Soon, not sure how soon, but soon, I will be walking into my not-so-local MINI dealership to pick up, and buy, my '05 MC. Now, I've bought a few cars, both new and used in my lifetime, and it's certainly never been much fun. Though, the drive home AFTER can be fun, sometimes.

I'm just wondering what to expect as far the process goes, in a pretty much step by step manner. This is the first car I've ever factory ordered. The last time I tried, the dealer (not MINI) said it couldn't be done. That was silly of them (Toyota at the time), as I'm sure any car can be factory ordered, within reason. This is the first time I'll be getting a car that's my color choice, and that's pretty darn exciting in and of itself! (Boy, I sure hope those Xenons look ok. )

I'm already know I'll be paying, what is SUPPOSED to be, a set premium, as I'm purchasing through Niello MINI of Sacramento. Anyone else gone through this already with them? Any pointers on what to expect in surprises? I live in Reno, about 100+ miles from Sacramento, so I'm figuring I'll maybe need to take one day off from work, depending on the breaks (delivery date). Any surprises I should plan on expecting? Like...the car not being ready? Needing to wait an extra day (or week!) for some dealer install item?

Knowing, or at least having an idea, of what to expect would help set my mind at ease. Worrying about options being wrong is bad enough! At least it looks like my current car lease will end, just as the MINI is ready for pick up, so that is one weight off my mind. (I wasn't sure what to do if it turned out otherwise.)

I'm getting a online business started (can't be a pizza delivery driver forever), so this is a slightly tricky time for me financially, cash flow wise. On the other hand, buying the MINI was part of my plan to light a fire under my butt about getting the business started. It's a plan that seems to be working well, so far. I'm feverishly working hard to get things up and running by the time the MINI shows up. It's not like I expect to be making a lot of money right away. But, I do like the idea of not having to use the new MC for delivering pizzas for very long. Although, admittedly, it'll be the coolest pizza delivery vehicle in town! (For awhile.) (My fellow drivers will be put to shame.)

I'm intending to get pre-qualified for the car loan, perhaps through some online bank with good rates, in order to ease the buying process a little. Any suggestions in that area? I wanted to pre-purchase some items like the glove box organizer, but I think I'll take a pass on all that sort of thing until I actually have the car in my hot little hands. (I may love it all AS IS, who knows? Ok, probably not, but it's a thought.) :smile:

Anyway, any assistance in this area you can provide would be greatly appreciated. I'm sure there are many other soon to be (or planning to be) new owners out there that are very curious about this aspect of things. I'm well aware every MINI dealer is different about this stuff, but any information you could pass on would still be worthwhile.

Oh, and in return, I'll happily post some pictures of my new MINI, with some driving impressions, etc. My MINI should be equipped as follows:

LY/B (I always wanted a yellow car, not sure why), Cold Weather Package (hey, it snows here!), Premium Package (gotta have that MFSW, sunroof, and the outside temp thingie), DSC (it's that winter thing again, and I want that toggle switch!), 15" 7 Hole Wheels (lightest & cheapest, and look nice too, what a deal!), Rear Spoiler (not sure why I got that one, but I guess I do like the look), Front Foglights (winter thing again, and they are cool!), Xenon Headlights (practical, extra safe, from a night driving point of view), Octagon Black Cloth Sport Seats (no explanation required here, though leatherette was tempting for durability), H/K Audio Upgrade (I wanted just a little more than stock here, based on prior experience), Anthracite Dash AND Headliner (a personal thing, based on practicality issues...not sure I'll actually get the Headliner though), Interior/Exterior Chrome Packages (might be a bit much, but the MINI looks good with some tasteful, better than aftermaket, chrome), and then maybe I'll buy the footrest, and install it myself, at the dealer. The premuim price I'm paying ($950) supposedly includes my choice of floor/boot mats when I pick up the MINI (oh boy, another great MINI deal! ).

So, anyway, let me know your impressions. I'm looking forward to it. (Darn, now where DID I put that flame suit.) :smile:

 

Well first off...your MINI sounds awesome! I wouldn't worry about second-guessing your choices...I think you've done quite well. (...the only regrets creep in years later when new options and colors become available that you'd have chosen if only you could. )

After purchase? Yeah, you might want a glove box organizer...and you may want to consider having a clear bra installed but beyond those possibilities you'll be all set for some very happy motoring.

Closing the deal was pretty painless and quick for me.....not the most fun w/ all that financing stuff...but it was fine. However, I bought my MINI here in Texas, and from what I hear the set up in out there in California is quite different. Hopefully you'll hear from owners who dealt directly w/ your dealer and they tend to vary all over the place. Still, I recommend optimism.

Closing is always a bit of a jolt though, kinda a rubber-meets-the-road thing. Doing some homework...as you are doing...will lessen the effect.

I think you'll get through it fine and quickly be off motoring with a big grin on your face!!

 

Woops, sorry, forgot to mention CVT in my above options list.

Reading the various CVT threads here was...quite an experience, to say the least! (Seems to be old news nowadays.)

I've always been fascinated by the CVT concept, ever since the Suburu Justy. I actually wanted one of those little 4-wheel (all-wheel?) drive puppies, but they did not last long. (I'm mildly curious why. CVT problems, perhaps? Or just not a good car for the American market at the time? It was, after all, a small, not terribly pretty, hatchback.) When I became enamored with the MINI (amazing how emotions like that just creep up on you, and stick, rather like significant others can do to you at times in life), and when I found out there was a MINI model with a CVT, with steptronic mode...I WAS SOLD!

