Hi all.

Last June I bought this beautiful 2003 Base Cooper.


(picture was taken about a month ago)

It's lived it's entire life in Miami so far. I'm about to drive it into its first New England winter here in rural Massachusetts (yes, Massachusetts has rural areas )

Having lived in New England all my life, and always bought used cars, the thing that simply astonishes me about my Mini is that it has no dust in it!. Under the hood, in the door jams, the underbelly--still shiny without the patina of solidified dust many of you northerners know so well. Not to mention the bolts and still free of rust and corrosion.

Also, the windshield is still crystal-clear without the scratches made by snow brushes or gas-station squeegees. Nor has it been sand-blasted by road sand and salt.

I know these cars have rust issues, so i will take it in to the car wash weekly throughout the winter. I'll also be careful brushing the snow off of it (I don't have a garage).

Any other tips? Especially anything I should do now in October before the winter gets here?

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

 

Congrats on a beautiful MINI. Not much advice about the snow but just wanted to comment on the look of your MINI. I love my gen 2 but sure wish MINI would bring some color choices back to the market.

 

Thanks a lot. The color (Velvet Red) was a big factor in my choice of used Mini. I've gotten so many compliments on it from Mini owners and others, I'm starting to think I should write Mini and let them know.

 

They had some great/fun colors. Not sure why they went to the black, white, shades of grey, with a single blue, red, green, and orange thrown in. The design of the MINI just screams fun...but the color choices...not so much. Again, great looking car.

 

What a beauty!

 

Hey Newt, Good seeing ya at that run in CT this summer

Have you thought about applying the clear guard protection to the front bumper and bonnet ? We don't use as much salt on the roads here as some states, but finding a good car wash to hose off now and then is a plus. Sounds like it is going to be frigid this winter so keep in mind, most DIY wash bays will not be open when temps dip to below 40. Usually with the wind chill factor around here, when it's 40* it is really 25* - 30*.

Don't use the ebrake if you think the brake lines will freeze up....keep it in grear. Can and often will happen after washing the car during day and when temps go down at night.

Dont let the fuel tank get below 1/4 tank on cold days, condensation builds up will turn to ice and freeze your fuel lines.

Good to use fuel line antrifreeze if temps stay below 20* for any period of time. Only use the stuff containing isopropyl alcohol and not the methanol based stuff which is garbage and does not work.

The auto glass scratches easy so no hard scrapers if possible. A clean Soft Bristle broom works good for removing snow from ontop of the car.

The shop in Greasy's Garage installs remote car starters now....and they have them for standard transmissions as well.

Best of luck.

 

Snow tires.

I found a set of four nearly-new Dunlops here on NAM a few years ago.....on Mini wheels....at a great price.

 

My 2002 MCS will be experiencing its third winter.

As others have said, winter tires are a must. I don't know how much salt they put down where you are, but here in New Brunswick, Canada, they apply it liberally. I got the car treated with Rust Check last fall and will be doing so again this year. I would suggest rust proofing your MINI if you plan to run it all year long and plan to keep it for a while.

 

Snow tires a must ? I am sure they help some but are they really necessary for our cars ?

I have 103K miles in a 03' and never had snows......since it's FWD and almost 70% of the cars weight is on the front wheels, I never saw them as a necessity. Always used all seasons and just drove accordingly. Never even got stuck on unpaved lots / roads in up to 8 inches of snow.

 

Hey, it's your choice man. I just prefer to have the best tools for the job.

Of two identical cars having drivers with equivalent skills under similar winter conditions, the car equipped with snow tires will outperform the one with all-seasons on snow/slush/ice/winter crap.

Location also has an impact. Driving in the country in winter on secondary and tertiary roads in hilly terrain is a whole other ball game than puttering around the city. Mynewt stated driving will be in rural areas.

It's just like for the rest of the year. If you have crappy all-season or summer tires, you'll have way less fun zipping around than if you had a good set of grippy tires.

I guess it's a personal choice, but I prefer spending a litlle extra $$$ for the extra peace of mind

 

I have found that the benefits of winter tires appear more during icy conditions vs. accumulated snow.

 

Well, after driving through a few snow storms, I have found it true what they say; these cars are excellent in the snow!

I don't see needing winter tires. The Conti ProContacts are doing a fine job. (come to think of it, I've never needed winter tires on any car before).

I think it may be the best 2-wheel drive car I've ever owned for winter driving (this is my 12th car, BTW).

As for general care so far, I'm just taking it to touch-less car washes with undercarriage spray one a week and/or irrigating the underside with the hose in my driveway on the rare occasion it warms up near 30 degrees or-so.

 

Thanks for the update. You have a beautiful MINI.

I'm a snow tire user, but not everyone is. If you ever do drive a car with 4 proper winter tires you will never go back to all seasons.

 

Awesome color! Beautiful MINI!

 

I have been thinking about this too being that I have a 2011 MCS in Boston this winter. Got some good wax/detail before the winter, Installed a clear bonnet and front bumper bra, weekly washes. So far it seems to be working great, I usually self wash in the warmer months and touchless in the colder. I do have a garage which is nice so I can dry after a wash since washing without towel drying is pointless to me.

Decided to wait for winter tires since I was tight on cash after buying my MINI. So far things are fine even on the few snowboarding trips to VT and NH. Will get a pair of summers come spring and use the runflats and OEM wheels for my winters. In the city it just seems like winters will be excessive for tire wear with the pounds of salt they throw on the roads the second it drops below 30*

Love the color BTW.

 

Oh, and my parking brake WILL freeze if i use it overnight.