Glad I wasn't the only one! I was almost thinking it was a pen stand or something... Why? I have no idea.

 

It's just their US subsidiary which declared bankruptcy.

 

looks like it want even their entire US unit, just the Tipton Indiana factory

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll...TO01/811170435

still, these things have a way of snowballing....

 

I'm sitting at ~2850 miles nowadays. How's everyone else doing? Replaced my headlamps with Philips X-treme Power. Some improvement, but I need to adjust them a bit higher. Getting PIAA SS wipers on Friday to replace these crapper stockers. Oh, and I barely escaped getting tagged by a State Patrol Officer while going about 15 mph over the speed limit. Luckily I saw a vehicle on the horizon and remembered it was a hotspot...the Toyota in front of me got tagged.

 

I'm around 5600 miles after picking up R'lyeh on Halloween. She got a new set of PIAA wipers shortly after one of the last snow storms. Finally got the SmartPhone Integration working with the receipt of a new cradle from Schomp. It's awfully nice to have my iPhone tucked away and still get music and phone calls.

She's been handling the snow like a trooper. I'm really not sure how I drove a car before her

 

I'm up to 2200 miles, had my first oil change about a week and half ago, and all seems well so far. A few minor road harmonic buzzes and rattles I ignore, but no cold start clatter, window issues (knock on wood), or any of the other reported problems plauging others. Sometimes my aftermarket dipstick seals up and is a beeatch to remove, but other than that happy motoring. This car is so much more solid than my R53. TPMS is kinda persnickety but Im getting the hang of it.

last sunday after dinner I was launching onto W-bound I-76 from Sheridan and I get behind a Lexus doing 90 in the left lane--when the next thing I see is a state patrol car in the median detector didnt go off, and evidently he didnt notice us for he was shooting speeders E-bound. Dodged yet another CSP bullet.

 

Well I just hit 1200 but remember I am back on my travel schedule so I am pretty much only home on weekends. The car still smells new inside

So far I have had no issues and I LOVE the heated seats. Sometimes I think about selling all the classics and restocking the collection with all forms of MINI's but then I sober up! Nothing could make me sell my old cars but they are not getting driven much lately.

bob g
1966 OEW MGB
1966 OEW MGB-GT
1973 Green Mallard MGB - supercharged
1976 Inca Yellow TR-6
2009 Laser Blue MINI Cooper S

 

actually id love to have a classic Mini to putz around and tinker with... maybe on of those cute little Mini pickups (saw one in Oregon last summer.)

 

berto, love your collection!!

sequence, I've had the TPMS thing ding at me twice now, both when it was under 10 degrees and the DSC had recently kicked in. I'm wondering if there's a connection...?

I'll be contacting Schomp sometime, but I can't be without a car because I drive to Greeley and Loveland 3x per week to teach. Can't not be transportable, so I'll let these little things wait for a while:
* The TPMS is one thing.
* The rear wiper stalls when it's cold.
*My speedometer is consistently about 2.5 mph fast (as measured by those streetside speed monitors in every town I've traveled to). Oh, and it's way too much fun to drive.

 

yesterday was the first day it dinged me. when Schomp changed my oil on 1/17 the tech checked all tires at 33psi. After work I went to a local Shell that has free air and all were at 33 except the driver front, which was at 31. 2 lb diff and it triggers?? Anyway reloaded, and reset.

I just wish TPMS told U which tire is low, maybe automatically add air like on Hummers??

and Schomp is very good about getting you a loaner, if they need to keep yr car for a spell. U just have to make an appt in advance, usually two weeks.

 

I've been offline enjoying my Mini, but nice to hear from you all again! Dory's odometer just hit 5000 miles - can't believe it. Seems like just yesterday that we were all waiting for the ship to come into port...

I have no complaints at all. The all season runflats were pretty uncertain on the continuously snowy roads we've had this winter, but my husband got me a set of snow tires for Christmas and now we go thru anything - steady as a rock! I don't even mind the wipers too much - tho the back ones are nearly always frozen, along with most of the rear surface, including the club doors. What is it about this design that kicks up so much crap on the back of the car?? I haven't seen my license plate (or the adjacent magnets) since November!

I too am loving the heated seats - really glad I went for that cold-weather package.

It's a great ride and I'm so glad I took the plunge... Sounds like you're all having a similarly fabulous experience. Go MINI!

 

wg good to hear from ya from what Ive gathered, maybe we got lucky and hit a good build week where everyone at Oxford had their (sober) shitte together, and kept the Guinness breaks to a minimum

 

Bob I would be more than happy to help drive those MGB's fo ya!

PS to previous post: Ive been reading about carbon build-up problems in 07s and 08s MCS engines so I highly suggest everyone run a bottle of Techroline every 5K, or BG-44K (my fave) every 7500k, to reduce the probability of occurence, in addition to yr occasional "Italian Tuneup."

