Mini chat time...myth or reality?

1078 Views 12 Replies 13 Participants Last post by CanberraCooperS, Oct 7, 2004

Babes

Discussion Starter · Oct 5, 2004

Do you find you have to allow an extra few minutes if you are going somewhere for mini chats? Everywhere i go when i get back to the car or arrive people come and look at it. Seems everyone has a mini story to tell. The wife wont drive the minge because of the so called "time wasters" who want to chat. Personally I love it, and bothers me not people coming to chat.

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IML337

· #2 · Oct 5, 2004

In the old days (over 2 years ago) if you were in a MINI this would happen all the time. MINIs are a lot more commonplace in Sydney these days and it's rare that it happens anymore.

It happens in service stations every now and then though, but people don't stop you in traffic and ask you questions anymore (unless you win a traffic light grand prix race and they are confused as to how a "little mini" could have beaten them

)

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Baker

· #3 · Oct 5, 2004

I've found that you do need to allocate a few mins extra for chatting - as you said, everyones got a Mini story!

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Mike Clarke

· #4 · Oct 5, 2004

Judging by the tales I get told it would seem that everyone in Perth over the age of 35 has owned a classic Cooper S

On Sunday in Dwellingup, we were accosted by a young kid and his mother.

The youngster had wanted to get a classic Cooper but after chatting with us and having a good look around our cars he is now saving for a MINI Cooper S.

I'm always happy to stand and chat with anyone about MINIs

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martymini

· #5 · Oct 5, 2004

It happens all the time. I agree with Mike, everyone in Perth over 35 seems to have had a Mini sometime in their life.

Last instance was Saturday night as I was leaving a restaurant after dinner. Little old man and lady came hobbling over for a look. They too, had had a Cooper S in their younger days.

Something that you get used to.

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robbo mcs

· #6 · Oct 5, 2004

Hi,

I still get plenty of questions, mostly at the shops, servo etc. Usually "how does it go", "do you like it", "my xxxxx (insert husband, dad, uncle son etc) used to have an old mini" etc.

I had a funny one a week ago when I was returning from Bathurst with Boo in the car. When we were stopped at the traffic lights a guy in the passenger seat of the car next to me motioned to wave the window down. He asked if the car had a BMW engine. I said yes, and he freaked out and his girlfriend started laughing. He had lost a $200 bet with his girlfriend over the origin of the engine. It was only a minute later that I thought about it, and realised that technically it is not a BMW engine, but a Chrysler block sourced from South America, but by then it was too late

Cheers

Robbo

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Dan_C

· #7 · Oct 5, 2004

Agree that the mini chat was a lot more common 2 years ago when the mini was still new on our roads. I do not get bailed up as much as I used to but it still happens all the time. I agree with the line though about seeming that everyone over 35 has owned an old mini. If they did not own one then they will certainly have a story to tell about the old mini.

I especially like to hear some of the older folk telling me their mini stories from the "glory days" when they went to watch the mini went to win the Bathurst motor race. The other common one is when people recount how when they were young they went to the UK and drove all around in an old mini.

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scooperman_uk

· #8 · Oct 5, 2004

yes it can be good. howver in the uk ive had a few people come over in petrol filling stations and be very rude about my MINI,, trailer park mentality if guess

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AussieMini

· #9 · Oct 5, 2004

Because I work for the Queensland Ambulance Service I am required to go to accident scenes and major mass-casualty incidents.

When I do I often go in my "S" with magnetic ambulance livery and let me tell you that brings over a few people for a chat.

Often bystanders forget about the accident and want to chat to me about the car.

Tis always funny.

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Smurfn

· #10 · Oct 5, 2004

I still get stopped and chatted too by heaps of people. So many people have had classic Minis it is unbelievable. And they all want to know how the MINI compares

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FLiPSiDE

· #11 · Oct 5, 2004

yep much the same as tim said, 2 years ago it was cute.. these days its just an anoyance..if i see someone lookin i tend to look the other way get in my car and drive off asap.. sure its being a bit of a snob.. and thats not really me at all.. but its just really anoying the conversations are always exactly the same... i've been too nice to too many boobs over the years and wasted too much time on idiots withpointless conversations "is the engine in the boot?" "man u should turbo it" "how does it go" "how much did that cost" closely followed by a comment of disaproval....its really tired..

i dont mean to be a killjoy or a grumble bum.. but they're not new, they've been around for years.. i'd like to be rude person at heart and be able to answer the questions the way i'd like to... I dont really care if u owned a classic mini, i still own one of both.. yes its expensive for a little car, no i dont care.. no my mum didnt pay for it.. yes it'll beat your POS.. but meh i just cant do it.. just attempt to end the conversation as quickly as possible and be on my way.

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2bob

· #12 · Oct 5, 2004

We had one of the first Coopers on the Northern Beaches- we were stopped all the time plus if i left the car i came back to finger marks all over it .Now have Cooper S - still get questions but not as much . People dont realise the cost of the car-still think of the cost of a MINI 850.

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CanberraCooperS

· #13 · Oct 7, 2004

As there are not to many in Canberra, compared with Syd i get comments all the time. Mind you because its lowered.. after market wheels/brakes/seats/exhaust etc and so on with TAKAMII stickers on the back windows i get more interest from the RiceBoy Brigade wanting to know how quick it is?? Or they have heard about it from mates of theres i have beaten at wakefield.
Then you get the 40+ group who all seem to have owned or known somone who owned an original mini and think the new one is great.
It took a long time to get used to people looking at your car all the time.

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