MINI2

the Motorcade launched early in 2007 and is a free and flexible blog hosting service for new MINI owners and enthusiasts.

the Motorcade is a great place to share what’s on your mind, your MINI adventures or motoring misadventures, and find out what other MINI owners the world over are doing with and to their MINIs.  For example you can read and watch the exploits of a “Brown MINI Cooper on the Track” from the USA or about a MINI named Obsession and it’s Australian owner.

You don’t have to use your blog at the the Motorcade exclusively to talk MINI, although several members do.  the Motorcade provides a place for people with one thing in common, the MINI, to express themselves and create their own place on the internet, while still being part of the wider MINI community.

the Motorcade already has something to interest just about any MINI owner, but if it doesn’t then you can sign up in under a minute and tell the World about your and your MINI.  Check it out, and why not to join the Motorade?

More MINI Clubman have been spotted on the streets of the UK recently.

Although amateur spy shots show us nothing compared to the Undisguised Blue & Silver MINI Clubman Photos seen recently it’s good to know it’s not just die-hard MINI2 members who are seeing the Clubman out and about and snapping them with their mobile phones, as shown on this blog when James Lloyd was buzzed by a MINI Clubman on the M4 motorway recently.

That’s not to say MINI2 members are not doing their bit for the amateur MINI spotters association, MINI2 forum member Jordan210 captured this Pepper White and Black MINI Clubman on his camera phone.

Another rumour has now begun. Apparently dealers (in the UK at least) will be able to place their MINI Clubman orders with the factory in Oxford as of July 24th 2007. So it’s more than reasonable to expect more official details before that date.

The scant amount of confirmed information has not been enough to put many off placing their orders already, as you can see in this thread on MINI2, where the 24th July rumour began.

Peter Friedman, CEO of LiveWorld, the company charged with development and moderation the MINI USA Owners Lounge features in a video interview on PodTech.

During the course of the interview, which focuses on how LiveWorld build and manage online communities for corporate customers such as eBay, Campbell Soup, and as they insist on referring to it “MINI Cooper”.

The MINI USA Owners Lounge is used as a case study in the interview, and it’s interesting how Mr. Friedman talks of the highly customised MINIs and their relationship with their owners. “The car becomes the person, and the person becomes the car” as he puts it. He also discusses their approach towards moderation and managing communities.

The interview does feature quite a lot of industry speak, and may not be to everyone’s tastes, however we thought it provides an interesting insight into how those who produce a MINI related community for MINI USA themselves view you, their target audience and customers.

As aside, it was also interesting to hear the amount of money LiveWorld are paid for running and moderating these communities, enough to make us wonder if we’re the right job! Watch the interview in full here.

MINI USA has reported June sales of 4,174 MINIs. This is a strong increase of 17.4 percent over the 3,556 MINIs sold in June of 2006.

Year-to-date MINI sales for 2007 stand at 19,759 vehicles, a slight decrease of 1.3 percent when compared to the 20,026 MINIs sold in the first half of 2006. The reduction in year-to-date figures, despite the very strong June sales, can be explained by the change over to second generation MINIs in early 2007.

MINI sales accounted for over 14 percent of BMW Group Sales for June in the USA, totalling 29,394 vehicles. Overall BMW Group sales for June 2007 saw a 6 percent increase over June 2006.

USA Today is 25 in September 2007.

One of the ways in which they’re marking this milestone is by listing several top 25 lists under headings such as “25 Stocks you should have bought” and “25 Top musical milestones”. The MINI Cooper has been listed at number 15 in their 25 “Cars That Made a Difference” category.

The panel of judges stated

The 2002 MINI Cooper was proof you can sell a small car for a big price if you have the look and the legacy.

According to the report the USA TODAY auto team “wrangled mightily over which belonged on the list. But finally, a rough consensus emerged”.

While the MINI being listed at number 15 is without doubt an achievement, especially from a US publication, coming in after the likes of the Toyota Rav4 (Number 10), and Hummer H2 (14) and even the highly ranked Hyundai Excel (5) does take the shine off somewhat.

Then again, the same publications lists “There’s Something About Mary” and “Cable Guy” in their 25 “Movies with Real Impact“, while some more obvious choices, such as Schindler’s List don’t even get a look in.

You can see the full list on the USA Today website.

MINI have announced a new Satellite Navigation option Today for those who chose not to opt for the rather cool OEM integrated navigation option from the factory.

The new MINI Portable satellite navigation system is based on the highly rated Garmin nüvi 360 system, heavily customised for neat and really quite clever integration with the MINI Cooper (or any MINI for that matter).

Instead of mounting on the windscreen glass as a conventional aftermarket system most commonly would, the MINI Portable unit mounts besides the tachometer on the dash of your MINI.  The wiring is also concealed providing a neat and integrated appearance.

As with the integrated navigation system, the screen displays the MINI logo when your power up your MINI.  The icons and display have also been tweaked for MINI owners, including MINI dealer listings as well as around 6 million additional points of interest.  As with most navigation units available now, you can also chose between 2D and 3D displays.

Continue reading MINI Portable Satellite Navigation

Maybe this comes as little surprise to some, but there have been some negative remarks regarding the design of the MINI Clubman.

Key criticisms of the new MINI Clubman have included the simple fact it’s too big to be a MINI, the quirk that it only has one suicide door rather than two, and that it’s just not like the MINI (Traveller) Concept. However none of these criticisms mean that people are flatly against the introduction of the new model to the MINI range or even dislike the way the Clubman is shaping up.

In this poll on the MINI2 forums, asking the simple question “like it or not”, the results at the time of writing are a pretty conclusive 75% to 25% in favour of those who like the MINI Clubman. Obviously this is a completely different question to “would you buy one” or “do you prefer it to..”, but the results must be encouraging for those at MINI none the less.

Continue reading MINI Clubman Gets the Thumbs Up

What’s more limited than a limited edition MINI? How about a limited edition laser etched glass block with a (your) John Cooper Works GP captured inside it?

That’s what MINI2 member Tonyt3 has managed to come up with, and he’s making them available as a truly one off collectable item for GP owners, people looking to buy GP owners a unique and personal gift, in fact any MINI enthusiast who fancies something out of the ordinary in their collection.

Continue reading Limited Edition Works GP Collectable

Presumably wishing to do anything BUT recreate that 80s classic “National Lampoon’s European Vacation“, Robert Apon is currently on tour of Europe in his 2004 John Cooper Works MINI Cooper S.

As if it wasn’t enough of an experience to fly over from the US to attend MINI United, it seems Robert wanted to do the trip in style, so had is MINI Cooper S shipped over to rendezvous with him in The Netherlands.  This alone seems to have been quite an adventure!

At MINI United Robert met MINI icons such as Rauno Aaltonen and Mike Cooper and had a chorus of “Happy Birthday” sung to him on stage before being showered with MINI gifts.  Makes you think that it really was worth all the effort!

You can keep track of Robert’s adventures in Europe on his blog, and maybe you can hook up if he’s in your area?

The official announcement of the introduction of the BMW 1 Series Coupé to the North American markets in 2008 raises one interesting question for MINI watchers. Are BMW going to be competing with themselves for sales, will potential MINI buyers be lured by the bigger BMW, or will 1 Series window shoppers be taken in by the MINIs charms instead?

If rumours are to be believed, the new 1 Series Coupé could start at around $26,000 US dollars, which puts it on a par with a nicely specified MINI Cooper S.

Continue reading MINI to Face Competition from BMW 1 Series Coupé?