Go Cardinals!

 

just turned 6k, right at 3 months of activity. biggest complaint is still the ipod connector is real flaky. had some false warning lights (red tpms, yellow half engine, yellow exterior lights) come on when it sat outside for 8 hours or so in negative teens all day. the only repeat offender is the exterior lights, has come on a few times this winter, even though all the lights are working just fine.

got at least 3 little chips on the hood already, all the way down to bare metal. $%#@!*%$# got some touchup paint, but haven't had the chance to use it yet. also got some clubman letters to stick on, but haven't done that yet either.

i take that back, my biggest complaint is the lack of 8-way adjustable seats. my legs cramp up all the time if i drive for more than an hour. tried all sorts of different positions for the seat, but the problem is lack of support in the front.

rubber floormats are way better in the winter than the carpetmats i ordered originally. i may even keep those in during warmer weather too.

still missing my anthracite headliner and chrome scoop. wtf?

 

well, I guess Im the first one in our little group to report the dreaded Cold Start Noise. Happened yesterday afternoon at work, 40 F, parked level, started car, idled fine like it always has for a couple seconds, then a super loud metal-on-metal BAM BAM BAM BAM for about 20 seconds (sounded like valve lash) then all fine. car only has 2468 miles on the clock, and had been perfect since delivery. but this?

Called Schomp and had it recorded on my service record. they also told me they are seeing more cars with this problem. Hope none of you get it. Right now Im wondering if I shouldve gone for that Infiniti G37 sedan, or that 135 Bimmer Ive had my eyes on. At least those engines are proven over time and well engineered.

 

Oh, man, so sorry to hear that!!! They say they are seeing more with that issue...so have they found an explanation/solution yet??

I'm at about 3700 with no banging sounds yet, so I'm still crossing my fingers.

 

thanks man didnt drive the car today (all that mag chloride) but started it when I got home, only 5 degrees warmer and in the shade all day, and ran perfectly. As far as a possible solution, follow the magic link:

http://www.michiganmini.org/forum/in...p?topic=3115.0

This Tom guy is a MINI owner and an automotive engineer that specializes in valve train assemblies; the R50/53 Tritec engine has valve parts made by his company. His Hydraulic Lash Adjuster defect is the most plausible theory yet, altho he will admit that, despite his past dealings with BMW, he cant get them to agree to find cars with the most oft and serious cold start issues and apply his possible solution (better quality HLAs or at least valve shims) since everything else BMW attempted has failed (cam chain tensioner, vacuum box, new engine etc).

The best stuff's in the first 12-13 pages. Oh and be forewarned: his tech writeups in blue are not for the faint of heart or mind, esp. for us abstract-thinking academic eggheads But you will feel much smarter after reading them.

Oh and Schomp told me that no using 0W-30 Castrol Syntec would void the warranty. However, they did log the problem in the car's service record, and claimed that yes they've seen a spike in reported incidences, but usually on 07s with at least 10K on the clock, not a brand-new 09. And they want to twin-turbo these engines??

In the interim, if it happens again I just take Tom's (and Schomp's) advice to not let rpms exceed 2K keep it at idle and let the noise dissapate on its own before motoring. and note the day, mileage, temp, length of noise, etc in my brand spanking new MINI journal from my welcome kit that finally arrived!

But I still feel bummed--to the point of actually considering something in a seriously powerful 6cyl RWD platform... After all, this is my second MINI, and if it has problems? That's it, despite how well my dealer treats me, and how much I love being with the car.

 

I don't think the noise you are hearing is the actual engine, and I also seriously doubt it is causing any permanent damage. They'll figure it out. Hang in there, but keep reporting it.

 

That's all I can do right now. This AM was only 15 F, but all went perfect.

 

Well that's a good thing. Hopefully it was a passing thing...

 

so far, yeah... been perfect since, inc sitting a couple days. plus now I rev it up to 2500-3K when shutting down. another JCWer said this pushes sufficient oil in the hydraulic lash adjusters to keep air from getting in.

Oh and where the camshaft comes to rest at power down has a lot to do with it. As long as it's not too frequent, I'll call it a "quirk" and keep Schomp informed.

 

U CO guys will love this: Schomp didnt even realize that BMW changed the spec for 09s and that 0w-30 IS now approved oil, owner's manual p.105. Caught em with their bonnets open haha.

the bummer is: changing to 0w-30 doesnt mitigate the rattle.

 

NICE.

Good on ya.

Keeping my fingers crossed.

 

Just tipped over 4000 miles today.

 

Wow. That's more than me. I may be getting close to 2,500.

Any thoughts, comments, ideas, opinions, etc. about your MINI since you have spent 4,000 miles driving it? Any surprises, regrets?