Welcome Belle. You are quite a beautiful young lady.

 

I have not gotten an update from my MA lately. I have been busy hosting the North American MGB Register's annual general meeting in Breckenridge. We will be hosting the National MGB meet here next year and I am the chairman for that event and it has been taking up a lot of my time. The last I heard was approximately 2 weeks after it arrives at the VDC and I am going to have to manipulate my travel schedule to make sure I am in Denver when it is ready. Right now I have been working on an account in Walnut Creek, California and have only been home on weekends.

 

Wow, that's some serious faith there...

 

Yeah, I knew the FWD would help. Used to drive a VW Rabbit (1982ish) that was crazy good in snow and muck with FWD, but I do remember those tires being pretty narrow.

I'll remember to keep things washed. And I'll see how it fairs in the snow this winter and decide from there what alternative--if any--I will need to consider. Thanks!

 

Happy to say my pickup went smoothly as well...just a little rain, but not enough to dampen spirits! Welcome Dory...



I've posted a few more photos in my gallery.

As for first impressions:

• love it!
• the manual transmission is a blast
• not sure I'm on board yet with the leatherette...
• love the silver checkerboard pattern on the interior
• wheels are different than I expected but fine
• dealer did NOT throw in the floormats - I bought the rubber ones
• did I mention I LOVE DRIVING MY MINI?!

I'm very sorry that some of you are still having delays or worries about your cars; I'll continue to think good thought for you. Don't underestimate the confusion of the MINI tracking system...I never could actually confirm my MINI had made it on a boat until the system eventually changed to 'at distribution center'!

Thanks to all of you for sticking together and making the wait much more bearable...

 

YAY!!! Dory looks great. Congratulations!

If I may ask...what's different about the wheels?

 

Great looking blue color, or should I say blu' (surfer accent). I know you were a little concerned about the color when you ordered. You like?

Wheels look pretty classic to me. What were you expecting?

The leatherette is fine by me. What do you not like about it?

Good to hear Dory made it home. Enjoy!

 

Welcome little Dory, May you have a long and loving life on twisty roads and byways, and may your caretaker grow to love you like a family member.

bob g

 

Thanks all!

I should have said that it was MY misconception about the wheels - my husband talked me into the bridge-spokes and I was picturing them differently (OK, it's been two months since I really *looked* at them!) and they just were different than I'd remembered. But as I said, they are fine, and they are bridge-spokes, so it was all in my head. No worries!

As far as the leatherette goes... It looks great, and the sport seats are still ULTRA comfy, just as I remembered. Only thing is (and this is petty and dumb), I'm used to 8-yr-old leather in my Subaru and it's all soft and smooth. I find that when I try to adjust my position in Dory, between the snugly fitting seats and the textured and *grippy* leatherette, it's not a simple shift of position, it's more of a 'heave ho' required. I just like leather... But I'm sure I'll get used to it. As I said, the seats are very comfortable - no pressure points or anything at all. I even think the lumbar support is very good in them.

And I actually LOVE the lightning blu...! It's very rich and deep and looks great with the silver. Not quite like Indi Blue - a bit brighter, and beautiful in its own right. I'm a happy camper!

Finally, forgot to mention for the sake of those like me who did NOT spring for a deluxe stereo, the base model is just dandy! I know I've read a lot of negatives, but I listened to radio and a few CDs and it seems pretty nice to me...

Anyway, I'm a happy gal! Here's to our new MINIs...they really are the best!

 

WOOHOOOOOO!!!! Beautiful, beautiful. Congratulations, girl.

 

wow, Dory is hottttt... beautiful car.

 

 

I have had cloth seats for 10 years, so the transition to leatherette is an upgrade for me. I'm sure it's not as good as the real deal. Hopefully easy maintenance and cleanup.

I agree with you on the stereo. There are tons of posts condemning it, even the HiFi version. I think the base is fine, but this was one of the few indulgences I allowed myself when building the MINI. I think it sounds great!

 

OK noob westerners the time has arrived-- our cars are most certainly on-land by now, if not real soon, and godspeed they will get to and out of vdc asap. It's an efficient operation, and prob not backlogged. Hopefully.

but now the worst part of the wait commences, and I will probably go as mental as you Unlike having the luxury of tracking our cars across the pond, after vdc it wont be like this. The process will fall into a brief "dark hole," SOS, only broken by that call from yr MA telling you yr car will be ready in x days, before that you will not know where your car is or what route it will take to yr dealer Dont bug yr MA with such trivialities; they dont really know either.

Cars just appear, evidently, out of the dark hole. When my car was delivered 4 years ago OL still said at VDC.

This is especially true for folks in Portland, Seattle, Denver, Albuquerque, and SLC--the far reaches of BMW's western division. So, just bite the bullet, hold out another 2 weeks max, and rest assured it will be worth it, beleive me.

 

If the wait isn't worth it, I'm going to find out where you live.

 

Good news: our cars on on American soil-- Isolde has left Port Hueneme. Getting closer...

 

Oh, the promises...

 

2557 S Dover Lakewood CO 80227 haha

 

Niccccce, I like cars with body colored roofs, kind of exclusive.

 

Unless y're a ski geek and drive the mountains on a regular basis in the winter--unlike me--the A/S tires should do fine for our front range winters, give or take the occasional 10/20/50 year blizzard (remember 2006? ). If I skied/boarded whatever, or lived in Breckenridge or Steamboat, then yeah I'd put tall studded Blizzaks all the way around.

It's just U have to watch the front air dam--it's pretty low and sucks as a plow

 

Oh, good. Now I don't have to stalk you.

Nope, no skiing or snowboarding here. And, yes, I remember 2006 with great fondness. Thing is...just thinking about winter is making me miss my Jeep already. I hope I made the right decision. The side streets of Boulder--or the main ones, for that matter--don't always get adequate plowing, and after those I have a hill to get past. That, and I have family in extreme eastern Colorado that I try to visit during the winter, and those roads can get pretty horrendous.

 

Maybe it's being two months closer to winter than when I ordered, but I did gulp when I saw how low that thing in in front... Didn't seem like a big deal in September, but now (with the threat of our first snow tonight!) I can easily see scraping a bit of that off on a crappy, unplowed, snow/ice-covered road (or on the steep driveway leading into my daughter's school, for that matter - yikes!).

But I wouldn't trade Dory for our old Wrangler for anything...

 

Wandrur did U know Astro Black got dumped for builds after Nov 08? Now it's something called "Midnight" black, and it's still metallic...

 

Yup, I heard it was falling by the wayside. I think the "midnight" thingie is a little more blue. Frankly, I could care less. I just wanted black.

Of course, that being said, I *do* want to see Astro Black and Midnight Black (or whatever) next to each other to see what the difference(s) might be. Then I might change my position.

 

WG if it turns out Dory's l'ette starts getting on yr nerves (like it did with a friend of mine in AZ, too hot and sticky in the heat) consider getting neoprene seat covers from Moss Mini, they are quite stylish and very comfortable in all weather, and clean very easy. Plus they come in blue!