Yesterday around 6 PM I was with some MINI friends motoring in the Loess Hills south of Hamburg IA. As I approached a stop sign on a backroad, I heard a loud bang, and Vera could go no further. Her clutch had blown! No idea of how or why. Only 2400 miles on her. Sheesh. That will all be sorted out tomorrow. What I thought I'd pass along is my experience with MINI Roadside Assistance.

After we pushed poor Vera off to the side of the road, I called MINI Roadside Assistance. A real person was on the line right away. She asked whether I was okay, whether anyone was with me, and whether the car was off the road. She found my location on a map (no mean feat, given where I was) and kept me on the line until she lined up a tow truck to take Vera to Markel in Omaha. She then ran me through the drill and gave me a reference number and an ETA for the tow. It was going to take about two hours for the tow truck to arrive; I didn't yet understand why just anybody couldn't take her. The MINI rep asked whether I wanted MINI to call back later to make sure that the tow truck had arrived. I said yes. They did call back as promised.

It was after dark when the flatbed arrived, but it turned out to be worth the wait. En route from Omaha the driver (Rick from Auto 1) called to tell me that I could leave Vera on the side of the road and head on home, but I couldn't leave my baby. He completely understood -- he's the owner of a 2010 MCS! He tows 15 to 20 MINIs and BMWs a week. One friend with me used to drive a tow truck, and he was mightily impressed by how the driver treated Vera with kid gloves. He tapped his shoes on the doorsill before climbing into her (!), loaded her carefully onto the flatbed, used the best straps to secure her, exercised great caution on the bumpy roads and at the railroad crossings on the way to the interstate, and stayed within the speed limit all the way into Omaha. Seeing Vera handled so well certainly relieved my stress.

So in my case, at least, MINI Roadside Assistance worked. Now to get that clutch replaced....

 

Sorry about Vera's clutch, Tancred; that stinks! Did you find more good roads in the hills?

 

That is a very nice looking red MINI!

 

Yeah, it was rotten luck. Some nice roads out that way, though.

Thanks! She's my pride 'n' joy.

 

How's Vera doing?

 

Tancred, that is the kind of story I want to hear or is it? He tows 15 to 20 MINIs a week? Time to sell!

 

MINIs and BMWs. It's not just for major breakdowns like Vera's, but also for stuff like accidents and wheels destroyed in Omaha's notorious potholes. And he's covering a very large area in at least two states. Otherwise, yeah, that would be worrisome!

 

Tancred,

Do you have your MINI back yet?

 

Yeah, what broke in the clutch?

 

Nope. It's turned into an absolute mess.

They have no idea. It just croaked.

 

So, do you have an estimate when Vera will be repaired? Is it going to be covered by the warranty?