Annoying Newbie 'which one' MINI question. Well many questions...
6th Gear
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 3,334
Likes: 4
From: Vancouver Island, Canada
Ha Ha!
I'm back! I spent yet another Saturday driving to Dallas and back. This time finally bore some fruit. After the fantastic advice and discussion in this thread, I finally bought a MINI!!
I actually followed most of the advice here(!) After looking at and driving a BUNCH of MINIs I found (at 7 PM) a Mellow Yellow 2008 JustaCooper automatic with several bells and most of the whistles and 50K miles, one-owner and a clean Carfax. Presented it as a surprise to my daughter and she freaked out with joy! She loves the color (and I thought she favored blue) and the Pano and the automatic, bluetooth, iPhone, auto AC, Leather, Sport Pkg,, bonnet stripes, the black roof, she's incredibly happy. Its much newer than she expected and she decided she didn't care about the 'S' business that much after all! The car seems very sweet indeed. I bought it without my usual flashlight-under-the-car body-cavity-exam and inspection. The brutal truth is that I was just worn out. The whole process just beats me down; weeks/months of research, hundreds of miles to test drive, you know the routine. By Saturday night I had already decided that if this deal didn't happen I was gonna walk away and start back on the project in the Spring. This deal worked and the people at Rockwall Ford did a fine job. I got what I believe to be a helluva deal, and that's what matters, right? It was way below NADA clean trade in.
I'm back! I spent yet another Saturday driving to Dallas and back. This time finally bore some fruit. After the fantastic advice and discussion in this thread, I finally bought a MINI!!
I actually followed most of the advice here(!) After looking at and driving a BUNCH of MINIs I found (at 7 PM) a Mellow Yellow 2008 JustaCooper automatic with several bells and most of the whistles and 50K miles, one-owner and a clean Carfax. Presented it as a surprise to my daughter and she freaked out with joy! She loves the color (and I thought she favored blue) and the Pano and the automatic, bluetooth, iPhone, auto AC, Leather, Sport Pkg,, bonnet stripes, the black roof, she's incredibly happy. Its much newer than she expected and she decided she didn't care about the 'S' business that much after all! The car seems very sweet indeed. I bought it without my usual flashlight-under-the-car body-cavity-exam and inspection. The brutal truth is that I was just worn out. The whole process just beats me down; weeks/months of research, hundreds of miles to test drive, you know the routine. By Saturday night I had already decided that if this deal didn't happen I was gonna walk away and start back on the project in the Spring. This deal worked and the people at Rockwall Ford did a fine job. I got what I believe to be a helluva deal, and that's what matters, right? It was way below NADA clean trade in.
Congratulations on your find! It's a great looking car.. I love the yellow/black color scheme. My old Honda bike was that combo so I'm partial. I'm sure she'll have lots of fun with it!
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2nd Gear
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 71
Likes: 7
Jim, thanks for being there! Now, go get some shut-eye!
Thanks for the compliments and for all the help.
I think that this car falls into what should be the 'Ideal' group for reliability. We'll not know for sure til later, of course.
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2nd Gear
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 71
Likes: 7
A couple of points i missed:
1. There IS a big dog involved! But the Clubman is out of my range.
2. The info about leasing was great and I very purposefully studied the option. The breaker for me was the ~3 grand down which I couldn't do at Christmastime. Any other time of year.... but not just now.
I found out that the car is still under the Roadside Assistance program; any thoughts on that?
I next need to learn if there might be any extended transferable warranty on this car, such as the 100,000 mile that I've seen mentioned. I assume the dealer could tell me(?)
I'd love to find the original owner who traded it in, but I'll have to try to get that from Florida records. They moved here and traded without registering the car in this state, so now I'll have to don the deerstalker and grab the meerschaum...
1. There IS a big dog involved! But the Clubman is out of my range.
2. The info about leasing was great and I very purposefully studied the option. The breaker for me was the ~3 grand down which I couldn't do at Christmastime. Any other time of year.... but not just now.
I found out that the car is still under the Roadside Assistance program; any thoughts on that?
I next need to learn if there might be any extended transferable warranty on this car, such as the 100,000 mile that I've seen mentioned. I assume the dealer could tell me(?)
I'd love to find the original owner who traded it in, but I'll have to try to get that from Florida records. They moved here and traded without registering the car in this state, so now I'll have to don the deerstalker and grab the meerschaum...
Last edited by MrSurly; Dec 13, 2010 at 08:22 PM.
5th Gear
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 772
Likes: 2
From: Blacksburg, VA
Do you have the service records for the car? Our used Mini had all the OE booklets, but no services recorded in the service booklet. The original selling dealer (also in FL) was indicated on the Carfax, so I contacted their service department and learned that all scheduled services were done on time. They even provided dates and mileages, and listed little things like replacing wiper blades.
If the original owner's name isn't in the car somewhere (which it shouldn't be), dealer "privacy" policies may make it difficult to track down the original owner.
If the original owner's name isn't in the car somewhere (which it shouldn't be), dealer "privacy" policies may make it difficult to track down the original owner.
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2nd Gear
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 71
Likes: 7
No service records in the car though all the other books are there. There is a business card from the original MA. I will be contacting the dealer for records as you suggest. The owner's name might be available through Florida DMV. I'm not familiar with their policies, but in TX, this would be public record and easily obtainable. Florida might well be different.
5th Gear
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 772
Likes: 2
From: Blacksburg, VA
The MA's business card was also in our packet, but she never responded to my email, whereas the service manager was very helpful.
Yes, you're more likely to be able to get previous owner info from a DMV than a dealer.
Yes, you're more likely to be able to get previous owner info from a DMV than a dealer.
6th Gear
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 3,790
Likes: 10
From: Kansas City
Congrats on the new ride!
I'm sure she's going to love it and have a ball with it. Be sure you get her involved with the local MINI club, she'll meet lots of very nice people and get to do runs and parties and such with the club - it really enhances the ownership experience and is something you rarely see as well supported with other mfr's cars as with MINI.
I'm sure she's going to love it and have a ball with it. Be sure you get her involved with the local MINI club, she'll meet lots of very nice people and get to do runs and parties and such with the club - it really enhances the ownership experience and is something you rarely see as well supported with other mfr's cars as with MINI.
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