I figured, since I was going to be hanging out at MINI of Ontario all day last Saturday covering their Grand Opening Event, it would be a great time to let the lad in back have a go at some repairs.
While those repairs were ongoing, they gave me a 2010 Clubman Cooper to drive. A sparkling silver check board roofed specimen complete with automatic transmission, no sport package and no heated seats. Perfect car for the loaner fleet.
That, aside from the automatic transmission, I have been thoroughly enjoying.
That’s right. 15″ wheels on skinny tires. No sport suspension either. Still, this MINI handles like a MINI and provides a much better ride. I was going to say quieter, but with 2800 miles on the run flats, they are already getting noisy.
And it’s quite quick. Even with the automatic. One would say it gets up and goes very well and like I’ve mentioned, I have very much enjoyed having this MINI to drive for the last few days. Plus it has given me the opportunity to drive an automatic transmission car for more than an hour and I have figured out why I don’t like it.
If you are going to drive the pants off it, then the automatic isn’t so bad. Hit the sport button, move the lever to the left and mash the go pedal. Manually shifting the gears or letting the computer do it for you is perfectly acceptable if you are going to be driving in a more aggressive manner.
It’s when aggressive driving is over that this transmission really starts to dull. In stop and go traffic I find it getting confused and switching between gears, causing serious lag. Other times I’m finding that, much like the CVT, it takes to long to ‘engage’ a gear and just lets the engine wind out, almost like taking 100 yards to let the clutch out of a standard shift car.
And, since I spend most of my time driving more like my grandmother and less like Mario Andretti, I can’t stand the automatic.
Which is really too bad. I’ve been diggin’ the more relaxed motoring this Clubman has afforded me, but the transmission just drives me batty!
Holy crap! AMVIV is just 2 weeks away! Here is the latest update from Agro for those of you that aren’t subscribed to the AMVIV mailing list. If you haven’t registered yet, you can do that here. It is also looking like Aliante Station has had a few cancelations, so if you want to get in and stay at the host hotel, I would do that sooner than later. Otherwise, there are some great rates being offered by area Casinos.
Don’t forget, almost the entire WRR crew will be on hand, shaking hands and kissing babies. Plus we will also be hosting White Roof Radio Live Saturday night at Club Access. You don’t want to miss it!
Click through for the complete email and links from Agro. Hope to see you in Vegas! (Read on…)
This is a repost from Whiteroofradio.com. Don’t let it happen to you!
Hanging out at MINI of Ontario yesterday and talking to the service manager who tells me that he has had 4 cars, recently, with engines that were in need of replacement due to oil starvation, including an MCS with less than 15k miles on the clock.
Haven’t we talked about that?
Next time you fuel your MINI, take the 30 seconds to check your oil. Remind everyone at the next club meeting you go to. Start a thread on a message board. Something. There is no reason for you to lose your engine because it ran out of oil!
If you forgot how to check your oil, or aren’t terribly sure about the procedure, check out the video above to set your straight. If you are low, head to your local MINI Cooper dealer’s parts counter and they will sell you all you need. No dealer nearby? Your local parts house sells Castro Synthetic which works in a pinch. Or punch up your favorite MINI Cooper after-market shop like OutMotoring.com, Detroit Tuned, Minimania.com or Moss MINI to get it as well.
This is turning into an epidemic of epidemic proportions gang for something that is easily corrected with a minute of time and a couple of quarts of $5 oil.
Sure you saw the new R60 music video, right? Most of us know it’s not the first time a MINI was featured in a music video.
Who remembers Hammer and Coop?
If you are looking for a fun way to kill some time, might I recommend checking out the Hammer and Coop YouTube channel. You can thank me later.
The next 30-some days is shaping up to be pretty busy for me, at least as far as MINI stuff goes. If I’m honest, it’s been too long!
First up, February 27th I’m going to be hanging out at MINI of Ontario for their first Blood Drive. I’m looking forward to seeing some new MINI folks and hopefully meeting up with some old friends. Stop by 10-3 and say hi!
Following that, both Todd and myself will be back at MINI of Ontario on March 6th for their official Grand Opening celebration! All day, 10a – 5p, taking pictures, video, interviewing people and playing air hockey. Yes, MINI of Ontario has an Air Hockey table. You can see it in the video below.
After the grand opening, we will be hanging out and a still unknown location and would like any of you to come by too! It’s going to be a great warm up to AMVIV and expect a good time to be had. More details on this to follow.
And rounding it all out is AMVIV happening the last weekend of March. Sure we are going to be there hanging out and causing mischief like we like to do, but we are also (we being White Roof Radio) hosting and sponsoring a little thing called White Roof Radio Live on Saturday night. Details on this will also be coming very very soon.
So, a busy month ahead. Maybe I’ll get to see J/C’s new MINI too!. That would be pretty sweet.
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