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2009 Mini Cooper

Convertible review:
2009 Mini Cooper Convertible
Wayne Cunningham June 17, 2009 10:11 p.m. PT

LISTEN - 06:43

2009 Mini Cooper Convertible

4:26

WAT C H N O W

Photo gallery:

2009 Mini Cooper Convertible

7.6
2009 Mini Cooper Convertible

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THE GOOD

The 2009 Mini Cooper Convertible's design hasn't

worn thin, even after almost a decade. The handling
is excellent while fuel economy is high. Mini makes
some good cabin tech available, such as Bluetooth
and iPod integration.

THE BAD

Acceleration is anemic with the 1.6-liter engine and

automatic transmission. Options bring the Mini's
price up quickly.

THE BOTTOM LINE

A good city car and an economical cruiser, 2009

Mini Cooper Convertible's soft top makes it a fun
open-air ride, but use the money you would have
spent on the automatic transmission option for
manual transmission lessons.

Although boasting good fuel economy,

the Mini Cooper is meant to be a fun car.
But there are different types of driving
fun: some of us enjoy taking corners at
speed, listening to the tires squeal as
they fight for grip, while others
appreciate a sunny day cruise, seeing
and being seen in a stylish ride. Models
in the Mini line accommodate both, but
the 2009 Mini Cooper Convertible
primarily satisfies the latter.

Our Mini Cooper Convertible lacked the

S denoting a turbocharger forcing air
through the little 1.6-liter engine. Further
crippling it on the performance side was
the six-speed-automatic transmission
included on our test car. But the most
important lesson this car taught us about
Mini Coopers was to always opt for the
Convenience package, as its lack leaves
out phone and MP3 player support.

On the road

You can get a USB port for an iPod and

Bluetooth for a phone as an a la carte
option, or with the Convenience
package, but our 2009 Mini Cooper
Convertible came with none, our only
solace being the auxiliary input that Mini
includes standard. The best cabin
gadget in our test car was the
convertible top, and we derived some
small amusement from the Openometer,
an analog gauge--a timer, really--that
shows how long the top has been down.

Mini's whimsy is evident from this

gauge, the sole purpose of which is to
show how long the top has been down.

Given the Mini Cooper Convertible's

looks, and our past experiences with the
Cooper S, we looked forward to an
exciting drive. But the put-it-in-drive-to-
go automatic served as the first clue
toward the lack of thrills. Out on the
streets, it quickly became clear that it
would take more than half throttle to
move the Mini. To get anywhere at all,
we got used to pushing the pedal all the
way to the floor, and even then the car
took some time to start turning the
wheels.

Fortunately, Minis inherit a dual

personality from owner BMW. A little
button labeled Sport sits in front of the
shifter, which instantly remaps the
throttle to provide performance which
comes a little closer to excitement. That
anemic automatic, as well, has a sport
setting, which hangs on to lower gears a
little bit longer, letting the engine speed
climb. Or there's manual gear selection,
using either the shifter or the chunky
paddles on the wheel, where you can
keep it in second until the engine starts
to smoke.

Given these tools, why not keep the Mini

in maximum sport mode at all times? We
wanted to let it prove it could also meet
its EPA numbers, a nice 25 mpg city and
34 mpg highway. So we settled on a
routine of hitting the sport button when
we needed acceleration, such as a
freeway on-ramp, then turning it off for
steady cruising. Putting that button on
the steering wheel would have been
more convenient, but Mini probably
didn't intend the Cooper to be driven in
this fashion.

Having unlocked what performance the

Cooper Convertible had, we took it
through our favorite winding road
course, and found the handling to be as
good as any Mini we've driven. Its tightly
tuned steering means quick turn-in, with
the stiff body following the front wheel
pull neatly. Even lacking the sport
suspension option, the Mini is tight
enough to minimize body roll.

The automatic transmission, mated to

the Mini's small displacement engine,
seriously hampers performance.

Driving on these roads would have been

more fun if the transmission shifted
quicker, although its sport mode did
have it readily selecting lower gears as
we hit the brakes before the turns. But
the standard six-speed-manual
transmission is what you really want for
winding roads. Mating a low
displacement engine to an automatic
transmission is like taking the alcohol
out of cheap beer: it may be weak, but
you could have had some fun with it.

The convertible top really indicates what

this Mini is about. It powers up and down
easily, requiring little effort of the driver.
And once down you can enjoy the wind
in your hair when at last the Mini Cooper
Convertible gets up to speed.

In the cabin

As mentioned above, this 2009 Mini

Cooper Convertible lacked the iPod,
Bluetooth, and navigation options, all of
which we would like to see. These
features will be similar to those found in
BMWs, and use the radio display in the
Cooper Convertible. Mini is fairly clever
about using the compact space of the
radio display, but it is still limited to two
lines of text. The navigation screen
would sit in the middle of the big
speedometer.

The radio display is a little small for

browsing music on an MP3 CD.

