MINI2

gotsmart · Mar 19th, 2008, 10:57 PM

Greetings, all!

Well, after nearly 9 years and 270,000 km, we've decided it's time to retire our trusty old MkIV Golf.

After much research and test-driving, we've finally made a decision! Sitting beside my smart in the driveway will be a brand-new MINI Cooper Clubman!

We're really excited, and absolutely love the car. We can't wait to get it. It's on order now, will likely be in production in April, with a late May delivery.

In the mean time, i'm looking for a good source for wheels and tires in North America. I'm particularly looking for the R108 multi-spoke wheels with either summer or all-season rubber. (We'll be using the stock 16" alloys for snow tires.)

Sometimes there's a bit of friction between smart drivers and MINI drivers. Well, now our household has one of each... proof that we CAN get along!

laura f · Mar 19th, 2008, 11:05 PM

Hi & welcome

Can't help on the tyres front, but there is a regional section for fellow canadians , if someone doesn't pop along to help you, drop in and ask them

gotsmart · Mar 19th, 2008, 11:07 PM

Thanks, Laura!

I haven't had a chance to look around much yet. I found this forum by Googling the MINI R108 wheels. I'll be sure to have a poke around!

laura f · Mar 19th, 2008, 11:10 PM

Glad you found us

Have browse and remember to post pics when your new baby arrives

I didn't realise there was friction between smart & MINI drivers?

At least it's not on your driveway

beken · Mar 19th, 2008, 11:59 PM

Welcome and congratulations on your car.

If you're in the Vancouver BC area, there are two MINI clubs you can join (join both

).
The advantage of joining a club is they have sponsors that give club members discounts.

Cheers!

gotsmart · Mar 20th, 2008, 02:58 AM

We're actually in the greater Toronto area, but thanks for the tip about some of the clubs. We've been members of clubsmartcar.com, which isn't very well organized as a "club"... more just a forum that happens to do some events in real life.

KPKalle · Mar 20th, 2008, 07:05 AM

Hello and welcome gotsmart

steve11 · Mar 20th, 2008, 07:25 AM

Hi & welcome, what colour combo did you go for?

Posts001 · Mar 20th, 2008, 08:36 AM

Hello and welcome,
Love the clubman, what colours have you gone for. Post pics when you get some!!!

DaFlake · Mar 20th, 2008, 08:58 AM

Welcome!

I recommend Tire Rack for your tires. The Tire Rack - Your performance experts for tires and wheels

They also carry an assortment of wheels as well but not the OEM ones. If you are looking for OEM wheels, you will probably only find them at the dealer.

gotsmart · Mar 20th, 2008, 01:41 PM

TireRack is definitely my fallback plan.

I priced out a set of 17" O.Z. Superturismo GT (which look similar to the R108s) with Continental ContiProContact SSR rubber, and was quite surprised at how reasonable they were, mounted, balanced, with tire pressure monitors installed, and with shipping.

(Especially considering MINI Oakville quoted me $3700 for R108s with performance tires.)

I'm going to check with MINI Downtown today when i'm down there for a meeting, and maybe give St. Catharines a call.

Strangely, there are a few cars in the accessories catalog pictured with the R108 wheels, yet the wheels themselves aren't listed anywhere.

Do the TireRack tire pressure monitors work reliably with the MINI's monitoring system?

gotsmart · Mar 20th, 2008, 01:42 PM

Oh, by the way, here's the configurator pic of what we've ordered:

MINI Cooper Clubman
- 6-speed manual (time for lessons!)
- Hot Chocolate Metallic
- silver roof & mirrors
- silver bonnet stripes
- leatherette interior (we have a golden retriever, so it's the most sensible choice)
- comfort package
- convenience package
- chrome line package
- travel package
- bi-xenon headlights
- media connect

We're also getting stone guard on the nose and rear bumper, and a 35% tint all around, with a slightly darker tint on the rear glass.

DaFlake · Mar 20th, 2008, 01:50 PM

Nice spec!

Not sure on the monitor though. You might try sending them an e-mail to ask.

NeuroBeaker · Mar 20th, 2008, 04:03 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by gotsmart (original)

Sometimes there's a bit of friction between smart drivers and MINI drivers. Well, now our household has one of each... proof that we CAN get along!

