While I love the Mini, I'm more than a little concerned about purchasing a car that seems to have a good many niggling little problems with such a small dealer network. I live app. 50 miles from the closest dealer with only two more in Virginia. Are Mini owners finding dealer location and service an extreme inconvenience, especially if they live 50 (or more miles) from the dealership?

 

50 miles isnt nothin! Try driving 63+ miles one way, then 63+ miles back each day, 7 days a week, very often twice, and thats not including the 20+ mile drive each way to work 5 days a week!

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I’ve not heard any more about it, but over on Bridger.com a month or so back, there was an announcement made about BMW dealers being able to do service work on MINIs for people who do not have a dealer within 100 miles of their location.

50 miles may seem far, but I have a 300 mile (one direction) or 600 mile round trip to my nearest dealer. I have never had one problem with my MCS though and have only had to make the trip once for the 10K service.

 

Like all things in life...it's truly a personal choice.
I live 6 miles from my dealer. This is a good thing :smile:
One of the deciding factors in finalizing the purchase of my MCS in 2002 was.... that a dealer was close enough..if & when I need it
The dealer I actually purchased it from is 70+ miles away... and I haven't been back there since.
The local dealer... is where I get all maintenance done.

Peace,
D

 

I wasn't trying to get into a p___ing contest about who's got the farthest drive to a dealership. My intent was to find out if owners find themselves going back and forth to the dealership a lot to fix little stuff, and given the relative scarcity of Mini dealers, how big an inconvenience that is.

 

RP...welcome to NAM :smile:

To address your last query ...<<Are Mini owners finding dealer location and service an extreme inconvenience, especially if they live 50 (or more miles) from the dealership?
>>

As I mentioned in my post....it's a personal perspective.
In my case it was an important factor. I have personally had IMO many little issues that I was thankful that I am close to a dealer. The service dept knows me by my 1st name... This in hindsight may not be a good thing :smile:.
There are many others here.... who have not had problem one :smile:.

Hope this helps :smile:

Peace,
D

 

When you live farther from a dealer you prioritize. Instead of going for just one little thing, you'll wait until your 10k service or for a lot of little things that need to be taken care of.

If you have a 50 mile drive which you find to be inconvienent, obviously you won't be cruising over there everytime you need new wiper blades (replacements are part of your warranty).

It's possible you could have a car that is entirely trouble free for the first 80k miles. There are many members who have 25k+ miles without a problem. Then again you could get a dud, and instead have a "shop queen" That's not just a risk with the MINI but with any car.

Given how few dealers there are, 50 miles is nothing if you really want the car.

 

60 miles from my dealer (although there are two way closer).

But they pick and deliver and leave a loaner. It's true. MINI of The Hamptons.

And I am glad they do not know me by name!

Regards,
Red

_________________
<IMG SRC="https://www.northamericanmotoring.com/albums/album04/fyy.thumb.jpg
">Life is better MINImized CWFAC 03

 

Purchased my MINI from Princeton MINI here in NJ.......and will NEVER return to the dealer. I live about 50 miles from them and when I purchased the car, I was willing to use them for service. However, after the treatment and many, many, reasons, I will not return there. I will be taking my car to http://www.Bodymotion.com for all my work. While they will not do warrenty work for free, they will do the work. It's not worth the severe aggravation on going back to Princeton. If I did blow an engine or need a significant repair under warrenty, I would go to one of the other N.J. dealers which are about 80-100 miles away. For now, I am very pleased that I can have my car serviced by someone who really knows the MINI and cares about me as a person. :smile:

 

My selling dealer is 30 miles each way (Albeit I have two other nearby within a 20 mile radius). My '04 MCS has not gone back to the dealer for anything since taking delivery on Oct 3rd, 2003. The car now has 3,800+ flawless miles.

 

My dealer is just at 100 miles one way from me. Like mbabischkin said, you need to prioritize. I had several problems but waited until my 10k service. Prioritizing doesn't always help though. Parts had to be ordered the last time I was up there so now I have to go back. And with such a distance, you can only hope they can get everything done in one day. If not then other arrangements may need to be made.

