It comes down to personal preference and the kind of driving you do, really. If you spend a lot of time in traffic or driving around town, we'd recommend the DCT - it makes life much easier. It's also worth considering that a petrol auto could be a good stepping stone towards an electric car in the future (get used to not changing gears first, then get used to not having an engine next time...). Having said that, the manual gearbox in the MINI is excellent and really suits the fun nature of the car - so if that's what you prefer, we wouldn't advise against it!