I knew you'd ask that.

Here's what I see as values with the Motoring ID:

1. You require an actual MINI VIN to get one. Yes, a VIN number can be nabbed from elsewhere, but having one without a MINI would be pointless, since only MINI owners really have the potential to be "in the know" about them when they see them on a MINI. On another car... no value.
2. They are officially registered and recognized by MINIUSA - a formal body.
3. They do have an actual value because you can contact someone simply via their Motoring ID. You don't have to be a member on NAM, you don't have to know anything about the person. All you need is their Motoring ID and your own Motoring ID, and you're set.

Now, compare that to MMC:

1. All you have to do is claim a number here on this thread. If you want a particular number that isn't claimed yet, you have to jump in at the right time.
2. With the number, once you have it... what can you do with it? Put it in your signature. Put it on your car. OK.
3. What do other people do when they know your MMC number? Not a darned thing.

They key difference, chows... and anyone else reading... is that the Motoring ID has some useful purpose AND official recognition. The MMC number has... absolutely nothing other than this thread.

One is virtual, the other is very real.

Would many consider the Motoring ID silly? Sure... but compared to the MMC, I think it's like comparing Jerry Seinfeld to Bozo the Clown. Maybe that's a bad analogy... but I really don't think they are even remotely in the same ballpark.

 

A fair answer if you care about "formal recognition" by MINI.
Let's look at this more ... just for fun To clarify, I am NOT saying a virtual club is any better ... just something different and useful to people bonding in a virtual community.

Recognition by MINIUSA ...

What does that get you? I think that and $1.25 gets you a coke in a soda machine. Why do you need validation from some company to feel part of something? Cannot virtual communities exist, based upon common interest, without "validation" by some commercial interests?

Contacting Someone

MINI marketing. I grant you that YES, conceivably you can go through the MINI website ... forcing you to see more marketing ... to contact someone and that "potentially" has an advantage... but it all about $$$. How can we sell more ... make the brand name more "attractive"? I can see the advertisement executive now ... "Hey lets form a virtual club ... get the owners to buy into the culture more we created (and use cool words like "bonnets and boots" ... FORCE them to go through our websites for more traffic ... more potential buyers in the future ... cool" Of course, I could be wrong ... maybe MINI did it out of the goodness of their hearts

However, the more relavent question is: What is that actual usage? In other words, say in the last month, what percentage of IDs actually saw a strange ID and Emailed the owner. I have no idea and seriously doubt that MINIUSA will ever tell anyone. If its in the noise ... then its not much use. If its a number outside of noise ... then good for MINUSA and one advantage to IDs. Anyone know these numbers?

What do other people do when they know your MMC number? Not a darned thing.

Its not about that ... see below ...

... the Motoring ID has some useful purpose AND official recognition. The MMC number has... absolutely nothing other than this thread.

This is where I think your off base here. Why? This is just my opinion, of course ...

Most humans find comfort in interacting with/bonding with people of similar interests. NAM (and other car forums or forums for any interest) serve the same purpose. Sharing interests and "feeling" part of something bigger than themselves. A community spirit. Very few people are "islands" (or at least happy people).

In the last six months it appears than a hundred or more other "virtual" clubs have popped up ... CR/W club logo ... or whatever ... even Dog Owners logo ... again, ppl brought to together by same interests and bonding.

Maybe you feel MINIUSA validating something is important. Thats fine.

With all due respect, others have different comfort zones and that is what makes a "horse race". Everyone is different. Other people probably could care less that MINI (or any other car maker) "officially" recognizes a virtual body. For example, people have had real car clubs long before Ford, Chevy, Ferrari or any other maker "recognized them".

But, in general, humans like to bond over mutual interests. And so there you have it. A virtual club w/o MINI validation may seem frivilous to you, but not to others, IMO particularly new owners here, feel a sense of community ... and that is important to the human condition and the MINI community.

And yes, a MMC number and $1.25 can also get you a coke from a soda machine

 

To sum it all up, it basically means that coke from a soda machine is too damn expensive these days.

 

... And it will rot your teeth, raise your sugar level, increase your production of insulin and then bottom out with residual effects of slowed metabolism and weight gain(fat storage)

Mira sends a virtual wave to chows.