Will it have enough power? With or without the A/C on? I'll find out soon. Most of all the MINI models seem to have finished with their teething pains, and are now maturing. (Are we to expect more teenage type problems from our MINI's now? Or from BMW for that matter? Some of the...er...stylistic changes seem to indicate that is happening.) As long as I get performance (acceleration wise) on par with my current '99 Toyota RAV-4, I will be satisfied...IF I can find it in myself to be ok with the new Xenons.

Oh, and thank you very much for the response. Keep 'em coming, folks! :smile:

 

We bought our MINI off the lot at Niello. There were three that we were interested in, and picked the one that was loaded. It was a good experience. Our MA is Paul Johnson. Great guy!

It took about 90 from the time we drove in, to the time we left with a new MINI.

The only "wait" was the 10 minutes it took to get our financing approved from MINIUSA. They did it over the Internet.

It took quite a while to sign all the paperwork.

Paul showed us everything about the car and went through the books with us. He showed us the different gadgets, etc.

 

$950 doesn't sound too bad of a premium if they can deliver it to you pretty quickly. You would pay the same either in time or shipping costs if you bought from a dealer that offers the cooper at MSRP. We didn't buy from Niello but at East Bay Mini. Very nice process. They called a week before ours showed up and asked about financing and they secured a rate lower then the Capital One finance guys at a little over 4.00%. Couldn't beat that deal. The dealer paperwork signing took about fifteen minutes and no extra doc fees. We did buy floormats at $95.00.

We did wait ONE YEAR for our MCS but the timing was right so we didn't mind. Congrats on working on starting your own business. I am sure it will be hard but you will be your own boss and hopefully, your hard work will pay off. I don't know your experience in business but if you don't have much I would recommend you take a small business class from your local JC. I am taking one called "ownership and operating a small business" online from our local JC to expand my knowledge in that area. This might be of nterest to you or it might be too remedial but I thought I would throw it out there.

Good luck and congrats on your decisions.

 

bought my pw/b mcs at cincinatti mini and love the dealership. paid list for it with no premium. mini does a great job at sending you little goodies even after the sale. when picking up our mini, rachel at mini had it prepped, cleaned and brought it into the middle of the showroom to sit in it with us and explain things to us. someone wanted to buy OUR car in the showroom, lol. if your experience is like ours at cincinatti mini, everything will be done first class and thoroughly, and you will get your first sample of how owning a mini is different than most other cars that are.....well, just cars.

 

Purchase experience was great for me, and I never even set foot in the dealership. I'm in Oregon and purchased from Nashville. Everything was done over the phone and overnight mail. My salesperson/MA was great (Dana) and I had my new MCS exactly 2 months from when I placed the order. I would've ordered from the dealer in town here, but I didn't want to wait 8-9 months. No dealer markups or anything, just paid MSRP. I was very pleased.

 

Don't forget to study what "programming" options are available so that the dealer can set up your Mini the way you want and not just to the defaults. You can download the owners manual or do a search of this site for more info. If you don't do it now, they may charge you a fee later.

Enjoy!

 

90 Minutes? Wow, that sounds fairly comfortable. :smile: That's a lot less time than I've EVER spent purchasing a car in the past! Of course, if you count all the time I've spent so far, checking out options and asking questions here online, I've spent days, perhaps even weeks, on this car buy. So, I've actually spent MORE time buying this car than any other. In makes some sense that the time spent at the dealer on the big day not be very long at all. Hopefully, that's not just wishful thinking on my part.

I was just checking out MINI2. I've only looked at it a little in the past, as it seemed to have a mainly UK membership, and there are so many little differences between here and there MINI's. (For example, the whole steering wheel on the wrong side of the car thing they got going over there. What's up with that? Shouldn't someone tell them? ) Despite that, there is certainly a whole 'nother world of information over there, including some great threads on handling the CVT, and many useful pics. (Will we ever get OUR photo gallery back? )

I saw some good pics of the new interiors, including the Octagon cloth. It looks to be a pretty tough, tight weave, with a sharp, sporty, and very professional look to it. I'm quite pleased about the look, and am no longer concerned that I may have made the wrong choice, though I still like Leatherette as well. Saw a few decent picks of the CVT's stick, which looks better than what you see in the configurator. There were also some shots of the, albeit fake, wood dash, which looked pretty nice. It's a shame that option is not available here in the US yet, but it is coming. (Will I break down and get that once I've had my MINI awhile? I'm not sure. Something like that I'd like to see in person first. Wouldn't you?)

Ok, enough of my babbling on. Thanks for the input. Did any of you prequalify for a loan first, elsewhere, before you sat down with the dealer? If you did, do you think it made any difference in what they had to offer?

 

Ya, its a good idea to go prequalify for a loan. see what you can get.

But later on, dont reveal to them what your loan rate is, or where you got it. Just say that you are intersted in MINI financing and see how comptetive they are.

IF they are higher rates, tell them you are already qualified for a better rate (dont tell them what!) and ask them to do better. if they cant or wont, then use your own, but dont show your hand until all of their chips are down, so to speak.

Btw, i have no practical real-wold experience in this, but this is the information that I have gathered from talking to friends, relatives, coworkers, etc. So take it as just another opinion on the boards, no authority on financing here!