I call daily LynnEl. I also bug my dealer twice a week for status. The dealer thinks I might get a production date this week. Maybe next week for sure.

 

I see reference to waiting for MINI to work out the bugs. What bugs?

 

Must be the allocation, then. The good news is, it only takes them about 3 days to build the car once it goes into the production queue

 

Actually, Skuzzy, I ordered about 2 weeks before you and my car was completed March 30. So, it seems like you are about on schedule, going by my experience.

 

I cannot complain about the time. The dealer told me it would be 6 to 8 weeks. However, that does not stop me from whining incessantly like a 5 year old the day before Christmas. Is it here yet? Is it here yet?

 

LOL. Just wait til it's on the boat ----- then it really gets bad!

 

Ken, you asked "what bugs?" Good question! Mine is insect free.

 

All cars have bugs. They may or may not bite you, but they're definitely there.

The number of design and production changes to correct R56 problems will probably be in the thousands in the next 18-months. 95% of them are very minor, but occasionally you get whoppers, especially with a clean-sheet-design new engine. Ask anyone bitten by the 318i profile-gasket issue, the BMW alum V8 cylinder problems, or the M3's connecting-rod bearing grenade issue. It's a definite risk with any new design.

- Mark

 

Well, I think I already mentioned the moonroof issue. Plus there have been several other "problem" threads like the engine light/sputtering one. I mean, this is the first time this car (and even this engine) has been in production. So naturally I would expect later versions to be more problem-free than the current batch.

 

Mine too. And .. If you look back on the writings on this forum there has been virtually no discussion of problems, at least since the doomsday sayers have faded away (though there were some issues with the very first MCs/MCSs to arrive here, most of which came here to be dealer demos).

On a related topic: Our local Albuquerque Journal ran a long feature review on our Mini Coopers this past Saturday. It was virtually all praise until the next to last paragraph where it said, "My only complaint was a consistent dash rattle. A Mini representative said it's a problem with very early production units that has been fixed."

It's a shame there are still demos around that have those dash rattles and the early wind-noise-from-the-sunroof problems.

By the way, the Journal review concluded with: "The new Mini has emerged as practical premium if still mostly affordable, individualistic transportation. And loads of fun.

Oh .. Just for grins I'll mention the opening statement, "The new Mini Cooper might be a perfect car". There was also a BIG picture of a front quarter view of a laser blue S.

 

For me, I think driving during the fall when the leaves are turning is like the best feeling in the world. But that's me. Would you really want to wait until 2008 when the snow is on the ground? You'd have to wait so much longer to really enjoy your MC.

Patience grasshopper...

 

You guys all make good points. My mind was swingin towards ordering an 08 model in late summer thinkin i would have it by october but by the sounds of it i wont be getting it that soon.

I too want to be able to enjoy it in late summer/fall Phishy, nothing like a crisp autumn breeze with the windows down and the moonroof open!

 

I think you should definately cancel your order and wait to order the 08.

That way my car will be built one car sooner.

Just watch that price jump up. If I had 4 months of customers in line I might just be tempted to up the price above inflation. (supply and demand 101, it is a great thing when you are the supplier with lots of demand)

What amazes me, is that with so little advertising they have such demand. I laugh every time I watch a GM, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, etc ad on TV. What a waste of money. Just build a car people want.

If you don't want your 2007, someone else does, like me .

I would not wait. You are going to pay $800 more so that when you sell in 8 years you will get $800 more. Does not add up on my calculator.

 

Some of the previous threads have talked about the 2008 version correcting bugs. My bet is that as bugs are being reported, they are already being corrected in the newer 2007s. Why I say this is that the car is under warranty. So, when you take the car to the dealer to get it fixed, that cost is passed on to the manufacturer and that costs them a whole lot more than if they fix it at the source. The service departments at most dealerships are the cash cows. Heck, they charge $75-100/hr for labor. The manufacture would prefer to have a defect free product for the length of the warranty instead of paying for repairs.

 

haha

i too agree, you should all wait for the 08 so those who REALLY want their 07 get theres sooner haha

 

Plus they aren't about to sit around and watch the bad reports build up.

 

True, but "running changes" to cars on the assembly line are extremely expensive to implement and create all kinds of problems downstream when servicing the cars as parts/proecudures become specific to VIN's, not just to MYs. Running changes play hell with the serviceability of cars down the road so mfgs typically do this only in emergency situations.

A 2nd reason mfgs don't make changes *****-nilly is that they need to amass data and time in service to characterize the problems. Some problems take years or tens of thousands of miles to develop. Some problems only manifest themselves when the cars are in the field where they are subjected to new conditions of drivers, climates, usage patterns, and abuse. Desirable or not, final testing of any new product always occurs in customers hands.

