Hi:

People buy MINIs for lots of different reasons. What I was wondering is whether or not are we Car People in general? There's not a right answer here. It's just a matter of what was your path that lead you to buying a MINI.

So, I'll start...

YES, bona fide Car Guy here. I was born in 1948 and discovered racing and race cars at about 1955. I have attended major and minor events all over the US, from F-1 to midgets on a 1/2 mile dirt oval. To me it ALL Good. If it's fast and noisy, I'm there. Over the last 10 years or so I've taken a real liking to Vintage Motorsports events and have attended ones at Laguna Seca, Loudon, Willow Springs and Watkins Glen, my home track.

For me, personally, most of my vehicles have been sports sedans. The only real sports car that I've owned was a 1970 Lotus Elan +2S. All have been manuals, 4sp, 5sp and now 6sp. I also used to help a friend of mine take care of his Pavement Modified. I've drive one, but not in competition.

As far as MINIs are concerned, I LUSTED after a 1275 Cooper S that sat on a dealer's lot when I was in high school in Toledo, OH. Wanted that car in the WORST way. When I got my license, I used to drive by it (on the other side of town from where I lived) every month or 2. Eventually, after about a year, it wasn't there. I was heartbroken!?!? I bought my first car after I graduated from college and it was a new 1972 Honda 600 Coupe. This was the predecessor of the first Civic and was Honda's take on the original Mini. I didn't realize it at the time, but I think in a way I was actually getting my first Mini...

 

I would say I am a real transportation guy, I love anything that moves, and mostly that moves fast. I have owned more then 30 cars in my lifetime, and they run the range of Sport cars to Sport Sedans, to family cars. But I always kept at least 1 Sports car in the garage. That being said, I also ride Motorcycles, Licensed on 3 Commercial Airplanes, and Tractor trailers with double,triple and hazmat endorsements, So basically if it moves I like it.

 

Not having had a whole lot of money for most of my life, I want to say that being a 'car guy' doesnt mean you have to have raced, or owned a ton of expensive cars.

I have always loved to drive. Many (most?) people buy cars as a means to get from point A to point B. I love the experience of driving. I make minor modifications to my cars to suit me. My MINI is exactly what I want it to be. It is a classic driver's car, and it looks great, to boot.

 

No, certainly not. I think you touched on it in your 2nd paragraph. It is the view of motor vehicles beyond that idea of a means to get from Point A to Point B. Yes, it IS a way of transporting us, but the appeal is not limited to that. The MINI is particularly an interesting car because it will take you the grocery store, take the kids to school and get you to work, but all the time there is this alter ego waiting to jump out and rip some ASSphalt!?!?!?

Very Cool...

 

Though I always took good care of my previous vehicles, I wouldn't have classified myself as a car guy. That changed when I bought my first MINI, an 02 Justa. Since then, I've added an 02 R53 for track days, and a classic Mini to complete the stable for now.

 

I was doing tune ups and doing brake jobs on family and friend's cars when I was fifteen. In High School, a friend and I were building hot rods for wealthier kids. My first car was a '52 MG TD, I still have it! I have two other MGs. A '68 BGT and a '80 rubber bumper MGB. I also have a '76 Jaguar XJ-12C, one of about 600 made that year. All have been daily drivers and were collected over many years. I generally don't sell or trade my cars, when they get tired, I get a fresh car and restore the older one for my collection.

My hot rod building friend and I built a Mini Cooper street racer out of a '63 850 Mini Minor, we put a hot rodded 1275 motor from an Austin America in it. We built our own steel flares and spoiler and put 13x8 wheels and dry track racing tires on it, this was before low profile street tires were available. We had to sell it to finance another project, but I've wanted another Mini since.

I've been enjoying personalizing my new MINI and learning about their mechanical peculiarities. I'll be keeping it for a very long time too.

Dave

 

I always thought those Jaguar Coupes from that era were particularly nice. During the time that I had my Lotus, the former dealer in our town had a used Coupe for sale, black over red. Beautiful car...

 

Mine was painted "green sand", a better discription is baby crap yellow. I got used to it though. When I restored it, I took the factory black vinyl top off of it and painted it "regency red" which is Jaguar for maroon. It looks much better all one color.

Dave

 

Well, it all depends on what you consider a car guy. Just sports cars? Just guys that do their own work? Just collectors? Just appreciators? My partner and I have a '65 Mercedes 230SL, and '88 560SL, and a 2004 Thunderbird (retro-roadster). Daily drivers are a Mercedes CLK, a touring BMW 328xi, and a Ford Ranger. My most recent voyage into craziness was a '64 Rambler American Convertible - now departed - that I did a lot of the work on. We belong to local and national chapters for the Mercedes, BMW, and Rambler clubs and we belong to Lambda Car Club International and Straight Eights (gay "car guys"). In our 30 years together, we've owned a few interesting cars - and an assortment before that - going back to my first car in 1966; a 1959 Cadillac sedan. Bottom line - yeah, I think I'm a car guy. And a guy guy, too - if that counts.

