susan, all very true i would be the same but i do like leather i find it helps getting in and out.
the rest i agree totally my previous car 3dr mini cooper 7 auto had all the toys and i used half of them,heated seats once in 2 and a half years. likewise the current car mini countryman cooper s exclusive auto comfort/nav etc has all the bells and whistles, again heated seats wont use unless its baltic, the leather though is superb and well worth going up to exclusive trim. the rest nice but not a necessity. but fortunately due to a dealer £500 off offer and a prorata gcb it all cost me nowt so i treated myself. also i am wpms so the ap is a little lower anyway.
if the £500 offer hadnt been available i would have been quite happy without the heated seats etc.