Initial Driving Impressions

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bldxyz

bldxyz

Well-Known Member
Now that I've had the car (and been in town) over a weekend, I have had a decent chance to drive it. I've probably put about 125 miles on it myself at this point.

I'll offer these impressions:

Getting used to turning it on
It's an electric car. None of my prior cars had an On switch. I think it took a little bit for me to do this, but now I just put my foot on the break and turn the car on. I do like how you can turn it on before you get it in Ready Mode, but it is nice to learn how to just crank and go. I have also gotten used to the electric parking break and the lock from Park to gears.

Acceleration
Obvious. I love being able to instantly get up to speed when changing lanes on a freeway. I love being able to tear it up when I want to. It's so clean, has this throw-you-back in your seat feel. It just feels fast.

Now, if you are in Green, rather than Mid or Sport, the accelerator just feels a bit heavier, but you can still crank it, mostly.

Handling
So balanced. I mean, when turning a corner hard, it doesn't feel like even an open cup of water would slosh (though of course it would). The road feel is bumpy when the road isn't smooth, but I don't care about that.

One Pedal Driving
I like this. In Green Mode, I barely use the breaks, ever. It took little time for me to get used to regenerative breaking, and I sort of miss it in Sport Mode.

Adaptive Cruise Control
So. Freakin'. Cool.

It took a little to figure out how to work it, in that you need to set a maximum speed (like classic cruise control) and then set a following distance (measured in 1-4 bars on the display). But the display is very clear, and it works really well. It beeps loudly and shows red on your display when a car cuts into your following space.

I can really see using this on a 400 mile drive.... if I ever have a car with Adaptive Cruise Control that I would take on a 400 mile drive, that is.

Steering Wheel
I like the feel of the Iconic's leather steering wheel. I am stuck with the fact that my other car, an Acura, has the volume/track controls on the left and cruise control on the right (opposite what the SE has). Gah!

Touchscreen Interface / Navigation
It did not take me long at all to get used to that. I like how the solid "Nav" and "Media" buttons bring up the Apple CarPlay apps in use for those things, when Apple CarPlay is selected.

I haven't used the built in navigation, but I asked my wife to when she was 40 miles from home and at around 40% SOC. She tested three destinations and was warned only about one of them. I wonder how accurate it can predict.

Key Access
While I can't get the Driver Profile to be triggered by the use of my key, I do think it is super cool and easy to just carry the key in my pocket and never really need to take it out.

Driving Modes
I have already concluded that I like to either drive Sport or Green, not Mid. I am either interested in driving for fun (Sport) or trying to be efficient (Green).

Little Things
The doors feel really solid. The Enigmatic Black is so often black looking and has picked up a lot of dust already. The moonroof is great, especially the dual section part. The seats are comfortable and I am so glad they are leather (Iconic).


I love this car.
 
bldxyz said:
One Pedal Driving
I like this. In Green Mode, I barely use the breaks, ever. It took little time for me to get used to regenerative breaking, and I sort of miss it in Sport Mode.

Adaptive Cruise Control
So. Freakin'. Cool.

I love this car.
Click to expand...

We pretty much have the same reactions! What do you mean you miss regenerative in Sport mode? It’s still there, isn’t it?
 
GvilleGuy said:
We pretty much have the same reactions! What do you mean you miss regenerative in Sport mode? It’s still there, isn’t it?
Click to expand...
Only that by default, it isn't as strong as in Mid or Green. I suppose I could flip the switch but I forget.
 
bldxyz said:
Only that by default, it isn't as strong as in Mid or Green. I suppose I could flip the switch but I forget.
Click to expand...

Interesting. In my 2021, the regen setting does not change when I switch driving modes, and it always defaults to the high regen setting each time I start the car.
 
MichaelC said:
Interesting. In my 2021, the regen setting does not change when I switch driving modes, and it always defaults to the high regen setting each time I start the car.
Click to expand...

Same with my 2022 as far as I can tell. That’s why I was confused. But I have not even set regenerative to low yet.
 
