NO I never charge them to use it ,but I tell them to gas it up and bring it back not un-clean. I'd say I'm just a sucker with a mini-van.

 

Amen, Planeguy!

 

So, this sounds to me, like you are attempting to prove YOURSELF with what you consider a valid observation. Non-sequitur.

 

No ,man all we're doing is wasting a bit of time posting on NAM connecting with people who have a little something in common with what we have,a stupid little MINI. It's just silly fun and nothing to get constipated over on . I have stop drinking all that English tea....

 

I agree and motion that we replace the English tea with something better, like English beer... or German beer, or let's celebrate a blend of the two.

Wonder if Rodney Dangerfield would have driven a Mini?

 

Ai Ai mate , I love Carlsberg but can't find any so I drink Asahi...

 

More people and less patience.
I have to deal with really old folks, who act lost while driving really slow. That sets off the ME24/7 jerks.
Try responding to the middle finger with this: point index finger, **** thumb upward, show recoil. For the really bad ones, two fists like Snoopy dogfighting. Showing them you are having fun is cool.

 

by 89AkurtAgreed. We can have fun in life and the road needn't be rage field.

 

Really? you must have been reading a diffrent thread than I....I have seen post after post of MINI people over reacting at other peoples impatience or stupidity by associating what they drive to the other persons behavior. which is really just another case of a ridiculous neurotic mentality in our culture that whatever makes me diffrent is the only basis why people interact with me in the manner they do.....when in reality nobody cares about you or what make you "special" .....It's all in YOUR head not thiers, it is your hyper-sensitivity...you EXPECT diffrent treatment, so you look for and remember every grievence.....whereas the other rude people are just rude period, they dont care who you are or what you drive, they will put themselves first and seek advantage over anyone and everyone no matter the circumstance or your uniqueness

 

Back in the 80's there actually was a set of "automobile machine guns" marketed that mounted on the dash, and made firing noises. A toy of course. Pulled for being too violent I suspect.

 

I did a little experiment on the way to work this morning.

I was on one of my bikes, and as I was riding, I was making mental notes of which cars I had no trouble pulling in front of when changing lanes, and which cars I hesitated, or didn't do this to, altogether. I didn't see any MINIs this morning, which is not unusual.

Vehicles that I either hesitated, or didn't pull in front of:

Nissan Maxima
big BMW, such as the 745i
large pickup truck
Lexus IS
Acura TL (these last two seem to be the overwhelming favorite cars of choice for hi-speed stupidity on the highways around here)

Compound these vehicles' 'menace levels' when they have any combination of bling wheels and dark tint windows. Darker colored vehicles also get more 'hesitation-factor' than lighter ones.

Of course, this list is not all-inclusive, and were based on only one of my 1-hour commutes, but there is a trend here when I think back to the types of cars that seem to be driven by people who don't seem to care about anything except themselves while driving (and who knows while doing what else).

Again, I am generalizing here, and have stated such, so if anyone here owns one of these cars, please do not be personally offended.

Zip

 

It happens to me all the time also. but it happened to me before in my old car too. driver's are just selfish in general and don't give a rat's behind for anyone. unless you are in an f-250 or something as hideous as that.

 

sweet..i got me a black one

 

One difference. If someone in the other lane bothers to use their turn signals, I will usually back off and give them room (unless there's a mile of room behind me, and they're just playing cut off the Mini). So few people bother with turn signals these days though.

 

Gromit801I hear you. I blame some of that on cell phones. Too much trouble to interupt one's conversation by lifting the phone away from the blabber mouth in order to flip the turn signal.

In spite of all this auto-anarchy, I still love driving--just have to be more careful than in "the good ole daze."

 

^ RE: Turn Signals. My fiance is guilty of not using hers... ever. I get onto her about it often. Her reasoning: 30+ years of driving in Baltimore has tought her that if you turn on your signal, the other driver knows your intentions and will therefore have more time to cut you off and not let you in or make your turn.

WHAT ?! :impatient

Let's see... Patriots fan, no turn signals... the negatives list is getting longer.

 

I have seen and heard the "using turn signals for lane changes only gets the door slammed in your face" reasoning in Baltimore / DC / NoVA also. My observations indicate that once a certain tipping point in traffic density is reached, drivers start acting on territorial imperative, and defending their bubble of space. However, once away from a major metro area and its attendant highway congestion, people are just simply more tolerant and polite- even those from the "big city." Maybe it's because there's no one around to fight with.

The same thing happens with following distances. Ironically, the safest practice in the Baltimore/DC metro areas seems to be to leave a gap that is far shorter than ideal between cars. Otherwise, another driver immediately jumps into the gap, leaving even less distance between cars than one otherwise would have had. Back off of the car that just jumped in front of yours, and another fills the gap- the process is repeated ad nauseum until one gives up in frustration. Try to drive as defensively as you were taught in school, and you'll end up being a bigger collision hazard than if you just drive "normally," as most of us end up doing.

This is why most of our weekend motoring forays head straight away from town when plotted on a map. Not just good roads, but good, sparsely populated roads, are what makes for good motoring.

 

^ Reason 4,684 I work in the opposite direction from the big city. I have a really nice commute route and I'm glad of it... BIG time !

 

Reason number 4685 I work out of my house--in the country!

 

WHAT ?? Someone who owns a MINI and is happy to work out their home ? Happy to have nooooooo commute ?

Oh, Never mind. I get it. You take liberal breaks to get out and motor.

 

If I had a commute what was more then dodging big-rigs running nose-to-tail and side by side for miles, then commuting in Gromit would be a lot more fun. For me it's just miles and miles of staring at the back of the same car in front of me. No backroads to take.

 

Chili Red--yup, you've got it! While you were in the office today I was racking around the twisties! Really.

It's a nice sunshiney day, bluebonnets are up, and the trees are leafing out...

 

Nowwwwwww it all makes sense, deb. You, my friend, are certainly no dummy.

I guess when the Daffodils are blooming, which will be very soon, you won't get a bit of work done.

 

Sadly, the daffodils are done. They bloomed exceptionally early this year, starting in December. It was a bad year for them...

 

Come up and visit the DCMM club... the daffodils arrive in early April around here.

I know what you're thinking: Damn, that's a long way to go just to see some daffodils !! But hey, you're obviously not your average daffodil fan. And hey again, we are nice (and good-looking) people in the DCMM club !!