Is it just me or do Clubman owners seem unfriendly? I've encountered 5 or 6 Clubmen on the road and they all seem to have their nose up in the air. They don't wave and don't even look at you if you're driving a Coupe. Maybe it's just in Hawaii or maybe they all had runny noses .

 

Suck eggs!!! I'm as friendly as the next guy. I got my Clubman about a month ago and was waving at every Mini I saw. No one waved back, and not one of those drivers drove a Clubman. So, my conclusion: Ain't no one waving these days.

I remember when my father got his Porsche back in the 60's. Whenever he passed another Porsche on the road they each flashed their headlights. Gone are the days.

 

Hey Ben, bite me!
That's a friendly Clubman greeting to the elitist Mini Cooper owners.

I haven't seen a single Clubman in north Texas.
It looks like they're all in Hawaii.

 

MTTS is the only place someone in a Clubman waved at me, ever. I've encountered a few on the road here and never even a smile or nod. Now - of course, there are people even in our local club who have them and I know would wave back, I just haven't come across them on the road.

 

Never get the Car Cult thing.

 

How sure are you that they were Clubmans? Could have been SUVs. Just kidding Clubman owners. It seems no one waves or even look over anymore.

 

A lot of newbie Clubman owners bought the car primarily for the fuel economy and practicality. Some of these folks are not interested in the "cult" aspects of MINI ownership. (And this applies to virtually most new MINI owners, not just Clubman ones).

I personally think that the "wave" thing is a little overcooked and overrated. I still try to engage on it, but I don't get my "feelings hurt" if some other MINI owner doesn't wave back. Living here in South Florida, MINIs have quickly outnumbered the quantity of Honda Civics you see on the road.

I also resent comments that I see in these forums from time to time that unless you are a card carrying MINI fanatic you are not "deserving" of owning the car. This is as elitist and arrogant as it comes. People buy the MINI for many different reasons, and one of those reasons, may or may not include the community aspect of the car.

Live and let live.

 

I promise to wave at you when I get my Clubman, that is unless I have a latte in one hand and I'm shifting . I was on a test drive today and I wove at another MINI, but didn't get the wave back. It didn't phase me and I just kept motoring on enjoying that back to back base and S test drive, woohooo!

 

Yes Clubman owners are a bit stuck-up. This combined with not being Cult aware seems to promote the feeling of snobbattude.
I am very surprised with the types of new MINI drivers, Is our car loosing its Status as a "Different" car?
The wave thing is cool, the Germans dont see the MINI as anything other than a Car. They do not wave either, Nor do the American woman over here.
The few holdouts ( fellow MINI owners left in Germany)I met online here still wave, We (you know who you are)are sadly the last people who'll wave.
Im sad that the MINI has become Just another car on the road.
New owners seem to not grasp the oddity (Uniqueness), the personalization, and "one of a kind" class of car We drive, it truely was a CLUB.
I think I need to buy the Classic Mini, anyone got a Mark 1 forsale.

 

I don't think MINIs are that common now, well not around here anyways. I still get at least one "nice car" comments a day from passers by or at public places. There is one MINI I see sometimes on the way to work, I have yet to get a return wave but you have to try to break them.

 

I wave at EVERY MINI I see, some wave back some don't. The norm is that they don't wave! And when I do wave it is a hearty wave ....I let you know I am waving...just in case.
I find it very strange that I can see a MINI coming from a good distance..its sorta like those commercials were there is one car in vivid colors and all other cars are pale gray!

 

I think justacoupe owners have an inferiority complex. (And rightly so!)
I'm friendly and I even use emoticons to prove it.

 

Here we go again with the stereotyping/name calling again. I thought that we had put that to bed here.

Not seeing it as more than a car sounds like something other than unfriendliness. If it's just a car then the prevailing social norm apply.

BINGO! and overcoming that requires an outreach that goes beyond name calling.

