Hello everyone!

I will most likely be moving to Las Vegas in about 3 months. My mini will arrive sometime around Sept 12th and i will have it shipped out to Vegas. (kinda odd i know )

But what i was wondering was:

How is the mini car scene out in Vegas?

Are the dealerships friendly? I dove past one dealer ship near a nissan dealer ship, but i cant remember the street name.

Is there any shops there that know alot about mini's besides the dealer?

Is there alot of pot holes/bad roads?

Is there any good roads to drive on with alot of twisties?

Im going to be completely new to the city, i have only been to Vegas once, and my stay was about 10 days.

what should i expect?

 

really has it's act togethter, so you will be happy as a clam!

And this is from someone in California!

Matt

 

Hiya. Welcome to Vegas. You're missing out on the summer? Vegas summers are better than Florida summers. No humidity.

Why ship instead of drive? If you put in the effort, you can drive it in 3 or 4 days, and get to see some of the country. You burn some money on hotels and fuel, but save on airfare and shipping costs. Also, you can pack a lot more into your MINI than you can take on a plane, which means more stuff you'll have as soon as you get here. Just wondering is all. MINIs are surprisingly comfortable for long distance driving, but take plenty of CDs or get an MP3 player and the aux input.

We like it. The "core" members of the Sin City MINI Club are not that large a number. The club has about 90 or so paid members and we usually see around 12-15 cars at most events. We organize and host A MINI Vacation In Vegas (www.AMVIV.com) every year which is a blast. We had 300 cars here this year. We do club runs, motor ins (we get together and hang out and chat at local restaurants), occasional overnight trips and social stuff. If you decide you don't want to hang out with us, there's plenty of other things to do in Vegas.

The only dealer in town is Desert MINI on Sahara & Decatur. They are ajoining Desert Nissan. There are some issues there, but I think they are mostly due to the corporate breadhead attitude inherent in being part of a national, "all brand" dealership group. If you need service, they're the only game in town, and Danielle (the MINI service writer) does her best to help everyone out. Mark, the head MINI tech there, is a MINI owner and enthusiast, and a real nice guy.

Depends what you need. We have some members who are pretty handy with a wrench, and there is a shop in town who's owner did his apprenticeship in England working on Minis (classics). He's trying to get more into MINI work, but I'm not sure how much work he gets.

I don't know what the roads in FL are like, but the roads here are better than many I've driven on. Worse than some. It depends what part of town you live/drive in.

Yes, but limited in number and sometimes you'll have to drive a fair distance to find them.

Not everyone lives in casinos. It's like living in any other city, except that instead of working in the mine/plant/fishing boats/??? a large number of people work in casinos. There is still Walmarts, schools, businesses, Home Depots, malls and everything else that any other big city in the US has. Plus, everyone you know back home will want to come and visit. Try getting THAT to happen in Detroit! I lived in Detroit for a year and a half when I 1st moved to the States. 1 out of state visitor the whole time.

 

Have fun in Vegas, and don't gamble with money you want to spend on mods....

And when do you move out? I'd live to visit!

Matt

 

I think i may be moving after my b-day which is Nov 23rd, i think thats also the same day as thanksgiving. So sometime at the end of Nov. is what i am planning.

Edit: Im not really into gambling, so i wont be hitting the casinos. But sadly i will have to save my money until i can find a job out there.

 

What kind of job are you looking for?

 

I'll tell you what i will miss about FL.

1. No state auto emission tests

2. 93 Octane fuel

3. No front plate law (how strict are the cops on this? )

4. Sea level air

5. Free windsheild replacement if cracked/broken

Someone please comfort me, and tell me everything will be ok.



Edit: Well i work at the shipping port in Florida right now...and considering there is no ships in Las Vegas...im not exactly sure. haha

 

one that pays a lot for little effort!

Matt

 

Matt, that's my job. Sorry.

Mizer (what IS your name, anyway?), the smog check is a snap. Get a coupon out of your mailbox, head down to Purrfect, pay the $15, go home, renew registration online. Apply sticker when it arrives a week or so later. All done.
Unless you have a classic MINI that doesn't want to pass smog.
We only have 91 octane unless you hit the race fuel.
If your car doesn't have a location to mount a front plate, you aren't required to display one. Most of the MCSs in the club have no front plate.
We're not THAT high, but you DO get heat soak.
Free? That would depend on your insurance.

 

My name is also Matt

I heard stories of mini windsheilds breaking/cracking and i always thought to myself i wouldnt have to worry about it, because its a state law in florida that it gets replaced for free as it is a hazard for the driver to look out of a broken/cracked windsheild.

every state should have this law!

Thats good news about the front plate thing. I really didnt want to put one on it and ruin the mini's looks.

thanks for the comforting advice!

Doesnt Las Vegas have a road course track? Las vegas speedway or something like that? Anyone know if track days are held there, with instructors?

 

the inner course is small and tight. Not much elevation changes. But it's a track, and that's good.

Matt

 

There is the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the SCCA does track days out there I believe. There are 2 road courses there, at AMVIV4, Phil Wicks will be using the other road track there which is a much more interesting track than the inner one used this year.
There is also a track in Pahrump (Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch) thnat has track days almost every weekend. Some are private, some are open. It's a REALLY nice track but the off-track facilities are somewhat sparse.

My MINI is coming up on 4 years old. I had my windscreen replaced last April after I picked up a rock somewhere. I think I paid about $100 installed, and they came to my office to do it.

Seriously, what kind of job are you looking for? You should start applying now. It can be tough if you aren't in an "in demand" field.

 

Basicaly, anything that will pay my bills at first...car payment, gas, car insurance, and food. Those are about my only bills i will have. I plan to put my resume somewhere online in the Las Vegas area, maybe a site like monster.com or something of that nature before i actully get out there. I have alot of money saved up in the bank and although it would be nice to find something right away, i could last a while just off of some of the money i have stock piled.

Right now i work for a shipping company. I have to keep track of all the cargo comming into the harbor on our ships, and all the cargo going onto the ships, and where its all heading. Job title is "Equipment Control Coordnator". Its nothing fancy. I sit at a computer all day, listen to music and type. (and lurk on NAM ) So more then likely i will be working in a different feild then what i am in now, considering Vegas has no ocean or ships.

Might try a temp to hire agency or something along those lines. Im really not sure what i will be doing.

Edit: know anyone who is hiring? haha

 

Well, you might want to hit www.LVRJ.com (the Review Journal - main newspaper in Vegas) an have a look through their job listings. Sunday is the main job listing day.


My wife's company is hiring, but it doesn't sound like a great match for you.
All the big casinos have large loading docks where stuff is coming in and going out all the time. There's also a large mining industry here. My guess for other places that do a lot of that kind of thing...the Clark County School District (my employer) or the County.

 

I'll most likely be looking for an office type job, thats what i have now, working with computers all day. Ive worked for banks also, and mortgage companies. I went to school for automotive technology, got a few ASE certifications but quickly found out that i dont like doing that for a living and would rather keep it as a hobby.

Thank you very much for that link Agro, i'll be checking it out!

My only problem with the move will be finding a job...once i get that taken care of it should be smooth sailing.

 

Well, there are plenty of banks here. Also check out job links on ccsd.net and www.lvvwd.com

 

Agro! you are the man!

thanks for helping me

 

Yes, he is. I knew I wouldn't even have to post, "Ask Agro" because he would jump right in and help you out. Just imagine... you won't even have to travel for AMVIV! All those MINIs will come to you!!

 

No worries. It'll cost you a beer after you get a job here.

 

It'll be nice to have another enthusiast joining the club. Hope to see you in a few months!