Hi All,

I've tried to sell my 2020 MINI Clubman for months now, but no such luck. Not that I really wanted to sell it because overall I really love it, but am changing jobs and needed to buy something with lower payments. I've decided to keep it though as I can't seem to sell it privately and would lose way too much if I traded it in.

- My 50,000 bumper-to-bumper warranty is nearly up and I'm trying to be wise in deciding whether to buy the extended warranty. To my knowledge it cost $1,895 and covers:

everything that "wears" on the car; things like brakes ($1100 for front and rear), wipers ($40 for front, $40 for rear), oil changes ($83) standard scopes which are done on every service ($102), brake flushes ($168), and vehicle checks ($200).

It seems like I should take the plunge as just considering the brakes option, I had to get them changed at around 30K miles so may have to get them done twice again before 100K miles. But perhaps I can find a local auto place that would maintain my MINI cheaper than the dealership.

- My racing stripes on the bonnet look pretty nicked up. The 3M paint shield piece that is on the bonnet of course doesn't cover the stripes. I'm thinking about having them taken off, but am wondering if it would leave a mark. If not, I would ask someone to put on a new 3M shield that would cover the where the stripes were toward the front end of the bonnet. But then again, the 3M shield was really expensive so I'm just not sure how to proceed???

- I've never waxed my MINI and know that I should've done that by now. Do you recommend any particular type of wax or procedure that works best? Also, can you wax over the 3M shield/stripes?

Thanks so much for any advice you can give me. I really appreciate it.

Happy Motoring,
Deb

 

A 2020 Clubbie? How did you fit it in your time-travel machine? :D

Assuming you mean a 2010, the car is almost 3 years old. Especially if the car has never been waxed, the paint will have faded slightly. The paint under the stripes will not have been exposed to the sun, so it will not have faded. When you remove the stripes, you will see a "shadow" of darker paint where they were. It may not be very obvious, or it may be--depends on how much the paint has faded.

Waxes are like oils in that everyone has their favorite.

You should be able to wax over your stripes. Not sure about the clear bra, but it's likely you can wax over that as well.

 

<<<- My 50,000 bumper-to-bumper warranty is nearly up and I'm trying to be wise in deciding whether to buy the extended warranty. To my knowledge it cost $1,895 and covers:

everything that "wears" on the car; >>>


You're describing the "Maintenance Warranty, not the "Bumper-to-Bumper warranty". Entirely different animals.

 

You not only can wax the clearbra, you should. It's protecting your paint, give it some protection in return !