I got an e-mail from MINI about a Second Date. It's free and included, but it sounds like it's just there if I have any questions about the car, which I'd probably get better information here.

It says Services Include:
-Complimentary basic service
-Fluid top-offs
-Tire pressure checks

"Our Motoring Advisors will be ready to answer any MINI specific questions that you may have. This is also the perfect time to get acquainted with our Service Department."

My car has about 500 miles on it and is about a month old. Will they do any "basic service" on it? If so, then I'll schedule, but if it's just to answer questions, look at my fluids (I can do that myself), and check my tire pressure (the car already does this?), I'll pass. The dealership is not far and has a really nice coffee machine, but I feel like it'll just be a waste of time for everyone.

Any opinions of people who have gone on their second date?

 

Did that w/ my co-pilot's R60. They walked her through basics of care but I still have to monitor her service intervals. Just yesterday I asked her about when her next oil change is due, deer in the headlights response. The whole thing is a courtesy call to develop buyer loyalty, take advantage of it. They might have a pot of good coffee on as well.

 

The Second Date is really designed to offer you a chance post-purchase of your vehicle to go back through any features, options, or buttons/switches you may still have questions on. When the vehicle is delivered, the sales staff will go through this all with you (at least at my dealership we do), but it is a lot of information at one time. So, the Second Date is there to help go back through any items you would like to revisit.

 

They offered me swag as an enticement to do the Second Date back in 2017. Never did it. Missed a chance to snag a free MINI tote bag or something equally stunning, I'm sure. Keurig coffee wasn't enough to get me back, but, now that my dealer is moving under the BMW roof, perhaps a better latte machine might get me to bite.

 

From someone who did them ALL THE TIME when I was a MINI "Genius": They help out the person who is doing them, but unless you have questions about your MINI, there's no REAL reason to do it anymore. Back when the program was new, we had the ability to fill up your tank, but they haven't done that for years I'm sad to say.

It is a metric for your adviser and dealership, so if you like them, I'd say go.

 

VERY USEFUL INFORMATION.

Just reminds us the kind of pressure dealers face from Corporate Big Brother, or should I say Big Daddy. All of this and so much more for that 2.5% holdback that, for many dealers, is the difference between profit and bankruptcy. Wild!

I tell people all the time, if you think giving 9s on a survey is generous, just know, anything less than 10 is zero in terms of the impact on a dealer.

So, if you're satisfied, even moderately satisfied, give 10s, and if you can't give 10s, give the dealer the opportunity to fix the issue so you can give that 10. And if, during the sales process, you're not having a 10 experience, SAY SO, as in, "Hey, right now I'm not having a 10 experience here. This is what I need to see happen to fix it." If the dealer can, they'll try to fix it. If they can't/won't, then walk away, but don't give them a 9.

Now I'm feelin' bad that I didn't do the Second Date and snag the swag. They shoulda just told me it was about Brownie Points and I would have showed up.

 

Glad I could bring some good info!

I worked at a MINI Dealer for 4 years. Would still be there if not for being given a really good opportunity.

 

I do like the dealership and the sales person who I bought my MINI from. But I really have no idea what I'd ask them that I can't ask here. Maybe I'll have them look at my phone and tell me how Androids aren't supported =P

I'm assuming "basic service" isn't anything real. Maybe I can look at their overpriced items and ask about what aftermarket parts will void my warranty...

 

I'd just stop by, have a cup of coffee, and sign their paperwork if nothing else lol

 

I've been told this nearly verbatim by a couple advisers I've worked with over the years. I think this is really stupid. They set it up as a binary system and then make 90% of the answers harmful to the dealer. The survey should ask "Was ______ acceptable to you? Yes / No" plain and simple. It's a waste of everyone's time to have to build awareness about an improperly phrased performance metric.

I'm glad I was warned about this. 10/10 in my mind means "zero room for improvement, perfection" (which is hardly ever true) but to MINI it just means "acceptable".


We recently asked about upcoming preventative maintenance at our MINI dealer in regards to our gently aging JCW. Their response? There isn't any. Come in if anything starts making funny noises.

...uh.... what?!

They could have just said "I don't know, I'll have to find out and get back to you." I think MINI is training their service people to tread too carefully around customers. If a customer is coming up on an expensive PM interval there isn't any sense in trying to soften the blow, just be honest and direct.

I wasn't in a particularly sassy mood or I would have fetched the manual from the glovebox and show them the basic maintenance schedule. Instead I just chuckled to myself, thanked them, and walked out. Probably the last time we take the car to the dealer, there are at least three highly capable independent shops near us.

 

I love this idea. Just ask with a straight face "Hey can you run me through Android Auto setup? I can't seem to get it to work!"

>.<

I'm sure they will tell you "We can't recommend that you install even a single fastener in your car that isn't OEM MINI." Not sure what MINI's policy is but it is pretty standard practice that the service dept. needs to provide justification that an aftermarket component caused a failure rather than the customer providing justification that it did not.

Either way, attempting to get warranty work performed on a modded car is a stressful situation and I can't recommend it.

 

I read somewhere that MINI got into trouble with "deceptive language" or something around warranties. I think it was about pretending that you needed to get all maintenance through a licensed service provider. But it's like you said, they need to prove that you/your mechanic messed up versus you having to prove that you didn't.

I've been thinking about adding some small performance upgrades but at the same time, it's a new car with a long warranty ahead of it (including lots of standard maintenance).

 

What kind of performance mods? The car is going to tattle on you if you flash tune it, you can bypass and/or hide the harness for a piggyback, and anything lighter than that can probably be uninstalled before you go in.

 

That's a question that I've been spending lots of time thinking about. Since I just spent a ton of money on the car, I'll wait a bit before adding upgrades. The first, most obvious one would be an engine tune. I'm not sure if I should try to get a tune that's doesn't void the warranty (like the Dinan Elite or the JCWs tune) or if it's not worth the price. It's basically if I want to spend the extra money to not have to worry about removing/hiding/untuning the engine each time I bring it for service (which is included for a while). If I get the JCWs tune, it'll add the exhaust too, which I hear is nice. Recently, I've been thinking of making the air scoop functional, so that's something on my radar, but it would be even further out.

But since my car is effectively brand new, I'll wait a little before going down the long path of performance upgrades. Maybe I'll focus on cosmetics for a little.

 

I'd say get a warrantied tune if you've got the cash. Cars are built with safety factors that allow crazy long 10,000 mile oil change intervals and the like, simply because it lowers the cost of ownership at the expense of performance. Nothing is working as hard as it should so wear is lower. In theory.

Just maybe change the oil between complimentary services if you tune. Our 2nd gen JCW has PM intervals almost exactly twice as often as our old MCS. (And it's a ton more reliable... coincidence?)

I think the JCW pro exhaust is great bang for your buck (pun intended) so if JCW tune + exhaust is in your budget I can't imagine you would have any buyers remorse.

I've been there before though. Tune and exhaust and functional hood intake are all "no brainer" mods until you whip out the checkbook and do the math. =P Best of luck!