To every one that has asked for the badges, l'm working on getting them right now and will advise you as soon as l find out when i will recieve them. to add if any one elso would like them,just let me know, and to answer the question about other types, well there being worked on and any suggestions on ones that you would like , just let me know and l'll pass it on the the guy l get them from. the works

 

I know that in the UK all MINI dealerships have until 2006 to set up their own facilities (if they are currently sharing part of a BMW dealership). I guess BMW want to market the MINI and BMW marques differently. I bought my MINI inspite of the BMW connections, not because of them.

 

A little Photoshop later...

 

the original concept for bringing back the MINI from the ashes of the mini, was that they were to be sold by stand alone dealerships only,but that existing BMW dealerships would be given the opportunity to pick one up,first.I went to North shore BMW in Nov. of 2001 and left a $500 deposit close to 5 months before Mini Of Peabody would even break ground. My receipt was from North shore BMW,I make monthly payments to BMW of North America,and quite frankly there wouldn't even BE a MINI today if it wasn't for the forward thinking of 3 very hip employees at BMW.Classic mini's were produced for 40 years and managed to produce 5.4 million cars worldwide,second in sheer #'s only to the model T ford.
My car has a decal right above the Cooper S badge that says"supercharged" Ian Cull(GBMINI) told me were he got his and I'm quite sure it is the original badging for the supercharged Buick Riviera, does that make my car a buick? I really hated it when some some elitist snot in an M5 pulled up next to me at the gas pumps one day and said," Oh look, he got a "my first BMW!"".These cars are ALL about reflecting one's own choice in graphics,mods,color schemes,the ultimate reflection of one's own personality.Like the bumper sticker says:
If you don't believe in abortion ,DON'T HAVE ONE
I think the badge looks really cool, but I don't want one for my car...................that's all.:smile:

 

I dropped out of the BMW CCA when they made owners of Z3s (which my wife and I had at the time) feel unwelcome. If there is a negative attitude towards MINI owners, it wouldn't surprise me but I've been gone too long to know about it.

I didn't buy one because it's a "starter BMW" (too late, I've already owned 5 BMWs) and I didn't have to buy it in spite of BMW's ownership. I'm not saying that putting the BMW badge on it would be upgrading or downgrading the MINI, it would just be a mistake. I bought this car simply because it is a MINI, and it wouldn't have mattered if MINI was owned by BMW, VW, Ford or Rover.

I've had people call it a BMW and tell me it's German. Wrong on both accounts. As long as people refer to our cars as BMWs, the non-informed public will continue to get it wrong.

 

"The MINI is a brand, all on its own, and not merely a model or any other make", from New MINI, by Graham Robson, 2002.

BMW clearly wanted to differentiate the vehicle as different than a BMW or a Rover for that matter. So what I take this as, is BMW's marketing strategy to develop a market for this vehicle in and of itself based on a previous 40 year history of the marque. Confusing this perhaps, is that nearly most of the dealerships in the US are connected physically to a BMW dealer (since BMW dealers were given the opportunity to develop this dealership).

The car was first engineered by Rover then completely re-engineered by BMW. It's design was developed, orchestrated and controlled by BMW. BMW designed and rebuilt the Oxford plant. BMW invested over $1 Billion in the "project". To say that the car is not a BMW, is well, a bit understated in my view. It's simply a marketing strategy for a "brand" simply to differentiate it from a BMW.

To add fuel to this fire, if you want to order a MINI part, you go to the BMW parts counter. If you want to finance the purchase, you have the opportunity to finance through BMW Financial Services. If you have warranty work done it's accomplished under a BMW warranty. If you look at the part number system it's all BMW.

And finally, if you take a look at the manufacturer's label on the driver's side door post you'll find that the MINI is manufactured by? BMW of course! (I attached mine below).

Me? I like what theworks came up with. If you are so inclined, rebadge! If not, be proud of the nameplate that came with the car!

Let's Motor!

