Has anyone seen these 4 DVDs? (scroll down the page a little; search for Oxford on the page jumps right to them) The sample videos they show look great. Almost a documentary on how the car is made.

http://www.cimwareukandusa.com/CIMwa...oryDesign.html

They are expensive, but for those of us climbing the walls while we wait for our cars, maybe it isn't so expensive?

Edit: There is a 5th video also if you look in their full list of publications.

 

Looks cool. The $10 iPod videos might be worth it when they are available.

 

If yo go to mini.co.uk click on about us top right then click on factory tour.

 

Yes, seen that factory tour. The videos I mentioned are more like documentaries with full commentary on what is happening, how the machines, work, etc that are building the car. Check out the samples on the website above.

 

I think that that is the most expensive DVD I have ever seen in my life.... You can get box sets for less than that

 

Yeah they are expensive. All the other DVDs from that same place are that expensive also. Wonder if they actually sell any. Insane price for sure. The Ipod ones would be worth the price. Looks like you can get 2 of them for $22.95 each even though the website lists them higher.

 

I bought the two DVDs that were $23 each (Engine Marriage Assembly and Teamwork; Final Assembly). They got here in only 2 days from when I ordered. That was with the cheapest shipping, USPS.

This is my Mini-review, pun intended.

They are short. 18 minutes total per video, including credits and intro. There are no menus on the DVDs either. They film quality is descent but I would say they are filled on a handheld camcorder. From the slight buzzing I could hear in the camera, probably a Mini-DV type camcorder. Almost like watching a home video of someone who got a tour. Not that shaky with the camera but at times it seemed like he wasn't keeping up with the narration.

They are really intended for educational use. They do show the Mini at various stages. There is a "manager" guy who narrates parts of the videos. The videos have a "guy with a camcorder" feel to them.

The theme seems to be how the factory itself works. How the teams work, how they encourage the employees, etc. Stuff like that. In the Engine Marriage video they repeat the same frames of video to an annoying point. Finally another car comes in and they continue with new footage. It only takes 1.5 minutes to get the engine/tranny/front suspension into the car!

Some of the things I thought were interesting are how the employees are treated, how the floor is actually wood instead of concrete (easier on the feet). The assembly line is incredibly quiet. They don't allow any music of any kind. The torque wrenches and tools they use are all electric. They are tied into a computer system that tracks every fastener on the car. The manager can look up any fastener on any VIN and tell what the torque value was and the angle (they check for cross threading). The torque wrenches have lights that let the operator know if it was torqued properly. If they detect any defect, the car doesn't leave the factory until whatever defect is fixed.

$23, I think they are worth having if you like to know how things work. The Final Assembly titled video is misleading. You don't get to see an entire car being assembled. Just parts of it and it ends before the car is even close to being finished. That's not really a bad thing but I was expecting more.

If the Ipod version for $9.95 is out, get that. It would be worth it. At $23 they are borderline too expensive.