 

Chows,

You try very hard to make a good case for the validity of MMC... but your case falls short on several grounds.

First I want to point out that I never said that recognition by MINIUSA was by any means a requirement (hey - do they recognize NAM or MotoringFile? No), but it does count for something. It's something relevant that MMC does not have.

Secondly, you suggest that the MID is pure marketing. Certainly, marketing plays a role, but it does so likewise for very many aspects of MINI ownership. Other immediate examples are the Welcome Kit, the Spy Kit and large events such as MTTS or MINI United. The MINI and the marketing of such are very much intertwined. It's non-intrusive marketing, because it's often funny or tongue-in-cheek. Is this bad? No, of course not - many of us actually love the marketing. It's entertaining. And besides - most of the target market for this stuff are people who already own a MINI - especially the Motoring ID system, which "effectively" requires you to own a MINI first.

Thirdly, whether it's used heavily every day or rarely ever used... it doesn't matter. The Motoring ID system has a tangible benefit that cannot be disputed.

Finally, you bring up the whole point of community spirit and bonding... "feeling" like you are part of it all. Excuse me, but isn't that the whole point of NAM in the first place? That's why we're all here! Even some, like yourself, who don't even HAVE a MINI right now, are still here.

Let me ask you - how in the world does having an arbitrary number make you somehow in more of a community than someone who doesn't... considering that those "with" numbers are already members of the exact same community as those "without"?

And here's the crux of my argument: There is a common element of the CR/W club logo... people that own CR/W MINIs, specifically. There is a common element of the Dog Owner's logo... people that own one or more dogs. What is the common element of an MMC member? The fact that...

ummm...

they... own a MINI... and signed up for a number.

Ooooookay. Yeah. Guess what - all of the other NAM members here own a MINI too, and we already feel pretty darn good about being part of the NAM community, and we don't need a silly and pointless number to feel better about the wonderful community that NAM already is.

And that, my friend, is my point. MMC = take a number and claim it. There's nothing more to it that you don't already have by simply being an active and participating member of NAM.

-----------------------------

Note to all other observers - I may sound like a bitter killjoy with this post - that's not my intention, and I think chows4us knows me well enough to agree that isn't my personality. I am just calling it as I see it from a simple logical standpoint.

LOL - I bet Mira had no idea she was opening up such a big can of worms with her post this afternoon!

 

Edge you are taking all the fun out of having a pointless number. I'm just calling as I see it.

 

Edge, I have been reading your posts since earlier tonight when you suggested it. I also got caught up in others posts and had numerous windows open working from the first forward and the last backward. What I have found is that this virtual club, regardless of what anyone says, has ALWAYS meant virtually nothing and never was intended to mean anything.

I read as the guy that started the whole thread disappeared off the face of the earth and Chows stepped up to the plate when MMC#2 wouldn't. I watched as the virtual rules were bent and allowed some who claimed their numbers to retain them and others were stepped on and over. I watched as Sndwave joined and then asked to be removed early on (posted on 06/24/06) and then without requesting a number or even posting another post is assigned a number of 8.8 (or the like). This number were at some point changed to 7.7. This whole thing was referred to as sndwaves "special circumstances" whatever the heck that means. Through out the first 20 pages of posts someone was always laying early claim to a number. There is koolmini that requested #420 very early on when the numbers were still in double digits, cantdrv55 has been laying claim to 666 for about as long. (9/21/05). Octaneguy called for #95, camelpilot claimed 266 on 06/24/07 and impulse jumped in and claimed it while little egg jumped on 269 prematurely. (I am not making this up ) Chows sided with camel pilot and impulse was given the next # instead. Very early on, #7 was passed to grab 8. Lanceed was #13 one minute and #14 the next and guess what... The future Queen of Nebraska piped in laying claim to # 413 when the numbers were only at 240. Now, I have not read ALL of the posts but i have read enough to see that this virtual club with virtual numbers and virtual rules other than 'try to keep it in order so there is some kind of order and it is less confusing rule' has been making up the rules as they go along. It is obvious that if you post often here and people know you, you are given every courtesy. If you don't, tough luck. Two long-time posters and a moderator agreed with me that I should receive the number that I patiently waited so long to get. After a week of waiting around for the Queen to speak I was stripped of my number because of a mini owner that hasn't yet learned to play nice. My initial request was posted on 8/25/05 post # 586. I refreshed my claim to the number several times since then and then last within a few digits of the number coming up. My diligence meant nothing. My devotion to this virtual club held no value because I do not bump up my posts. I read whta I need to, I pass a little time while at work, I post only what is worth posting. Until now. I have wasted enough time on a virtual club that cannot even recognize a member worth having within it's virtual midst.

