[weezgrrl]

Hey folks, just wanted to throw my hat into the forums (first post!) to say that this weekend I'll be going down to the dealership to test drive and (hopefully) find a MINI. I've never purchased a new car before - and only once went to a dealership - so I'm a bit of a newbie. My dream find would be the 2004 Electric Blue/white roof MiniCooper S with the Sport package, and the fog lamp package, and the auxiliary gauges, and the white wheels...

I dropped off my loan application at the credit union this morning, and an hour later was approved! Right now I'm in that giddy, excited, obssesive state of mind where I'm not able to get any serious work done and all I can think about is "why can't the weekend get here sooner"? Y'all keep your fingers crossed that the dealer has some serendipidously-good stock!!

Love these forums, they're a godsend! Feel free to reply with any advice!

[MiniMan7]

Welcome to Mini2.

Great colour combination, I gotta say its a very good choice.

You think you're excited now, just wait! You won't be able to stop grinning when you sit in the drivers seat, let alone if you buy it.

Hope all goes well,

-Adam

[MiniAdventurer]

welcome to M2

your spec sounds great, that colour combo is really good

hope the weekend comes soooooon

[Parc77]

Great choice in colour and welcome.
Oh and if you do purchase a MCS @ the weekend - makesure you get as much from the dealer as you can - full tank of petrol/gas mini keyrings etc basically get all you can - good look you wont regret buying one - well I didnt

[weezgrrl]

What about those plush bulldogs, they still have those? I saw a pic of one and they are so darned cute (I can't have dogs where I live, so a stuffed one will need to suffice).

[Paul!]

Yup, they do! You could probably get your MA to foot the bill for it too, if you buy from him!

I also was too impatient to order one, so I bought 'off the rack'. Luckily, it had everything that I wanted!

Good luck!

-Paul!!

[SoggyCornFlakes]

Welcome to MINI2 Hope the test drive goes well - I'm sure you'll place the order once you return from it

[northandy]

welcome and cool colour combo !!!!!

[weezgrrl]

Does anyone know, is Electric Blue a color that dealers tend to have in stock, or is it generally a custom-order type thing? Anyone have any info about the standard colors the dealers tend to keep in stock? Is it all just silver, red and yellow?

[Smurfn]

Welcome. Enjoy the MINI, great colour choice

[gone_motoring]

Quote: Originally Posted by weezgrrl

Does anyone know, is Electric Blue a color that dealers tend to have in stock, or is it generally a custom-order type thing? Anyone have any info about the standard colors the dealers tend to keep in stock? Is it all just silver, red and yellow?

Not to take the wind out of your sails, unfornately very few dealers have stock of any colors as these MINIs are in so much demand......so technically, I geuss they're all custom ordered colors!
.....which of course gives you full control over just how you want you MINI to be.

Good luck and welcome!

[MINIAC]

Another bit of bad news is that most CA dealers charge a premium for the MCS. Unless you're willing to wait a long time (Long Beach MINI) or pay a mark-up, think about purchasing your MINI out-of-state.

[weezgrrl]

So I went down to test drive a MINI "S" this weekend. The power and handling I found to be quite impressive. The interior feel, however, left me feeling a bit less-than-eager. I've read time and time again how the vehicle is quite roomy for people even over 6 feet tall, but I'm 5' 2". I had to bring the seat so far forward to get both my feet in a good position to utilize the pedals that my chest was almost touching the steering wheel. I drive a very old Honda Civic, which is even smaller than the MINI and it feels quite roomy - I don't have the steering wheel right in my lap. With the MINI, I'm not sure if it was just my nerves and the discomfort I seem to always feel while test driving a car with a salesman present, or the fact that I wasn't really sure how to set the seat properly, but it felt a bit "tight" for me.

Needless to say, I didn't order a MINI right there on the spot. I wanted to opt for the 2005 model anyways, and the dealership wasn't given any allocation for the new model yet. So my MINI order is on hold, but the GOOD news is that I've got a MINI "S" reserved as a rental for this weekend. That's an entire weekend with just me and a precious MINI Cooper S to spend together, either falling in or out of love.

Here's a question, does anyone know if there's any way to have the pedals "lifted" in a MINI so that my legs don't have to stretch as far down? I know some other vehicle models offer this standard, but wasn't sure if anyone had experienced something similar to my dilemma in the MINI and if there was any available work around.

Thanks!

[littlemoon]

It sounds like the seat was too far up for you. I'm a little short and find the mini perfect for my leg length. If you felt the steering was on your lap, then just have a play around when you hire one this weekend!

[gone_motoring]

Quote: Originally Posted by weezgrrl

Needless to say, I didn't order a MINI right there on the spot. I wanted to opt for the 2005 model anyways, and the dealership wasn't given any allocation for the new model yet. So my MINI order is on hold, but the GOOD news is that I've got a MINI "S" reserved as a rental for this weekend. That's an entire weekend with just me and a precious MINI Cooper S to spend together, either falling in or out of love.

Thanks!

Good luck with your weekend....hopefully you'll find the right seat/steering wheel/pedal combination to feel comfortable.......BTW, who rents MINIs???

[weezgrrl]

There are two places in the L.A. area I know of - the first is Budget Beverly Hills, the 2nd (where I'm renting from) is a chain called Midway Car Rental, both can be found online and offer web reservation. At Midway, it's about $120/day to rent for the "S" model, not cheap. You can fins a regular "Cooper" at BBH for about $80/day.