Nice pictures JohhnyL! Do you hear any ticking noise coming from the webspokes? I have and a few other people as well. Just want to make sure it's the wheels and not something serious with the car.

I have been busy Motoring, finally out of the break-in period. Got the AeroKit installed.

I have been busy Motoring, finally out of the break-in period. Got the AeroKit installed.

I think the Aerokit is at its all time best with the Hyper Blue/Black. Looks totally great, Kellzir!

Very cool pics, Johnny L! :cool:

I love the one with the reflecting peak - is that a mirage or an actual body of water?

Oh yeah, the underhood stuff looks cool too!

_Dave_

Addendum:
I just got a new "performance" mod from Jamie at South Bay MINI - terrible pic, but shows how subtle this mod is:

http://www.northamericanmotoring.com/gallery/data/719/15040WhipTail.jpg

Here's a closer look:

http://www.northamericanmotoring.com/gallery/data/719/15040Tastic.jpg

Oh yeeeaaah BOI!

_Dave_

Great mod, bet it adds at least 10 bhp. :D

Today is the first meeting of March group cars. I should be meeting Pamlico later today for a caravan to MoT. :D Our cars rode the same ship over too. I'll post pics of the siblings later. :)

April,

Not only does it add HP, it REALLY improves the Handling! (I'm thinking of trying to finagle another one for the front end.... That should get me equivalent performance to a pulley and coilovers! :D

March Group meet... Hmmmmmm. Hey, we should all try to make next year's AMVIV (http://www.aminivacationinvegas.com/) and get some face time. I think it will be in March too! That would be our MINIs one-year birthday.

Say hi to each other for me - I've enjoyed both your posts! :cool:

_Dave_

Hey, Kell', good to hear from you again. No, I haven't heard any ticking noise from the wheels as such. I've heard all kinds of other clicks, ticks, and snicks, but I'm not worried about any of 'em. I figure this car just has a lot to "say," so I'm just gonna let him speak his mind, so to speak. If it breaks, I'll just fix it, that's all! :p

P.S.: I just noticed your OD pic. The "D" kinda threw me off a little! ;)

Nice pictures JohhnyL! Do you hear any ticking noise coming from the webspokes? I have and a few other people as well. Just want to make sure it's the wheels and not something serious with the car.

I have been busy Motoring, finally out of the break-in period. Got the AeroKit installed.

JohnnyL - great looing car with the pulley :D

Kellzir - Like the aerokit. :cool:

If I were to spend more money it would be for the Works kit :D I'll have to wait on that for a while tho...

I would be up for a March build meet. We could do it every year in a difference place.

I think it's kind of a cool idea actually... :cool:

Making my first mountain trip this weekend into the North Georgia twisties :D Will try to post pix later...

Mike

Here's my latest appearance mod. I replaced the stock yellow grill slats with ones painted dark silver to match the stripes:

http://www.northamericanmotoring.com/gallery/data/500/15040GreyGrill800.jpg

Big thanks to Jamie and Jennifer at SOuth Bay MINI in Torrance, CA for the painted slats! The experiment was a success! :cool:

_Dave_

Met up with Pamlico, Mrs Pamlico and their JCW MCS yesterday! Very handsome family group. I think I got a picture with both of our cars in the shot, but have to wait till I'm back on broadband to post. :)

MoT today! I'm game for a meet at AMVIV next year, but I don't think I will take the time to drive my MINI out.

Here's my latest appearance mod. I replaced the stock yellow grill slats with ones painted dark silver to match the stripes:

http://www.northamericanmotoring.com/gallery/data/500/15040GreyGrill800.jpg

Big thanks to Jamie and Jennifer at SOuth Bay MINI in Torrance, CA for the painted slats! The experiment was a success! :cool:

_Dave_

The stripe colored grill looks cool. How about continuing the silver stripes all the way down the front on the yellow surfaces?

Zip

Hey Zip,

I considered continuing the stripe, but in my crude PhotoShop-type mockups, it just didn't work for me. The stripe also stops at the bumper in the back, so it seemed to work from a "form" standpoint:

http://www.northamericanmotoring.com/gallery/data/500/15040RearStripe-med.jpg

April, I like the idea of a meet in Vegas for two reasons:

1. It's relatively easy for just about anyone in the US to get there. (Flights are cheap, and it's "centrally"-located)

2. I like Vegas (and I don't even gamble!)

Since AMVIV has been so successful in the past, and since it's most-likely happening in March, it seems like an ideal opportunity for MPG05 (March Production Group, 2005 :D :cool: ) to get together.

