And look how far MINIs have come. Still the öld"classic Minis (1959-2000) are still sought after cars that by today''s standards are crude, rough, not very crashworthy but heck they handle like the best of them and have the personality that no other car has.

I think MINis in general don't conform to the general rules of obsolency and desirability. Say you have a 1989 Toyota Camry V6 All-Trac (Rare AWD model of the time) and a 2007 Camry XLE V6, even with the AWD of the old car, no one will be compelled to go 18 years back in time and say that they much prefer the '89 Camry over the new one (But I would say that the late '80's has a better, cleaner design than the today's car).

MINIs are different. In a few months you will no longer be able to buy a new supercharged hardtop. There are left over 2006s in lots today, but you can not order one from factory, tailored to your specs. (The Cabrios are the exception, and this does not apply if you still prefer a ragtop in the öld"chassis.)

 

Never happen. Find just one car that went from supercharging to turbo and then back in the entire car industry. I think thunderbird might have tried it? Not sure. Even if you do find it, its going to be very rare and there has to be a reason for that.

And I bet there would be a million more ppl wanting a ride in the F22 ... WOOT ... the NEED for SPEED

 

Guess my R53 with LSD is a classic... at least someday it should be. Change the oil, watch the tire pressures and keep washing and waxing; those are a few my keys for longevity.
I like the "noise" and I love the "stiff" ride.... GoKart ride, correct? :-) Long live my '05 MCS!

 

1/20/09 end of an error?

 

Bet they wouldn't pass the security checks.

When I was stationed at RAF Lakenheath back inthe early 80's, I was taking a break with some of the other guys in my crew. I'd briefly forgotten it was September 15th. Battle of Britian Day. Soon I detect the sound of massed Merlins, and am standing on the picnic table trying to locate the source. Two Spitfires, a Hurricane, and the Lancaster make two circuits around the field, and then head off for Mildenhall. Everyone was spellbound. I nudged one of the engine guys, and said "Why can't you make these things (F-111F's) sound like that!"

Speed with STYLE baby!

 

This topic reminds me of my 1971 Datsun 240z I once owned. Arguably a classic, but what about the 260z, or 280z or 280zx?

Chows, what's your take? Ever miss your Z?

BTW, what's going to happen to our carbonizing petro polluters should there come a day when we really face a paradigm shift in fuel sources? Dinosaurs are museum pieces!

 

My mother in law used to have a 240Z. My wife had a record for awhile of the fastest trip from Saratoga to Santa Cruz in that car!

 

Faster? Perhaps by a tick, but not even close by the seat-of-the-pants. I drove both models last Saturday and the refinement is great and all, but it really seems to slow down the S. I was actually much more impressed by the Cooper auto...go figure.
We were at the Goodwood Revival in 2001 (9/13) and the (last flying) Lanc did a flyover amonst the P-51s and Spitfires and Hurricanes...pure bliss I tell you. Unforgettable!

 

Did you mean the end of an 'era,' or did I miss something?

Zip

 

Thats a good point. A sportscar that sort of made way for the future.

My case might have been different from you. I bought in 1970, as college kid, and was WAY over my head. It was simply too much car financially while trying to go to school full-time and working two jobs. It was a big mistake because it "spoiled me". But, when I sold, I "made" like $500 because the cars were very hot ... (take that MINI ... imagine that, keep the car a year and sell for more than you bought for). Ended up in a used Opel GT.

Personally, I didn't like so much the 260Z or 280Z. When the 300Z came out, wasnt it turbo? That looked better. 240 was old school. twin SU carbs. The "hot" setup was trip sidedraft webers

Because I bought WAY over my head, I thought I would NEVER be able to buy a car quite like it and the cars I could afford couldn't touch it. The 260, 280, etc were simply to much money for me ... and then us. So for maybe 10 years, I DID miss it simply because I couldnt afford a new one

But after a decade passed, and "we" could afford that kind of car, we didn't buy one. We have moved on, bought a 320IS and a year later a 944. After the 944 there was no looking back.

So you got a good point. I missed it a lot when selling it ... had to settle for something less, but that was my fault for being young, eager, immature, not understanding finances to well

And once you have something and its out of your league, your not going to settle for anything else unless its equal, so I didn't, for 10 years.

Now I look back. 0 - 60 8.3. Top speed 130 mph. Not exactly a speed demon in todays terms ... which is an excellent segway for R53 lovers. 10 years from now the R53 will be so slow, so outdated, so impractical ... I'm betting very few people would actually go back and buy one ... just my guess.

 

I bought an '06 because I'm not a huge fan of the "refinements" made to the R56. I don't like the new grill as much (I have the aero grill put on a stock S front end); I don't like the new center control arrangement nearly as much as the R53; I don't like that the R56, as reviewed by experienced R53 MINI drivers, has only about 95% of the driving experience of the R53, and you need a sport button to get the response the R53 has all the time; I REALLY don't like the idea of losing the supercharger soundtrack (to say nothing of a useless hood scoop!!) and the nice exhaust burble; and the biggest reason of all: I wanted a full JCW MCS. I love my R53. End of story.

 

^
What he said!

 

And you know what? That's great

Keep what you like, treat it right, as long it makes you happy, that's all that matters to you.

 

That's the day we get our country back from the lunatics in the Whitehouse.

 

Paging Eric_Rowland.... Paging Eric_Rowland... Warning... Warning...
bidding for the old rustbucket is on the rise again

 

An investment is never obsolete. Now they are all limited in availability. As for my PW checkmate, I saw in Kelly Blue Book the value is $4000 above what I paid for it new. I have never owned a used car more valuable than my new purchase price. I'm garaging mine for the future.

 

I like some aspects of the new car but the R53 ...... I don't know there are some pretty nice Ferraris from the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, etc..... I don't think the term obsolete exactly applies

 

From my post #43
I'm all over him like a Hobbit on second breakfast.

 

I keep forgetting that my 02 MCS is not a new car anymore. I keep it waxed. I keep watch on the oil and the tire pressure. I guess I've even gotten to love those squeaks and strange noises. I still enjoy getting behind the wheel and taking off for some place new. It's always been a joy to drive, both on and off the pavement. After nearly 5 years, it's still the coolest car I've ever owned. And long live liquid yellow.

 

+1 for my 05. Hey DeniseK did you ever get your meese problem solved

 

Those little varmits are still gnawing away on the spark plug wires. Someone told me to spray the engine compartment with Bitter Apple, but I haven't tried that yet. Why rush into anything -- winter is almost over. Besides I have a basset hound that loves Bitter Apple, so go figure.

 

A. Cat
B. King Snake, but keep the garage warm.

 

Gromit we have a whole massive meese thread & I think every conceivable remedy was suggested . I got rid of mine so hopefully DeniseK will be able to get rid of hers soon also or she can start naming them & feeding them like pets

 

I've lost track of where this thread was heading... isn't it an auction thread?

I'll bid $1502 on the old rusted, rattle-ridden, raunchy-riden' obsolete R53. And... a double thumbs-up for other fun, obsolete cars, like Chow's former Opal GT. Those were very cool, especially the device for flipping over the headlights to the "on" position.

 

dimini, I think you will have to Eric for the old rustbucket