I wish Mini of Nashville offered a loaner car. The only thing they offer is a chair to sit in while your waiting unless you drive a BMW. They do offer shuttle service though. I had them drop me off at the mall for some christmas shopping when I was in for service last month.

 

I'm getting my car from the Denver dealer but will
get service in Las Vegas, am I going to get
treated like a leper because I bought my car
somewhere else?

 

I am 400 miles from my dealer, and 580 from where I bought it from. I threw the dealer issue out the window because I WANTED A MINI. Any reputible import repair shop worth their salt should be able to handle an emergency repair or do work after the warranty has expired. It is a car, and in most ways like any other.

What it boils down to is what your expectation of service is?

A crack team of trained repair techs in jump suits steaming up the windows waiting for your arrival? Or a standard dealer service of making an appointment for routine service that get's completed in an hour or two while you wait, forcing you to burn up a half day of your work schedule including the drive?

Simply the difference between expectation and reality.

 

I would go for it, actually I did. The dealer I bought from is over 600 miles away, and the one I go for service is in Las Vegas which is over 4 hours away (the closest). I have only been in for service once in the 29000+ miles I have on it now. The next time in it will get the coolant tank replaced. As for these cars being reliable, hands down this car has been the most dependable/ relaible car i have ever owned. Every other car I have bought new has had to go to the dealer many, many times before the waranty expired. I have owned Hondas, Toyotas, VW's GMC's and Fords and they have all spent more time getting stupid broken things fixed. So the MINI has had zero problems. If it continues as it has it will only see the shop twice before warenty is up. I would go for it, I can always kill time in vegas while MINI gets taken care of.

Nik

 

My closest dealer is a little over 100 miles away, and the dealership I bought the car from is about 210 miles away. I look at it this way...If I need to go for service, then I get to drive my MINI all the way to Chicago! (I love my MINI and I love Chicago!)

 

Thanks for the feedback. Your responses certainly put Mini ownership into a different perspective. I was concerned about getting into a situation like D.D.'s in which I purchased from a dealer that I wouldn't return to for service.

 

&gt;&gt;I'm getting my car from the Denver dealer but will
&gt;&gt;get service in Las Vegas, am I going to get
&gt;&gt;treated like a leper because I bought my car
&gt;&gt;somewhere else?

pitpass, if you get treated like a leper it’s the dealer itself and not the fact you bought somewhere else. I use a dealer I did not buy at and find the service they gave was 5 star. The dealer was Brian Harris in Baton Rouge, La.

 

I bought my Mini used, and not from a Mini dealer. Yesterday I took it in for it's first oil service. Closest dealer is 65 miles each way which I new going in. I was also concerned about the treatment I would receive having not bought a Mini from the dealer who would be performing the service. My concerns were quickly put to rest as soon as I was greated at the door. I cannot imagine being treated any better, even if I had bought multiple Mini's from this dealer (Mini of Peabody, MA). I went in with a list of about 4 things that were bugging me that I wanted to get fixed. When I left, everything had been completed (except for one item that needed a part ordered), and in addition, both the service advisor and the technician caught several other things that I never would have found; coolant expansion tank, PCV hose, wiper blades, rear strut bolt, horn, even replaced my shift **** because the plastic lens came loose from the gear shift pattern. The service advisor also made sure to check for any recalls/fixes issued by Mini that may affect my car. The service took longer that I would have liked, but to have everything taken care of at once was really a blessing. Now, when go back for my next service visit I can be confident that my needs will be taken care of.

I'm sure it makes a difference depending on the dealer, maybe I got lucky. Even so, I'd recommend going for it if the Mini is what you want.

 

MINI of Peabody is EXCELLENT! I have talked to them several times, and have purchased parts from them. I also purchase parts from MINI Classic in Ohio....Just to avoid the Princeton Dealership!