HEY HEY HEY!! Our household also has both a SmartCar (ForTwo - 600cc turbocharged) and a MINI (ONE)!!

So, allow me to warmly and enthusiastically extend to you the official welcome into the "SmartMINI" or "MINISmart" (not officially decided yet, as you're thusfar the only other member) Organisation of Righteous Motoring Happiness. Our provisional official handshake looks like this:

Although that is, of course, subject to ratification once membership numbers dramatically increase following the rest of the world's realisation of how awesome we are.

And I think that's about it for now.

All the best,
Andrew (and Nicky - in absentia).

gotsmart · Mar 20th, 2008, 07:44 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by ARCrawford (original)

[indent]HEY HEY HEY!!

Our household also has both a SmartCar (ForTwo - 600cc turbocharged) and a MINI (ONE)!!

So, allow me to warmly and enthusiastically extend to you the official welcome into the "SmartMINI" or "MINISmart" (not officially decided yet, as you're thusfar the only other member) Organisation of Righteous Motoring Happiness.

Our provisional official handshake looks like this:

Haha! Thanks!

I'll be sure to take photos of the "kids" together when the Clubman comes in. My smart is pictured below... it's a 2006 blue-on-black CDI coupé. Absolutely brilliant car for commuting. And i'm mildly amused that our "big" car will be a MINI.

NeuroBeaker · Mar 20th, 2008, 08:00 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by gotsmart (original)

Haha! Thanks!

I'll be sure to take photos of the "kids" together when the Clubman comes in. My smart is pictured below... it's a 2006 blue-on-black CDI coupé. Absolutely brilliant car for commuting. And i'm mildly amused that our "big" car will be a MINI.

Blue-on-black is obviously the best choice - ours too!

I'll see about getting a picture up soon.

gotsmart · Mar 25th, 2008, 02:47 AM

Here are some Photoshop mockups i did of our "configurator" MINI with the R108 wheels i'm planning on buying.

85NIXMIN · Mar 25th, 2008, 03:00 AM

Oh yum!
I love that hot chocolate colour! mmmm makes me hungry! HAHA!

DeadCanDanceR · Mar 25th, 2008, 04:45 AM

Hi and welcome aboard!

Oh boy, I love those wheels!

Mejy Poo · Mar 25th, 2008, 05:28 AM

Hello

Loving the Hot Chocolate, they should have that colour for the hatch

Mar 19th, 2008, 10:57 PM	#1
gotsmart MINI2 Regular Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Greater Toronto Area Local Time: 09:26 PM Posts: 46 Offline	Allow myself to introduce... myself... Greetings, all! Well, after nearly 9 years and 270,000 km, we've decided it's time to retire our trusty old MkIV Golf. After much research and test-driving, we've finally made a decision! Sitting beside my smart in the driveway will be a brand-new MINI Cooper Clubman! We're really excited, and absolutely love the car. We can't wait to get it. It's on order now, will likely be in production in April, with a late May delivery. In the mean time, i'm looking for a good source for wheels and tires in North America. I'm particularly looking for the R108 multi-spoke wheels with either summer or all-season rubber. (We'll be using the stock 16" alloys for snow tires.) Sometimes there's a bit of friction between smart drivers and MINI drivers. Well, now our household has one of each... proof that we CAN get along!

Mar 19th, 2008, 11:05 PM	#2 (permalink)
laura f off out.... My Classifieds Join Date: May 2004 Location: 2nd gear Local Time: 01:26 AM Posts: 19,903 Offline	Hi & welcome Can't help on the tyres front, but there is a regional section for fellow canadians , if someone doesn't pop along to help you, drop in and ask them \| My Gallery \| My Flickr \|

Mar 19th, 2008, 11:10 PM	#4 (permalink)
laura f off out.... My Classifieds Join Date: May 2004 Location: 2nd gear Local Time: 01:26 AM Posts: 19,903 Offline	Glad you found us Have browse and remember to post pics when your new baby arrives I didn't realise there was friction between smart & MINI drivers? At least it's not on your driveway \| My Gallery \| My Flickr \|