Folks that don't want to make the drive from some of the more distant locations can rent all kinds of exotic cars easily there, including MINI Cooper S convertibles, Lotus Elises, 'Vettes, Mustangs, Cobras, Vipers, Smart Cars, electric cars, even Ferraris! I had a great time there renting an Elise from Rent-A-Vette (http://www.rent-a-vette.com/convertiblesnsportyroadsters.html).

_Dave_

Dave: Very nice on the grill. I don't think that I've seen anything like that before, but it makes a whole lot of sense!

Regarding Vegas: I have never wanted to go there (too much kitsch, I don't gamble, plus, now, it's expensive), but the prospect of driving the MINI all the way down could be just the thing to sway me. :cool: Too, I reckon, there's the "dark side" view point of Hunter S. Thompson. I could always keep that in mind . . .

Anybody think of a design for the March Build t-shirt? Here's an idea to play with:

March Build '05
Anticipation . . .

:red: :indi: :green: :blblack:

Gratification!

Something like that. I'm not married to it, but maybe just get the ball rolling?

Okay, gang. let's play a little game. It's easy. Below are two photos of my car. The first one is the day I brought him home, The second photo was taken after the one (okay, two) new parts I put on him a couple of days ago. Can you guess what they are?

Zip

Hey Zip,

I considered continuing the stripe, but in my crude PhotoShop-type mockups, it just didn't work for me. The stripe also stops at the bumper in the back, so it seemed to work from a "form" standpoint:_Dave_

Well, I guess I was thinking along the lines of the original Ford Mustang GT350. The car was white with two 10" wide dark blue racing stripes running the length of the car. This is one of my all time favorite paint job/color combos. And normally I don't care for white cars.

Zip

Okay, gang. let's play a little game. It's easy. Below are two photos of my car. The first one is the day I brought him home, The second photo was taken after the one (okay, two) new parts I put on him a couple of days ago. Can you guess what they are?

Zip


Well I can see the fender marker lights, but other than that... Tires?

And I also love the look of those early Mustangs, SHelbys, Cobras, and many of the GM pony and musclecars of the late 60's/early 70's. (SS Chevelles, Camaros, etc.) I graduated from high school just in time for the one-two combo punch of the first Gas crisis and 5 MPH safety bumpers! Oh those were bad times for auto enthusiasts! :mad: The best affordable drives around were Pintos, Vegas, and things like used Fiat Spyders or MGBs.

JohnnyL, Love the T-Shirt idea! As for Vegas, I had low expectations for it the first time I went, and pretty much the same attitude as you have now: I had another reason for going that was worthwhile, and figured I could enjoy it in a cynical way - sort of self-improvement, mind-broadening kind of thing...

I ended up LOVING it! It's truly refreshing to see a "culture" where almost everybody is straightforward about greed and desire and gratification. The whole social aspect is fascinating, and compelling. There is prolly no better place for people-watching in the US. There's also the architecture, which is to say the least, unique. And bizarre in some cases, and constantly changing. There's entertainment to suit every taste (My faves are Cirque Du Soleil's water show, "O", Blue Man Group, Penn & Teller, and La Femme. ), there are specialty amusements of all sorts: indoor skydiving, paintball, high-powered go-karts, exotic car rentals, helicopter tours of the city at night, or of the Grand Canyon, etc.

One thing nobody bothers much to talk about is the FOOD! If you can't find a good meal in Vegas, you must be on an IV. The buffets are prolly the most talked about thing, and they're pretty much all great, and fairly good bargains, but there are also plenty of amazing restaraunts of all kinds there. If you like sushi, there's the place at the Bellagio, where two pieces of salmon nigiri will cost you $17 before tip and tax - the tinted aquaria full of backlit jellyfish provide an amazing ambiance, and there's also TODAI, a Japanese Buffet chain restaraunt that has all you can eat sushi, sashimi, udon, ramen, tempura, teriyaki, and tempanyaki - all excellent quality and made to order in a very plain but clean atmosphere, with excellent service and courtesy, for $25 or less! There are restaurants run by world-class chefs like Andre Rochat (happens to be a distant relation of my wife, Judy), and unique dining experiences like the Hoffbrau Haus that folks went to as part of AMVIV this year that have to be experienced to be understood.

