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General MINI TalkShared experiences, motoring minutes, and other general MINI-related discussion that applies to all MINIs, regardless of model, year or trim.
I'm still getting to know my 06 JCW that I bought in April and at every opportunity I avoid major highways in favor of the twistier bits as I explore and exploit the incredible driving dynamics.
My job carries me to various locations around the southeast and last week it was Kentucky and middle Tennessee --- Mon and Fri are travel days so time is not an issue in most cases and I don't care if it takes an extra hour or two to arrive on location because I've been having such a blast on the curvaceous backroads.
Found some really fun ones last week too!
The only drawback is an accumulation of bug splatter!
Griots has a bug and smudge remover and pinnacle just came out with an advanced bug spray that helps get the grime and much off pretty easily pre-wash. Looks like you might need to invest!
Griots has a bug and smudge remover and pinnacle just came out with an advanced bug spray that helps get the grime and much off pretty easily pre-wash. Looks like you might need to invest!
+1 on Griot's bug remover.
Motorcycle guys like to do much of the same only they make sure their buddies know how to find the best roads. http://www.motorcycleroads.com/
Add this URL to your MINI favorites folder.
Just got back from a particularly grimey roadtrip and in bad need of a wash.
Had a work trip to Winnsboro Louisiana, then New Orleans and circled back home. Then a friend called and needed help for an emergency rush job so I set back out to Jackson Mississippi after a one day rest.
Now finally back home and OldBoy is covered with road grime, went through light snowfall in Alabama on early Thurs. a.m. which added that distinct patina.
This is why I'll never do a rear wiper delete,
it is much needed in my opinion.
I like the road wear and the resulting patina, especially interesting are the visible airflow lines which become somewhat visible.
The previous owner had good taste and had added some 16x7 Konig Feathers --- I like the wheels but I've always wanted some classic retro minilites so when tire time comes I'm gonna get some Rota RB's in the same 16x7 size, anyway, the Feathers are great for keeping everything clean as they're so open, was also interesting to see the grime lines on the tires:
Safely home and ready for a good wash and oil change.
On the first trip I went on a sort of junkyard vacation, wanting to hit up some yards on the round trip. I called quite a damn many places and was hoping for finding some mom 'n pop type joints, but none had any MINIs and generally the lil' buggers seem somewhat thin on the ground at your average salvage yard. I did end up stopping by three Pull-A-Parts and one LKQ and got a few things. One aspect which is great for me is that I'm disassembling interior trim that I've yet to do on my own car so I'm also learning along the way as well as scoring spares, and it's just fun too.
At the NOLA P-A-P they had an BRG 04 with green leather interior,
I thought it looked great!
I haven't been around many of these cars and had never seen the green interior...
As a cool bonus at NOLA, they sling some Mardi Gras beads on you as you check out,
fun stuff!
The last yard I hit was LKQ and it was raining. You can barely see a red R53 which had been there a couple of months and was stripped clean just about, but there was also a 2 day fresh 06 R52 that I got some goodies from so it was worth the visit.
Neat highlight of the NOLA yard was seeing an old Merc 280 CE coupe with manual gearbox:
Back home for the weekend after a 2 week gig in Mt. Airy NC. It was a nice drive there through mountainous regions, but I didn't stop to snap any photos.
On the way back today had a light dusting of snow at the starting point, but for the most part the roads were in good driving condition.
Almost any road with "squirrel" in its name is usually a good one!
Impressive bugs in the first post in the thread. But if you want too see bug splat, drive through Florida in May. The love bugs are unreal. Sometimes the impacts are so frequent it sounds like rain. And if you don't clean them off quickly they etch the paint. I don't miss that.
Impressive bugs in the first post in the thread. But if you want too see bug splat, drive through Florida in May. The love bugs are unreal. Sometimes the impacts are so frequent it sounds like rain. And if you don't clean them off quickly they etch the paint. I don't miss that.
I hit them in south Georgia this past summer but failed to snap any pix.
I bought my MINI from a very nice gentleman in Clermont Fla. which is one of the more hilly areas in the state and drove it back home, but when we've got a job down there I usually carpool with the boss in his truck because most roads in Florida are flat, straight, and pretty boring - so I'm not inspired to add mileage plus fuel costs on my car...
...although if we ever get back down to the Tampa area I may hafta drive and check out the Tail of the Gecko!
When I was stationed at MacDill AFB in Tampa from 1966-68 there were quite a few country roads in that area that were fun to drive. When I could keep my old Alpha Spyder running I spent quite a bit of time exploring them. Most of them, and the orange groves have been paved over now. I went back to the area when I was in Orlando on vacation in 2014 because I had to make a quick stop at the VA Hospital. When I was leaving and heading back I realized the area we were in was within a stones throw of the house I lived in back then, or rather where it used to be. The South Florida campus and commercial buildings had taken over the entire area.
Last edited by vetsvette; Jan 19, 2019 at 07:49 PM.
