[JohnPaul]

BruceK

I'm a fellow Texan and I share (with slightly less reckless abandon) your passion to get behind the wheel of a MINI Cooper ASAP. But practically speaking what WILL you do when a switch breaks or the starter won't crank or any number of things go wrong? I was also on the list at Peake and was heartbroken to hear they'd cancelled. Now it's a toss up between Scotsdale and Nashville or Memphis.

I'd appreciate your insight about the practical side of buying a MINI from a dealer hundreds of miles away.

[BruceK]

Quote:

Originally posted by JohnPaul
BruceK

I'm a fellow Texan and I share (with slightly less reckless abandon) your passion to get behind the wheel of a MINI Cooper ASAP. But practically speaking what WILL you do when a switch breaks or the starter won't crank or any number of things go wrong? I was also on the list at Peake and was heartbroken to hear they'd cancelled. Now it's a toss up between Scotsdale and Nashville or Memphis....

Well, on the good side side things there is the MINI Roadside Assistance Plan for situations such as if the car won't start. Here are some details:

http://www.mini2.com/forum/showthrea...&threadid=4231

Plus, haven't heard yet about any switch problems (and believe me, we would hear about them on this forum )

Quote:

Originally posted by JohnPaul
...I'd appreciate your insight about the practical side of buying a MINI from a dealer hundreds of miles away.

My insight? I can assure you there is nothing practical about doing that. But if I wanted something normal and boring and practical I'd be posting on a Honda Civic forum instead of here!

I cling to the hope that MINI dealers will be announced in Texas by early summer and will be open as soon as several months later. I guess we'll see....

[JohnPaul]

BruceK - Thanks for your reassurance. I find it so comforting to read the posts here. Everyone in my 'real' world thinks I'm a bit looney what with all my MINI lamenting...

I read that the waiting list at Peake will/may be transferred to another dealership. Do you have any info about that? (practical or not)

[BruceK]

Quote:

Originally posted by JohnPaul
BruceK - Thanks for your reassurance. I find it so comforting to read the posts here. Everyone in my 'real' world thinks I'm a bit looney what with all my MINI lamenting...

Safety in numbers, eh? There are a good number of Texans on this list (not counting all those lurkers who have not yet posted )

Quote:

Originally posted by JohnPaul
I read that the waiting list at Peake will/may be transferred to another dealership. Do you have any info about that? (practical or not)

JohnPaul, I was told by a rep from MINIUSA that they would try to distribute the Peake list to other dealers, but in practal (there's that word again ) terms that just seems to be a pipe dream. I don't see how any another dealers with their own lists would consider somehow sloting ex-Peake customers into the mix. Let's say you were on the list at the MINI dealer in Memphis. How would you feel if the dealership suddenly tried to slot Peake people in front of you?

[Mini1380 two]

My feeling is that MINIUSA should/could distribute the list to various dealers. They should also have to let that dealer get additional cars, being those that they would have sent to PEAKE. I have already added my name to St.Louis, mainly because they open in March, unlike Memphis which won't open until June(?).

I still don't know why PEAKE never called me when they decided to not be a dealer. They have not been very professional.

[jailed]

In an online chat James Healey , an auto collumnist for the USA Today newspaper was asked about the state of Texas and the MINI Dealership question and this was his response "James Healey: True. There's some bureaucratic hang-up there just now. Mini vows to get it untangled ASAP and get those 5 Lone Star stores up and running. But Mini gives no ETA for that; just 'later this year.'".

Ok we knew about the bureaucratic hang-up but what is this about 5 Lone Star stores. The great state of Texas should see more than 5 stores? Right BruceK?

Here where I would consider putting them:
1 in El Paso (to cover west Texas,NewMexico and some of southeastern Arizona)
1 in Amerillo
1 in Houston
1 in San Antonio
1 in Austin
2 or 3 in Dallas/Fort Worth area
1 possible in Beaumont (to cover east Texas and Louisiana)

[Mini1380 two]

Response from MINIUSA about the PEAKE MINI dealership.

************************************************** *********
We are feverishly seeking a new MINI dealer in Louisiana. As soon as we select one, we can decide on the best way to move forward.

Dealers are independently owned and operated, and as such we must negotiate all arrangements with the new dealer first, before we can consider a policy regarding Peake MINI's customers. We hope to have this done as soon as possible.

Again, please accept my apologies for the difficulties you've experienced.
************************************************** *********

As per another BMW dealership in the greater state Louisiana that could sell the MINI, there is a dealership in Shreveport. That would be great for me as well as for anyone in eastern Texas. I still wonder how they are going to handle the list that PEAKE MINI maintained and David Seawright prioritized

it be great if MINIUSA contacted the people on the list and said "What are the specs for your MINI, and which open dealership do you want us to ship to car to so that you can pick it up". Of course you would still have to pay for it. This way you wouldn't impact any other dealerships list and you wouldn't be bumping anybody because the car you ordered would be based on the PEAKE list.