Sorry, got carried away, but I really like Vegas, and I never expected to. Chintzy, yes, sleazy, yes, over the top and amplified - you bet. But it's also the only place like it, and it's just good that such a place can exist and thrive. Best part of all - you can visit, then go home whenever you want!

_Dave_

Well I can see the fender marker lights, but other than that... Tires?

_Dave_

Yes, the only change are the obvious marker lights and chrome grills in place of the black ones.

A word about the chrome grills: I got them from Moss Mini (Moss Motors). When I ordered them about a month ago, the shipping charge was outrageous, like about three times what it should have been. So I called them and got a hold of a manager/supervisor who knocked the shipping down to the proper amount for the weight and distance. That was very much appreciated, and I told him so.

Then he told me that the item was back ordered and that he's send me an email telling me about when the item should be available. I never got that email.

The parts came about three days ago and I installed them immediatelly (I was _so_ excited!). Let's just say that the fit and finish of said chrome grills is a step or two below the stock black plastic pieces, and the stock S grill pieces as well (my neighbor has an S). Neither side fits exactly where it should, and the one on the driver's side required thickening of the front mounting post for it to even stay in place.

Considering what these things cost (I'm embarressed to say how much I spent for these little things), I am disappointed by their lack of quality. This is not the fault of Moss Motors, but the manufacturer of the part. I _am_ disappointed in Moss Motors for charging what they do for what I got. If the things fit properly it would have been fine. I wouldn't have minded (as much) paying the price for 'as good as stock' quality, but not for what I received.

Zip

Hi everyone. I had a real blast in the mountains this weekend :D Shut off the DSC and the LSD really pulls you through the tight turns. Oh, BTW - I passed one of those fancy Miatas around a turn and left him in the dust :D Man, that was so much fun.

I forgot to bring my camera tho... :(

Here's my idea for a T-shirt:

"March '05 Mini build club - there is no substitute"

Wait - I think I've heard that somewhere before :p

Excellent! DSC is EVIL. Today, I was going to pass an Acura TL (270 hp!), and when I shifted into 2nd at about 6k rpm, my front wheels chirped, and the LSD tossed a wet blanket on my party! :bad: In fact, I think it might have affected my ECU!!! For some reason, I think that my acceleration inupt has been dialed back a bit. Could it be????

BTW, Gaminicool, today I saw a Lamborghini parked at a, ahem, professional car cleaning establishment. I resisted the urge to walk up to the insouciant owner and challenge him! That could have been a situation . . .

Hi everyone. I had a real blast in the mountains this weekend :D Shut off the DSC and the LSD really pulls you through the tight turns. Oh, BTW - I passed one of those fancy Miatas around a turn and left him in the dust :D Man, that was so much fun.

I forgot to bring my camera tho... :(

Here's my idea for a T-shirt:

"March '05 Mini build club - there is no substitute"

Wait - I think I've heard that somewhere before :p

Sorry it's not a better shot, but here's a pic of my LY MCSCa and Pamlico's BRG/B MCS-JCW:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v706/AprilWhine/th_MoT2006014.jpg (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v706/AprilWhine/MoT2006014.jpg)

There are a few other cars between :D

That's a pretty sight, April! :cool:

JohnnyL, don't you mean "DSC" where you said "LSD"? The DSC is the party-pooper personality of the Sybil otherwise known as our ECU... LSD should have helped!

Speaking of which, I received my Ian C's Auto-Up / DSC "Track Mode" MINI Circuit (http://www.gbmini.net/MINIcircuit/index.shtml) in the mail tonight, and got it installed in less than 20 minutes, with no tools! It worked immediately, and is just the most amzingly good way to spend about $50US on yer MINI! :cool: :cool: :cool:

Auto-Up power windows :cool:
DSC defaults to "OFF" upon startup :cool:

Suh-weeet!

_Dave_

Yup, you're right. I did mean DSC, and I edited accordingly. No, the LSD is righteous! In fact, I once swore that I'd NEVER go back to FWD, but with the LSD, I am really growing to appreciate it!

Anyway, I have officially resolved that if I want to have ANY fun driving this car, the DSC must be switched off! The run flat tires are just too slippery, and they squeal too much, which is pretty typical of BMW OEM! :rolleyes: I can't wait to get more mileage out of my current set so that I can justify buying brand-new tires w/in the next year.

