Why don't more men drive Minis?

[Levo-Lon]

hmm try a timing belt change on a Land Rover Discovery, whole body of job !! $$$$$$$$

Its about 6k on a F355 too

 

[MrGrumpy]

Is that right, just that I do work for two dealers and have never seen a body off, maybe I missed it.

Disco 4 I believe can be done in situ , older models need the body off to get at all belts. I don`t own one but was looking at buying but to be quite honest the service costs scared me big time, love the car, just don`t think its something i can afford to keep on the road!

 

[Crackle]

I checked out a few Minis. Need a new family car (well, want rather than need) for short trips, a runabout.

Checked a cooper 5 door first. Nice cabin quality, lovely steering wheel. The cabin is quite different looking to normal cars. I thought they had frameless doors but looks like only 3 door model does. The framed doors have the front edge very vertical which looks... odd. Kinda van like.

Into the back seat I went and while I wasn't expecting a bunch of space, the front seat has grooves at the back of it for rear seat passenger's knees. The only thing is if you want to move your legs around and move away from a dead ahead position, well, there's not as much space.

I went to the three door model, just for fun, and I didn't even bother sitting in the back. That car has similar leg space to a 911.

So I checked the Countryman. This has more rear space, can move around so things looked much better. But when I got out the car, it looks huge. Idk if this is an illusion or it really is big. Looked a bit oddly big rather than just big. Kinda bulbous-stylish rather than svelte-stylish.

Boot space was a tad small but I expected that too. It's just that for the size of the exterior, I was hoping for a larger interior.

Conclusion: nice interior styling and build quality. Bit big on the outside and abit small on the inside. Stick shift seemed snickety-good and I loved the steering wheel. Havent driven one yet. One model I sat in was an auto and the gear shift seemed a bit ordinary for such a stylish car.

I was parked next to one of them the other day. It was only close up that's it's size became apparent, which drew me to a closer examination of it's still small rear space and boot.

 

[screenman]

Disco 4 I believe can be done in situ , older models need the body off to get at all belts. I don`t own one but was looking at buying but to be quite honest the service costs scared me big time, love the car, just don`t think its something i can afford to keep on the road!

They are a tad expensive to own if you service them properly, most people do not which is why there are so many dogs about. I am in Land Rover tomorrow I must ask about this body off bit.

 

[craigwend]

Well the Subaru has gone,

Ended up with a high spec diesel 2012 Clubman, many think they are ugly, but I'm ugly enough and old enough to carry it off

Ooh I can think of a song ... sorry .....

 

[Levo-Lon]

From LR forum, his spelling makes mine lo8k good but its a big job going by that on the tdv6

If I was to own a disco 3 or 4 I wouldnt keep for year and years like maybe a disco 3 or 4, one reason is because to change the timing belt on a tdv6 you have to jack the body up and take most front end off.

 

[Fab Foodie]

I hired one if these and rather liked it. Saw a review of it compared to other cars and the outcome was its not as good, but I think it would still be high on my lost if I was in the market for such a car.

I'm enjoying today's Meriva more ...

 

[oldfatfool]

They are no longer a mini, end of. Now if you want a fast small car I highly recommend a test drive in an Abarth 595 competizeone, not sure on quality or reliability but by ^&^% it is a nippy bugger, certainly difficult to keep under 30.

 

[MrGrumpy]

From LR forum, his spelling makes mine lo8k good but its a big job going by that on the tdv6

If I was to own a disco 3 or 4 I wouldnt keep for year and years like maybe a disco 3 or 4, one reason is because to change the timing belt on a tdv6 you have to jack the body up and take most front end off.

yep joined the forum to glean as much info as possible, was told buying a Land Rover was really like entering a mechanic apprenticeship lol

 

[Fab Foodie]

They are no longer a mini, end of. Now if you want a fast small car I highly recommend a test drive in an Abarth 595 competizeone, not sure on quality or reliability but by ^&^% it is a nippy bugger, certainly difficult to keep under 30.

It would be my choice for a fun car!

 

[Rezillo]

The problem I have with the modern Mini is that it isn't mini. Nice enough-looking car but behind one in traffic, it looks like the bottom half has been taken from a conventional width car and the top half from something a lot narrower, perhaps to give the impression to occupants that they are in a small fun car when in reality it takes up the same road space as most other cars.

 

[roadrash]

may i refer you back to post number 20

 

[perplexed]

well you get there eventually so I thought I would get ahead of the game. Also started to play golf :O

Golf? That's it. Shoot yourself now and avoid the ignominy of dubious leg-wear...

 

[gaz]

Golf? That's it. Shoot yourself now and avoid the ignominy of dubious leg-wear...

I play golf wearing rapha

 

[Saluki]

I had a Mini Cooper and loved it. When we got a pair of rescue greyhounds, there wasn't really room in it for them (along with a Whippet and a couple of terriers) so we traded it in for a Cooper Clubman. Mahoosive mistake. It was a pile of poo and spent 6 of the 18 months that we owned it, in the garage being fixed again and again and again. The red Cooper was a fantastic car with great fuel consumption and I'd have another. Not so the Clubman.

While I had the red Cooper, Hubster had a proper Mini Cooper and used to whizz about in that and was totally delighted with it, until it needed more spending on it than it was worth. He sold it to a proper enthusiast for nearly as much as he paid for it, so that was fine then.