My 2021 also doesn't change the regen when you change modes. I have only used low regen once, and that was to clear the rust from the brakes due to them being unused :) Does the 2022 model have the speed limiter functionality, or is the real estate taken over by ACC. In the 2021, you can set a speed limit, and the car won't exceed that, unless you plant the accelerator. Has meant I get to keep my license.
 
vader said:
My 2021 also doesn't change the regen when you change modes. I have only used low regen once, and that was to clear the rust from the brakes due to them being unused :) Does the 2022 model have the speed limiter functionality, or is the real estate taken over by ACC. In the 2021, you can set a speed limit, and the car won't exceed that, unless you plant the accelerator. Has meant I get to keep my license.
Click to expand...

The LIM speed limit button is there. It's on my list of features to test this week. I'm currently making a new video about the steering wheel controls. It is difficult to get video footage of the HUD showing the ACC and GPS in action, but I think I managed it.

The last time I washed my car, I noticed some spotting coming in on my brakes. I guess I need to use the brakes every once in a while to keep them cleaner.
 
bldxyz said:
Only that by default, it isn't as strong as in Mid or Green. I suppose I could flip the switch but I forget.
Click to expand...
I ran some tests today on regen in sport and mid mode, both modes have the same amount of regen braking. There are two levels, as shown in the bottom left corner of the binnacle.

I ran the car up to 45 mph, hit a mark and took foot off accelerator, noting how far it took to get to (near) 0 mph. It was the same distance in both sport and mid modes, although there seems to be a different feel to the braking in sport mode. I suspect that could just be perception because of how everything seems faster in sport mode.

(Note this is on 2021 SE, but I don't think any of that has changed with the LCI model.)
 
Puppethead said:
I ran some tests today on regen in sport and mid mode, both modes have the same amount of regen braking. There are two levels, as shown in the bottom left corner of the binnacle.

I ran the car up to 45 mph, hit a mark and took foot off accelerator, noting how far it took to get to (near) 0 mph. It was the same distance in both sport and mid modes, although there seems to be a different feel to the braking in sport mode. I suspect that could just be perception because of how everything seems faster in sport mode.

(Note this is on 2021 SE, but I don't think any of that has changed with the LCI model.)
Click to expand...

It could be that impression there was subjective and inaccurate.
 
bldxyz said:
Now that I've had the car (and been in town) over a weekend, I have had a decent chance to drive it. I've probably put about 125 miles on it myself at this point.

I'll offer these impressions:

Getting used to turning it on
It's an electric car. None of my prior cars had an On switch. I think it took a little bit for me to do this, but now I just put my foot on the break and turn the car on. I do like how you can turn it on before you get it in Ready Mode, but it is nice to learn how to just crank and go. I have also gotten used to the electric parking break and the lock from Park to gears.

Acceleration
Obvious. I love being able to instantly get up to speed when changing lanes on a freeway. I love being able to tear it up when I want to. It's so clean, has this throw-you-back in your seat feel. It just feels fast.

Now, if you are in Green, rather than Mid or Sport, the accelerator just feels a bit heavier, but you can still crank it, mostly.

Handling
So balanced. I mean, when turning a corner hard, it doesn't feel like even an open cup of water would slosh (though of course it would). The road feel is bumpy when the road isn't smooth, but I don't care about that.

One Pedal Driving
I like this. In Green Mode, I barely use the breaks, ever. It took little time for me to get used to regenerative breaking, and I sort of miss it in Sport Mode.

Adaptive Cruise Control
So. Freakin'. Cool.

It took a little to figure out how to work it, in that you need to set a maximum speed (like classic cruise control) and then set a following distance (measured in 1-4 bars on the display). But the display is very clear, and it works really well. It beeps loudly and shows red on your display when a car cuts into your following space.

I can really see using this on a 400 mile drive.... if I ever have a car with Adaptive Cruise Control that I would take on a 400 mile drive, that is.

