One year ago tonight I picked up my MINI. Jeesh, it's been a fast year. During the year I have become obsessed with the car, everything that can be done to the car, cleaned on the car, waxed, detailed, etc...This board is my homepage because I need to be up on every latest detail. I plan to keep the car 'till it stops motorin'.

Besides all of the fun motoring of the past year, I have had rattle issues. They make me hate the car. You know that love/hate/why can't you just be quiet type of feeling? The one where you wouldn't care if you didn't love it so much in the first place?

The MINI is a topic of conversation in a lot of places. How do you like it? What's your mpg? Yadda... I love talking about my car; I bet I'm still talking when the people who asked have stopped listening.

I think it's fun that in the first year of ownership of a new car, I drove approximately 1 mile for every dollar I spent. I think it's fun when another MINI motorer recognizes my car and we hit the 'ole high beams. I think it's fun when passengers watch the speedo to see how fast I'm taking the turn. I think it's fun walking to my car, looking at it the whole way, repeating in my mind, "that's mine, I love it, and it's exactly what I want".

I like reading articles in Roundel that bash the MINI. I like feeling confident in its abilities while self-conscious, ignorant BMW owners call it a "wannabe bimmer". It makes me feel closer to the car and this community. I like arguing my car's merits as a "sports car".

Driving the MINI is the most fun because it is driving involvement - I don't feel detached or floaty. My MINI does its work with personality, skill, style, and enthusiasm.

It's been a great year of driving.



mb

edit - added a visual

 

ohhh i remember that picture! I thought it was cute how you kind of matched

Congrats on the 1 year, and agree with everything you said. I've only owned mine for 10 months now (MAN that flew by!) But i can't imagine myself without my MINI.

 

I bought my Used 03 from Princeton Mini too! I just bought mine 3 weeks ago though ;-)

I totally agree with everything you say, and if there ever is a way to get out all the rattles, please god let us know!

 

Congratulations...I've owned my MINI for only 6 weeks now, but I'm confident I'll be just as pleased as ever with this great car on our 1 year anniversary.

 

After 2 1/2 years and two MINIs, I still think that same thought every day.

 

Hey Dude-

Congratulations on one year of ownership! I have owned mine for about 2 months now, and every morning when I walk out to my driveway I pinch myself just to check and make sure that that AWESOME car sitting there is indeed mine. It manages to put a smile on my face everyday, and there is no other car I would rather have in the world. Well, maybe the new Challenger R/T, or a viper, or the F430, maybe an STi.. But I still think in the end I could never surrender the S for one of those. She has been nothing but a driving pleasure, and it has truly been a blessing to own this fantastic machine. Happy Motoring, hopefully it'll deliver another awesome year that makes the commutes better.

Sincerely,

Chris

 

Ha, if you want the rattles fixed, don't take it to princeton. It took them THREE seperate occasions to get ONE rattle, and minor annoyances still remain.

Silverbullet - Let me know if you ever want to motor on a nice sat. or sun. I know how to get to Basking Ridge, it's not too far (I'm in East Windsor, work in Westfield). There are some fun roads up by you, and some fun ones here too, but they are more flat.

mb

 

rattles dont' bother me.. they come and go. i think of it as a characteristic of MINI and I luv it!

 

Don't get me started on the customer "service" at Princeton Mini. It leaves PLENTY to be desired. I was sold a car with a hole in my tire's sidewall that quickly blew on me in the first 50 miles of driving it home. I had to call everyday for 3 weeks to get any kind of response, and they still didn't agree to pay for the tire.
But I digress...this is not about horrible customer service...nay nay I say! This is about how the love affair with the Mini Cooper will astound and amaze us! When we are all old and have grandchildren...we can talk about the day that I used to drive the coolest car of all time...or maybe we'll still have it in our driveways ;-)

 

I tell my 3 grandsons how great the car is NOW! They KNOW it and love to ride in it.

 

7 months of ownership as of yesterday and turned 16,000 miles last week... loving it as much, if not more, than the day we picked it up!