Wagnbat, what ever you decide to do, you know what I think you should do.

 

your not babysitting the batMINI jay

 

Rilly? I've heard the Guam Naval Hospital is pretty nice...?

True... I could save $4-5k by not shipping... But I don't know if I could be happy driving a piece of poo out there... Tho I have considered getting a motorcycle.

Yes Jay, I know.

 

Just in case if there was any confusion. Look down.

 

If I had room in my sig I'd run the same badge.

 

Well, it's official. I'm going to Guam.

\
This Myth is now confirmed.

 

As we used to say when I was in the Air Force (not all that long ago)... FIGMO !!

I'm betting you know what that means, Wagnbat !

 

Thanks to urban dictionary I now know what that means, lol.

 

I know too cuz my ex-Air Force husband told me.

 

If a used Mini were available in Guam, I'd buy it and sell it upon leaving. Coming home to a low mileage and nice Mini would be worth it.

 

Wagnbat,

If you decide not to take your MINI to Guam, I am happy to care for it while you are gone!

 

If I had a dollar for everytime I heard that... In fact... I'm going to start fining people a dollar for saying it. HAH!

I'm still 95% on taking the Batmini with me. 5% = the remote chance that I'm not allowed to, something else comes up changing my mind, or that I get an offer I can't refuse.

Anyone know if Guam roads (aside from being coral) are well maintained? Potholes, ditches, and other such calamities?

 

Lots and lots of potholes and broken pavement. Unless things have changed since I left there in 2001. You'll learn where the bad ones are real fast though and you'll be able to avoid them with some heads-up driving.

Also, watch out for the Japanese tourists ! They're worse on the front end than the potholes !

 

Are the Guam potholes worse than the DC potholes?

I drive the same route every day, and I know where 90% of the potholes, bumps, and other suspension nasties are... But I still hit them and cringe 10% of the time.

 

When I was there in 2001, they were worse than the potholes around DC, yes. But in five years, let's hope the roads have improved a bit.

Some other things to keep an eye out for on Guam:

1. Frogs (or toads, not sure what the hell they are). You hit one of those suckers with your MINI and you are going to have a serious detailing job ahead of you. The frogs there are the size of a canteloupe and they come out at night. Jumping at headlights seems to be a game to them.

2. Birds. The brown tree snakes that are not indigenous to Guam have made many species of birds extinct. However, there's a few species left and one of them likes to dive-bomb unsuspecting people. They won't really hurt you but they'll scare the p-ss out of you.

3. Boonie Peppers. There's a pepper native to Guam that is hotter than a Habanero. Trust me on this. I've eaten both. You don't want to mess with these wild peppers unless you have a propensity for eating fire. A friend of mine almost died when he got some of that pepper juice under a finger nail. It traveled up his arm and almost reached his heart. Dr said it would have killed him had he not sought medical attention when he did.

4. The ummmmm.... bars where the girls who aren't bashful dance. You could spend a small fortune in there if you're not careful. 'Nuff said.

Any other questions about Guam ??

 

Wagnbat. What is your rate? I have several friends stationed on Guam, most are MA's. They really seem to like it there. As for bring the MINI, from what they have told me I would not do that...IMO.
Good luck shipmate with the Guam tour, and the new baby on the way.

- KP

 

As per my orders listed above, I'm an ET1.

Any specifics?

As for CR&PW, no worried much about the snakes, the toads sound scary, and I don't do bars in the USA unless it's a special occasion. I've been to outstanding clubs in foreign ports... I don't think American bars/clubs are equal, and thus I just don't go...

 

Funny thing about Guam... it's an American territory but hardly resembles America in any way, shape, or form. Feels more like you're in a foreign land than in the US when you're off-base. As far as the clubs, they're more like Asian clubs than American clubs (prices of the beer makes you feel more like you're in Japan... youch). And oh yeah... hope you can tolerate that beaver **** they call Miller Lite because it's "The Beer of the Islands". It's everywhere and sometimes there are not better options.

 

The best to you and the batmobile. Never been to Guam, but my neighbor seemed to enjoy it when he was there back in the last century.

Signed,
Winston03, the retired AT from southern MD

 

Tis a good thing I'm not a beer drinker then.

 

w00t!

I found out there is a dealership which sells BMWs, Landrovers, and MINIS!

http://www.prestigeautoguam.com/site/flashindex.htm

Now I just need to find out if they service them as well... I would certainly think so, but ya never know, ya know?

 

Dededo is not on the same end of the island as the Naval Base... closer to Anderson AFB. But remember, nothing on Guam is more than 25 miles away.

And the website has a link for contacting the MINI service advisor.

 

Ya, I sent them an email... Will update if/when I get a response.

They have a seperate tab on their website for parts/service which is promising... But the dealer does not show on the BMW website nor the Mini website... So I'm a bit confused as to if they'll actually do warranty work.

 

Yeah, they should do warranty work. The best thing, is usually overseas, they will "hook" you up. When I was in England many years ago, a friend had a brand new '99 Ford Mustang. He let another guy borrow it to go pick up someone at the Heathrow Airport. On the way back, he stopped at a gas station and filled the car up with diesel. Most of the time you can resalvage a petrol car that has had diesel in it, but this one was fried. Needless to say, the company that took care of warranties over there, had a new block installed. They just reused all the ancilliaries ie. waterpump, alternator, etc. No charge to him what so ever. If this had of happened in the states, he would have been royally screwed.

Anyway, I don't see any reason why they wouldn't do warranty work.

 

Yes, the toads on Guam can be a definite road hazard, to wit:



Seems like I remember one year back in the '80s when there was a unusual bumper crop of toads. The coral roads were dotted with slick-as-ice splatted toad everywhere, and transportation was as paralyzed as Denver with three feet of snow...

...though I'm fairly sure this was a rare event, you want to watch out for the onesies and twosies...they make a horrible noise when you squish them, and you thought cleaning bug guts off your car was a challenge...