How hard did everyone push the MINIs they test drove? anybody scare their MA?

 

Why would you want to "scare" the MA?

What is the point of that?

 

I took my 1st test drive in '05 in an MCS and scared my MA. Not too sure why he didn't think that I was (or should) give the thing a good running through its gears. I put down $1000 down after that, but ended up taking it back. Long story, but I basically felt he did a really poor job of closing the sale and I got bad vibes from the dealer as a whole. I test drove a MCS covertible about 8 months ago, but the MA only let me drive it for about a half mile, literally -- so I didn't get a good chance to scare her. Plus, it was in SoCal and they were charging 3k over sticker, plus another grand for prepping the car -- no sale there either. I test drove a loaded (except for Works kit) MCS in Denver @ Ralph Schomp MINI. They let me test drive it for over 30 minutes WITHOUT an MA . So it was my girlfriend and me -- I scared the crap out of her & myself! That test drive closed the deal for me and I've got one on order now.

 

Welcome to NAM, familiarstranger. Many of us did so much research before even test-driving a MINI that we knew not to over-rev a low-mileage MINI, even if it was a demo. I will admit, however, that in order to placate my spouse, I test-drove a number of other marques while MINI #1 was on order, and I scared the you-know-what out of the salesman at a VW dealership when I test-drove a Turbo Beetle!

 

Whew...when I first saw this thread title in the Pulse, I was afraid it'd be in OT!!! But it's not.

My MA pointed me straight to the twisties....I scared myself for a second, then I had a blast!! However, my two teenagers in the back seat were turning green. And this was in a Cooper!!!

 

I smoked the you-know-what out of it. Up and down the hills, working all of the gears, zipping through the curves, before hitting the autobahn to really open her up.

Best part? No MA. He'd just given me the keys.....

Went home, got the wife, and went and did it all again. Then ordered mine.

 

i do believe in break-in as well Clo

 

Hi, Berkie! When are you getting another MINI!?

 

The guy who gave up our first test drive in an MCS, thought he would impess us on some twisties.

Big mistake.

We both got him wide-eyed and hanging onto the door when it was our turn.

 

Quite the opposite for me...

I wasn't interested in the MINI, my buddy's wife was. After I saw them, I liked them much more than I expected to. The MA came up and started quizzimg me to see what version I was interested in. I told her that I liked the looks, but I wanted something that would run and handle well...after my buddy's wife got her fill of MINIs, I was planning to go next door to BMW. She didn't seem to be offended, but excused herself for a minute...

She came back with a key and told me to follow her....

We got into a LY/W MCS. I told her that she was wasting her time, but she insisted we go. She took me on a roller coaster ride in that thing, then whipped into a parking lot, did a handbrake 180 and asked it I wanted to try.

I started to research MINIs in earnest after that and learned that improvements were on the way for 05, so I waited. Then I learned that MORE improvements were on the way for Jan 05. In late Jan, I ordered up a loaded MCS/JCW with LSD, all the pkgs, kitchen sink, etc. Been happy as a clam ever since!

I've been scheming on getting a new 335i sometime next year, but NO WAY am I trading the MINI in.

Rawhyde

 

I gave it a decent workout on my test drive. Getting loose in 2nd and doing a few antics in an empty parking lot. No MA along for the ride. Best part was that the demo car was a year old used car with over 13,000 miles, so I didn't feel guilty about revving a new engine. I also was able to feel how an MCS puts up with abuse after a few miles. I ordered one immeadiatly after driving it.

 

They threw the keys at me and let me go. I had no one along with me. I really didn't push the car that hard, since its not mine and I don't drive like that.

Medic

 

I was thinking the same thing when I saw it.

