I"m about to move from CA to Buffalo, NY. I have a 2009 Mini Cooper S. Is it recommended to get some kind of protective undercoating or do Coopers already have some kinda coating on it.

Any tips would be helpful- snow and cold it a bit foreign to me.

Thanks!!

 

Snow Shovel

 

And snowtires!!
Modern cars have numerous drains in the bottom of the car...plugging them WILL result in rust...so the answer is no..unless you are very careful to cover this drain...then open then after applying the spray.
On modern cars, the "undercoating" that places sell is usually a waste...adds weight, and can do more harm than good unless used very carefully.

 

Live in Buffalo myself.

The mini and many other european cars already have some good factory coatings sprayed inside the doors, fenders and etc... You could have it done in addition to the factory stuff, but that would be if you were planning on keeping the car for a long time in my opinion. In the north east you tend not to keep cars as long as you would living in cali due to the punishment the snow/salt takes on things, many cars really rust out fast up here in Buffalo as they use tremendous amounts of road salt in our area due to the snow fall and frequent icy conditions caused by the lake.

I would invest in an addtional set of wheels with dedicated snow tires on them. Best way to go dealing with our weather condtions.

Where are you moving to specifically?

Jeller

 

Not 100% certain where I'm moving to. I'll be living in corporate housing for a while until I figure out the best place to live. My office is actually in West Seneca but I wasn't wowed by that neighborhood.

Any nice neighborhood recommendations. I'm 35, with a BF (and 35 do I still have to call him a BF), no kids. So looking for an area with lots of stuff to do- good shopping, movies, night life. A hookah lounge would be nice but that doesn't seem to have caught on as much in Buffalo as it has in Cali.

 

there is a 12 year rust warranty for 06+ MINIs

 

Coats, Gloves, Head Wear Protection, Scarf, Boots...you will need for sure

 

Why would you want to leave CA for NY???

Just kidding!

I agree with the others.
#1 -- Get a set of 4 winter tires (if you have room to store a set, get the set of winter tires with wheels).

#2 -- Make sure your engine coolant is a "winter mix", that can protect your engine block, radiator and heater core from freezing.

#3 -- Make sure your battery is healthy!

#4 -- Undercoating is unnecessary. Instead, find a HAND WASH near you and utilize the "chassis bath". I'm downstate from you, but I assume they use salt on the roads in the winter in Seneca, NY too. If you have to drive this car daily, get into the habit of washing the salt, grit and grime off your car weekly, and pay for the chassis bath option. I'm not really a fan of car washes, but a hand wash is a lesser evil than the autowash with those filthy rubber and cloth fibers slamming and whipping against your car while putting swirl marks and scratches on that lovely finish. Wintertime is the worst because most car washes will have gritty dirt still in the wash sponges, rags and cloths. (Yeah, I know. I sound ****. )

Again, try not to let the salt spray stay on your car for more than a few days....

One last thing. When the snow season finally ends (about April), find a good body shop and have them perform a light compound (if necessary) , polish and detail your MINI's finish.

Good Luck and Happy Motoring!!

 

Thanks for all the info.

I'm just so tired of the Sunshine I felt I needed to find the darn near coldest place in the continental US and rush there. Just kidding. Got a great just and decided to take a risk.

SO the 12yr rust warranty is that standard? I don't recall hearing anything about that (just the 3yr 36,000 mile deal) but perhaps because I'm in Cali no one thought it was an issue.

 

Go read the warrenty book...
The 3 yr 36,000 mile is ONLY the free mantaince...
The mechanical warrenty is 4 years...45,000 (?) miles..
Then you have a seperate rust warrenty..requires a yearly check by a mini dealer, and an emissions warrenty...different length on a CA car than other US cars (ca warrenty is a bit longer and includes one or two extra compotents, but good luck getting it serviced outside of ca).
You might want to consider going to a winter driving school...a blast for the $$. At the very least, go drive in a Parkinglot during a snowstorm, and make some doughnuts!! When I lived in CO, it was always fun to watch the new folks from CA go flying by, and then see them spun out or in a ditch...remember winter traction is about not only getting moving, but also steering and stopping!
Good Luck, dress warm, and be careful, and after a few weeks, snowdriving can be a blast, especially with snowtires!! Just remember, a mini has limited ground clearance, so it is easy to get high centered on a deep rut, but on most roads, you are fine!

 

Frankly, I'm amazed that it took 8 posts within this thread for there to any mention at all about washing your car.

A good "touchless" carwash with underbody wash is the single best thing you can do for your car during northeast winters. Let me say it again, a good "touchless"...<copy/paste the rest--you get the point>.

Actually, before the really cold weather and ice/snow/road-salt starts, it's a good idea to apply a "winter coat" of a very durable (if not concours show quality-shiny) sealant to the finish to weather the salty bombardment to come. The best product I can think of off hand for this purpose is Collinite 845 Insulator Wax. NuFinish works well too...even as cheap as it is, LOL.

Obviously, you're gonna need good, skinnier-than-stock winter tires on your MINI as well, and other "winterizations", not to mention the (already mentioned anyway) right clothes (thank you captain obvious ) ...mentioned above. ...But beyond that, it's all about dilligent washing during the winter months. The thing to do is--after being wet--to wash the car and underbody (this is VERY important) everytime the roads dry, when there is new OR pre-existing sand/salt on the roads. This becomes even more important when the temperature warms up above freezing because that's when the rust-chemical process really accelerates! The bottom line is, you dont want that stuff on your car's underbody for any more time than absolutely necessary.

I too don't like car washes with brushes. They WILL swirl your paint. The touchless ones are the better compromise. And, they are a "compromise" because of two reasons.

First reason is obvious: They don't make the car as clean as you'd like. As unfortunate as that is though, you have to remember that's a showroom-clean car is not the point of washing it in the winter...it is removal of corrosive salt!

Second reason is much less obvious: In order for a touchless carwash to remove any dirt at all (beyond what the high water pressure alone would remove), they have to use very strong detergents in the soap. The side effect of this is that any ordinary wax on the paint will be stripped off right away, leaving the paint unprotected. This is why a very durable sealant is a good idea, like I mentioned. (I have zero faith in the effectiveness of the "clearcoat protectant" that most carwashes offer...usually at higher cost.) Granted, most of even the best sealant will be stripped away very quickly, but the hope is that at least some protection will remain for most of the worst part of the winter.

BTW, I too live in NY but I've yet to find a HAND carwash with an underbody wash option. Where, if you don't mind, is the one you're referring to??

 

I haven't found a real hand wash near me in Westchester yet. I actually have to travel 20 minutes East to Darien, CT on US-1, to a Hand Wash that is part of a chain called "Splash". They have the chassis bath option and they DON'T use brushes on the body (or wheels). I've taken a black car there and have been unable to see any swirls.

 

West Seneca is in the Southtowns, its a good place to raise kids and a safe suburb. You may want to look into the city of Buffalo more, like the Allentown district, or Elmwood Ave. and Delaware Ave. area, are the "cooler" place to be for shopping, nightlife, and lots of culture all within walking distance.



Jeller

 

Thanks. I'm up in Dutchess, so anything anywhere near Darien CT won't work for me. But, it's good to know it's a chain. I'll have to keep an eye out for "Splash". Mostly all of them around here are "Foam and Wash" ...They all SUCK.

 

Looks like the closest one to you is in Brewster, NY. Here's the chain's website link. http://www.splashcarwashes.com/index...token=72092233

 

Thanks for the link. Sometimes I work out of Brewster, so this will be REAL convenient! Already saved it in my phone/nav.