 

I guess it depends on your local chapter because our's is very accomodating for both the Z cars and the MINI... I do see the hate mail in Roundel still, but then I also see just as many pro-MINI letters as well! I've heard that the first Oktoberfest had some MINI bashing - but the last one was more pro-MINI. Shrug... IMHO there are bad apples in every group...

 

I would love to buy these. Good you tell me where to get them or good you help me get them.. Email me if you know any info. Colongione@optonline.net thanks again. :smile:

 

What's the latest stats on these badges???

 

This thread looks dead. At least the controversy. But here I go.

However closely related BMW and MINI are, you still own a MINI. I think that re-badging your car with BMW logos is silly. Not saying that you are, but I see it as a sign of insecurity. People don't know what a mini is and that it's made by BMW, and you want them to know that you really drive a BMW. That way they wont think you don't have money. To me its a status thing. You don't want to have less than you actually do. I don't really care how rich you are. If you want a BMW and can afford one then drive it. Have both. But when you are in your MINI just be in your MINI. And rationalizing it just makes you look more insecure.

 

OK ok ok ok......Dang people! If I want to paint my car neon pink and stick Buick stickers all over it I will.


Back to the thread at hand - Any new work on the badges and any idea if they can be had w/ different insides ie, Just a red S or something different.

Thank you.

 

fine, just don't ask for feedback and get mad when you get it.

im not trying to egg you or anyone else on, just making my point.

Andrew

 

Hi everyone,

Just finished perusing through this thread and my what a diverse group of opinions! Part of the MINI advertising campaign was to "Just be yourself". Well, I am and I like the new badge. It speaks to the "Past, Present and Future" of Mini. Especially with the red "S" through the BMW logo. Yes the New MINI has some heritage present from it's BMW parent company, but the New MINI is also creating it's own place in the world. Lets celebrate all that it is and will be, send me two of the new logo's!

 

I agree with doing your own thing. The new MINI is based on the old BMW Z3, so it really is much more BMW than Morris/Austin/BMC/Rover, and whoever else has owned the car over the span of its lifetime. The fact that they split the responsibilities of the dealerships really doesn't have much to do with the guts of the car. If it wasn't for BMW, the new MINI probably wouldn't even exist.

Nowadays cars are so global, I don't think you can pinpoint a car's genetics down to one country/brand. I consider my MINI English, because that is where it was born, even though I understand the german/brazilian/US/English input.

I say, if it floats your boat, go for it. I am one that for my personal MINI, I don't go for mods. Although I really went wild and installed a stubby I received for Christmas.

 

No, not even close. I've owned both a '97 Z3 and an '04 MCS and can tell you there is almost nothing in common between the two.

MINI Cooper - front engined, front wheel drive car built in England with a 1.6L Tritec (BMW/Chrysler) engine

Z3 - front engined, rear wheel drive car built in South Carolina with a 1.9L (in base form) BMW engine

 

The fact is....most of the new BMW's are quite ugly in my opinion, so if a buyer was to go to a BMW dealer, and saw a MINI, they might definately buy a MINI over the current BMW specific models, because MINI's are BEAUTIFUL!!!! Then, once you test drive a MINI, you are sold! Now if someone was too much of a SNOB to even drive a MINI because it doesn't say BMW on the car, that is their loss, and if a club of snotty little mama's boys doesn't want to admit that the MINI is a BMW automobile, then why would you want to be around those little sissys anyway? You see MINI's RULE!!!! They are better than the typical boring, round, pedestrian friendly , weird almost TOYOTA looking BMW's out right now!! They are unique, they are no non-sense, they are a total blast, and very simply put MINI's are REAL!!! Why? Because you don't buy it to own a BMW and have people think you are extra cool in your BMW, you don't buy it to be praised by most American's with their Corvettes and Chevy Trucks, you buy it because for the money, you get the best value, best looking car(to a MINI buyer), and most fun car on the road!! So are MINI's a BMW, obviously they are, with English heritage, and a German competitors engine! By the way, I really like the badges, it's furthering the uniqueness of this guys MINI/BMW. Just enjoy your MINI my brothers and sisters, if you are a fan, you probably agree that there is little else on the road that even comes close to comparing to the feeling you get when driving a MINI!!! In a world of disgusting looking and boring living room on wheels cars, the MINI is one of the last that truely says LET'S MOTOR!!!!