When I was stationed at MacDill AFB in Tampa from 1966-68 there were quite a few country roads in that area that were fun to drive. When I could keep my old Alpha Spyder running I spent quite a bit of time exploring them. Most of them, and the orange groves have been paved over now. I went back to the area when I was in Orlando on vacation in 2014 because I had to make a quick stop at the VA Hospital. When I was leaving and heading back I realized the area we were in was within a stones throw of the house I lived in back then, or rather where it used to be. The South Florida campus and commercial buildings had taken over the entire area.
Nice!
Sounds like great fun zooming around top-down back then in an Alfa spider --- was it a 1750? Carbs or Spica? I've read that the Spica could be problematic. My dream car is a 1969 GTV but alas they're fetching the big bucks nowadays:
Had my chance back in the late 80's and early 90's to buy one, but let them slip by, sadly.
They were much cheaper then, totally underappreciated.
One I passed up had the cool GTAM flares and everything, but it was a basketcase and would've required complete resto, same with a '69 which was also a basketcase, but I kick myself for letting a '74 GTV 2000 (the most common model found in USA) slip by because it was like $4500 and a bargain, and also kick myself for balking on a '65 GT Junior,
dammit.
Live and learn.
Anyway,
another great thing about Tampa is that's where my alltime favorite beer comes from!
Cigar City Maduro Brown Ale.
I'd love to visit the brewery itself and drink fresh from the tap.
Yet all the more reason to drive down to Tampa!
Last edited by vetsvette; Jan 19, 2019 at 07:49 PM.
IIRC it was a '57 with the 1.3 liter and had twin Solex side draft carbs. Blew the head gasket and had to trade it in because I couldn't find anyone to work on a DOHC engine. That I could afford anyway. Didn't make much money as a one striper back then. It looked like this, but in a little rougher condition.
IIRC it was a '57 with the 1.3 liter and had twin Solex side draft carbs. Blew the head gasket and had to trade it in because I couldn't find anyone to work on a DOHC engine. That I could afford anyway. Didn't make much money as a one striper back then. It looked like this, but in a little rougher condition.
vetsvette -- beautiful car. Too bad you had to sell yours. Probably worth a mint now.
We lived in the Tampa suburbs from June 2013 until May of last year. It's such a huge area now. We were on the edge of the metro area (Lithia) and even there the traffic and congestion are horrible.
Just back home from finishing the job in Mt. Airy. Drove on Squirrel Spur again and it was much more fun in dry snowless conditions.
Found a few other fun roads too, but at certain elevations there was still icy patches on the pavement and snow on the ground.
And due to us renting a couple of airbnb houses for our stay, one on the Dan River in Ararat Va and the other on top of Groundhog Mountain, I had to drive on non-paved roads.
OldBoy got pretty dirty but it was sorta fun although I was slightly sketched at the same time, and taking it quite slow --- it was a strange sensation in such a low car and it felt a little skittish too. My old Saab did very well on loose surfaces and I always enjoyed driving on gravel, dirt, or old logging roads and play rally driver, but this MINI just ain't really set up for offroad excursions.
This time to get there I went on the bottom side so I could stop at a couple of junkyards. I'm hoping to get lucky one day and find an aero kit or other nice bits. You gotta be quick because the cars get pounced on pretty damn quick and picked clean. In many cases you witness scenes of barbaric savagery that leaves you scratching your head. There should be a certain etiquette for not ripping stuff all apart but it gets tore up all the time anyway.
Mt. Airy. Isn’t that Mayberry?!?! We stopped in there when I took the stang down the Blue Ridge Parkway. Can’t wait to take the JCW over there when it finally gets to the states...
I'm guilty of deviating from the wigglies and taking the long straight boring freeway on my last job which was just a short small gig down south in Claxton Georgia,
just got back home.
Claxton is famous for their fruitcake but I didn't buy any.
Instead, after the job was finished I made the short hop over to Savannah for another junkyard visit.
Most roads down there are pretty much straightaways,
even the dirt roads!
Something cool about the Savannah breaker was they actually had lot lizards!
Much more fun than hornets and spiders LOL
They'd scurry off as soon as they detected you too close.
Here's a little guy chillin' inna crashed Countryman:
It looks like someone took the time to pull this motor and then just left it sitting there:
Saw an MR2 Spyder there.
I've always had a thing for those and almost bought one a few years back.
Adding a hardtop + supercharger would make it right up my alley.
Don't see many anymore but ironically on my way home I passed by a black one just like this on the freeway, we actually waved to each other too!
Although I sorta wanted to check out the racetrack down there, I passed on it due to concerns about trouble from the fuzz and just didn't feel like bothering with it.
It's a public road but also a racetrack.
Quite odd.
I read that the police have a heavy presence there to deter thrillseekers so no go for me, however I'm still curious and if I'm ever back down that way for any extended amount of time I'll deffo go scope it out.
It seems that residents, golfers, and hotel guests complain about it too much...
I can hear the engines through my closed windows, even with the air on. When I open my front door facing away from Hutchinson, the sound bounces back at me as if there are motorcycles racing up and down a nearby block.
And this is going on literally all weekend, even into Sunday.
I’m sure the folks participating in the event are enjoying themselves, and I hope there are enough of them that we’re at least getting a significant tourism boost.
But we really need to think about whether this sort of irritation and inconvenience is worth it.
