We had the top down and our five-year-old son in a booster seat in back, so I didn't push it. I did, however, gun it as I was coming out of a tight left turn toward the end. My MA grinned and said, "I was hoping you'd do that". :-)

 

I have a GP I'm picking up this Friday. Before that, I owned a '05 MCS JCW car I bought used. Before I bought that car I read a lot of auto magazines. Maybe this is naive, but I figured if professional drivers (who drive everything from race cars to Ferraris to BMW's, etc) liked it, I would, too! Anyway, I was right. I loved it.

I sold it to make room for the GP. Yay

 

MY MA was definitely the right fit for me. He asked how much driving experience I had, which I told about friends that raced in HS and how I've worked on cars.. so I was confident in my abilities. We took off down the freeway, took a nice hard turn off the freeway, and then found some small local twisties. Right before the first turn he said "Step on it and keep on it until you don't feel safe". I did exactly that. I didn't take my foot off the gas. I loved it.

 

After dropping off my 02' Dodge Dakota R/T 360 V/8 Standard cab shortbed for service work, my Wife saw a B.M.W. dealership across the street, and lined up on the first row were about 12 Minis. Knowing how much of a "CAR NUT" I am, she mentioned how "cute" they are and that we should go for a test drive. That was all it took, our salesperson kept telling me to GET ON IT, so I did, and the more I did, the more I was convinced that my R/T had found a replacement. 4 months later we ordered an 04' MCS/DS with everything but sunroofs and nav. from Brian Harris in Baton Rouge, LA. "Fantastic Car". Now waiting for our 06' WORKS GP#0706.

 

This thread should convince people to avoid dealer demos/loaners. Many people take test drives to "see what it will do." They don't follow, don't know, or don't care about following break in procedure. Don't get me wrong, I am one of those people. How many of you didn't have the gas pedal mashed to the floor (WOT is not recomended during break-in) at least once during your test drive? 4K rpm? It was a different (and sometimes agonizingly slow) process when I was breaking in my own MINI.

I like the idea of having a demo with 4K+ miles.

 

My dealer bought a year old MCS with ~13k miles for the sole purpose of letting people test drive. It was quite nice.

 

I didn't mean scare the MA. I just forgot to tell him that driven 4 SCCA rallies and countless rally X events. The demo car had 1200 miles on it, so I figured I could wind it out a little. I didn't break any traffic laws, I just threw it into all of the corners. No 4 wheel drifts. At the end of the test drive he asked me where I learned to drive. I took it as a compliment; not sure if it was meant as one.

Marc-Andrew

 

This brings up a great story....

Not too long ago, my 65 year old father thought about buying a 2006 MC cabrio and I went him to the dealer to help choose; I will not disclose the exact dealer location for insurance reasons...

Once we got there, the first cabrio he saw was a PW MCS so goes in and asks for a test drive. I was preoccupied looking at some nearby BMWs parked out on the other lot, so I didn't accompany him on that drive. A few minutes later he came back and said he wanted to test drive a MC (non S). He ended up choosing a BRG MC with black stripes and packages 1-4. I was getting cold, so I decided to come with him on this one and see how it was. Also I would like to mention he has been driving an automatic for the last 15+ years...

So we got out of the traffic and onto a nearby highway as we conversed/argued about MINI options. Here's where it gets interesting... You know how the MCS has a 6 speed gearbox, well the MC only has a 5 speed with the reverse being where the 6 is usually at on a S.

Around 70-75 mph dad unawaringly tries to aggressively shift from 5th to 6, but actually hits reverse with an instant shattering grind, so instead jump into 4th gear redline as it felt like the car was going to do a gigantic nose dive...it took us a couple seconds to even realize what was going on, so he just kept it in 4th. By that point we had cars passing us in both lanes giving us odd disgusted looks because we just zoomed past them and now we were going under 50. The inside of the car smelt strongly like burnt rubber.

The remaining drive was uneventful and we arrived back at the dealer a few minutes later. He ended up not liking the cabrio as much as he thought and decided just to wait until spring for better weather and the new model.

 

My first drive in a Cooper S was me learning to drive stick....sort of. It was my second time, and I did things I was not supposed to do in a manual car..., which is also the reason I ran through a clutch...because I was a moron who didn't know how to drive stick.. However, the MAs at Morristown Mini are AWESOME and helped me through it every step of the way. I probably scared the sh*t out of them. Actually I know I did. But man oh man, did I get better at stick and I wouldn't have this car any other way.

I actually wanted one so bad and was waiting for months. Finally a car showed up that I liked on the showroom floor. I took a picture of it on a Saturday and told the salesman "This is my car." I knew from the instant I set eyes on it. I just knew.

So when my salesman called me, he said he wasn't able to get a deal worked out with my Dad. I was disappointed, thanked him for his help, and was about to hang up when he goes "I'm messin man, you're pickin it up Tuesday." I was literally in tears of joy. Now when I say tears, I'm talking tears that could make a lake. I was hysterical crying, my salesman was laughing and saying Congratulations. I drove my Dad's truck home, ran upstairs to his office, still crying, and thanked him profusely.

I've had my baby for one year and three days now...

 

I was fortunate my MA is a friend... so we were as side ways as possible.. :D (e brake... trail braking till over steer.... it was great)

I went back a few more times while awaiting my ordered MINI... and got a different guy... I knew him but not well.... he was deffinetly a little nervous.. but didn't say anything.... LOL it was funny

 

I took it easy overall, but didn't granny it. I remember getting onto the highway and going from 5th gear to 6th and accidently put it into 4th. All the sudden the revs shot up a bit and was like, "Whoops". It's obvious I had not driven a 6 speed before.