Just for interest I went to have a look at the new countryman today to make sure that I have made the right decision in going for the X1. Well I can tell you that if size is important its no contest. The X1 has a lot more usable space. Both the interior as well as the luggage area are a lot smaller in the Countryman. A few additional points:
- Its very quirky, has some nice features but the interior is "busy". Quite familiar if you are coming from a Mini but different to for eg a BMW.
- It only has 4 seats, the two back ones are nice though, individual seats very much like the front two. You can get a 3-seat rear bench but not in the Cooper S/4x4.
- Looks better in the metal than in pictures. Right colour/trim combination and it looks almost military/robust/beach like
- Build quality looks very good, typical BMW. Actually looks better than my Mini Cooper.
- That rail down the middle looks nice initially but it would irritate me after a while. I think it breaks the flow through the car and is a dumb idea.
- Drives nice enough (only had a short test) and the Cooper S has some good grunt BUT I think the 2.0d X1 feels more powerful. The Countryman feels a bit heavy and has more roll around the corners. Its not at all like the normal Mini Cooper S.
- The rear luggage compartment has a funny shaped opening that may make things more difficult to load.
Anyway those are just my observations. Having now seen and driven both I am certain that I have made the right decision in going for the X1. I don't think that the two vehicles are in direct competition with each other, not for me anyway. The Countryman is nice and I really like it but its more a replacement for my Mini. Wonder what deal I would get for a trade in
