Hey all, I'm brandy new here. I've been thinking about replacing my beloved 2001 Maxima for about a year now. NOW seems like the right time, since gas is ridiculous. I've also been toying with the idea of replacing my car with a hybrid, but I can't bring myself to get one just yet, mainly because the styling of the Prius and Civic aren't exactly my fortay.
At any rate, I've fallen head over heels for the Mini Clubman, and I'm 100% sure I want one as my next vehicle. I was surprised to learn that the insurance coverage wouldn't be much more than I'm paying now, which is quite shocking since my car is a 2001, and a new Mini for me would be an 08 or if I can't do it this year, an 09.
I live in Worcester, MA, and I was saddened to learn that the closest Mini dealerships are in Boston (Herb Chambers) and Mini of Peabody. I'll admit, friends of mine have not had one nice thing to say about Herb Chambers, and after reading about them on other sites, I tend to agree. Though I know not all dealerships are perfect, but if I had to take my future Mini in for major service, I'd want it to be done right, as Herb Chambers is 38 miles from me, and MoP is about 47.
To get to my point (sorry for the ramble ), I'll be heading to MoP tomorrow afternoon. I'm hoping to find Vinny, who I've seen on these boards, and hopefully be able to take a test drive. The wonderful part about discovering Mini is their Mini Select financing offer, which I totally want.
At any rate, it's good to be on these forums, and I hope to motor with ya'll soon in my future Clubman. But first, gotta pay off those pesky credit cards. Eeeeek!
Mr. Silverblood - Welcome aboard! Good choice too...
And if you need out of warranty service in a couple of years look up Pete Eames (bwroofchex) at:
Midstate Auto Group
810 Washington St
Auburn, MA 01501
(508) 832-8886
Knows what he is doing and he is local!
“The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public’s money.” - Alexis de Tocqueville
Eric the Red
Good to know, since that also sounds close to Bertera Nissan, which is where I go now. Almost a shame to not do business with them once I snag a Clubman, they've been very good to me. Driving 47+ miles just for regular maintenance might suck a little, but if it's for free, it's a good excuse for a road trip.
One other thing I'm curious about, Vinny of MoP seems to have an upstanding reputation here. Provided he's not reading this, is there anything specific I should ask him regarding a test drive, or possible purchase? Just want to make sure I have my bases covered. :-)
A gent by the name of Bob Currie at Mini of Peabody e-mailed me back about a test drive and/or product presentation. Should be fun. I'll post how it goes in a couple of days.
From what I've read here, some folks hold MoP in high regard, which is nice to see.
Cheers!
Unfortunately, Vin's over on the BMW side of the house, now. I miss seeing him at MoP. There are still lots of good folks over there, tho. You might try saying "hi" to Hrach. He's hard to miss...
Oh yeah, that too. I was thinking about oil changes really. One of the questions I'll ask, is if the local Wagner BMW place in Shrewsbury would honor the 3 year maintenance on the Mini, even though they don't sell them. It would make sense, since they're owned by BMW. But even if I did have to drive to Peabody for all my maintenance, it's still not all that bad considering I drive 6 to 7 miles to work each day, 1 way. Plus me and the misses have been commuting together to save even more money, so even oil changes will be fewer and far between-er.
I also put a rough list of things I'm curious about on my phone, along with the 3 saved PDF's from miniusa.com. Wish me luck ya'll!
Well, to say I was blown away is quite the understatement. I now consider myself a future Mini Clubman owner, even the wife is now dreaming of owning a Mini.
The things I was impressed by:
- No haggling (I wasn't sure if this was going to be like a Saturn or a Nissan thing, Saturn being the 1 price, no haggle approach, and Nissan being the hagglers)
- The amazing amount of space inside the Clubman
- That wonderful button labeled "Sport", wow wow wow wow!
- The lighting affects inside, too cool for words
- Barn doors, nuff said
- One-with-the-road feeling, no other car I've driven comes close
- Did I mention the "sport" button?
Yeah, it was awesome. I did see Hrach, but I didn't say anything to him. He looked very busy with other customers, so I just made a mental note instead. We were helped out by Ed Marsi, really cool dude! Even though I wasn't planning to buy, he stayed an hour after closing with us to iron out the kind of Mini's we are now wishing for. THANK YOU ED!!!!
At the end, I filled out the financing forms, and told him about my wish to settle into the Mini Select program. He said I should get an answer by Tuesday. It'll be good to know this ahead of time considering I have a good chunk of debt I have to deal with now before I can make the jump to a Mini.
The good (in a way) part is that if I did put a deposit down now, the car wouldn't arrive until October, and if I waited a month or so, I'd be waiting until December, or possibly even January to take delivery. It's good because I could pay down my credit card from the deposit, and then concentrate on my debt, then maybe pull my tax refund money, along with a trade in.
Yeah, I'm excited!
And thanks for welcoming a new lad like myself. I cannot wait to the club!!! w00t!!!!
Welcome to the MINI world! I bought my MINI back in 06 at MoP with Joel Mesiti's help and then he helped my boyfriend purchase an 05 off the lot about 6 months after I got my MINI.
The Clubman has been very impressive and if I needed it, then I would be getting one! I say go for it!
Welcome! You've come to the right place (here) and gone to the right place (MOP).
Next time don't hesitate to introduce yourself to any employee there, especially hrach. In the latter case it will probably end up in learning some incredible story, or an even more incredible "demo" drive.
Feel free to ask us any questions as well. You should have some time left before the factory gears start turning on your mini and till then can change some of the options. Once they do, you can then follow it through as well as its journey to meet you.
I actually got word from Ed yesterday that I qualified for the Mini Select program through Mini/BMW. Now I've got to plan exactly what I want....but as I said before, the sad part is it might have to wait 4 months until I can get on a preorder for February. That way I can use my tax return money as part of my downpayment.
You know you're obsessed when you're researching the same vehicle for hours each day, not just for details, but just to LOOK at them. I swear, if there was a way to say something was crack on wheels, the Mini would be the drug. I'm fargon hooked!
Also I noticed that there's the "Mini Takes the States" event this month in Boston. Me and the misses talked about attending to get our Mini fix. Any of ya'll heading there?
no, but check out the "Jock and Hannah take to the states" thread. We're doing this in our new Clubman S, 2200 miles in and it's been flawless. You might want to hold off on a roof rack and pod till they figure it out. Welcome to the insanity! ( the clubman is my second MINI, I got an 02 Cooper S and put 110,000 miles on it and sold it for $8500) Ed Marci was our salesman on this car and he was great. Jock
I'll be there, some of the time at least - be sure to check out the events specifically targetted to not-yet-MINI-owners! And say "hi" to those of us you know via the forum
Ian C. Gloucester, MA, USA (UK expat) driving GPMINI or a non-MINI!
The AutoGuide.com network consists of the largest network of enthusiast-owned enthusiast-operated automotive communities.
AutoGuide.com provides the latest car reviews, auto show coverage, new car prices, and automotive news. The AutoGuide network operates more than 100 automotive forums where our users consult peers for shopping information and advice, and share opinions as a community.
Going to Mini of Peabody 
), I'll be heading to MoP tomorrow afternoon. I'm hoping to find Vinny, who I've seen on these boards, and hopefully be able to take a test drive. The wonderful part about discovering Mini is their Mini Select financing offer, which I totally want.
