How long did it take you to order a Mini?

My story is I intend to order a Mini on one of my trips from Tucson AZ to Frenso CA. That is usually a 11-12 hour trip done in one day. Do they jack you around to different offices and make you wait for extended periods of time and be there for hours or can I take a quick test drive, order it and be out of there in an hour? I don't wanna spend all day there. Think it'd be wise to make a special trip?

 

I ordered my from MINI of Murray in UT. I called my MA, configured on the Web site, e-mailed the config. My MA faxed the config for approval. Zero time in the dealership. A couple e-mail messages and a phone call. This was for MSRP, and so there wasn't any negotiation time.
When I test drove at another dealer, it was a quick test drive and then out. The only reason I didn't order from my local dealer was the 8 month wait.

 

I ordered and the whole process took about 1.5 hours but that is because I wanted to test every upgrade such as hifi and armrest and I had a lot of questions.

 

Yea I kinda wanted to do that too. reading on this site has made me doubt the auto A/C and Hi Fi upgrades. Also wanted to see how the leather/cloth seats feel. Maybe also I can finally figure out if the mellow yellow color is more of a school bus yellow or what. It looks pretty neat in the pciutres, but you can only tell in real life.

 

Personally I think the black roof looks better on the yellow because the bottom trim is black. Also I thought the HiFi upgrade was good because I listen to sixties music (I'm not old though) and for that type of music it doesn't make much of a difference. Plus I thought it sounded better than the stereo in my Honda after I tested it. I think it depends on what your listening to. The auto AC came with my premium package.

 

I listen to a lot of rock and alternative. Well as long as it sounds the same or better then my current VW's Monsoon sound system I'll be happy.

 

All depends on you and the individual dealer. Call the dealership and tell them what you want to do.

As for me. I went to my local dealership and wound up driving 4 cars. A JCW, a Cooper S auto, a Cooper S manual, an 08 Sidewalk JCW cabrio.

I never did order a car. I wanted a very specific config and they gave me a great deal on a car that they had in stock with my specs plus much, much more.

In the end I spent 5+ hours at the dealership over the course of 3 days. I only 20 minutes away.

 

for my 02 I drove into the dealership at about 4 one afternoon and drove out about 6 with a new S off the lot .... had to come back the next day with the spousal unit to pick up the Miata.

Patience hell .... let's go kill something .... said one vulture to the other ...

 

We made 3 trips to the dealer, which is about 60 miles away, 1st trip we looked around, asked a few questions and took a test drive. (We were sold after test drive) about 1 hr. 2nd trip we looked at fabric samples, and options we were interested in. about 45 minutes. 3rd trip went in and spoke with same MA whom assisted us the prior trips, sat in his office configued car and options, and ordered. wrote check for deposit Done. 30 minutes. The process was one of the best experiences at a car dealer ever. Total time 2 hrs 15 minutes - Mark

 

For me, the pick up took longer than the order. I had spec-d mine out online at least a dozen times so by the time I finally ordered I knew exactly what I wanted.

 

I don't remember, but I'm sure its less than a couple of hours including the test drive.

We go in talk to Jeff, say we're thinking of buying another MINI, find a suitable one to test drive, test drive it, find a bunch of other MINIs which have examples of the other options we're thinking of, then sit down with Jeff at the computer and make the order.

I'm pretty sure that was about 2 hours total for Shawn, and we dithered a lot about colours.

 

For the last two I emailed the specs and wired the deposit.For the first two I spent most of the day at the dealer.

 

I also spent ZERO time @ the dealership. My purchase was done completely via internet/fax/phone. BEST buying experience I have ever had with a car.

One the best things you can do prior to starting the entire process is get your financing preapproved and out of the way.

The only time I visited a dealership was to see the interior trim options to make sure I was getting quality materials.

Good luck to you.

 

I'm not interested in financing. I will be paying in cash. Guessing that will speed up my time there. I just hope I don't get some "oh, well we have to start the paperwork after ordering" b/s because then I'm walking.

 

Ditto the zero-time club. I e-mailed my MA my car spec, gave them a credit-card deposit over the phone, and didn't see the showroom until my car was in it. Classic MINI rocks

 

i was afraid of that too, but no... the only real paperwork is for the registration... in and out!

 

Call the dealer and make an appointment early. Mention that you want a test drive and let them know that you 're making a 10hr drive there. Research the dealer beforehand to reduce the chances that you get screwed over once you get there (some dealers just don't care, unfortunately)

From personal experience - I had my build sheet ready and with me, but went in w/o an appointment and spent a whole Saturday afternoon at the dealer just to get a test drive and ended up helping to close the place down. Once I finished the test drive, though, it was about 30-45 min. I reviewed the build sheet with my MA and we went over certain options (incl. a quick jog to one of the lot cars to look at the checkerboard dash) as well as financing/payment options, which took about 30 minutes. After that it took 10 min to enter the build in the system and give up my deposit.

The more you research beforehand the shorter your visit will be, but I think everyone will agree that trips to the dealership always take a long long time regardless.

 

Visit to dealer, 15 minutes.
Visit to MiniUSA.com, 15 hours.
Visit to NAM site, 15 hours.

Made my decisions based on MiniUSA offerings/info, NAM recommendations and feedback, and one more short visit to dealer for color and one option decision.

Very little time needed at dealer. Though dealer buying experience was extremely positive.

 

haha I hope my buying experience is like yours. It pretty much is if I don't spend more then 15 minutes at the dealer.

 

"+1 "+1 "+1 My music is usually Jazz or Blues on XM-Radio.

Thats for sure! I had blue/white picked from website, after seeing them, MY/B won by a mile and second would have been PW/PW.

Interiors also must be seen and sat in; (I didn't find any of them comfortable, so did my own later as my second mod after Euro Armrest).

Beyond the Test Drives, color choice and interior sits, the actual order shouldn't take more than 15 minutes, or you could even do it later,
over the phone with a CC Deposit.

Yes, now is when you will spend time in the finance office (even paying cash) and get to say no to all the add-on warranties and special packages,
usually only one finance officer per dealer, so pick a slow day.

Expect at least an hour with your MA, as he goes through all the features and programs both key/fobs (pay attention,
you will soon want to change those programs).

 

I went to the dealership with my printed out configuration, handed it to the MA, took a MCS for a test drive, came back and was ready to go once I handed in the deposit check. It all took about 30 mins from start to finish.

 

+1. Mine took a little longer, but so did the "test drive"

 

We ordered our Mini S over the phone! Took less then a half hour.
Very satisfied with the experience.

Doug & Sue

 

Ordered by phone, took less than 10 minutes.

 

to me it looks more like a mustard yellow, not French's, but kinda Guldens-ish, if that helps. certainly darker than the first gen whatever that was.

I love the L/C seats, had them in my first car, have 'em in my 2nd, best of both worlds. but then I need the lumbar supports.