Hi all,

I'm awaiting delivery of my 2013 Mini S hardtop. Buying my first Mini has gotten me interested (after all these years!) in knowing a bit about how cars work (i.e., I get in turn the key--or, soon, push the button!--and what happens: electric, motor, etc.). There are lots of resources out there--hard to know what would be best--and, specifically, what would be the best resource given the particular car I've just purchased. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! (...and would give me something to focus on other than waiting patiently for my car to arrive in Peabody, MA!).

Thanks,
Mike

 

go over to the owners lounge and DL the 2012 owners manual. Nothing has changed between 12 and 13 models.

 

Congrats on your purchase and upcoming delivery. You asked a pretty good question, actually. I became interested in autos years ago, grade school age...repeated trips to the library had me check out just about everything in "629.2" of our local branch. Now, after teen-age backyard mechanic practice and subsequent years of enthusiast pursuits, it feels like I've always known.

A website like "how stuff works" is fairly good at getting you pointed to links of information, and might be a good place to start browsing. I just now asked Amazon to search books for "Autos 101" and got some titles that might be helpful. And it might still be useful to visit a library if just to be able to sample a few books that might help.

Just some ideas. I've not had to acquire these basic concepts recently, maybe someone else has, or has worked with a kid/student/friend and knows of better contemporary resources. Best of luck in your quest!

 

I have an old high school auto shop 101 textbook I gave my son to read about a year before he got his learner's permit.

You might find something similar in a used book store