For those MINI enthusiasts that have been in the community since the beginning you likely already know this story but for those who don't we thought you would like a short review.

Mni Do More note the missing 'i' (changed from MINI Do More do to MINI USA Legal team requiring us to not use the word "MINI" in our business name) is the original designer and manufacturer of Hidden Hitches for various MINI models including the R50, R52, R53 R55, R56, and R57. The original owner and designer of some of these hitches was Brent Breon.

During the 2010-2011 time frame a range of MINI hitches were purchased from Mini Do More and shipped to various residential addresses near the Curt Manufacturing headquarters. After some investigation it was found that these hitches made there way into the CURT "R&D" lab to be copied and produced under the Curt brand. This would have been hard to trace and confirm but once the original Mini Do More instructions AND pictures started showing up with the Curt logo and contact info it raised red flags with the owner. As you can imagine legal action was pursued and Curt confirmed in writing that they had in fact copied intellectual property from the VERY small 1 person grassroots company Mini Do More.

Shame, shame, shame.

It turns out these 'random' purchases were actually coordinated efforts by Curt employees (likely under guidance of a "Research and Development" manager) to have Mini Do More hitches shipped without having a "Curt" shipping address. Wow. Pile on even more shame here.

Around this time OutMotoring.com was in talks to buy Mini Do More from Brent; even in the middle of this legal case. As the owner of Mini Do More and the owner of OutMotoring had a good working relationship and history of goodwill OutMotoring purchased Mini Do More in 2012. As part of the purchase we adopted the legal case in progress.

While no final and settlement was accepted by OutMotoring, Curt Manufacturing legal team did propose a settlement which was nothing short of a slap in the face. OutMotoring, the new owner of the Mini Do More brand and intellectual property decided to move on and not pursue the continuation of the very expensive legal battle.

The return on the investment was disproportionate to the estimated legal costs to pursue to legal case to the extent required and decided to put effort into design and development of hitches for upcoming MINI models such as the LCI N18 R56/7/8/9 revision, R60 Countryman model, R61 Pacemen and others yet released by MINI.

We have since designed and released many more hitches for nearly every MINI model. Deep down, we wonder what would have happened if we had pursued that legal battle.

So, that's a basic summary of the relationship between Curt Manufacturing, MINI Do More (now MniDoMore) and the current owner OutMotoring.

Please consider this when shopping for a hitch for your MINI. If you're considering a Curt branded hitch it's likely a close clone or variant of the Original Hidden Hitch by Mni Do More. Some retailers of the Curt clones are likely not aware of this history but should you, as a potential purchaser and user of a hitch for your MINI prefer to use the original Hidden Hitch by MniDoMore we salute you.

It is unfortunate that some retailers of the cloned MniDoMore hitches knowingly continue to promote and sell copies.

MniDoMore continues to be one of the only manufacturers who offers a complete range of hidden hitches for the MINI range of vehicles. We do our own R+D and have our hitches made near our HQ of Knoxville TN. We're proud of what we offer and continue to support the MINI aftermarket community with fantastic, well engineered and designed hitches that allow MINI owners around the world to truly Do More with their MINI.

If you're looking for a great way to make your MINI do more be sure to shop from the following hidden hitches. OutMotoring has the hitches on their site as well.

We'd love to hear feedback from what you've towed or attached to your MINI using one of our hitches (even if it's a clone!) Pictures are even better! We don't hold any customers to blame for owning or using a clone as they likely would have never know this story until now.

Did you know we just did a test install of the new F60 MINI Countryman Hitch? We should have production hitches ready in a few weeks!

 

Good stuff to know.

 

Good to know. I plan to install the model 1002 I bought used onto my 2004 R53 sometime this summer.

 

This is why we refuse to sell the Curt Brand and happy to continue selling the MDM hitches.

 

Always grateful for the support from Way Motor Works!

 

I have just started researching how to put a hitch on to my 2005 R52 S Convertible and I'm so happy to have found this post. This is turning out to be a lot more expensive than I thought, especially since I can't install this myself. But I'm happy to know that when I'm ready to make my purchase, the money I spend will be going to the correct company.

In regards to the bike rack one uses, your product description say "... the post needs to be long enough to clear the bumper." Is the distance to the bumper a standard measurement, or something that can only be determined once it is installed and the bumper is put back together?

 

I sent some folks down to your MOTD tent that were asking about someway of carrying their bike.

 

On a side note. If you want to tow a trailer, look for a Reece Backpacker. These haven't been made for a while, but they are perfect for towing behind a MINI. Very light and strong, the trailer is convertible to an open top. It handles extremely well at 80mph and is solid as a rock. OK, now back to the regularly scheduled subject...

 

Hmmm,nobody here ever goes that fast . . . .

 

Any F60 users of the hidden hitch? Question - thoughts on having to reach up under bumper to install / remove the pin?