I was heavily into e46fanatics.com before/after my E46 M3 purchase, but when I sold it to make room for a new house ( ) I just didn't have the heart to get online and look at everyone's modded beauties any more.

Now, for the past few months, I've had the Mini bug (I've looked at it off and on since release) and I was glad to find this site for information since I believe heavily researching all my upgrades before the investment. From what I've read so far, there look to be a lot of informed and enthusiastic owners here, and I'm looking forward to hopefully joining you all soon.

So, to make a long story short (too late, I know ), I just wanted to say 'hello' to everyone here and look forward to reading more!

Doug Johnson

 

Hello Doug! GET TO THE DEALERSHIP NOW AND BUY ONE!!!

:smile: Okay, sorry, figured I'd try to say something before anyone else did.

Have you test driven one yet?

haf :smile:

 

>>Hello Doug! GET TO THE DEALERSHIP NOW AND BUY ONE!!!
>>
>> Okay, sorry, figured I'd try to say something before anyone else did.
>>
>>Have you test driven one yet?
>>
>>haf :smile:

I test drove an MCS last summer, when I first got ready to put my car up for sale. I liked it, although the power felt very lacking since we drove there in the M. The handling is good, but I really miss the kick-in-the-pants power of the M3 so I will probably be looking to do something along the lines of the Mini Mania Stage III upgrade (not necessarily all at once). Since we'll be getting rid of my wife's SUV in favor of the new car, $$$ is not really an obstacle - it just needs to be reliable since we ride together 95% of the time.

Doug

 

Hey gravedgr,

Welcome to the site. About reliability, you will get different answers from different owners here. Some have had no problems and some have had some. But remember that people with problems tend to be more more vocal about them as people with no problems may not say anything. My MINI has had no problems and I feel it is very reliable. I've owned some Hondas so I know about reliability. But the main reason people buy a MINI is for the sheer fun of it!

 

Thanks for that post jazmini, I one of those waiting for a new Mini to arrive (May - via group buy from Classic in Ohio...) I've been paranoid after reading so many posts about problems... not enough posts from folks like you who have a different experience.

 

There has never been a more fun car to drive!!! No problems at all...well our heated seats in our third one aren't as hot as the ones in the first one. Oh, and gete the heated seats, the automatic wiper and auto dim mirror (most underrated option)

 

gravedgr,

Aloha and welcome to NAM.
My MINI is very fun and very reliable. At one year a few things went south but got replaced OK under warranty.
I took my first official look at the MINI in Oct 2002 then went in to the dealer Feb 03 to get one but there were few instock that I lived. Within a week I found one that became available. A total of three dealer visits and I was forever changed.

Nice to hear from you.
Let us know if you do find something or go and order a MINI!

 

Thanks everyone, for the advice and greetings. I'm really hoping to be able to order a MCS in the next 3-5 months (hard to say when, we're building a new house too). Here's what I was thinking of (comments welcome!):

2004/2005 MCS
Chili Red/Black or Indy Blue/White
Black bonnet stripes / White bonnet stripes
Premium Package
Sport Package
Auto wipers/dim mirror (you guys convinced me to get this)
Panther leatherette / anthracite
Aero Kit
Driving Lamps

+ aftermarket wheels, DVD stereo, and MP3 jukebox

 

Oh...just as an FYI, here's what my last ride looked like just before I sold it

 

E46 M3 ... great car! Sold my 328i for my MCS.

Maybe I missed it ... where are you located? Perhaps some local MINI drivers can intice you with their cars????? HMMMM?????

Enjoy life and drive!

Cheers

Geoff

 

Gorgeous E46 Doug! Love it!

 

>>E46 M3 ... great car! Sold my 328i for my MCS.
>>
>>Maybe I missed it ... where are you located? Perhaps some local MINI drivers can intice you with their cars????? HMMMM?????
>>
>>Enjoy life and drive!
>>
>>Cheers
>>
>>Geoff

I'm in Atlanta (northern suburbs), and despite the fact that we only have 2 Mini dealerships (5 or so BMW ones), we see them on the road all the time. I'd be interested in test driving a JCW model - even though I'll probably go the route of aftermarket pieces.

Doug

 

Thanks to you, i decided to register too :smile:

My wife and I are considering getting a MCS as a replacement for our current car, a Porsche 911 C4S. The motivation is the fact that both of us have applied to business school, and selling the P-Car will get us the MINI and some tuition money.

I really love my P-Car The only suitable relatively inexpensive replacement for Porsche handling, however, is the MINI. We're going for a test drive tomorrow and would be ordering in 2 weeks after we find out about school.

Perhaps the folks on the forum can help talk us into the MINI purchase!