I really did love this car - been gone a year and I still miss her.
http://www.rambleramerican.blogspot.com/

 

When I was 14 I made a deal with a kid whose dad was selling his 32 ford. We'd agreed, my roller skates and all my Jerry Lee Lewis albums and the car was mine, until our fathers got together.
Then it was on to my grandfathers 49 Merc. I'd hot wire it and head into town. Father put a nix on that too. Then at 16 I got a job at the A&W drive in. I was roller skating car hop. Saved $300.00 bought a little 59 Singer Gazelle that had made its way down from Canada. They'd held it for me until I had the money (don't think anyone wanted it.) I loved it !!
It burned up in a filling station that caught fire while getting a tire fixed. There's a picture of one very similar on my profile.
Then at 18 bought an old Fiat that looked like it had been painted with a broom. Loved it too!! It drove me everywhere and through all the school years.
Got married, became a grownup and drove boring cars but always wanted a Mini. The years passed and I finally got a MINI It's a little dream. I love it!!

 

Funny! I think the Jaguar folks sort of lost touch with Reality with that one...

 

Very Nice rambler! Well acquainted with Nash>AMC since my mother bought a new 1954 Nash Ambassador when I was a kid. Lots of problems with that car unfortunately, but I kept tabs on what became the underdog AMC ever since. There was even a ray of hope when they made a deal with Roger Penske to enter the Trans-Am and F-5000 Series back in the day, but it just wasn't enough. Too much inertia, I guess, given public perception and history.

Anyway, when I started this thread, I was curious about 2 things. In the larger sense, I wondered how people come to be MINI fans and owners. Is it the car, the performance, the heritage, or what? The other thing was where things sat for the gay MINI owners. There are a lot of stereotypes floating around about us and I'm curious as to how this plays out for gay people. The warped stereotypical view would suggest that we buy the cars for their unique and cute qualities. That's fine and may be true for some people. But at the same time, I would think that there would be more to it. Sort of looking for the answer to Peggy Lee's question "Is That All There Is?". I actually suspect that many of us ARE really Car People, but on the down low. Many (and I'm not suggesting any percentages) Car People tend to be towards the conservative side. Being out in such an environment may not always be a good thing. By contrast, I think MINI owners tend to be towards the center and the liberal side of things and this suggests a more welcoming environment for us. Anyway, just my thoughts based on observation without any statistical rigor....

 

To-may-to or to-mot-to?!?!

If the photo of that Singer didn't have a name on it, I would have though Sunbeam or Hillman. Sadly, another missed opportunity by the British auto industry...

 

Heh, I didn't notice this thread was for gay MINI owners, 'til just now!

It looked like a topic, on the new posts list, that I had something to say about.

Dave

 

The front of the car escaped most of the damage. I still, after all these years, have the chrome grill with the Singer emblem. It hangs in my grandsons bedroom. The Singer emblem from the dash, is in my MINI. If people think they hear wise cracks about MINI's they can imagine the remarks I'd hear about the Singer.

 

Not a problem. You're a MINI guy, so it's OK...

 

As far as I know, that Singer had nothing to do with sewing machines. He came from the motorcycle industry as I understand. It was after they were bought by Rootes that I think they were rationalized with Hillmans and Sunbeams.

Anyway, it's neat to hear about your relationship with your former car. Definitely wasn't just a toaster to you!!

 

I'll bet you have more great stories than you can shake a stick at.

 

Yeah, me neither. Just for informational purposes, was this thread aimed at gays in particular, because there was no indication of that in the opening post.

 

Well, I think I made an assumption because this is the Queer Owners Club forum. However, the question works either way. There are a lot of people out there who make disparaging remarks about MINIs and also the people who own and drive them. So, the opinions that we hold (collectively) has to be of sufficient strength to counter the negative stuff out there. I'm sure this isn't our thought process leading up to buying our cars, but I think it is what happens in the background.

 

Okay, my apologies. I didnt look over to the right on the new posts page, and Ive been away from NAM a long time so I didnt know this group existed.

At any rate, anyone who makes disparaging remarks about anyone else's sexual orientation, either real or perceived, isnt worth pocket lint anyway.

 

Indeed, I do !!

 

Flatlander,
It's been a fun topic
I just wander around NAM every few days and stumble in when the notion strikes. Knock-on-wood, no "fix-its" this last couple of months but I like to read everyones news.

 

No problem. I haven't thought to check how far back the posting go here. I LITERALLY stumbled into this forum and the LGBTTQ thread over in the Off Topic forum just a few months back. And before that time, I didn't know that they existed either.

Anyway, I have been surprised to learn about the crap that gets directed at MINI owners, gay and straight. Seems like some people open their mouths and let fly with any dumb thing that comes to mind; assuming that's where it comes from, but I'm thinking lower...

We definitely must be hearty souls!

 

Some years ago I spent several months working in Texas. The saying there was: "Ya'll drive friendly now...".