I’ve decided to keep my 2006 MINI Cooper S, and I’m really happy about it. It’s really easy to get caught up in the allure of something new. The familiar, no matter how awesome, can easily become ordinary. That had happened with my MINI. I’d forgotten all the great reasons why I love this car. I also realized that there isn’t anything wrong with my MINI that can’t be fixed or modified to completely fit my liking. For example, I found that if I simply moved my seat back a couple of inches, my leg doesn’t hit the dash down tubes quite so bad. It’s also amazing what a set of fresh tires and a bit of love can do to reinvigorate a familiar car.
I also found that the more cars I test drove, the more I remembered why I love my MINI so much. The power, the cornering, the raw character and british cheek of it — there really is nothing else out there like it. Even the R56 MINI, as great as it is, lacks the darty splendor that is my Winston. But character aside, this makes the most financial sense. MINI will let me extend the warranty out to 100k miles for far less money out of pocket than purchasing another vehicle. When I look at the math and ask myself, “Would I buy this car for that money?”, the answer is a resounding “Hell yes!”
Dang Boy this new look is spank’n! I liked your original design also, didn’t much care for the last.
I too thought of getting a “new” MINI but last October cancelled that! Also I’m really not onboard with the chunky new MINI look. Maybe as Gabe suggests over at MF there will be changes that will give back some of that aggressive stance, clutch and steering feel I like with my ’04 S.
All the things you say about the MINI are true, plus, for me, the community of owners is so kool. I recently changed out my bonnet and boot stripes, what a pain, so much so I documented it on my blog.
NIce job.. RB
Thanks RB, I appreciate your continued patronage ;-)
I’m excited now to actually go through and detail the car as though I were going to sell it. I just know that I’ll love the car all the more after some more TLC. I definitely agree with you on the community as well. I don’t participate in the comments at Motoringfile anymore, but I’ve started catching up on the woofcast and am remembering anew how much I enjoy that show. Next is to plug into some events like The Dragon or AMVIV.
As for the site, it was a lot of work – probably touched about 90 posts at least twice as well as customizing the theme – but it’s been totally worth it. I feel like I finally have a website that looks like I actually make websites for a living.
The community I speak of are the fellow MINI owner friends I have made over these last 3-4 years. Ian in Boston, George in New York, David an Electric MINI guy, Joanne here in SoCal and many others. I also enjoy the camaraderie I find at AMVIV and other events.
I still follow MF but find the climate harsher than when it was Bridger.US. I myself have been guilty of some of that stupidity. There is no other MINI blog that has the info and following Gabe has. As far as WR goes, it’s a bit too midwestern in it’s humor for me, not a slam just not my taste.
Well keep up the good work, it’s nice to see well designed work whether is a website, painting or logo.
Glad to hear it’s stayin in the stable!