Lacking the optional cabin tech, the

Cooper Convertible is pretty boring as a
tech car. All it really has going for it is the
stereo, with music playing from a single-
disc player, auxiliary input, or terrestrial
radio. The disc player can at least read
MP3 CDs, although browsing folders is
hampered somewhat by the small radio
display.

You can also get a premium audio

system with 10 speakers for the Cooper
Convertible, but ours was stuck with the
standard six speaker system. The audio
quality is pretty average, helped by
distinct highs, but lacking definition in
the mid range.

Under the hood

The lack of thrills while driving the 2009

Mini Cooper Convertible can be partly
attributed to the 1.6-liter four cylinder
engine, with its 120 horsepower and 118
pound-feet of torque. BMW squeezes
what it can out of the engine using its
variable valve timing technology. By
comparison, the S version's turbocharger
kicks it up to 175 horsepower. The Sport
button, which remaps the throttle
programming, is not something you find
on cars in this segment.

Having used Mini's six-speed-manual

transmission previously, we know that it
would help the fun factor considerably,
but the optional six-speed-automatic
transmission tends to keep the engine
speed low, sapping the power. In normal
drive mode, the transmission takes its
time downshifting, leading to slow starts.

But that limiting power train doesn't hurt

the handling, which is as sprightly as
ever. Our car came with the optional
traction control, designed to assist in
hard cornering as well as slippery
conditions.

We hovered around 30 mpg while

testing the Mini on freeways and in the
city.

For fuel economy, the EPA gives the

2009 Mini Cooper Convertible 25 mpg
in the city and 34 mpg on the highway.
During our testing we stayed right
around 30 mpg. The California Air
Resources Board hasn't provided an
emissions rating for the Cooper
Convertible as of this review, but the
previous year's model only earned a LEV
II rating, the minimum required.

In sum

The 2009 Mini Cooper Convertible goes

for a base price of $25,900. Our test
model included the Cold Weather
package, bringing in heated seats, for
$500, and the Premium package, adding
niceties such as a the multifunction
steering wheel and automatic climate
control, for $1,250. The automatic
transmission cost another $1,250, and a
special leather package, Leather Lounge
Hot Chocolate, added $2,000. Sundry
other options, plus the $650 destination
charge, brought the total up to $32,050,
a high price for a car with virtually no
cabin tech.

Although our car didn't come with much

cabin tech, Mini makes those features
available, so we give it an above
average rating in that area. We obviously
weren't impressed with the performance,
but its good fuel economy and fun
handling save it. Plus the fact that you
can get it with the six speed manual. But
where it really stands out is design.
There's no mistaking a Mini Cooper, as it
represents an excellent new take on an
old design.

7.6
2009 Mini Cooper Convertible

VIEW LOCAL INVENTORY

SCORE BREAKDOWN

Cabin tech 8

Performance tech 6

Design 9

SPECS See full specs

Available Engine Gas

Body style Convertible

Convertibles | Culture

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2022 Mini Cooper S

Hardtop review:
Come for
performance, stay for
personality
Mini's lovable Cooper S Hardtop
blends sportiness and charm.

Sean Szymkowski Jan. 28, 2022 2:00 a.m. PT

LISTEN - 04:43

Cute as ever.
Sean Szymkowski/Roadshow

There are lots of affordable, fun-to-drive

cars for sale today, and at $27,700
including destination, the 2022 Mini
Cooper S Hardtop is right in the heart of
the pack. But while other cars offer more
passenger space and versatility, the Mini
charms with its quirky personality,
helping to make this pint-size performer
feel a whole lot more special.

7.3
2022 Mini Cooper S Hardtop

MSRP

$26,900

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LIKE

Fun to drive​

Cute and quirky styling ​

Feels premium for the price

DON'T LIKE

Rubbery shifter​

Cramped interior

The Cooper S packs a 2.0-liter

turbocharged I4 engine mated to either
a six-speed manual or seven-speed
dual-clutch automatic transmission.
There's 189 horsepower and 207 pound-
feet of torque available, and all of it
heads to the front wheels. With my
tester's six-speed manual, Mini quotes a
0-to-60-mph time of 6.5 seconds. Not
bad.

The engine's power surges hard and

boost builds right away. All the torque
arrives at 1,350 rpm, and by the time you
hit 2,000, you've got more than enough
forward momentum. Even in sixth gear,
you can get the Cooper S to pull at low
revs, which is nicely appreciated in
traffic. The 6,000-rpm redline arrives
somewhat quickly, however, and power
really drops off after the 5,000-rpm
peak, so you'll want to upshift more
often than you think.

2022 Mini Cooper S is all about

personality
See all photos

+33 More

I definitely appreciate Mini committing to

manual transmissions, but the one in the
Cooper S isn't my favorite. While the
clutch is easy to modulate and incredibly
forgiving -- great if you're a stick-shift
newbie -- the gearbox itself has a
rubber-like feeling, and the throws