I took my car in for a 11am Sat appointment due to my passenger side xenon headlight would not automatically adjust when turned on. Thus, it shoots downwards the whole time. South Bay MINI loaned me a Chrysler 300C for the full weekend with painless transaction.

Tonight, I got my car back and since they cannot pinpoint the problem with the headlight, they gave me a brand new one! I checked RealOEM.COM and the list price is $630.00!!! Props to South Bay MINI for a wonderful experience!

That's all, sharing is caring right guys?

 

Hey John!

That's terrific!! I've got my MC down at South Bay MINI as well for a transmission problem. Glad they are treating you well.

 

Hey Richard, would your car be back for the show this Sat, the 13th? I would like to check out your ride.

 

I sure wish I could say yes, but from the looks of it, I will be lucky to see it next week. If you're available on Saturday aug, 27, we got a run to Julian that you should come to. I should have my car back by then. =)

By the way, I forwarded your post to my friend over at SB MINI, and they were very appreciative. We can talk more in PMs. =)

Richard

 

OK guys, I'm going to take your word for South Bay MINI. I'm having clutch issues and I scheduled an appointment for Monday @ 7AM. I spoke with Frank at SB MINI, who was regularly a BMW Service advisor but helped schedule the appointment. He was really cool...hooked me up with a loaner MINI since it might be a couple days before I get my car back.

Anyhow...the reason that going to South Bay is such a big deal is that I am literally two blocks from Bob Smith. I've been telling them about my clutch probs for about a year now (4 service visits) but nothing was done to fix it. Now it's worse, and I don't want to get stranded somewhere after littering the road with bits of metal chunks and tranny fluid.

Sorry to hear about the probs that you had Richard, but I'm glad everything happened under warranty. Maybe I'll see you at South Bay.

 

Good deal, but now how did you get a loaner MINI?? Of all the times I've been there, I've had a non MINI loaner.

Anyhow, I got lucky. Both my clutch and transmission are being replaced and they had both in stock, so my car is supposed to be ready by tonight! That's definitely great news to hear, so no loaner needed.

Richard

 

Hey Krassanova,

When you mean loaner, did you mean they will rent out to you for free? The reason why I'm asking is because I bought my MCS from South Bay MINI. After a week of owning it, my passenger side headlight went bad so I called Assael MINI (in Monrovia, which is only about 10 mins from my house) to schedule an appointment. They said since the car was not purchased through them, they cannot rent out a car to me for free. Needless to say, Assael would NOT cover the rental costs. So now I'm taking it to South Bay, even though it's 40 mins away.

 

Hi Richard,

Last time I went to SB MINI, they had a X3, 325Ci, and MC available for rent. I took the X3.

 

Well I can see in your case since you bought your MINI from them, you'll get better loaner options. =) FWIW, since I bought mine elsewhere, I've had a minivan loaner, and a Kia I think---or maybe the Kia was from Nick Alexander. LOL.

Anyhow, no big deal. Did you sit in the back of the x3?? The seat is like a wood block!! Wife almost bought one, but hated that seat so she bought a Murano instead.

Richard

 

Good information! My car is coming up for service again soon so I'll probably give them a try since I've had absolutely NO response to my calls or e-mail from Creview MINI.

Thanks,
AMPR

 

Hehehe, nope, didn't get a chance to try out the backseat. I took my car in that morning and my SA, Jay, called me later on that afternoon telling me that my car was good to go. I only had the car not even a day, but it's well worth it. That car surprisingly handles pretty well, considering it's a SAV.

 

Well I second your opinion. South Bay MINI rocks!!! They keep proving themselves time and time again. I got my car back today with a new clutch and tranny. Guess you will see my ride on Saturday! =)

Richard

 

YAY!!! Great to know, Richard! Any special instructions on breaking in the new tranny? What were their recommendations to you? :smile:


Clover

 

All they said is "Here are the keys, have fun!"
Well not those exact words but something close. Clutch and transmission feel very different now, but I got all that on another thread.. "Nightmare..."

I'm just glad to have my car for this Saturdays c3 event!

Richard

 

YEAH!!!!!!!!!

 

Richard,

Glad the Cooper is up and around.

Make sure you put it through it's paces. The 2-3 shift doesn't sound right. I tend to have my clutches replaced about every 30k, so unfortunatly I speak from experience.

 

Sorry it took me a while to get back on here.

I did NOT purchase at South Bay but they are hooking me up with a loaner because it's a projected 2 day deal, and I guess they are cool like that!

Bob Smith wouldn't give me a loaner for non-scheduled (read emergency) warranty work, and I am not surprized by Assael. I guess anywhere with a Mark-up you know they are going to be cheap bastards about the service too.

It works the same way with the BMW dealerships. Bob Smith would not give me a loaner for service, but Valencia and Pacific BMW were all too glad to hook me up. The MINI loaners are limited, so it's just luck of the draw with the loaner v. a smoky Corolla (which I got once at a BMW dealership).