Ok, as I've said before, my MINI is currently in production, with an estimated completion date of April 29th (this friday!).

I have read someone say (I think it was TheOldMan) that their MINI was "in the paint shop" for a week, and then all of a sudden it was on a ship.

My question is this - my estimated completion date; is that when it will be completely finished, or is that when the building is done, and then they have to put it in the paint shop? I'm just curious.



Also, one other question - is there any way to know when the next WW ship will be leaving England for the East Coast, after April 29th? You can tell I'm getting anxious, and I want to have as much info as possible! So is there any way to learn when the next ship after the 29th of April will be leaving port from England?



Thank you to those who took the time to read and respond to this. Mods, if this would be more appropriate in the "first gear" forum, please move, and I apologize for the confusion!

 

HI, it's me.....

My completion date was March 31st. It was done on that day and put on a WW ship the next. Took 14 days to be off loaded a Charleston SC. About four or five more to make it to my dealer (where is is at now). :smile:

 

Ok, awesome. Thanks for the reply, Mark! So completion date is COMPLETION date, not just the completion of the car assembly. Good to know!

I think that the WW ships hit the Baltimore area port before Charleston, yes? If so, that rules, 'cause the trip (from an average-trip standpoint) should be even shorter than that! I'm getting more and more excited...

Just noticed that you're in MICHIGAN, too. So four or five days from Charleston to Michigan?! Very nice. With Baltimore being about an hour away from here, I can only imagine how long it will take to get to MINI of Sterling! Of course, there's always the wait time at the vehicle distribution center...

 

Hey 05MCSa

Congrats. I suggest you go to www.gbmini.net and see how Ian followed his MINI from Southhampton to port of entry. His site has the appropriate link to WW, MINI's shipping company for the east coast. My MINI departed Southampton on April 5 and arrived in NY Harbor on Apr 13, where mine was off loaded to the dealer in NJ. I picked it up on the 15. The ship went on to arrive in Baltimore on Apr 15, if that is where yours is destined. Otherwise it would be Charleston, probably a day or so later.

Believe me, it's all worth waiting for !!!

Hugh

 

Thanks, hugh!

My car will be finished on the 29th, this friday... Do you guys think there's any chance that it will get on a boat the same day? The RESOLVE leaves that day from Southampton... I'm just getting my hopes up, right?

 

Hang in there man! And, LOL @ your signature... I almost named my MCS that ("Patience")!

Bug the crap out of your MA, they have the up to date scoop for when you're frustrated with Owner's Lounge and other resources. When I was "on order" I used to go by the dealership frequently, and the MA's hid their frowns very well when they saw me walk in to get status updates!

 

Yeah, it's a good half hour drive for me (I'm not complaining, of course, after seeing people here going upwards of three and four hours one way to pick their cars up!), and with my work schedule (60-70 hours per week), when I'm free, the dealership's not open. No fun.

So I bug my MA about things when I think of them, but I don't want to bother him too much. He's a good guy, but he's busy too.

...

But wait a minute. I'm spending multiple tens of thousands of dollars on a brand new car. There's no "bothering him too much!" He owes me this! Up-to-date information when I ask for it!

Sorry, had to get that out.

 

Three of Four Hours? How about Three or Four Days!

I live in Eastern WA and am going to Cleveland to pick mine up!

Good first drive, don't ya think?

 

Dang. That break-in period will be gone in NO time!

When are you expecting it/when did you order?

 

I also was concerned about the possible negative effect on my level of service received, if I made too much of a nuisance of myself, so I just asked my MA about it. Specifically I asked him if emails from "on order" customers were a pain or not. He responded in such a way that I no longer had any worries about buggin' him via the 'net . I bet I've emailed (and he's responded pretty quickly) about 10 times on various subjects since my January delivery .

Good luck,
Tatt

 

What boat is your car on? I am on the Takasago right now wishing my car was offloaded in NJ, but it wasn't. I'll probably see your car before you do, as Classic is only about 8 miles from me...

I'm hoping the car(s) gets here next week, so I could possibly have it by the 7th. I'm having Classic put on some bonnet stripes, but that's about it so dealer prep should be kept to a minimum...

 

I haven't bugged my MA too much until the last week. All via email, never by phone. Now that "Banana Wind" is on the boat, its time to get dates, financing, the little add ons and stuff all figured out. He even knows my MINI's name (and references him (or her) by it!).

 

My MA told me I'm in the paint shop starting today! Woohoo!

I noticed on the WW schedule that the RESOLVE was pushed back to a Saturday, April 30th departure from Southampton. Any thoughts on the possibility of my car getting on that boat?

 

I was told by ASK-MINI that the wait once a car reaches the dock in Southampton is typically a minimum of 2 days and generally more, because of paperwork that has to be dealt with as well as the loading (and sometimes... ugh!.. unloading when a car gets bumped for other cargo!) process. Of course, a post above would seem to contradict this, if someone indeed finished production and sailed within 24 hours. (Are we sure that they actually finished production on that date, or is just that the news they were finished production was delayed, thereby seeming to shorten the wait at the dock?)

I would think that the delay in the Resolve's departure would favor you, but I'm also under the impression that it's been a while since a ship will have left, so there will be plenty of MINI's lined up & ready to go by the 30th. The next boat out is probably a safer bet...

Good luck though!

(By the way: if you get tired of pestering your MA, I consider the service at ASK-MINI to be outstanding and thoroughly therapeutic.)

cheers,

davn8r

 

Hmm, ok. I wonder how long it takes to get the car out to the dock?

The TRIANON leaves from Southampton on May 3rd; it'd be cool if that was my boat.

 

How do know which ship your Mini is on? Can you track it? If so, is the VIN used?

 

http://schedule.2wglobal.com/AppTracking/cargoTrack.do

Click on "Auto Cargo" and enter your VIN.

 

Thanks for info. I checked -- must not be on a ship yet. According to miniusa.com it has been "Awaiting Transport" for two weeks. I'm just impatient!!

 

1.866.ASK.MINI has more up-to-date information than the Owner's Lounge. Give them a call. Also, ask for a customer service representative; they might have more detailed (but not necessarily more up-to-date; the same) information than the automated information service.


...For instance, ASK-MINI automated information simply tells me that my car is in production, and that it will be done April 29th.

BUT! When I spoke to a customer service rep (Mark) he told me that my car was in the body shop this morning, and now it is in the paint shop as of this afternoon! He also went on to give me approximate wait times from the 29th until my dealership gets my car. Like how long it takes to get to the docks at Southampton, and how long the wait will be to get on a boat, etc. Even as far as how long the ship will likely be at sea, and stuff like that! Good stuff.

 

Good info. Thanks. I'll call tomorrow..