I dont think the obsession ever goes away haha

 

VicSkimmr, that JCW aero kit looks awesome! It's one thing I really want to get but out of my budget. I wonder if it would be too late to add it later.

miniphatty, grats on the delivery!! My pick up is still this Friday.

 

I added mine after I brought it home. Its not hard to install yourself, just time intensive. Plus then you get to sell the stock bumpers (I guess that could be a pro or a con depending on how you look at it).

 

600 miles later my smile still won't go away.. good to see the other week 40 peeps are getting thier cars..

 

That's a sharp looking kit Vic - looks really nice. I am tempted to read more into the kit but i am an utter newbie

 

Same here... Two things that really got me considering hard - JCW Aero kit and Alta CAI. I'm a totally newbie to mechanics though so I got lots of reading to do.

Also reading on how to do oil change and tire rotations on my own.

 

The kit was pretty simple to do. Its a daunting task for sure, but once you really get into it its not that bad.

Its mostly a matter of finding the screws that hold the bumpers in place. The ones underneath the car are easy to find, but the ones that secure it to the quarter panels are the tough ones. They're hidden underneath the plastic trim.

The skirts are easy too. They're held on by two screws and a ton of clips that need to be broken off (the kit provides you with replacements). I found that using a dremel to cut the old tabs was the easiest way of removing them. Then the panels just snap on.

Tools that are really helpful include: a miniature wratchet with a ton of optional bits, a dremel and a flatheaded screwdriver. I didn't even need to use a jack to install it (although I haven't replaced 3 screws that attach the front bumper to the underside of the car yet.).

 

A couple more shots i took today (he's a little dirty but he doesn't mind)

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/8416/mini6us4.jpg

http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/8585/mini7bn6.jpg

[3008x2000 resolution - so umm big shots here]

 

Is it tomorrow yet?? :impatient

 

Hahaha why?? Whats tomorrow all about? Make sure you call me when you are coming accross the river into Oregon so I can meet you at the train station. Don't forget proof of insurance!

 

Hit the 500 mile mark today. Great day for a slow nice drive out today. I took the 522 to Bothell, took a wrong exit (thanks to dumb Google maps messing up the route) and stopped outside a house and asked for directions back to the freeway. She was very nice and told me how to get on the freeway and then said "I love your car". I smiled and thanked her and then finally reached my destination. When i left the destination a few hours later, i saw a chili-red MINI with a white top behind me Good day to drive. (Then i made a fool of myself with my new passenger by stopping too close to a redlight and then having to crouch all the way to see the red ).


I stole the following route from night-driving.com - great for a drive past midnight

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&hl=e...2135&z=12&om=1

 

Yup, called our insurance agent and added the MINI. Our insurance card is good for the proof right?

Funny thing happened when adding the car though, conversation went something like this...

Me: "I bought a car and will be picking on Friday, it's a MINI."
Agent: "That's nice, what's the make, is it Dodge, Chrysler..."
Me: "Umm, the make is MINI."
Agent: "Right, a MINI. But who is it under?"
Me: "MINI is the make. It's a division of BMW, but still, MINI is the make."
Agent: "Oh ok, I'll put MINI with BMW in brackets then."
Me: "... ... alright..."

 

Which insurance company is this if you don't mind my asking? All the companies websites i went to had MINI as an option in the car model/make section.

 

It's State Farm and I'm sure the make MINI is on their drop down if I go on their website. It's just that I went through a broker instead of calling State Farm directly and that agent didn't know about it.

 

Have a safe trip tomorrow or whenever . There is supposed to be a good bit of sun tomorrow (like today). It's back to crappy weather starting Saturday

 

It's a BEAUTIFUL day here in the Portland area!! In fact, I'd say it's a perfect day to drive a new MINI home! Hope all goes well for you KXLight - enjoy!

 

Beautiful day indeed. We went out for a drive and i showed him his first sunset. I think he got a couple of microscopic chips in the windshield (very very small but i have good eyesight) and he's putting on a brave face for now.

 

Been a loooong wait since I ordered it in August. Finally picked him up!! It's been such a wonderful day. Well, some of it was long and cold, but still great!

Woke up around 5am and get on bus to the train station. After around 30 mins of freezing bus waiting, 1 hour of bus + 3.5 hours of train, we finally see our MCS! The delivery was very smooth and I was really happy, thanks to Jarid whose been very patient and accomodating to me. Thank you!

Oh, and miniphatty, that picture you shot with a blue MINI on the right corner was indeed mine! Jarid confirmed after a second look. Great shot! That was my first sight of my MINI. Could you possibly send me a large version of that pic?

Anyway, I'm not that good at story telling. I would just like to say I had a blast driving the car around Portland and can already tell I will have an even harder time for another 900 miles to finish break-in!

I did notice one thing though, my Xenon lights shoot really high up and it seems to light up every road sign in front of me. Does this sound normal or does it need alignment? It almost seems like I'm shining high beam but I triple checked that I don't have high beam on.

Here's a couple shots we took today at the delivery, didn't get a chance to take some good ones, will try to do so on the weekend.

 

I notice as well that most xenons light up every street sign in front of me. A good way to check things is to stand about 10 feet in front of the car with the headlights on.The Xenons should cut off about halfway up your thigh.....maybe a bit lower.

 

Congrats KXLight! Looks like you are the last of the week 40 NAMicans to get their baby. Here's the high res shot you asked for but your MINI is out of focus

http://img113.imageshack.us/img113/7026/mini3gl7.jpg

 

Hmm, does that mean I should check if the headlight is shooting straight or on a little lower angle? I'll go do the test. I was just afraid it's shining to high since I tend to light up everything (pretty cool I have to say) and that I saw a truck on the other lane flashed me. Not sure if that's a sign that they think I'm on high beam. I tried to turn on the high beam though, it shoots even higher.

Thanks for the high res pic, miniphatty! Yea, it seems I'm the last one but the wait was worth it!!

 

I love the look of a blue MINI with white wheels, very nice!! Now, good luck keeping them clean! You may want to look into getting ceramic brake pads as soon as someone actually designs some to fit the R56, it'll help a lot with brake dust.

 

Ah, i notice you had the plate drilled in . Wise man. Also those white tires / white roof look absolutely fabulous. I love your car's look

 

What white wheels? All I see is grey...! Haha... One day of driving and it's all covered with brake dust! I'll really need to find a good easy way to clean them often. I do love the look though, so I'll have to work hard to keep it sparkling white to match the white top.

 

I checked the Xenons today using jaridp's method. Unfortunately, it's shooting around my waist in 10 feet. And I'm 6', so that doesn't help either. Looks like it's shooting too high.

I did find another thread regarding this issue that says I can turn a plastic screw to adjust it, does anyone have experience with this? If not, I might have to bring it in to the dealership next Sat.