauge is hideous. I wasn't a fan of the fuel gauge in the LT 370Z either. And maybe I'm a bit OCD, but the fact that the power symbol rotates with the volume knob would drive me crazy. The volume knob in my Jetta does the same thing and I hate it. My workaround is to use the volume controls on the steering wheel so I never have to adjust it.
  • darexdarex Member Posts: 187
    edited September 2014
    tatermctatums said:

    Personally I think that fuel gauge is hideous. I wasn't a fan of the fuel gauge in the LT 370Z either.

    Although I found the fuel gauge to be very odd at first, too, one gets used to it rather quickly. I no longer find it obtrusive or garish. I even like it now. You cannot say it's not prominent!

    I agree about the volume knob. I find it weird, and very "un-German"-seeming, despite the fact that VW and BMW apparently both used it. Like with the fuel gauge, I no longer notice it, although I sure did at first. To be honest, in over three months of ownership, I think I've only actually turned off the system one time, so other than for volume control, I don't use the infotainment on/off button much.

    Finding an individual's phone number is a bit cumbersome but on the other hand, the physical presets on the radio can be used to save frequently dialed phone numbers for direct access. They can also be used to save all kinds of other infotainment menu positions. This is an awesome, and very useful feature (common with BMW iDrive)!

    There's more weirdness to be found, such as how to repeat a track that's currently playing, you have to hit the steering wheel button two times, rather than hitting the back button once, as in other cars. Another is how locking the car using the comfort access button require sometimes three presses rather than the one press, as on other cars. If you first open the door lock from the door on the inside, then it only requires one press. It's as though it's cycling through a series of unlock commands before the lock command. It's not something that I have found a way to override either. It's probably the most irksome thing that I've yet found in this car. I'm hoping future software upgrades will address this simple thing.
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