[DITCH]

Well folks after several months deciding, I'm finally going to get a MINI; Chili Red with a White/UJ roof and white R82 wheels.

Both dealers I've talked to are requesting that I buy $1000-1600 worth of extra "stuff" in order to let me purchase.

Does anyone know of a dealer in Florida that is not tacking ADM or any other markup to the MINIs they're selling?

Thanks in advance,
Ditch

[cooper4us]

I highly recommend Lauderdale Imports BMW/MINI in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. They are the BEST MINI dealership in the entire South Florida area, bar none!.

They sell new MINIS strictly at MSRP with no ADM or other markups or "Mandatatory accessory packages" tacked onto the final price. You get your MINI Cooper or MINI Cooper S the exact way you want it and just pay sticker price, sales tax, tag and registration and a $299 fee for the paperwork, car prep detailing, wax, etc (The lowest fee among all S. Fla MINI dealers).

They are a fantastic bunch to deal with, extremely knowledgeable, accomodating, courteous and professional. The best car buying experience I might add.

Talk to Larry Bonito and Crystal Neagle. They are both terrific individuals and extremely well versed in the product.

Lauderdale MINI does not tack mandatory packages or accessory packages as they do not believe this fosters long term and repeat customers. These people are true to the MINI spirit!.

Good luck and have fun!.

[fred-guido]

I second the comments of cooper4us about Lauderdale Mini. All of the sales people there are pretty great including the other ones not menitioned by cooper4us, the girls are pretty cute as well.. My Mini buying experience has been excellent in every possible way thus far and should get even better as I am about to receive my MCS sometime next month

Good luck in your purchase!
P.S. they give you the floor mats for free +/- $ 90.00 value

[DITCH]

Thanks fred and cooper4.

I called and talked to Larry. Nice guy. He said he'd gladly order one for a DECEMBER delivery.

I can't wait that long. I'll need it in October at the latest. The folks at Downtown MINI said that if I ordered it this week, it would get here late September/early October. I guess I'm just stuck buying the $1k of $50 sunshades and overpriced things like that.

Any relief out there?

Thanks again,
Ditch

[BigMack]

Hi Ditch,
I hope you are using Mike Priest as your Advisor at Downtown MINI....

He is a great guy & owns Classic Minis as well.
President of FlaME (Florida Mini Enthusiasts)

Some of their orders are making it into production sooner than expected.

I have a Cooper S on order from him.

Good luck, get the cd-changer & driving lights & that will take care of the $1000, and then some.

[wingspan]

Seems like we had that discussion a while back. See general discussions -> Mini in Florida thread.

My experiences are not positive for MSRP and generally reflect other folks thoughts above.

If you can live with the $1K Cooper/$1.5K S minimums at Downtown, I highly recommend you go with them. I've had nothing but positive experiences with the staff there (Mike T, Mike P, Sean the service manager). I have no problems with a dealer who places the price where they like; I myslef have chosen not to buy from them because 1) I'm waiting for my portfolio to recover from flatlining over the last 3 months and 2) I'm curious exactly what changes/prices/options are available for the '03 model S. It sounds like if you want a car sooner, you'll have to pay a bit. Nothing wrong with that, and nothing wrong with a dealership that pitches their product the way they want to.

Besides, eventually the price will stabilise with market supply. That may mean prices will continue at current levels, allowing dealers like Downtown Mini to get those mandatory options sold.

Or not.

Curiously, I did a quick look on ebay about 2 months ago. Lots of cars with bids at or above MSRP it seemed to me. Last week the same search found similar amounts but not so many bids nor were there nearly as many with high price tags. My colleage at the office mentioned that with her PT Cruiser she waited 6-8 months initially; now apparently they're at the dealerships lots sitting around.

Good luck. I'll be following your forum with interest, be curious what you find out...

mag

[OBsminiS]

SImple case of supply and demand. If you want the Cooper and you want it now you are going to have to pay for it. At least it sounds like you will be getting something for the extra money. Read some of the dealer feedback if you want some good examples of price gouging.

If you can be patient you will get a better deal. Got my wifes PT Cruiser for significantly less than MSRP. That had a lot to do with the end of the initial demand and lets face it when Chrysler doubled production the price obviously had to come down to move the increased amount of product.

That being said I am impatiently awaiting the delivery of my S. It gets to Charleston friday. Lets hope that MINI doesn't decide to flood the market.

[DITCH]

Yep, looks like I'm gonna pay the $1k.

That Mike P is a nice enough guy, too. Interestingly enough, when I told him the colors and options I wanted, his own MINI turns out to be exactly alike except he has chrome bumper trim.

I'll probably be ordering this week. Wish me luck...

Ditch

[MINIjewel]

Quote:

Originally posted by DITCH
Yep, looks like I'm gonna pay the $1k.

That Mike P is a nice enough guy, too. Interestingly enough, when I told him the colors and options I wanted, his own MINI turns out to be exactly alike except he has chrome bumper trim.

I'll probably be ordering this week. Wish me luck...

Ditch

A plane ticket up here and road trip home would be cheaper! What are you looking for? I'll see what I can do for you!

[OBsminiS]

Ditch,
I know that this is insane but when I dropped off my preference sheet at Tom Bush today I asked about the availability of the MINIs on the lot. They were all available. One was a red S with the UJ on the roof. Don't know what the specific options were but if you are looking for one sooner than later that might be the route to go. Might want to give them a call

I didn't look too closely but there were 3 EB S's with White roofs. A couple of Silk green and a wide variety of other colored MINIs. Will take a picture when my wife and I run out this afternoon

[fred-guido]

Quote:

Ditch,
I know that this is insane but when I dropped off my preference sheet at Tom Bush today I asked about the availability of the MINIs on the lot. They were all available. One was a red S with the UJ on the roof. Don't know what the specific options were but if you are looking for one sooner than later that might be the route to go. Might want to give them a call

I didn't look too closely but there were 3 EB S's with White roofs. A couple of Silk green and a wide variety of other colored MINIs. Will take a picture when my wife and I run out this afternoon

That is what happens when they sell over MSRP. Ft. Lauderdale Mini received their last shipment and their lot was full of cars, a week later I drove by and all they had were their 2 demo cars. It is a shame that some dealers feel they need to make more than MSRP on a sale. I think they should be glad to have a product that literally sells itself for MSRP no haggling necessary. I wish I had a product like that to sell. Anyway, I know how you feel, the wait is rough a $ 1K sounds like a small price to pay, but for me it was a matter of principle! and lack of dough!

[wingspan]

I spoke with a friend of mine who has ordered his car from Downtown Mini. Apparently he thought they were going to get his "S" in seven weeks. I said that was great.

He said that they told him that waits for ordering were now "caught up" and that new "S"'s were on the order of this time period.

I thought it was interesting in that the time quotes I was given just a few months ago (May) of 12 months for an "S" seem to have dried up.

Have you ordered your S yet?

mag

[MiataJake]

DITCH - nice to see you here. I see you on the Miata Forum all the time. I'm IndyJake there. No Mini for me yet. I'm waiting for a new used on in a couple of years!