That's not just a single little "accident". That's quite a lot of damage due to negligence. What a terrible experience!

I hope this can be resolved to your satisfaction.

 

I don't know how badly you need a new car right now, but I'd reject it. If it's got that much damage, you're virtually guaranteed to find more soon. This is certainly a valuable cautionary tale against shipping cars cross-country, at least via the transporter involved here.

 

I'd reject it, too. You paid for a new car, not one that looks like it's "used."

 

Sounds like some of those defects were there before it left NY. Loose cable doesn't happen in transport, nor do scratches inside. That's a real drag. I'm smelling lemons. You can find another one somewhere and ship it again, or order one from somebody else and get it built fast, can't you?

 

Wow! this is now significanty more than a "hopefully simple" no start problem. Regardless of weather the car was damaged in transit or sold to you this way, I would contact the selling dealer and tell them you are refusing shipment. Wouldn't accept a car that sounds like is going to require a 30% repaint.

Having had my own "nightmare" car experience a few years ago, I feel for you.

 

Yeah, I'd be telling them to take that puppy back and try again... many folks have had good success with the Hamptons shipment. I really think yours got screwed over in transit... Sorry for the trouble.

 

Hi everybody. This thread reads like a thriller novel. What is going to happen next? So here is the latest. Since being brought to the local MINI dealer by roadside assistance (which was the only way to get it there since it would not start) it seems that something was left on in the car by the transporter. Once a new battery was installed it started immediately. I have asked them to check the car to make sure there was no other cause and to look into the other concerns the customer has specified. I have not seen any photos of these other issues yet but they seem easily rectified. The customer will of course not have to pay for anything and hopefully we can agree on fair compensation for the inconvenience.
We have delivered hundreds of cars around the country and 99% of the time everything goes fine. We have been in contact with the local dealer and the customer all day and are trying our best to make things right.


MINI of the Hamptons

 

Sometimes saving a few months and a few bucks backfires. I'm hope that NW MINI can resolve your problems. A big disappointment.

 

That's great!

Hopefully, the buyer willl also be compensated by the responsible party (dealer/shipper) for the diminished value attributable to the damage and subsequent body work.

 

Sounds like the trucker took it for a joy ride!!! Can't really blame him though. I don't think anyone here would be able to resist.

But hopefully they'll get the issues resolved for you.

 

My original intention was just trying to state what has happened objectively. Now, I feel that I need to provide more details in order to set the story straight and objectively. I am just stating the facts here without my opinions.

1pm (pacific time, June 12, 2007): The MINI arrived. Attempt by the truck driver to jump start the car (with external battery source) failed. Then, the driver put the car in reverse to roll the car off the truck. The truck driver asked me to call the MA, but he was off on that day, so I asked to speak with the manger. Then, I let the truck driver talk to that person on the phone. That person (either another MA or the manager) instructed us to call the MINI roadside assistance. While I was calling the MINI roadside assistance, the truck driver left to deliver other cars in Portland and Tri-cities. First, the MINI USA sent the local AAA to jump-start the car (with both external battery source and connected to the AAA truck), but still couldn’t start the car. The power came on while its connected to an external source, but could only hear the clicking noise when pressing the start-engine bottom. Then the MINI USA decided to send a flatbed over to tow the car to the Northwest MINI. Since there was not a flatbed available right away, I had to wait for almost 2 hours. After personally talking to the MINI roadside assistance and the local AAA contracted by the MINI USA for a few hours, the ordeal finally came to the end of that day. In the end, when my cell phone ran off power, I was there for nearly 6 hours and had to call-in for the afternoon off at my workplace. As soon as I got home, I emailed my MA what happen including the car’s condition and asked him to call me ASAP.

8:02am (pacific, me) and 11:02 am (Eastern, the MINI of the Hamptons) on June 13, 2007: I called my MA, and he said that he had just received my email and was about to call me. He asked for the Northwest MINI’s phone number and said he will have the manager called the Northwest, and let me know the results ASAP.

~11am (pacific) on June 13, 2007: An SA from the Northwest MINI contacted me to ask what’s going on with the car since it was dropped over night when the dealer was closed. I was surprise when he said that the MINI of the Hamptons has not contacted the Northwest. The SA then offered to call the Hamptons himself and asked me for the phone number.

~1 pm (pacific) on June 13, 2007: Haven’t heard of what’s going on. I called my MA, and he told me that the Northwest will look at the car and figure out what’s wrong with the car.

~10 am (pacific) on June 14, 2007: I contacted the SA at the Northwest, and there were no updates on the car yet.

~11am (pacific) on June 14, 2007: The manager at the MINI of the Hamptons called me for the first time and said that he will make things right and that he will be the one that I should contact instead of my MA from now on.

~12 am (pacific) on June 14, 2007: I called the SA at the Northwest and find out that they have exchanged the battery and was able to start the engine. But they still need to check on the cars to see if there are other problems.

~1 pm (pacific) on June 14, 2007: The manager at the MINI of the Hamptons called me to update the car.