That's a pretty sight, April! :cool:

JohnnyL, don't you mean "DSC" where you said "LSD"? The DSC is the party-pooper personality of the Sybil otherwise known as our ECU... LSD should have helped!

Speaking of which, I received my Ian C's Auto-Up / DSC "Track Mode" MINI Circuit (http://www.gbmini.net/MINIcircuit/index.shtml) in the mail tonight, and got it installed in less than 20 minutes, with no tools! It worked immediately, and is just the most amzingly good way to spend about $50US on yer MINI! :cool: :cool: :cool:

Auto-Up power windows :cool:
DSC defaults to "OFF" upon startup :cool:

Suh-weeet!

_Dave_

Speaking of which, I received my Ian C's Auto-Up / DSC "Track Mode" MINI Circuit (http://www.gbmini.net/MINIcircuit/index.shtml) in the mail tonight, and got it installed in less than 20 minutes, with no tools! It worked immediately, and is just the most amzingly good way to spend about $50US on yer MINI! :cool: :cool: :cool:

Auto-Up power windows :cool:
DSC defaults to "OFF" upon startup :cool:

Suh-weeet!

_Dave_

Well-all-righty-then! Details, details, details. Whom do I contact to get one of these? TIA.

Zip

Well-all-righty-then! Details, details, details. Whom do I contact to get one of these? TIA.

Zip

You could click the link in his post... :D

Thanks, April! :cool:

I guess I could have made the link more obvious. Here ya go, Zip:

Ian C's MINI Circuit - http://www.gbmini.net/MINIcircuit/index.shtml (http://www.gbmini.net/MINIcircuit/index.shtml)

There's tons of info there. If you do a search on MINI2, you should find plenty of references as well. Ian is definitely operating a small business, so you can't pay by credit card, and he doesn't seem to have any company logos or other overhead. The link goes to his webpage, which seems to contain a blog, and similar stuff as well as plenty of info about the amazing MINI circuit. If you can use PayPal, that's the way to go. (I seem to have intermittent success with them, because I don't want to subscribe or join or whatever it is they keep asking me to do), so I paid by personal check.

Anyway, there are several options for the circuit, including DSC Track Mode, Foglight Auto-On with Headlights, and Garage-door Opener control. They all come with the Auto-up power window option. Good stuff!

_Dave_

Okay, thanks, Dave. I didn't notice the link until I passed my cursor over it just now.

Zip


Thanks, April! :cool:

I guess I could have made the link more obvious. Here ya go, Zip:

Ian C's MINI Circuit - http://www.gbmini.net/MINIcircuit/index.shtml (http://www.gbmini.net/MINIcircuit/index.shtml)_Dave_

I think the Aerokit is at its all time best with the Hyper Blue/Black. Looks totally great, Kellzir!

I agree. The aero kit looks sweet on that car. I saw it on a car like mine and didn't like it quite as much. SWEET! It's so cool that we can all have the same cars and give them their own personalities!

dp

I agree. The aero kit looks sweet on that car. I saw it on a car like mine and didn't like it quite as much. SWEET! It's so cool that we can all have the same cars and give them their own personalities!

dp

I agree, similiar MINIs but personlized to cater each individual.

I would still like to get a shirt! :D

Gaminicool, today I saw a Lamborghini parked at a, ahem, professional car cleaning establishment. I resisted the urge to walk up to the insouciant owner and challenge him! That could have been a situation . . .

Johnnyl - You should have done it man. You could have taken that car. :D

I'm with Kellzir - let's do the t-shirt :cool:

Hey, March Builders! By clicking on the link in my signature, you'll see some photos of the Alta CAI and the 15% Pulley.

BTW, these additions have made an already fun car even more of hoot to drive! :D :cool: :)
Nice! Love the pulley and the mountain pics. I've seen the salt flats that way once before and I'll never forget it.

One other thing...your Mini is exactly what I told my wife I would buy if I was picking the colors. I already had a name picked out an' everything. "Sister Mary". :D

Dave

Look what was in my mailbox today:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v706/AprilWhine/th_miniswag1003.jpg (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v706/AprilWhine/miniswag1003.jpg)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v706/AprilWhine/th_miniswag1001.jpg (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v706/AprilWhine/miniswag1001.jpg)

Anyone else got their welcome kit yet? Cool stuff, I like the MINI floating pen best.

Anyone else got their welcome kit yet? Cool stuff, I like the MINI floating pen best.

Check out Ian's site - he just received his as well. Still waiting for mine.