[comets]

Hello Toronto Mini owners and enthusists.

I just saw a silver/white Mini today on Davenport.
This is the first Mini I have seen on the road.
It was not an S. And my first impression on the car (on the road) was that it looks BIG!

The last image in my head of a Mini on the road was my 1976 Mini 3 years ago. The new Mini's size doesn't attract me all that much. But still, I know I am trading in my car for an S sooner or later. I have sworn to be a lifelong Mini Driver




So who got their Mini's in Toronto, who's waiting?

Which dealer did you go to, which one do you recommand?

Why did you get an S in Toronto over a Cooper?

I heard roumors that people withdraw their deposite, why? Is it true about the suspension issues?

Arthur

[Jayomatic]

Hey Arthur! Welcome to the club!!

Well, there are not too many of us Canadians in here. There are about 4 - 5 of us on this board who are in and around Toronto. Most of them are at the mini launch party tonight! Lucky buggers!

I have my money down at Town & Country BMW up in Markham. I had a deposit on an S but later changed it to a cooper because it is cheaper and I can actually afford a cooper instead.

Town & Country BMW is really nice. The person in charge there is named Lindsay and she is nice to deal with. I think she is as excited about the cars coming as the buyers are.

I have not heard much of people removing deposits here in Canada. I know there are problems in the states with Dealers charging for unwanted accessories which would cause people to take their money elsewhere but none of that is happening here.

Don't worry about the suspension issues either. They were early build problems and I believe they have been ironed out and are now fine.

Good to have you aboard! Keep in touch. I think there is some talk about having a meeting this spring in the city somewhere.

I am about to launch a Toronto Mini Club to organise meetings, etc in the future.

Jay

[comets]

Hello Jay, thank you for your information.

I am planning to get a Mini, S or Cooper, doesn't matter. It all depends on my financial status.

It is great to hear that you are going to organize a Mini Club in Toronto. I would love to drive along if you guys are holding a meeting, and I would love to be a member

Regarding the economics of the Mini, how long did Lindsay say you have to wait? Are you going to get your car this Saturday? I am thinking of getting price quotes from Markham Mini and Buds in Oakville this saturday. And I hope that the prices are not firm MSRP's like other 'exotic' cars.

After all, I guess $$ is the big issue that seperates me from a Mini.

Arthur

[Jayomatic]

I'm not sure how long a wait for cars are. I have to wait until October for mine because I need my current lease to run out.

I think I was around 24th overall which I think I could have had a car this spring sometime. I don't think the wait is too long but if you are thinking of getting a mini this year I would suggest going to a dealership this weekend or earlier before people get an idea of the mini because I could imagine waiting lists getting quite long.

I also brought up the topic of negotiating the price as well and you might have a hard time getting the price any lower than msrp which kinda sucks! but hey, its a car in demand. they don't need to try and sell anything. People will buy it.

[SomeBlondeGuy]

BTW, comets, only the Mini Cooper (not the 'S') will be released this weekend. The first Cooper S' should be out late May/early June.

[comets]

I didn't realize that they weren't selling the S until late May.

But we'll see if they have anything special on the deals this weekend since is their so called 'b-day'

Arthur

[noahe]

The estimate I got for my S was early May. Anything can change though. But, at least mine is in the first batch. I'd rather have it for summer, than late august, early september.

[Jayomatic]

Hey Boys. How was the launch party? What cars were there. Did they have those freaky ladies wearing those silver outfits?

J

[comets]

Just wondering..

If they said to you "you are gonna have to wait, but if you change your colour".... would you?

How about this one "you are gonna have to wait, but if you change to a Cooper instead of a Cooper S".... would you?

Arthur

[nwoodiwiss]

Well guys, launch party was an experience. Very glitzy, lots of cash spent on it, fancy passes on chains, three free drinks tickets, trendy snacks walked around, and yes, numerous girls (and guys) in hot pants writhing in spotlights to the absolutely grotesque techno music (live band was even worse - like watching paint dry whilst being beaten with a dead skunk). Had a Cooper and "S" outside, 2-3 coopers inside, one of which could be sat in. Had videos of the North American ads projected on the walls as well as old Cooper "S" racing films (neat). At 11:00pm was the draw for the free Cooper...we did not make the cut (boo). I got my VIN number for my launch Cooper from Budds Oakville yesterday, sitting on the dock at Halifax NS awaiting customs clearance & shipping to TO. Am told I'll get it in 2 1/2 weeks ! Also dealers now taking bookings for test drives of Cooper and "S". I'm driving an "S at Budds 9:00am Saturday...I'll post my experiences after...also people high on list for an "S" are being called by dealers to spec them for a June delivery...

[noahe]

Quote:

Originally posted by comets
Just wondering..

If they said to you "you are gonna have to wait, but if you change your colour".... would you?

How about this one "you are gonna have to wait, but if you change to a Cooper instead of a Cooper S".... would you?

Arthur

Scenerio A: I did. We were waffling between BRG and Yellow. A Red/White one was offered to us, in position 2 on the list (May delivery) or we could wait until our spot, 21 on the list, which would be about 19 cars after they start arriving in late august, early september. For us, that very well could have been mid-winter. We also had to sacrifice any options outside of a package. For us, that meant no Cruise Control and no OBC. We still jumped at the Red/White one.

Scenerio B: Nope. Not unless it was the difference between getting a MINI at all... I.E. if the S were not comming to Canada, or I found I could not afford an S. Barring that, I'd be getting an S regardless of the wait.

I don't regret my decision one bit. Seeing the Red/White in person, it's great. I've convinced myself it's the best combo now. A good, Canadian colour scheme. As for the options - I'm happy. All the sport stuff, none of the luxury stuff. Works for me.