Steering Wheel
I like the feel of the Iconic's leather steering wheel. I am stuck with the fact that my other car, an Acura, has the volume/track controls on the left and cruise control on the right (opposite what the SE has). Gah!

Touchscreen Interface / Navigation
It did not take me long at all to get used to that. I like how the solid "Nav" and "Media" buttons bring up the Apple CarPlay apps in use for those things, when Apple CarPlay is selected.

I haven't used the built in navigation, but I asked my wife to when she was 40 miles from home and at around 40% SOC. She tested three destinations and was warned only about one of them. I wonder how accurate it can predict.

Key Access
While I can't get the Driver Profile to be triggered by the use of my key, I do think it is super cool and easy to just carry the key in my pocket and never really need to take it out.

Driving Modes
I have already concluded that I like to either drive Sport or Green, not Mid. I am either interested in driving for fun (Sport) or trying to be efficient (Green).

Little Things
The doors feel really solid. The Enigmatic Black is so often black looking and has picked up a lot of dust already. The moonroof is great, especially the dual section part. The seats are comfortable and I am so glad they are leather (Iconic).


I love this car.
Click to expand...

Curious about the Sport mode...

Seems like this be one of the few EV's fun to drive

Dan
 
miatadan said:
Curious about the Sport mode...

Seems like this be one of the few EV's fun to drive

Dan
Click to expand...

I'm guessing you may currently have a Miata?

My current daily is a decently modified 97 Miata and I'm hoping to be able to keep most of the go-kart feel with the Mini. I should be getting mine in about a month and will definitely provide a comparison!
 
Carsten Haase said:
I'm guessing you may currently have a Miata?

My current daily is a decently modified 97 Miata and I'm hoping to be able to keep most of the go-kart feel with the Mini. I should be getting mine in about a month and will definitely provide a comparison!
Click to expand...

I look forward to the comparison. Thanks
 
bldxyz said:
Getting used to turning it on
It's an electric car. None of my prior cars had an On switch. I think it took a little bit for me to do this, but now I just put my foot on the break and turn the car on. I do like how you can turn it on before you get it in Ready Mode, but it is nice to learn how to just crank and go. I have also gotten used to the electric parking break and the lock from Park to gears.
Click to expand...
I like how I can get in, hit the On switch right away to turn on the radio without setting off the seat-belt warning. Then, after fastening my seat belt and pressing the brake pedal I can hit the On switch again and begin motoring instantly.

Our Clarity Plug-In Hybrid takes an agonizing 2 seconds before the Ready light comes on to tell me I can start driving (and it's definitely "driving" not "motoring").
 
insightman said:
How many here have taken more than a full lap around a roundabout in their SE? There's no better car for the task!
Click to expand...

Guilty. And thanks to a MINI club drive earlier this year, I learned about a nearby stretch of glorious road that has a series of 5 roundabouts in the span of just over 1 mile, then intersects with another road which has 7 roundabouts over the span of about 1.5 miles. YES!
 
Speaking of driving impressions - with my entire family Covid-vaccinated - we had a Mother's Day gathering for the first time since Covid began with my parents (80+ years old), one of my brothers, and his adult kids and spouses. Of course I took the Mini over there, since several had not yet seen it. We took turns with me throwing the key at one of them and letting them take the Mini out for a test drive (with me giving pointers as passenger). The accolades were universal! We were lucky no speeding tickets were issued on the local roads.

They could not get over the:
  • Price to value proposition, especially with the tax credit
  • The solid, BMW driving feel
  • The tech features
  • The headlights
  • The quiet, instant acceleration
  • The addictive, one-pedal driving - no one took the option to turn off the high regenerative setting
It's a lot of fun to see others have the same reactions I had last September when I test drove the SE for the first time.
 
GvilleGuy said:
It's a lot of fun to see others have the same reactions I had last September when I test drove the SE for the first time.
Click to expand...
Two weeks ago I finally got to let my similarly vaccinated best friend (who drives a dowdy Prius) try driving my SE. Great reaction, no tickets, and big cred for my choice of a car.
 
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