 

Hello everyone.Sorry for the delay. Well l've been working on getting a hand full of the badges and l should have some in about 45 days or so.l'll keep all of you informed. lf any of you still want a set , just inhouse mail me and l'll put you on the list. thanks again, theworks

 

I pulled the rear badge off of my MINI and replaced it with a steering wheel "S" badge designed for a Honda S2000 (my other car). I can post photos later but for now you can see what they look like at the website where I purchased them:

http://www.ricks2k.com/

Go the the icon for the Steering Wheel Badges:

Rick's also makes wheel hub "S" badges. The badges come in a variety of color combinations. I chose a red "S" on a black circule background. The quality is excellent. My S2000 badges, also from Rick's have been on for four+ years and are holding up fine. No UVR degredation, peeling, crazing, or any other problems.

See picture from Rick's catalog.

 

Cool idea - I am going to badge my Dodge Caravan with Mercedes badges!

 

MINI is just the "next generation" of the original Mini. That most Americans were not aware of the car was only because it had not been sold in the US her for several decades. But it continued in production and was popular in Europe and other parts of the world. It is not a "retro car," like the PT or the Beetle, and I bristle when I hear/read that term used, and you would be surprised, by so-called "experts" in Automobile magazine, etc. BMW bought the company/brand, both as a means to affect its overall gas consumption metrics, (see other posts in this thread), and, as a means to capture future BMW customers when they were able/willing to "trade up" to a conventional BMW. I've always thought that BMW's strategy was far more sensible and inventive than the "cheap" Mercedes or Jag's that its competitors have come up with. They have maintained the heritage of the Mini brand, and its personality/basic looks while accomodating modern safety/environmental concerns. While BMW owns the brand, I feel they have worked fairly hard to see that it maintains its own identity. Its still a "British" car, produced with mostly British parts and "made" there. But now we also have the advantage that it is owned and overseen by BMW, and I can rely on their resources to ensure quality and technology. That's a good combination. Anyone who has owned a BL car, well, I don't think they would deny that their devotion to all things British, much as we might pine for, can't be affected by say, those Lucas electrical systems! I remember being expert at dismantilng the dashboard of my Triumph. I could restore those Lucas guages and brightwork wonderfully- but I'm not "mechanical" or capable of any electrical enginering, and the car never ran too well! In the end, do I want a Miata? Not really, its really Japanese, a pretender, (not impugning its quality though, or Mazda...). If you like BMW those badges, OK, its your car, (if anything, MINI is about individuality), but personally, I'm not going to rush to slap a BMW nameplate on mine.

 

Vladimir:

Your essay makes sense and BMW's purchase and oversight of the sometimes orphaned MINI group has brought a great car back from near death and into the current century.

I am reminded of the bumper sticker: "Why do the British drink warm beer....because they have Lucas refidgerators"

K. F. Duke

 

So THAT'S it... I am thankful for you having finally given a valid reason for the lack of ice in the UK! On my many visits there it has been a consistent source of puzzlement for me.

 

Actually, the chassis and suspension are based on the old Z3, despite the differences - which are many. The MINIs are not reskinned Z3s, they simply use a lot of the technology from them.

 

Care to be a little more specific? Maybe a link that supports your position?

My '97 Z3 was very much like my '95 318ti in specific parts, technology and feel, but neither of them is anything like my '04 MINI.

 

just because there parent company is BMW DOSN'T make them a BMW!
i can just see it a big *** VW emblem like on the old busses on the
Lamborgini Gallardo that would look sweet
or better yet how about one on the new Bentley!
what about a ford DB9 or XJ8?
again BMW OWNS MINI they dont MAKE the MINI!