[comets]

Knowing that I will be waiting for the S for a long while (due to the fact of the huge demand, and my financial status), I don't think I will be selling my car next week. My goal was to sell my car next week, get the mini, S or no S next week. However, things don't always go my way, so I had to step back not selling my car just yet.

I just went to the Markham dealer today, they don't look like they have anything setup for the Mini's b-day tomorrow. They told me to go back at noon tomorrow, I guess I will.

They also told me that there will be no test drives tomorrow at the launch date, and told me to test drive next week anytime I want.

We'll see how things go, will tell you guys how my first impression of driving the Mini will be.

Thanks

ARthur

[Jayomatic]

Went by Mini Markham after work. Didnt see any in the showroom so I started to drive past but something caught my attention to my right. It was 4 mini coopers!! Yay!!

They were in a fenced in area which had an open gate so I just strolled on in to take a look at them. Nobody said anything to me, actually there seemed to be hardly any staff around, except the construction workers working like crazy finishing off the showroom. It looks to be almost complete. I think they were puttin together desks and finishing off everything. Looks really nice.

Ok, to the minis!

Only saw coopers allthough there was a large truck on the other side of the dealership with some guy waiting around. Perhaps there were more cars in the dealership or maybe someone had taken an S home. The 4 cars that were there could have been some launch editions as well. Not sure. Will find out tommorrow.

There was a Blue/White roof Red/White roof Yellow/Black roof and a silver/Black roof. I think most of them had sunroofs and I think 2 had sport seats and 2 didn't. Also there was no headlight washing systems or xenon headlights on them so perhaps they were launch editions. They had Halifax documentation all over them. I was like a 5 year old on his first trip to toys R us!

I will be going by sometime tommorrow to check things out. I would really love to just go and sit in one and relax and spend time with the car without having to rush the experience for other people wanting to get in the car like at autoshows. I want to sit in one and close the door and just relax and try it on like clothing. Maybe I will see some people around. Look for the young looking guy with a black jacket and stumbling around from having a cold!

Jay

[comets]

Hey Jay,

I will be dropping by tomorrow around 11-12.
I will be an Asian guy with glasses and roaming around with a black jacket.

I don't like it in the autoshow as well. Everyone want to get in, even people who don't love the Mini as much as I do.

Hope you hear from you soon

ARthur

[tripwire]

Hello fellow Toronto MINI fans. I'm more of a lurky here than anything but just wanted to say my greetings.

Didn't get to go to the party. Bummer - but it was much more clubby than I had expected (based on Noahe's summary anyway). And hey, I'm 26 and clubbing got old for me since 2nd year. But I know folks in the early 30's who are still going strong. <shrug>

Anywho, I'm guess I'm not that diehard as some of you guys are, as I'm planning to wait for the 'dust to settle'. I'm very interested in the S - was thinking of red/white, but seems like red/white will be too common, and I prefer standing out. Still, I will wait to see how things go as it will help me save up more $. I like a lot of the available options (I hear the heated windshield is being delayed?) and I think the price for my Mini will be quite high above the base price.

At that point, I'm wondering if it's almost worth it to save a few more grand for the IS300? Probably not, but we'll see.

Hope to visit the downtown store sometime this weekend to nab a brocure to figure out the final price! Why doesn't mini.ca have a build yer own car feature!? Bummer!

[SomeBlondeGuy]

I too wish mini.ca would get their act together.

BTW, pass on the Lexus and get a Cooper 'S'!!! You won't be sorry.

[tripwire]

Welp, as I'm sure you are well aware, the IS300 and the S are very different class of cars. I definitely like the sport-luxury aspect of the IS300. Although the S can be outfitted with all the similar luxuries, it's still missing about 40hp, and simply isn't in the same class as the Lexus.

However, I'm definitely leaning towards the S. It will be a lighter hit in the wallet overall, as well as being a much 'neater' car than the Lexus. How can I turn down the sweet sunroof?

I'm just wondering if the speaker upgrades will be worth it. I outfitted my current Subaru with subs/amp/MP3 player, but I'd rather not do it again. Once was fun enough for me.

[noahe]

The radio question, although covered before, is simple. The cassette deck is a regular unit that a small, low power 4 channel amp in it. The CD and MiniDisc are head-units only, with no amplification - just pre-amp out. There is a small amp located somewhere in the car. The H/K system replaces this small amp with a large one, and replaces all of the speakers with H/K speakers with uprated wattage handling. You get the same head unit as the lower boost package.

I listened to the CD Boost system today. It seemed more than adequate, and clear. I will test in on my test drive with the windows down on the highway, so see if it is up to the task. I highly suspect it is.

No doubt the H/K system is even better, but how good does a stereo on a car have to be in a small car? This car will definately have a fair amount of road noise, engine noise (especially the S) and drive-line noise. It's just not big enough for any more sound deadening material.

I would spend my H/K stereo money elsewhere on the car, or at home. But that's just an opinion.

[comets]

I was at Markham Mini today and there were no sales rep there who can help me. Only a receptionist there was unpacking items here and there and she was not willing to show me around simply because that wasn't what shes suppose to do.

I guess I will wait until a few weeks after when everyone is set and ready to go, oh and yeah, I will rather deposite at Budds over Markham eventhough i have never been to Budds before, and I am pretty sure that my neglect at Markham Mini will make me avoid going back there again.

How ironic, when you have the money to ready to pay for a deposite, no was was there to help.

Arthur

[nwoodiwiss]

comets, the best Mini dealerships I have dealt with are the "Corporate" BMW Canada onwed ones...in the GTA Mini Whitby and Mini Downtown...

Cheers...