So, I am with you. This is pointless and a waste of time. This virtual number will not make my mini run better or faster and it will not help me change my oil.

I do not consider you a killjoy any more than I consider myself one. What others think means virtually nothing in this club of virtual numbers. I will say though that the posts have been entertaining. And if what I say carries any weight, the real club is NAM, where mini owners and lovers are brought together. MMC is what it was designed to be, virtually nothing. If you think the MMC# gives you individuality, you are mistaken. It is not a rank or a serial number. It is a virtual number. It is nothing. At close to 1500 posts, it has been fun. But I for one can say that though I dedicated myself to this thread and watched it grow over the course of more than a year, it has left me empty. MMC#500 belongs to me whether it is acknowleged by the club queen or not. If sndwave can be # 7.7, I can be 500 and there is nothing you can do about it because, I am not here, I am virtually non-existent. And, I am taking my #500 with me.

I came, I saw, I claimed and I conquered.
Talk about opening a big can of worms.
I'll shut up and now and watch the backlash. (taking cover from the virtual stones that are about to be thrown at me)

Oh, and one more thing... There are now more than 29,200 members in NAM and only a little over 500 of them have bothered to join the virtual MMC# club since it was started on June 24, 2005. Gee, maybe this club does mean virtually... nothing. Ya think?

 

Oh yeah, and another thing...
I am also taking my virtual T-Shirt, my virtual patch, my virtual pin, my virtual welcome package, my virtual members map, my virtual secret decoder ring, my virtual member handbook and my virtual limited edition (available to members only) signed and numbered tool kit with me. So there.

And if any of you haven't received any of these virtual perks of membership in the mail it is because I am the one that was virtually appointed by a virtual stranger to distribute them and I stuck them in a box posted with a virtual stamps which the post office virtually refused to deliver to virtual members. So, they all came back to me and I am keeping all of them. Maybe I will start my own club, call it the mini ascii club or something. We can all be assigned symbols. Since it is my club I get to choose first and I pick ...

Damn, forgot I am on the laptop and do not have a numeric keypad... You will just have to wait to join until after I get to work tomorrow then.

 

LOL... Touche, allenski, touche.

Actually, what brought my entire attention to this thread again (after leaving it be since January) was the fact that someone reported Mira's earlier post (#1470), hoping it would be deleted... I saw the report because I am a moderator. (Don't bother asking, I will not reveal what the report said, or who made it)

I, of course, had to see what the fuss was about... and since Mira was being neither rude nor insulting to anyone else, and not breaking any NAM rules, there was no reason to delete it... in fact, as you can now see, I agree with her. Welcome to the enlightened, Mira.

You know what though? Maybe you should have taken 501 instead. It's much cooler... thanks to Levi Jeans.

 

...that's exactly what I was thinking when I read the Mira's earlier posts...501 Levi buttonfly jeans!!!

 

Always my preferred casual style. Love 'em.

 

Yes ... especially to the newbies ... Edge, isn't being a killjoy, he's just expressing his opinion like everyone else does. When you read the rebuttals between us, don't take it that Edge and I don't know each other because we do, both from DCMM area, met each other numerous times ... we be cool So now, lemme take the time to read all this tonight and I will see what I need to say later

In the meantime, don't by shy, take a number

 

ok I updated my signature with my Number but no one has officially assigned to me please don't get at me!

 

Chows, why don't you give Edge a number regardless of the fact that he doesn't want one. That will show him.

 

Sigh ...

I was going to come back with a long rebuttal but its pointless since this is rhetorical.

