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One question. If the cars brought to India are CBUs, why can't buying a Mini Cooper S with the stick shift be an option? I mean they're produced at the factory anyway, and Mini aren't really doing anything different in India by offering the manual versions also, right?

Buying a Cooper S with the slushbox is sacrilege!

Lovely cars. Wish they were more affordable.

Nope! Here in Singapore, the X1 sDrive 18i and Mini Cooper S Countryman FWD are priced exactly same at SGD 187K, while the regular Mini (non S) is around SGD 145K.

Precisely my question too. Even generally, if a particular company brings its products through the CBU route, what stops them from doing so for the entire line-up?

In love with the Mini brand since I was a kid. Hope to see more of them on our roads.

If the VW Beetle can sell well in India so can the Mini even if its priced so high.People want the Car which no-one has or they are smitten by the looks of it.
Hope to see a Manual Trany soon.

The interiors look so cool.Once when I start earning would love to own a Mini Cooper S someday. :D

After Fiat 500 and VW Beetle, here is another cute car that you can enjoy watching others drive. Ever since it announced of India debut, i was hoping it would be priced a little economical if not on par with hatchbacks.
So true people would say it looks like a Shift, but the styling is completely different, have heard about its maneuverability, always wanted to own one. but hey, i can at least do a test drive now ;)

And here the situation is like :uncontrol

Actually, I am angry - was planning on the Cooper till the prices came. Anything which pits the Mini Cooper equal to a 3 series in prices is plain silly. I keep saying the same thing. I just have to get over it.

+1. Countryman sells for almost same price as yeti in UK. Here it is twice the price of yeti. Yeti is no mini, but it is a very good well built soft-roader too.

Mini India website lists Mini inspired by Goodwood:
MINI.in - MINI INSPIRED BY GOODWOOD

Was this not launched in autoexpo??

Google search gives it is priced at around 50k USD!!

There is just 2 things I would like to say.
1. The Mini is more expensive than the 320D CE.
2. It does not have a manual Gearbox.

Damn.

The Countryman was really amazing. But the practicality seems to be very poor given the too hefty price tag. Perhaps, the CKD route could have managed more nos., perhaps?

We must not compare the prices of a car here in India, to the ones in the UK or other countries. Every market is different, and has a different taste for a different 'genre' of car, if you will. I should go with 'segment'. It's like questioning the difference in the value of countries' currencies.

While the Euro market prefer large premium hatchbacks like the Golf, the Mini, apart from station-wagons/estate-cars, the American and Thai markets favour pick-up trucks. Basically, every country has a different tax-scheme for different cars, whether local or import.

There might not be a market for the Mini Cooper here, and that's because people with 30 lakhs in hand, would rather buy a BMW X1, or a 3-Series CE, even though the Mini is just a little under that. They'd prefer a larger car, maybe like the Superb, or even a good SUV like the Fortuner.

Generally, cars like the Mini, the Beetle, etc. are 2nd or 3rd editions to a rich-garage.

But times are changing. people are ready to plonk money on such cars, and that's why the Indian Market is gaining popularity and achieving good growth, as you can see in the 2012 Auto Expo. And our market will only continue to grow, despite the recession in the horizon.

Yes, there are lot of difference between segment to segment in country to country. That is why I am not comparing price of countryman directly to Indian prices

That is why I game example of 2 cars in same segment in the same country.
Countryman and Yeti are of same category/segment. And I have compared UK pricing. Countryman diesel is only slightly more expensive to Yeti 2.0L diesel.
It does not seem logical to buy the countryman here, because it is priced twice that of yeti.

That is true!

However, there is another way of looking at this altogether.

BMW were looking to price the Mini Cooper in the same segment as the Beetle. They are niche cars, and as far as I know, are competitors elsewhere as well. I don't think BMW is looking for volumes. It's more of a promotional strategy.

Also, the Yeti is not completely imported here. It's not a CBU. As far as I know, it is assembled here, and when a car is assembled in India, it will be a whole lot cheaper to sell. The Mini Countryman, on the other hand, will be an import. I highly doubt BMW has any plans of assembling it here anytime soon. And because it's a CBU, it attracts a much higher duty.

Obliviously true. But that doesn't change end result for the buyer. The end pricing is lousy. Noone's fault - but it is what it is.


Precisely my point too. Fully agree with you!

Let me put it this way, Vij Sir..

Someone looking to buy a Mini Countryman wouldn't look at the Yeti as an option. For him/her, the options would be more like the Audi Q3 and the BMW X1, or maybe even the base-Land Rover Freelander.

And someone looking to buy a mini-SUV/crossover in the 15-20 lakh bracket wouldn't even bother looking at the Countryman because it would be way out of his budget. It's sad, but true. :)