 

I can say little as I have actually had few face-to-face encounters w/ a Clubman in the wild. I suspect drawing any type of conclusion, though, is unwise, although folks do try. First it was Cooper owners, then un-modded MINIs, then all R56 owners (the cabrio owners escaped this as they are complete waving fools!!!)....now the poor Clubbie owners. Anyone who chooses to keep the custom of waving at MINIs alive probably must 1) do it for their own sense of MINI enthusiasm, not anyone elses, 2) expect a good number of waves to not be returned, 3) avoid stereotyping along any type of logical construct, and 4) prepare for the inevitable wave-fest that will ensue when you do actually meet up with another owner who loves to wave at other MINIs...it can be quite a shocker!!!

 

How do you feel when you wave and it's not reciprocated? Maybe a little silly, but generally self-righteous... You went out of your way to do something nice. The 100th time that I waved with no response I decided that other's just don't deserve my acknowledgement. You can take that as snobbery and you might be correct... Not withstanding people who over-pay for FWD economy cars, we just don't live in a culture where people wave to strangers (or wave back).

 

Boaters usually wave, the rule on expecting an answering wave is that you must make eye contact before waving. In typical auto traffic, this could get you in an accident, when your not looking where your going.

 

I agree. Expecting two MINI owners to always see (and acknowlege) each other when coming towards each other at a combined speed of 60, 80, 100 or even 120 mph is not reasonable. And I don't know why one should need to be acknowledged.

I've had occasions when I missed a wave from another MINI. Maybe I was actually paying attention to the traffic in my lane or something. It happens. And unless you actually made eye contact in that fleeting second, and the other driver stuck his tongue out, just assume they didn't see it.

If you want to wave, then wave. "Give" a wave.....but don't always expect one back (for a multitude of reasons).

BTW, I have nothing against "Justacoupes"........I think they're almost a good as Clubman owners.

 

I am a clubman owner and I am hardly "snooty"... I will wave no matter what..

 

In my area, I've waved at a couple of Clubman MINIs, and gotten return waves or thumb's-up. Can't damn a whole group for the actions of a few.

CROC 411

 

I am "almost a Clubman owner" (approaching port) and am afraid that if I began practicing the wave now while driving my Chevy 3500 extended cab Dually, Mini drivers might think I was threatening them
I have given this waving thing some thought and plan on a two pronged approach. I used to be an MGB and TR-6 driver and am used to the headlight flash. I'll be a headlight flasher when on the highway and divided lane roads and will reserve the rodeo queen wave for passing in close proximity on two lane roads about town.
My father had a friend who moved from the Deep South to NYC and walked to his office in Manhattan each day. He was determined to nod and greet whomever he could get to give him any type of eye contact on the couple of block walk. It took months, but gradually he won over quite a few fellow walkers who got to know him and even said that he changed their attitudes. Moral of the story: Wave (or flash) on if it makes YOU happy!! Maybe the Mini you waved at saw you and appreciated the wave even if the driver didn't???

 

I seem to see the most MINIs when I'm not driving mine. I still get excited seeing another one and I usually wave anyway when I'm in the truck. I get some odd looks from the MINIs but I just have to do it. Of course, when I'm in the Clubman I've had some odd looks from the other MINIs too. But most of the time they wave back. I think the MAs need to instruct MINI buyers about the wave as so many of the newer owners probably never even look at the MINI Websites, or read the fun stuff MINI sends.
I'll always wave at fellow MINI people, but not at fellow Titan truck owners. That would be weird and totally misunderstood. The truck is for rainy days when there may be hail.
Gotta go. It's a clear day and Otto is calling out to me for a ride.

 

I dont wave to anyone and do not expect anyone to wave at me.

It also seems a bit childish to me that anyone would even waste the bandwith on this subject.

 

Perhaps the Clubman owners have not found the purple kool-aid packet in the secret compartment yet ?

 

NAM has far greater wastes of bandwidth than this.....why, this isn't even OT!!!!!

 

Well, we will continue to wave (except at 12 pack) cuz its fun. There are people in the world who aren't friendly and don't like fun and that's ok.