[chiph]

Any chance of going to a MINI dealership across the Mexican border?

Chip H.

[BruceK]

Quote:

Originally posted by jailed
...Ok we knew about the bureaucratic hang-up but what is this about 5 Lone Star stores. The great state of Texas should see more than 5 stores? Right BruceK?

Here where I would consider putting them:
1 in El Paso (to cover west Texas,NewMexico and some of southeastern Arizona)
1 in Amerillo
1 in Houston
1 in San Antonio
1 in Austin
2 or 3 in Dallas/Fort Worth area
1 possible in Beaumont (to cover east Texas and Louisiana)

Prior to about June last year, the miniusa.com site listed potential locations (i.e. cities) for MINI dealers all across the US. Then in June, it began listing the potential dealerships (by name) across most of the US. It was at this time that Texas dealership information fell off the radar screen (and computer screen as well )and the generic "Fear not great Texans..." statement was added.

When potential Texas locations were originally listed, they were:

2 or 3 in Dallas/Ft. Worth
1 or 2 in Houston
1 in Austin OR San Antonio OR College Station

So the highest number of Texas MINI dealerships originally anticipated was about 6 and the least was about 4.

So the number of 5 dealerships is right in the middle.

[BruceK]

Quote:

Originally posted by chiph
Any chance of going to a MINI dealership across the Mexican border?

Chip H.

Absolutely none. North American Free Trade Agreement notwithstanding, there is almost no way to import a Mexico-spec car into the US. Besides, the Mexico-spec MINI Cooper is priced at about 150% of the US one for some reason.

If it was easy to import Mexican cars into the US, you can be assured that classic VW Beetle enthusiasts would love to bring over lots of brand new Mexican-built air-cooled classic VW Beetles - they are made side by side in the same factory in Puebla that assembles the Golf-based New Beetles!

[chiph]

Quote:

Originally posted by BruceK
Absolutely none. North American Free Trade Agreement notwithstanding, there is almost no way to import a Mexico-spec car into the US.

Oh well, it was an idea....


Chip H.

[BruceK]

There was a rumor I heard from my local BMW dealer that there would be some news on MINI dealers in Texas by the end of April. Anybody heard anything new?

BTW, my BMW dealer is building a new addition to the dealership that will be for "used cars and selling MINIs". I'll believe it when I see it (not the building itself, but the selling MINIs part)

[Deuce Coop]

Bruce do tell which dealer you are speaking of.

[BruceK]

I am speaking of the creatively named dealer called "BMW Center".

It's in San Antonio.

[olddad]

When you finally get that Texas Mini, and you happen to live in Austin, The VIN etching is free from the Police Dept. It's only a $45 job at the glass shop anyway...a $300 dealer gouge here in California.

[Deuce Coop]

I noticed a very interesting thing while on MINIUSA tonite, Under the ways to pay section there is a buyers choice option, basicly a lease with the option to buy at the end of the term via a baloon payment. The interestig part is that it is only bieng offered in four staes, one of them bieng Texas(PA, IL, MD are the others if I remember correctly). There may be hope for us cow-polk after all, if they have gone as far as working out a special finansing for us as one of only a few states the ball may be rolling!

Then again this may just be something they have dealt with before with BMW and are offering it with MINI also.

[Deuce Coop]

Today on the front page of the business section of the Dallas Morning News the feature article was about the troubles between MINI and Texas. No real groundbeaking news to those of us who have been keeping up with the story on MINI2. But a spokesman for the state said the liscence is ready to print if MINI would just submit a list of dealers, and that they will only give them a list of all dealerships who have applied for franchises.
What side to believe?

[Wynn]

It doesn't sound like we've made any progress at all!

The burden is clearly on MINIusa's shoulders, and they need to just *^&%ing get it together to comply with the unusual, pointless State of Texas requirements. JUST DO IT! And then sell me a MINI!

AAAAAAARRRRRRR!

[JohnPaul]

any point in us Tex'uns pleading & begging MINIUSA to get it together?

would a flock of emails hurt or help?

[erazo]

Quote:

Originally posted by Duece Coop
Today on the front page of the business section of the Dallas Morning News the feature article was about the troubles between MINI and Texas. No real groundbeaking news to those of us who have been keeping up with the story on MINI2. But a spokesman for the state said the liscence is ready to print if MINI would just submit a list of dealers, and that they will only give them a list of all dealerships who have applied for franchises.
What side to believe?

Excuse me, but can't anyone see what is happening here? Doesn't anyone recognize that these franchise laws, and similar laws, serve no one except the soviet-style bureaucracies and legal apparati they create?