Mar 19th, 2008, 11:59 PM	#5 (permalink)
beken 05 MCS BEP Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delta, BC, Canada Local Time: 05:26 PM Posts: 1,229 Offline	Welcome and congratulations on your car. If you're in the Vancouver BC area, there are two MINI clubs you can join (join both ). The advantage of joining a club is they have sponsors that give club members discounts. Cheers! 05MCS BEP - Alta 22mm rear anti-swaybar, Madness CAI, Alta 15%, NGK BRK7EIX

Mar 20th, 2008, 07:05 AM	#7 (permalink)
KPKalle Knight of the Round Table Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Midhurst, Sussex Local Time: 01:26 AM Posts: 21,580 Offline	Hello and welcome gotsmart Global Moderator

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Mar 19th, 2008, 11:07 PM	#3 (permalink)
gotsmart MINI2 Regular Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Greater Toronto Area Local Time: 09:26 PM Posts: 46 Offline	Thanks, Laura! I haven't had a chance to look around much yet. I found this forum by Googling the MINI R108 wheels. I'll be sure to have a poke around!

Mar 20th, 2008, 02:58 AM	#6 (permalink)
gotsmart MINI2 Regular Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Greater Toronto Area Local Time: 09:26 PM Posts: 46 Offline	We're actually in the greater Toronto area, but thanks for the tip about some of the clubs. We've been members of clubsmartcar.com, which isn't very well organized as a "club"... more just a forum that happens to do some events in real life.

Mar 20th, 2008, 07:25 AM	#8 (permalink)
steve11 Mad Modder My Classifieds Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Australia Local Time: 11:26 AM Posts: 340 Offline	Hi & welcome, what colour combo did you go for?

Mar 20th, 2008, 08:36 AM	#9 (permalink)
Posts001 Wooohooooooooo Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Where ever I land Local Time: 01:26 AM Posts: 3,425 Offline	Hello and welcome, Love the clubman, what colours have you gone for. Post pics when you get some!!!

Mar 20th, 2008, 08:58 AM	#10 (permalink)
DaFlake Lovin' every MINI of it! Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Hanging on The Cape! Local Time: 08:26 PM Posts: 11,037 Offline	Welcome! I recommend Tire Rack for your tires. The Tire Rack - Your performance experts for tires and wheels They also carry an assortment of wheels as well but not the OEM ones. If you are looking for OEM wheels, you will probably only find them at the dealer. Global Moderator

Mar 20th, 2008, 01:41 PM	#11 (permalink)
gotsmart MINI2 Regular Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Greater Toronto Area Local Time: 09:26 PM Posts: 46 Offline	TireRack is definitely my fallback plan. I priced out a set of 17" O.Z. Superturismo GT (which look similar to the R108s) with Continental ContiProContact SSR rubber, and was quite surprised at how reasonable they were, mounted, balanced, with tire pressure monitors installed, and with shipping. (Especially considering MINI Oakville quoted me $3700 for R108s with performance tires.) I'm going to check with MINI Downtown today when i'm down there for a meeting, and maybe give St. Catharines a call. Strangely, there are a few cars in the accessories catalog pictured with the R108 wheels, yet the wheels themselves aren't listed anywhere. Do the TireRack tire pressure monitors work reliably with the MINI's monitoring system?

Mar 20th, 2008, 01:42 PM	#12 (permalink)
gotsmart MINI2 Regular Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Greater Toronto Area Local Time: 09:26 PM Posts: 46 Offline	Oh, by the way, here's the configurator pic of what we've ordered: MINI Cooper Clubman - 6-speed manual (time for lessons!) - Hot Chocolate Metallic - silver roof & mirrors - silver bonnet stripes - leatherette interior (we have a golden retriever, so it's the most sensible choice) - comfort package - convenience package - chrome line package - travel package - bi-xenon headlights - media connect We're also getting stone guard on the nose and rear bumper, and a 35% tint all around, with a slightly darker tint on the rear glass. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by gotsmart : Mar 25th, 2008 at 11:36 PM.

