[R99]

Hi all.

I'm rather bored and I've decided to write this in an attempt to get out of revising for an exam I've got on Tuesday!

I've had my car just over a year now, I got it just before Christmas back in December 06. So I thought I'd write a kind of review thing about how my 1st year of MINI ownership has been.

Well, when I got my car it was a fairly standard 2006 model ONE D; With the exception of the previous owner opting for polished R99 alloys, a zip on the roof, the HK sound system and a half leather interior. Believe it or not I also didn't intent to change anything!



For the first few months I spent the time getting used to the car. I owned a Citroen C2 beforehand and the two cars are completely different. The MINI feels so much nicer to drive, which is not surprising as it is a true 'premium' brand small car. Everything about the car from the steering response, the engine performance, to the interior are far superior. The thing that impressed me the most about the car when I first got it (and continues to do so!) is the Harmon Kardon sound system. For a factory fit system it really is superb, I'm sure the neighbours have grown tired of me by now when I come home with it cranked up!

The first shock of my ownership experience came when I was driving down to a friends in Manchester and I got a puncture. No problem I thought, its not going to be too expensive. How wrong was I?! £135 later I was back on the road. The curse of runflats! In fairness to the tyres though, the car (despite doing about 70mph) didn't even wobble, the first I knew about it was a warning light on the dash.

After spending a while on MINI2 getting the most basic queries answered such as what the pepper pack includes! I stumbled across the events section of the site. A few weeks later and I was taking part in the World Record Convoy in aid of Comic Relief. What an amazing night that was, I had such a good time. It also opened my eyes to the world of MINI tuning and styling. I was well and truly bitten by the bug. It also introduced me to the Woodmans dealership and their painfully tempting deals in the group buy section!

Maintenance wise, the car has been pretty much trouble free. Which is a stark comparison to my previous car, which in a space of a year required a new alternator, two new ECU's and a new drivers seat. The MINI has only needed a service under TLC, two rubber window seals and a small piece of chrome trim for the rear window.

One thing which I didn't expect though was for the alloys to corrode. Initially BMW refused to process a claim. My local dealer trying to claim that they were, to quote: "too shiny" to be genuine OEM alloys. However a bit of common sense from Chris at Woodmans and within a few weeks BMW had agreed to replace all 4. The car looks much better for it now.

Once again the tyres came back to haunt me, just before I came back to Uni in September. Both the fronts needed changing to the tune of £250.

Over the last year I have spent quite a bit of cash getting my car to where it is now. Woodmans have supplied me with my aero kit, aero spoiler and cooper s fuel cap. Mikeythemini has supplied me with bulbs, indicator housings and decals. Lohen sold me my Alta aerial and also gave me some stickers. I'm sure that I could have spent my money on more worthwhile things, but every time I drive my car it still feels like the day I got it. It's also nice to send some business the site sponsors way, to people who actually care about the brand.

I think the car is going to have to go in for some work in the next couple of months. It's decided to develop an annoying squeak from the windscreen and a rattle from one of the vents. The aero kit decals also need looking at, as the recent rain seems to have made them go all manky.

Overall though I have really enjoyed the 1st year of ownership and although its a sluggish diesel, the car has always been welcomed by the people of MINI2. Whether it be on the forums or on runs out. There are some benefits though, I am averaging about 45mpg, which is nice while fuel prices are so high........

Anyway I have written far too much and managed to avoid revision for long enough. So I shall stop it there. Just a few pics of it after a year so you can see how its changed......




James.

[vickietots]

What a great write up!! Also it is a great looking MINI you have there! Nicely modded! Mine still feels like the day I got it too!

[KPKalle]

You should be a journalist

[Woody'sCooper]

excellent blog R99. The aero totally transforms the looks of you One D, those pre-facelift style bumpers don't do them any favours

[118]

great write up James

[R99]

Quote: Originally Posted by vickietots (original)

What a great write up!! Also it is a great looking MINI you have there! Nicely modded! Mine still feels like the day I got it too!

Thanks for the compliments. I'm glad that your also enjoying your MINI, hopefully next year I'll still be enjoying the car just as much.

Quote: Originally Posted by KPKalle (original)

You should be a journalist

HaHa, thanks. I dont quite think I would cut it in the real world though! It was quite fun writing it up though. Much better than my Uni work!

Quote: Originally Posted by Woody'sCooper (original)

excellent blog R99. The aero totally transforms the looks of you One D, those pre-facelift style bumpers don't do them any favours

Yeh the older bumpers really don't do the car justice. I've always wondered why MINI gave the ONE D all the other facelift features (lights etc) and even upped the engine from 75bhp to 88bhp, but still kept the old bumpers.

Quote: Originally Posted by 118 (original)

great write up James

Thanks mate.

[R99]

It would seem I may have cursed myself by writing this!

Just browsing the forums and I've now determined that my car has all the symptoms of the 'hot start problem' which appears to have been plaguing ONE D owners for over three years. Better news still, it seems to be incurable by BMW.

Great....

[mister.t]

I know the feeling of exams at the moment - Although probably not quite as intense as Uni ones Great write up - Really like the combo with R99s and Aero Kit and black

[RyanK]

Very Nice! Love the second shot with the aerokit.

Its a year living with mine now, and I'm still loving like last year. Modifying it is expensive though and as you say, being a 'premium' small car its certainly not cheap to upkeep!

Ryan

[R99]

Quote: Originally Posted by mister.t (original)

I know the feeling of exams at the moment - Although probably not quite as intense as Uni ones Great write up - Really like the combo with R99s and Aero Kit and black

Thanks Ollie. My exams finished on tuesday, and I've been celebrating the past couple of days. Hence the slow reply on here.

Cheers for the comments, appreciated mate. Hope your exams have gone ok.

Quote: Originally Posted by RyanK (original)

Very Nice! Love the second shot with the aerokit.

Its a year living with mine now, and I'm still loving like last year. Modifying it is expensive though and as you say, being a 'premium' small car its certainly not cheap to upkeep!

Ryan

That pic is one of my favorite ones, we get some good sunsets down here, but I'm usually never around to get any pictures, not bad for a camera phone shot though.

Yeh they certainly aren't cheap to upkeep, got it booked in for this hot start problem, thankfully under warranty!

James.

[Chilli21]

Gorgeous MOD! lovely write up made me go all warm and fuzzy inside hehe

[R99]

Thanks! I've got to say your ONE is a great looking car too.