This is a brief detailed summary of what has occurred so far. Here I am attaching the pictures of the car’s conditions. Because the accumulation of all of these problems, I have no confidence in this particular car. All of these problems, NOT just one isolation incident, point toward to that the car has not been well taken care of and was not inspected and preped properly. I am a little surprise of how the car passed all of the rigid inspections at the factory, the VDC, and the dealer. Just in a short period of time on the first day, I’ve found these many problems. This makes me question if there is anything else wrong with the car. I don’t know if there are more serious problems with the car like electronics that could drain the battery dead completely. I have never heard of a car with a brand new battery could be dead completely (couldn’t be jump-start at all). My family just replaced the battery in our other car but only after 8 years of service. One of my friends has a problem with his used car. His car repeatedly stop on the highway every once a while for no apparent reason (with different new batteries) and has to jump-start the car every time, and couldn’t find out what’s wrong to fix the car. The manager at the MINI Hamptons told me that I shouldn’t be worry about this. He said that even if this do happen to the car in the future, the local Northwest MINI dealership would buy back the car for the MINI USA before the car is even consider as the lemon car, because the MINI USA doesn’t want to ruin its reputation.

Again, I appreciate all the supports at the NAM and those who have PM me. I am just trying to share my experience by trying to state the facts objectively. I welcome the MINI of the Hamptons to correct my posting here if they don’t disagree of what I said. This is my first MINI experience.

Pictures don't show up here, please see my gallery.

Dent near the left side of the handle of the trunk




Loose cable



Scratch and chips on the hood



Scratch next to the speaker



Stains on the doors



Missing antenna

 

The yellow stain you speak of looks like the wax that mini coats the car in for shipping across the atlantic to keep the salt off of. That was not properly washed off. The rest, inexuseable.

 

Inexcusable is right. Very sorry to hear of this experience. There's no way I would pay for that car, even if they fixed the damage that was visible so far.

 

iTao, your pictures show up as red X's :(

It sounds like you will be take care of; if I were you, I would not accept that car.

EDIT: just looked at the pictures... that is simply unaccpetable.

 

Step away from the Mini. There's no good reason for you to keep this car. Please get a different one. This may only be the tip if the problem iceberg.

 

The no-start was just a dead battery, yellow stuff is protectant. The other couple of things can be easily fixed. I'd let them fix it (and would hope get something for the aggravation). I sure wouldn't start all over. Yeah-it's a bummer, but the car is still ok.

 

I can believe the battery was dead (something left on as the Mini dealer said) and wouldn't jump. Looks like someone backed it into something soft and dented the boot. The dangling wire could be to the puddle light (?). The yellow stuff may wash off. The little spikemarks next to the speaker suck, somebody did that. And the chips in the paint also suck. You have a dilemna here. The stuff is fixable for sure (don't know about the interior), but the question is whether you can be OK with that and what the dealer will do to appease you. Got any cool wheels/mods that you wanted but couldn't afford? You may be able to afford them now! Probably your call since you haven't taken it home yet.

 

It sounds like MINI of the Hamptons has much to answer for. That said, you need real advice. Go to a lawyer and sit down with your list of problems. He/she can provide help. All we can do on NAM is throw in our two cents.

 

MINI of the Hamptons needs to make this right.

 

Don't think there's reason for a lawyer yet. MINI of the Hamptons will for sure refund his money or let him order another MINI, if they didn't I don't think they would be too many people ordering from them if there was a chance something like this would happen to them. So let's just see what MINI of H offer him, if they don't refund the money or allow a re-order then lawyer up.

 

I'm in SoCal. I bought my mini at sticker from Mini of Pittsburg in 2003. I was delivered in closed transport, at cost of $1,350 (which a client paid for). It arrives showroom perfect. A very painless and professional transaction. I was so thrilled to see it driven out of the truck (into the rain). It accompanied shipment of new Porsche Cayanne's.

Was your car transported in enclosed transport? It costs more, you get what you pay for. If enclosed, you should not get weathering or chips. If not enclosed, you may experience weathering and chips. That is why enclosed shipping cost more and is worht more. But not to worry, you'll pick up paint chips soon enough just driving. The cars have a pretty blunt front end and it is unavoidable. The little things you complain of are vastly outweighed by the pleasure you will have driving it 8 - 10 months sooner.

 

Question you for SteveS... was this really neccesary? At this point the issue is what to do to make this right for a fellow MINI owner.

 

Run don't walk to a lawyer. You have only a finite amount of time. Sounds like there may be legal issues with the transporter as well as MINI of the Hamptons.

 

Everything was settled yesterday. After seeing the pictures and agreeing that the condition of the car is unacceptable we already have offered to refund his money or order him a new car immediately with additional discounts. You would not know it by reading this thread but iTao and I have had very cordial conversations over the phone and were just waiting to receive the pictures to determine the correct course of action. As I said in my last post 99% of the time everything goes fine. I guess this was that 1%.
I'm not saying that we were not at some fault. I have already spoke to our employees here (detail dept., salespeople, etc.) about the situation and will make sure that what went wrong with the part of the process we can control does not happen again. Now I just have to settle up with the shipper.
I'm just glad that we were able to settle this unfortunate situation. Believe me that it would never had gotten to the point where lawyers are involved. We are part of the NAM community also and have been so since the launch of the MINI. NAM has been good to us and hopefully the NAM community appreciates that we have from the beginning offered great service at a fair price. Now I just have to figure out how get this MINI home.



MINI of the Hamptons

 

Nice to that this dealer has nuts enough to recognize the problem and correct it for this unfortunite buyer. Bravo for them. I hope that other dealers are listening and follow suit in similar situations. Again Kudos to Mini Of Hampton.