Mar 20th, 2008, 01:50 PM	#13 (permalink)
DaFlake Lovin' every MINI of it! Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Hanging on The Cape! Local Time: 08:26 PM Posts: 11,037 Offline	Nice spec! Not sure on the monitor though. You might try sending them an e-mail to ask. Global Moderator

Mar 20th, 2008, 04:03 PM	#14 (permalink)
NeuroBeaker Must.. keep... smiling... Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Behind the wheel Local Time: 01:26 AM Posts: 6,444 Offline	Quote: Originally Posted by gotsmart (original) Sometimes there's a bit of friction between smart drivers and MINI drivers. Well, now our household has one of each... proof that we CAN get along! HEY HEY HEY!! Our household also has both a SmartCar (ForTwo - 600cc turbocharged) and a MINI (ONE)!! So, allow me to warmly and enthusiastically extend to you the official welcome into the "SmartMINI" or "MINISmart" (not officially decided yet, as you're thusfar the only other member) Organisation of Righteous Motoring Happiness. Our provisional official handshake looks like this: Although that is, of course, subject to ratification once membership numbers dramatically increase following the rest of the world's realisation of how awesome we are. And I think that's about it for now. All the best, Andrew (and Nicky - in absentia). NeuroBeaker - Proud owner of "Zeus" (a 'slightly modified' 2004 MINI ONE). *WARNING!* Thesis writing in progress. Experiments continue. Multi-tasking? Explosion imminent!

Mar 20th, 2008, 07:44 PM	#15 (permalink)
gotsmart MINI2 Regular Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Greater Toronto Area Local Time: 09:26 PM Posts: 46 Offline	Quote: Originally Posted by ARCrawford (original) [indent]HEY HEY HEY!! Our household also has both a SmartCar (ForTwo - 600cc turbocharged) and a MINI (ONE)!! So, allow me to warmly and enthusiastically extend to you the official welcome into the "SmartMINI" or "MINISmart" (not officially decided yet, as you're thusfar the only other member) Organisation of Righteous Motoring Happiness. Our provisional official handshake looks like this: Haha! Thanks! I'll be sure to take photos of the "kids" together when the Clubman comes in. My smart is pictured below... it's a 2006 blue-on-black CDI coupé. Absolutely brilliant car for commuting. And i'm mildly amused that our "big" car will be a MINI. Last edited by gotsmart : Mar 26th, 2008 at 12:05 AM.

Mar 20th, 2008, 08:00 PM	#16 (permalink)
NeuroBeaker Must.. keep... smiling... Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Behind the wheel Local Time: 01:26 AM Posts: 6,444 Offline	Quote: Originally Posted by gotsmart (original) Haha! Thanks! I'll be sure to take photos of the "kids" together when the Clubman comes in. My smart is pictured below... it's a 2006 blue-on-black CDI coupé. Absolutely brilliant car for commuting. And i'm mildly amused that our "big" car will be a MINI. Blue-on-black is obviously the best choice - ours too! I'll see about getting a picture up soon. NeuroBeaker - Proud owner of "Zeus" (a 'slightly modified' 2004 MINI ONE). *WARNING!* Thesis writing in progress. Experiments continue. Multi-tasking? Explosion imminent!

Mar 25th, 2008, 02:47 AM	#17 (permalink)
gotsmart MINI2 Regular Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Greater Toronto Area Local Time: 09:26 PM Posts: 46 Offline	Here are some Photoshop mockups i did of our "configurator" MINI with the R108 wheels i'm planning on buying. Last edited by gotsmart : Mar 25th, 2008 at 11:58 PM.

Mar 25th, 2008, 03:00 AM	#18 (permalink)
85NIXMIN MINI on the brain!!! Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Brisbane, Australia Local Time: 11:26 AM Posts: 1,084 Offline	Oh yum! I love that hot chocolate colour! mmmm makes me hungry! HAHA! If the world didn't suck we'd all fall off! www.myspace.com/85nix

Mar 25th, 2008, 04:45 AM	#19 (permalink)
DeadCanDanceR ...viva MINI...!!! Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Guadalajara, México Local Time: 07:26 PM Posts: 18,951 Offline	Hi and welcome aboard! Oh boy, I love those wheels! DeadCanDanceR

Mar 25th, 2008, 05:28 AM	#20 (permalink)
Mejy Poo MINI2 Senior Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Lancashire Local Time: 02:26 AM Posts: 372 Offline	Hello Loving the Hot Chocolate, they should have that colour for the hatch

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