[Viscount Charles]

Phoned my dealer yesterday - only to find that the MINI account executive I'd always dealt with had left some time before Xmas, and no-one thought to tell me. Not very impressive - they seem happy enough to keep my £500, but then don't want to keep me informed about what I might regard as important news.

Anyway, the new chap seemed a bit vague - ran through the old info with me ("It has a 6-speed gearbox, bonnet air intake ..." etc) as if he was reading it for the first time, and didn't have much of a clue as to when more information would be available. Best he could do was "The car's due to be launchd sometime around June, though that could change". And I've rarely heard about things changing for the better. AS to updated specs, pricing, etc, he didn't have a clue.

Like others, I'm beginning to waver. My Mini is being a little *** right now, and I might not be able to wait until "sometime around June, maybe later" - particularly as I won't get one of the very first dealer allocated cars. One thing that would really tick me off, and cause me to cancel immediately, is if the UK cars are delayed any longer than any of our colonial cousins.