Edge, from day one you didn't like this. 500 other ppl do. Thats good enuff whether it has value or not. Everyone is different

Mira, you might think your "getting away" with something by adding 500 to ur sig. In fact, your getting away with nothing. Tori can explain if she read her PMs.

And with that, I'm out of here. I have removed my MMC # as it has no meaning to me anymore and had stepped down. Tori is the Queen.
I should have never got involved in this incident I must like hitting myself in the head

 

511 - Suji
512 - Viper1020

Despite all the drama... welcome guys

 

LOL, it's been tried before... Link. I'd end up just letting someone else take it anyway. Besides, it would probably break one of the "virtual rules" that was set up by the "virtual leaders" (plural since it keeps changing).That's disappointing... I really was looking forward to seeing how you responded to it... ... and there you have it. Everyone is entitled to make up their own club, game, rules or anything else. I agree. And everyone else is also entitled to poke fun at it, just as long as personal attacks aren't used. I think Mira's just trying to prove a point. Again, as long as it doesn't break NAM guidelines, she can put anything in her signature that she wants to!Wow chows... after all the debating, I didn't expect you to back down. Are you sure you haven't just "seen the light"? After all, if the MMC # has no meaning to you any more, that implies you agreeing with me to some extent... unless of course you only mean it since you are "between MINIs" right now. HAHAHA - nice one. There was something in me that knew you couldn't resist... just like our many SUV discussions. You're a good man, Art... and a great source of lively debate entertainment at the same time.

 

Well, if it's any consolation to this "debate", I used my MMC#506 with my Motoring ID# JUMP506.

...from nothing to something.

 

Edge is now MMC# 1313. It is a number nobody will want to take from him. Sure we have to break a few rules to do it, but isn't it worth it?

 

LOL - who died and made you in charge here all of a sudden? Tooooo funny.

But the least you could have done is go all the way and give me 1337.

 

i gonna have to wait for #666 but, the idea of checking up on this thread just to get that # seems silly. what am i sayin? i dunno.

 

Sigh Sigh ...

Edge, I'm just to tired for writing tonight ... Maybe Friday after I'm rested

Yes, Mira can put anything she wants in her sig, my note was for Tori as other things are going on ...

Yup, anybody can poke fun at anyone, totally agree ... especially OEM parts

Nope, I haven't backed down, just too tired to think now ... there is nothing wrong with having subcultures with a virtual forum

Nope, I dropped the MMC Tag second week in Sept since I didn't feel it was appropriate between cars. However, I was thinking of adding my Croc tag but got to photochop stuff.

Yup, still a MINI enthusiasts, looking fwd to seeing the Turbos I know much more power can be had out of Turbos.

I guess that covers everything for now Yup, lively debate is always good food for the mind We're cool

OH .... btw ... Don't know if you've read the some other OT threads but I've DUMPED the SUV. Yup, imagine that. Old Technology ... old gas mileage (not that it matter much with gas prices these days), bought a new one. No longer get 22/23 mpg

Now its like 22 - 29 MPG. Well at least that is what the EPA says. Only have a few hundred miles on it so far so I can't really say for sure because its hard not to keep my foot out of it and first tank was like 20 ... which is BELOW the EPA minimum. But after 1000 miles breakin ... we'll see

Sorry about the OT ... now back to our regulary scheduled program

Talk to you later dude

 

Of course, if you want to start an internet club, go for it! Most of the "actual" MINI clubs were created by members who met "virtually" here on NAM or on the other MINI enthusiast boards.

This thread continues the great tradition of silliness that began early in 2002, when NAM was still MCO (minicoopersonline).

And I am very pleased to be MMC member #2.

 

I'll be number 7 if you don't mind.

 

Thanks Edge for your support and lighthearted humor.
I saw 501 and thought Levis501 Blues too but since I haven't been able to squeeze my posterior into Levis since I was a youngin (they are not built for women) I passed on it.

Chows, the MMC number means very little to me. But since Cooperation created my tag for me when you said I could have MMC#500 (at the same time that someone else elluded to the non-compliant size of it) I am going to keep it as it is now and wear it proudly. Afterall, it doesn't really exist anyway. for Cooperation. YOU are too cool.