MA didn't come along, I was late on a Sat. afternoon, they asked me to be back in 15 min. Fortuneatly I knew where the local twisties were, and where a 2 lane exit ramp type thing was, got a feel for it the headed to my 2 lane wide 270 turn. No traffic got on the inside lane and just eased the gas in to see how good the handling was. My father came along with me, it was his one and only ride in a MINI, I think I made him a little quesy; but I couldn't shut up about how great MINIs were after those 15 min. so about 3 weeks later I got the financing all worked out and drove Pearl home About a year later, I went in for some service, and happened to wander over to the MINI sales area, and happened to ask to see the JCW demonstrator and happened to get my hands on the keys, and the car was already broken in; that was a fun 1/2 hour; not enough to convince me to go JCW; but I definately have respect and understanding of why so many choose the package.

 

The MA let my husband and I take the car out without him. We did drive it pretty aggressively, since we were trying to decide between an a Cooper and a Cooper S. I don't think we would have scared anyone though!

 

Shortly before I ordered my MCS last year, I had a great test drive experience while I was out of town on a business trip. I had an hour or so to kill after a meeting before I met some co-workers for dinner, so I decided to kick some tires at the local MINI dealership. While walking around the showroom, a MA came over and asked if I'd like to take one for a test drive. Despite the fact that I told him I was just looking and trying to kill a little time, he encouraged me to come for a test drive.

He showed me some great back roads to take. We were out driving for almost 25 minutes and he continually encouraged me to push the MINI harder in some of the twisties. Definitely the most enjoyable test drive I've ever had. The MA was fantastic and if the dealer wasn't 500 miles from my house, I would have definitely bought from them. The MA at my local dealership was also great, but the test drive there just wasn't quite the same.

 

My MA scared me. He did warn me first, though. I have to admit, it was a great way to hook me. Unfamiliar car in a strange (to me) town (Baton Rouge, LA), I didn't drive it too hard. Took me a little while to even want to, then, I had to observe break-in. Now, those who drive with me think I have gone a little nuts, I think.

 

I dont think anybody went in with that intention. I was just wondering how hard people pushed it. The fact that the MA could be frightened would just be a side effect.

 

Our MA didn't go along on any of the 3 different test drives we took. Just asked us to have it back by closing time. That was just one of the many selling points of the Mini. Gonna love it when it gets here. Loaded on the boat but hasn't left Southhampton yet.

 

I did not actually drive an MCS before I got my car. My Dad flew to Prestige Mini in Mahwah, NJ to see an MC40 that I wanted...(I did not know he went to see it or bought it until we went to NJ to "see the MC40" and it was under the famous zipper cover ready for me to drive home.)

My father has told me that he had the MA holding onto the door and put his hand on the dash at one point. I was not there to witness this...but my dad has driven some cars in his time....and it would not surprise me in the least bit.

 

What a great dad!!

 

What is an MA? (yes, I'm a newbie here)

When I went on one of my several test drives there was just my wife and I in the car. We did not open it up on the interstate but kept it fairly sedate around the surface streets.

We did tight circles in a parking lot through, just because we could

 

^an MA is a Motoring Associate, the salespeople on the floor.

I remember my first drive....I got in the car, put the key in the ignition, fired her up, and asked the MA, "Oh...this is a stick, how do you drive a stick?" She was stuck in the back seat, shock and worry came over her face that I was going to drive out of the lot. I looked back at her, chuckled, and reassured that I was just kidding. Does that count as scaring your MA the first time out?

 

lol! I think i will have to try that. I imagine though that they have to get some people who dont know or are very poor manual drivers.

 

^To include other parts of that story, Jennifer was the name of our MA, she asked my friend in the passenger seat if he knew how to drive a manual, and he said , "no". He was just kidding of course.

Our MA that that day was a real sport.

She did say that it's not uncommon for non-manual drivers to come in and ask for a test drive and then ask if she can teach them how to drive a stick, so they can test drive the car....she wasn't kidding, it really happened to her.

She also a told a story of how one young lady asked, "Aren't cars nowadays all automatics?"

Now that's scary to a MA.

I do drive an MCSa....if I had money to own two MINIS, the second one would definately be a 6-speed manual.

 

I gave mine a pretty thurough test. Since it's a standard, i had to give the clutch a good working over (passed with flying colors ). I pushed it hard enough to totally become won over by it.