And any changes require time to research the issue, design new parts, test new parts, and do the hundreds of things that have to happen to get the new parts into the assembly line.

For all these reasons.... unless a problem is disabling and severe, it is tabled until a MY changeover. Or, in the case of the new US Minis it might even be tabled until the 2009 MY since the 2007's are really only going to ship for half a year or so.

History is our guide here: When the 2002 Mini shipped, it had a TON of problems. A select few were fixed as running changes in 2002, a few more were fixed with the 2003 car, but it wasn't until 2004 that bulk of the fixes were implemented. And conicidentally 2004 was the year when the Mini's reliability finally turned around.

- Mark

 

You call daily? You BUG your dealer twice a week? What's your nickname at the dealership, "Mister Popular" or "Mister Obnoxious"? Ever hear that old line, "A watched pot never boils. The thing will be here when it's here, and your calls are NOT going to help it get her sooner or make the dealer a friendly place to deal with when it does get here. I'd bet by now they're taking your oh too frequent calls as a sign of trouble to come when you have some problem. Good luck. You're going to need it.
In my LONG WAIT, I called about once a month AFTER I had to go through a reorder after the mfsw messup, and I never dealt with the lounge at all, as that's not information but disinformation. Your car will be here when it gets here. Find something else to do in the meantime and you'll be on much better terms with the dealer after it arrives. You want these people to be your FRIENDS, right?

 

Thanks for describing yourself so well, junior. Now go to your room. No supper. Start studying for when you turn 16 and can get a driver's license. Geez.

 

I agree with the first two sentences. I don't know about the rest...
107 days to go.

 

I say stop complaining and if you want a mini so bad..find the one you want..what could be soooooooooooo special about the one you ordered?

 

That says a lot about technology advances, doesn't it? I'm really glad our 2007s aren't going through what the 2002s had to endure.

Computer aided design has come a long way; computer aided potential problem analysis has too. Amazing isn't it.

 

When you consider the complexity of a modern automobile and the number of constraints it is produced under, it is truly amazing how reliable today's cars are.

I would never suggest that a 2007 Mini would ever have a fraction of the problems of the 2002 Mini. When the first Mini's were produced, EVERYTHING was new: design, factory, build personnel, dealers.... everything. The 2007 has had a major re-design so there are going to be more problems than the 2006 models, but the chassis hasn't had that many changes and there are not very many completely new systems or wacky technlogies. The new Mini should be fairly well sorted, and I haven't heard about anything that indicates otherwise.... so far.

The big question mark is the new engine which is a clean-sheet design with a new partner - Peugeot. If there's a truly nasty problem lurking in the new Mini's, it's going to be in that new engine. We just have to wait and see.

- Mark

 

As the miles pile on we continue to marvel at the reliability SO FAR. But will it stop? And at what point? Do we look over our shoulders for an attacking meltdown, or do we face forward and glide over little pebbles as they occur? And at what point do you call the car reliable? Case in point, the BMW's radiator problems. The radiator necks have a tendancy to break--a typical mileage would be 60,000--and it can have nasty consequences. (A couple of years ago I had both of mine in the shop at the same time for the same problem!). Does that mean the car isn't/wasn't reliable? There were no other hiccups on either car, and the older one was sold at 190,000 miles.

I admit I'm waiting for the shoe to drop as I motor along. I don't expect ANY new car, let alone a new design, to be totally trouble free. With the exception of an intermittant cruise control problem (non reproduceable for the dealer, and in fact not experienced in the past 1000 miles) there has been nothing--nothing--to report. I turned over 3200 miles the other day; surely SOMETHING should be showing up if it were as unreliable as the naysayers predicted. Then again, I have 46,800 miles before it's my nickel.

As for the original question, should you cancel your order and wait for 2008, why? There will ALWAYS be a new horizon--computers are an excellent example--and always an unknown. But wouldn't you rather be MOTORING?

 

WOOHOO!! My first personal attack on the board! I guess I have made the big time now!

Man, thank you for putting me in my place. Without your wit and wisdom I might have simply gone off the deep end. I mean geez, I would have thought giving my dealer the option to notify of status changes on my car or have me call twice a week would have been a good thing.

Now, you have shown me the light and errors of my ways. I should just sit back, trust that the downpayment I gave them will ensure delivery of my car. Oh, it is so crystal clear now. It's my money. But it is their car! I get it. I soooo get it now! Just sit back an keep my mouth shut.

You know, this board is full of helpful people.

Actually, if the car gets delayed for another couple of weeks, it will be here for my birthday! WOOT! I'll be 53 AND getting my Mini then! That would be sooooo coool. Oh dude, you really helped me out here. I dunt(tm) know what I would have done without your presumtious, disrespectful attitude.